January-February 2012 - The Jewish Georgian

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Page 32 THE JEWISH GEORGIAN January-February 2012 Breman Museum news JANE LEAVEY RETIRES. Jane Leavey, executive director of The Breman Jewish Heritage and Holocaust Museum, retired December 31 after twenty-eight years as the voice of Atlanta’s Jewish history. As an employee of the Atlanta Jewish Federation (now the Jewish Federation of Greater Atlanta), Leavey identified the need for an archives and history museum focused on the settlement and presence of Jews in Atlanta and set out to build an institution. Today, that museum is robust in financial support, with approximately 1,200 members. It presents dozens of programs and exhibitions, and it welcomes 30,000 visitors annually. The idea for the museum grew out of the experience of participating in the creation of “Jews and Georgians: A Meeting of Cultures 1733-1983,” an exhibition sponsored by Federation that was displayed at the Schatten Gallery at Emory University. Through the efforts of a volunteer acquisitions committee, comprising individuals with ties to Atlanta and many of the smaller cities and towns throughout the state, wonderful material evidence of Jewish life was discovered. Much of this material was not being preserved, because there was no existing archive or historical society; after the exhibition, everything had to be returned to the lenders. After the Federation Board gave Jane and a dedicated group of volunteers the goahead, the Jewish Community Archives was established in 1985. This was followed by a Holocaust resource center and exhibition with a statewide program of Holocaust education and school tours in 1986. Participation in an ongoing oral history project begun by the National Council of Jewish Women and the American Jewish Committee commenced in 1989. Throughout those years, exhibitions and public programs were presented in various venues around the city, including “Creating Community” at the Atlanta History Center. The museum continued to gain attention, and philanthropist William (Bill) Breman offered the lead gift to house the archives and budding museum in one facility. The Breman Museum, which officially opened to the public in 1996, includes a gallery dedicated to the story of the Holocaust, an exhibition on the Atlanta Jewish community, and a venue for traveling exhibitions. Today, in addition to the galleries, the museum offers an extensive archives and research library. Jane created numerous Breman original exhibitions. Most prominent of these are “Where the Wild Things Are: Maurice Sendak in His Own Words & Pictures,” “ZAP! POW! BAM! The Superhero: The Golden Age of Comic Books, 1938–1950,” “Seeking Justice: The Leo Frank Case Revisited,” and “Dr. Seuss Goes to War...and More!” These special exhibitions continue to travel to other museums throughout the U.S. and even to Australia. “You can see her leadership, her vision and her creativity in each program and exhibition held at The Breman,” says current Board Co- President Joyce Shlesinger. “The museum is where it is today, a center for Southern Jewish history, Holocaust studies, and creative programming, as a direct result of Jane’s tireless efforts.” Jane Leavey Jane, thank you for your gift to Atlanta, and thank you for The Breman. Elinor Breman and Jane Leavey at The Bremanʼs opening gala, 1996 BERGER APPOINTED. Aaron Berger has been appointed executive director of The Breman, succeeding Jane Leavey. Aaron has been in nonprofit work for 12 years. He is the founder and CEO of Turning Point (2009-present), a consulting firm that specializes in turn-around strategies for nonprofits. He works with Aaron Berger museums and cultural attractions on strategic planning, fundraising, board development, and operational sustainability. An Atlanta Business Chronicle “40 under 40” awardee in 2006, Aaron has led the growth at two Georgia museums—the American Association of Museums-accredited Albany Museum of Art and the Marietta/Cobb Museum of Art. As director of each of these institutions, he ran day-today operations, elevated programming, and made each more relevant to the communities, enhanced marketing and fundraising, and put goal-setting and structure in place. In 2005, the Albany Museum of Art was named Institution of the Year by the Georgia Association of Museums and Galleries for its innovative programming and community-focused initiatives. For fundraising firm Alexander Haas’ museum practice (2006-09), Aaron advised museums on capital and annual fundraising campaigns. Aaron is attracted to The Breman’s high quality and to the opportunity to grow membership, participation, and fundraising. He looks forward to meeting with Breman Board members and community leaders, “to hear their dreams, and to work with them on defining The Breman’s future.” Aaron holds an MBA from South University, in Savannah, and a BA in art history from the College of Charleston. THE ART OF GAMAN. After the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941, the U.S. government collected 120,000 Japanese men, women, and children living on the American West Coast and forcibly relocated them to internment camps in Colorado, Arizona, and Arkansas. Their crime was simply looking like the enemy. While in these bleak camps, the internees used scraps and found materials to make furniture and other objects to beautify their surroundings. From February 5-May 31, the William Breman Jewish Heritage & Holocaust Museum will showcase such objects in its special exhibition “The Art of Gaman: Arts and Crafts from the Japanese American Internment Camps 1942–1946.” Gaman is a Japanese word meaning to bear the seemingly unbearable with dignity and patience. Arts and crafts became essential for simple creature comforts and emotional survival. More than one hundred objects will be displayed in their historical context through photos and videos from the era. It is a universally uplifting story for its celebration of the nobility of the human spirit in adversity. The Breman will host a Chai Tea reception (chai means life in Hebrew), at 2:00 p.m., Sunday, February 19 (the Japanese Day of Remembrance), marking the 70th anniversary of President Franklin D. Roosevelt’s signing of Executive Order 9066, which directed Japanese Americans to report to internment camps. The Honorable Takuji Hanatani, consul general of Japan, will open the event. Delphine Hirasuna, author of The Art of Gaman, the book upon which the exhibition is based, will be a featured guest, along with leaders from the Atlanta Japanese community, arts circles, and local officials. Event chairs are Spring and Tom Asher, Joanne and Eddie Birnbrey, Lois Blonder, Laura and Marshall Dinerman, Carol and Bob Nemo, Judy and Arnie Rubenstein, Lisa and Michael Shapiro, Joyce and Sonny Shlesinger, Margie and George Stern, and Judith and Mark Taylor. Could internment camps happen today? It is all too easy in times of crisis and war to look for a scapegoat, as Jewish history can attest. In mounting the “Art of Gaman,” The Breman is exploring universal themes of human dignity and respect for difference, as well as educating a new generation of Americans about the costs incurred when rights are violated. Visit thebreman.org for more information and to order tickets to Chai Tea. Bas-relief carving of camp in Heart Mountain, Wyoming. Artist unknown. Wood plank and paint, 25” x 11.25” x 1.75”, private collection; from Japanese American Museum of San Jose (All photos by Terry Heffernan; from The Art of Gaman by Delphine Hirasuna, 2005, Ten Speed Press) Slate teapot carved by Homei Iseyama in camp at Topaz, Utah; courtesy Carolyn Holden Wooden bird pin carved by Sadao Oka at camp in Poston, Arizona; courtesy Sadao Oka Family NEIMAN MARCUS SAYS THANKS TO VOLUNTEERS. On December 7, Neiman Marcus invited Breman Museum volunteers to a special day of shopping in appreciation of the museum’s good work in the community. The special relationship was forged in 2010 when Neiman’s began hosting The Breman’s Seder with Flowers program, which is held before Passover. Jodie Goldstein and Joanne Birnbrey See BREMAN, page 33
January-February 2012 THE JEWISH GEORGIAN Page 33 Yad LaKashish - Lifeline for the Old By Lynne Hoffman Keating and Tom Keating Tour buses abound in Jerusalem. Private companies pick up pilgrims, tour groups, and missions at well-recognized hotels. Egged’s bus #99 transports visitors interested in a hopon, hop-off overview of the city’s high spots. Tourists listen to certified guides tell about historic events and sites. To celebrate our 41st wedding anniversary, we designed our own 18night visit to Israel this past fall and made it a point to include 14 Shivtei Israel Street, which is located in the Musrara district behind Jerusalem’s municipal center. Fifty years ago, this was a rundown neighborhood on the Jordanian border in which were found increasing numbers of poor and elderly beggars, as well as homeless street seniors. Having our health, and knowing the secure feeling of having employment and family back home, it is difficult to imagine what it must have been like then to be ageing seniors in a new country without income, a new language, and no family except perhaps a spouse. But that was before Myriam Mendilow, a mother and teacher, stepped forward and founded “Yad La Kashish, Lifeline for the Old,” a unique craft center for this population and our destination that day. In a 1994 biography about Mendilow by Barry and Phyllis Cytron, which had as a subtitle, Do Not Forsake Me When I Grow Old, it was pointed out that she intended to provide an environment and opportunity filled with dignity for the less fortunate, the poor, and the elderly. When we arrived at the address, our knock on its door brought Chava Brown, Community Relations at Yad LaKashish, to meet us, and, after a brief background introduction, we teamed up with Judy and Allan Shriber, who were also visiting from the States, and our volunteer guide, Vardit Schwartz. From then on, our tour switched from historical references to walking, watching, and witnessing tzedakah in action. The Lifeline for the Old program began Breman From page 32 Spring Asher, Jane Leavey, and Julie Rotenstreich with one workshop focused on bookbinding. It has grown into a series of rooms, settings, and workshops, where a working cadre of senior immigrants, artistic teachers, and often attendant-helpers make authentic crafts. As we watched immigrants from the former Soviet Lifeline Artisans Union and Ethiopia perform detailed, intricate tasks with their fingers, our hearts kvelled like parents. No matter how limited our Hebrew vocabulary was, respect and pride could be transmitted. Their hands and our eyes communicated. The demeanor of their bodies and faces demonstrated the dedication to their work. These were not people idly passing time. They painted with intensity, cut with purpose, and hammered with gumption. They obviously enjoyed visitors, and our passionate activity with a Canon camera prompted discussion at one station. Through a combination of charades and a translating attendant, the artist shared his past as a photojournalist. Our touring companions, Judy and Allan, were as rapt and complementary about the handiwork as we were. Later, we learned that Jewish geography connected us with only three degrees of separation, as they knew family members of some of our temple rabbis. We even continued our mutual admiration of Yad LaKashish during Friday night Sabbath Services at Beit Oren. A brief tour even for 60-90 minutes invariably ends in the gift shop, shekels and credit cards in hand, representing one of the many strengths of Lifeline for the Old. We bought tchotchkes, placemats, scarves and note cards. We tried on tallit and yarmulkes. We purchased Spring Asher, Elaine Gruenhut, and Joyce Shlesinger remembrances and made a note to order more on line. We rejoiced in the works of their hands and felt uplifted at being a part of the program that provided for a place where immigrant elderly workers could earn money and a sense of achievement. Yad LaKashish makes it possible for up to 300 participants to live with dignity in Jerusalem. A recent independent evaluation completed in March 2010 by DAS International Ltd. concluded that working in Yad LaKashish gives seniors an incentive to get up in the morning, a purpose, and an opportunity to function on an equal basis in a social setting. We have since learned there are direct and indirect connections to Atlanta: the historic experiences with the founder and Janice Rothschild Blumberg; Mendilow’s subsequent publication in the Atlanta media decades ago; a few workshops supported by Atlantans; The Temple’s adult and family visitors in June 2011; and the years of association of the Epstein School of Atlanta and Lifeline. For at least a decade, Myrna Rubel, principal of the Epstein Middle School, has exposed her students to the work of artisans at Lifeline so that teenagers could learn from the hands of the aged, and so that those elders could experience hope through sharing with a future generation. L’dor va-dor. As many have noted, by being with, learning from, and sharing alongside one another, old and young help each other reach across all boundaries of culture, language, and nationality. For 50 years Yad LaKashish has given seniors the greatest dimension of charity according to Maimonides in The Mishnah Torah, “The Laws of Gifts for the Poor.” There is no greater dimension of Tzedakah than to strengthen the person’s hand so he needs no longer be dependent upon others. Daily, Yad LaKashish gives this gift. For more information visit lifeline.org.il. Lynne Keating, writer, and Tom Keating, educator, are members of The Temple.
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January-February 2012 - The Jewish Georgian

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