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Page 46 THE JEWISH GEORGIAN September-October 2012 JNF NEWS By Noah Pawliger EXPERIENCING ISRAEL WITH JNF AND BIRTHRIGHT. The first time I heard about Taglit-Birthright Israel—a free trip to Israel for young adults, between the ages of 18 and 26, who have never been on an organized, educational trip to Israel—I thought, “They’re giving away trips to Israel? How can I be a part of this?” To date, over 300,000 young Jewish people have benefitted from this opportunity and have life-transforming experiences. If you were to ask me what could be a tool to “save Judaism” in our generation, I’d offer up Taglit- Birthright Israel as a strong contender. Recently, I returned from leading my 13th Birthright trip—a Jewish National Fund (JNF) Birthright trip—and, I must say, I was amazed. I was blessed with an enthusiastic crew of young minds, thirsting for knowledge and connectivity to the land and people of Israel. My group, Shorashim Bus 128, was made up of a diverse group of young professionals, vagabonds, and students, ages 22-26 years old, all hunting for a little more meaning and a little more understanding about their inherent connection to our Homeland. We were joined by eight Israeli students and soldiers for the entire journey. Our itinerary was action-packed from the moment we touched ground. We started up north, in my favorite part of Israel: the Golan, with its breathtaking beauty and bounty. After hiking the Gilabun wilderness and a jaunt to the Mt. Bental lookout, we visited the mystical city of Tsfat, birthplace of Kabbalah. Our group spent Shabbat in the Golan, enjoying a beautiful view of the Kinneret, Israel’s primary source for water. The moment I saw the water level and compared it to my memories of last year, I registered just how critical JNF’s vital work is in implementing water initiatives in Israel. As we headed south, the political landscape changed in the blink of an eye, and so did our itinerary. Because of rockets falling in the area, we had to cancel our scheduled visit to a JNF initiative that is close to my heart: the Sderot Indoor Recreation Center. In Sderot, innocent children are constantly at risk simply by playing outside, due to the constant bom- bardment of rockets in schoolyards and homes. The recreational retreat of the playground is the one safe place for Sderot’s children to be kids. For my Birthright group, the disappointment of missing this visit was quick to set in, and the reality of the dangers the people of Israel face on a daily basis hit us like a ton of bricks. En route to our backup activity, we saw fire trucks speeding down Highway 1 toward Jerusalem, responding to attacks on JNF forests in the Judean Hills. Many of Israel’s fire trucks are quite old and rundown. Many people don’t know that Friends of Israel Firefighters, a JNF partner, helps provide new firefighting equipment and fire trucks. Ronnie Porat, JNF Israel Emissary in Atlanta, once told me that firefighters in Israel don’t get the same acclaim they receive here. They are not given the same up-to-date equipment, nor do they share in the glory of other Israeli heroes. They deserve and need better equipment. I was proud to spot a brand-new JNF-sponsored fire truck heading towards the fires. We found ourselves near the community of Yerucham, another exciting JNF project. As we stood at the dock overlooking Lake Yerucham, I had the group close their eyes to imagine the bustling promenade that will soon surround the lake, people enjoying delicious fare at cafes overlooking the water, and life developing through the sandy hills. For this trip leader, JNF was summed up in a few moments. Whether providing a safe haven for our future at the Sderot Playground or building a thriving community around a lake in the desert, the dream of developing Eretz Yisrael is coming to fruition. It’s thriving because of ordinary people who put their hearts and souls into securing a bright and new future that, for ages, was simply a dream. JNF is bringing a sense of normalcy to the lives of children in danger, planting the seeds of new communities where others thought it impossible. If you know a young person looking to have a life-changing experience on Birthright, contact the JNF Southeast office at 404-236-8990.–Noah Pawliger TREES FOR THE OLYMPIC 11. Jewish National Fund contributed a tree-planting ceremony to the July 27 program, presented by the Marcus Jewish Community Center of Atlanta Shorashim/JNF Taglit Birthright Bus 128 at the Harvey Hertz Ceremonial Tree Planting Center at Neot Kedumim Nature Preserve and the Israeli Consulate, at the MJCCA’s Olympic 11 Garden, which was created by JNF board member Sharon Levison and her husband, Mike Levison. The ceremony marked the 40th anniversary of the murder of 11 Israeli athletes at the 1972 Munich Olympic Games. The tree planting communicated JNF’s commitment to life, despite the tragedy. The MJCCA selected eleven outstanding young athletes to plant 11 saplings in the Olympic 11 Garden, which was established more than a decade ago to serve as a beautiful space in which to educate Atlanta’s young athletes about the massacre at the 1972 Olympic Games. The new JNF trees will be maintained by the MJCCA. “As an Israeli and representative of JNF, I was proud to be part of an important and meaningful community ceremony,” said Ronnie Porat, JNF emissary. “Wherever there is Israel, there is JNF.” Rosh Hashanah From page 29 were upset with a new art exhibition at the Jewish community center, featuring nude photos of women draped in religious garb—tallis, tefillin—and not much else. The exhibit was drawn from a book of photography, Shekhina, created by—you guessed it—Leonard Nimoy. Some critics found the photos revolutionary, others salacious. Most in the Orthodox community were outraged and demanded that the JCC shut down the exhibition and, if possible, beam Mr. Spock far, far away. The following morning, when I checked my e-mails, I had a note from an LNimoy asking if I was interested in hearing the real story of the Shekhina. In utter amazement, I realized that, well, Mr. Spock was trying to reach me. After jumping over a few minor logistical hurdles, I eventually hooked up with the Vulcan on the Left Coast and had a delightful conversation that became the focus of an expansive feature story. I do recall Mr. Nimoy telling me in detail how he sat next to his grandfather as a child, enthralled by the pageantry of the High Holiday services, especially the moment when the Kohanim blessed the congregation. Iconic tree planting by JNF in memory of the Olympic 11: (from left) Ronnie Porat, JNF emissary; Mike Levison; Sharon Levison; Naomi Levison; and Noah Pawliger, JNF campaign executive Years later, it was that memory, he said, that led to his developing the Vulcan greeting—hand held out in front of his face, the middle and ring fingers spread apart in what is now a very familiar pose. The four-word greeting, almost always uttered by Mr. Spock in his oh-so emotionless manner, also nicely echoes the Priestly Blessing: “Live long and prosper.” I could wish nothing better for all of us as we begin the New Year. (A footnote: After much give and take, the executive director of the local JCC announced at the time that he had spoken with all interested members of the Jewish community and would be taking their views into account as he decided the future of the “Shekhina” exhibition. Apparently he was still trying to figure out how best to handle the issue when the show finished its scheduled run six weeks later.) Ron Feinberg is a veteran journalist who has worked for daily newspapers across the Southeastern United States. He most recently worked for the Atlanta Constitution. Ron now specializes in topics of Jewish interest and can be reached at ronfeinberg@bellsouth.net. His blog, This&That, can be found at norgrebnief.blogspot.com.
September-October 2012 THE JEWISH GEORGIAN Page 47 YOU NEED TO KNOW... During the last 60 years, meter for meter, person for person, no other nation has done more for the betterment of the health, economic, and technological advancement of the world population than Israel. It is a story, although critically important, that is not heralded and largely remains unknown. We plan to present some of these unbelievable accomplishments in an attempt to disseminate the heart and soul of what and who Israel really is. STRIVE FOR TODAY TO PROVIDE FOR TOMORROW. For centuries, the land that is now Israel has laid ravaged and minimally productive. Samuel Clemens described part of it as “a hopeless, dreary, heartbroken land.” But that was before the influence from the inflow of Jews returning to their land from which they had been driven, culminating in the creation of the State of Israel in1948, a mere sixty-four years ago. They did not have much in material belongings to bring with them, but they did have a tradition of hard work and a desire to make their land a better place for them and their families. But they also brought another critical ingredient: the understanding of and the need for education. In 1918, the cornerstone for the Hebrew University of Jerusalem was laid, and in 1925 its doors were opened. The original Board of Governors was chaired by Chaim Weizmann and included Albert Einstein, Sigmund Freud, Martin Buber, Haim Nahman Bialik, Asher Ginsberg (Ahad Ha’am), Dr. Judah Leib Magnes, James Rothschild, Sir Alfred Mond, Nahum Sokolov, Harry Sacher, and Felix M. Warburg. That was a tangible acknowledgment of the understanding of the importance of accepting what was there and using knowledge and education to develop what others had abused. Our world is being challenged by the need to provide for a growing population with an apparent increasing scarcity of basic needs. But this is merely the same dilemma that has been facing Israel, just on a much larger scale. The land was wasted, the water was scarce, the population was rapidly growing. How would the basic needs of the citizens be met? They combined high-tech research with the knowledge of farming. What was and is being produced is an array of salt-tolerant crops grown in dry, desert conditions. Building on the decades of agricultural developments for the needs of the new country, a new joint research project JELF awards record $675,000 in interest-free loans The Jewish Educational Loan Fund (JELF) has awarded more than $675,000 in interest-free loans to Jewish students throughout Georgia, Florida, South Carolina, North Carolina, and Virginia, for the 2012-2013 school year. A record number of applicants came to JELF, seeking to fill the gap between the resources they assembled through grants, loans, and scholarships and the real cost of their education. JELF responded to the rising need by loaning more than ever before in a single year. JELF loaned over $217,000 to students in the Greater Atlanta area alone, a 25% increase over last year. While JELF currently administers over $3.6 million in outstanding loans, it has maintained its impressive 99 percent repayment rate. As students repay their loans, JELF uses those payments to make new loans, creating a circle of tzedakah. JELF loans are need-based and can be used for full-time undergraduate and graduate degrees as well as vocational programs. As one loan recipient recently expressed to JELF, “I just wanted to say thank you to JELF for another generous loan for my next school year. I will use the support to its fullest capacity in my path to my career and life.” For additional information, contact JELF Executive Director Lara Dorfman, at 770-396-3080, or visit www.jelf.org. Applications for JELF interest-free loans for the spring 2013 semester will be available September 2-30, 2012. Applications for the 2013-2014 academic year will be available in March of 2013. Visit www.jelf.org for complete information. between the Central and Northern Arava Research and Development center and Ben- Gurion University has been initiated to help address the problem of world hunger and make desert land productive through the establishment of an artificial desert oasis created through the use of low-cost desalination technology that is run on solar power. According to an article in Israel21c, “The new oasis solves the problem with an ecosystem that produces a variety of freshwater and salt-hardy crops that feed on saline wastewater from the desalination process. It’s in tune with Mother Earth and affordable for some of the poorest farmers subsisting on areas of encroaching desert. “From the outset, the main idea was to create a solution to feed the world’s hungry. . .” WORLD-CLASS EDUCATIONAL INSTITUTIONS A VITAL PART OF ISRAEL’S DEVELOPMENT. Do you wonder how Israel made the move from being a third-world country into the ranks of a developed country and one of the 34 members of the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development? One of the primary reasons for such unbelievable development in so short a time was education, an item sorely lacking in that part of the world. In 1913 at the 11 th Zionist Congress, thirty-five years before the establishment of Larry Brown, Alan Elsas, Lyons Joel, and Herb Stine should be sitting by the pool, eating yogurt and playing cards, not running all over the state winning tennis tournaments. But that is exactly what these four Jewish Georgians did—won the State of Georgia’s Men’s Super 70s United States Tennis Association championship, in the 3.5 category,representing Bitsy Grant Tennis Center. These four were part of the team that captured the state title in 2011. In October, they head to Savannah to defend their title. What is unique about this foursome is that they are not only in the same age bracket (over 70), but all are native Atlantans. Yep, they’re “born and bred.” Larry Brown, the “baby” of the bunch, went to Grady High School and then to Georgia Tech and Georgia State. the State of Israel, Chaim Weizmann proposed the idea of a university in what was then Palestine. He championed the cause around the world, and in 1918 the cornerstone was laid for such an institution, Hebrew University. In 1931, the university awarded its first degrees. The recently published 2012 ranking of the world’s research institutions published by the Academic Rankin of World Universities now includes three of Israel’s universities in the top 100 schools in the world. The ranking is based on “the number of alumnae/i and staff winning Nobel Prizes and Fields Medals, number of highly cited researchers selected by Thomson Scientific, number of articles published in journals of Nature and Science, number of articles indexed in Science Citation Index - Expanded and Social Sciences Citation Index, and per capita performance with respect to the size of an institution.” In 2005, The Economist commented that this survey is “the most widely used annual ranking of the world’s research universities.” In a column in the Chronicle of Higher Education, Burton Bollag, wrote that this survey “is considered the most influential international ranking.” Knowledge, when linked with an imagination, a democratic system, and an independence of opportunity, has enabled this small country to build a strong economy that is contributing to the well-being of its citizens and the world. Why lounge when you can compete? Alan Elsas, the “smartest,” attended Westminster, where he started on the Wildcats football team in its early years, and then went to Vanderbilt. Lyons and Herb (the biggest of the four, a tree of a man) came out of what were, at the time, both military high schools, Marist and Riverside Academy, and then became Bulldogs at Athens. A s much as they hate to admit it, they didn’t win the championship alone; they had some terrificteam- mates. Other members of the Bitsy Super 70s team are Capt. Harvey Brickley, Bill Outlaw, Bob Schmitz, Bob Witton, Irv Hoffman, Wayne James, and Tom Richter. Lets hope these four Jewish Georgians and their teammates defend their title in Savannah. But if not, there’s always the pool and yogurt! Lyons Joel, Herb Stine, Alan Elsas, and Larry Brown
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