A Publication of Mosaic Law Congregation - My Host Control

June/July 2011 | 28 Iyar 5771 - 29 Tammuz 5771 

The 

A Publication of Mosaic Law Congregation 

Annual Congregation Meeting 

Election & Installation of Officers and 

Board of Trustees 

Wednesday, June 15, 2011 at 7:00 p.m. 

Dinner at 6:30 p.m. in the Social Hall 

Report of the Nominating Committee: 

The Nominating Committee, chaired by Michael Opper, and 

members Mark Cohn, Tamsen D‟Souza, Deborah Gonzalez, 

Jack Harouni, Mitchell Ostwald, Randy Pollack, Roz Levy- 

Weintraub, Karl Zeff, and Caren Zorman, has recommended 

the following officers and trustees for the board year 2011- 

2012: 

OFFICERS 

President 

First Vice-President 

Second Vice-President 

Treasurer 

Secretary 

Immediate Past President 

BOARD OF TRUSTEES 

One Year Remaining 

Bruce Anapolsky 

Baryohay Davidoff 

Hilda Sadigh 

Larry Saltzman 

Rob Spector 

PRESIDENT OF 

SISTERHOOD 

Carol Loew 

(1 year remaining) 

PRESIDENT OF 

MEN’S CLUB 

Alex Zamansky 

(2 years remaining) 

Caren Zorman 

Jonathan Lightman 

Dan Ott 

David Long 

Lynn Temple 

Deborah Gonzalez 

One Year Term 

Moti Darf 

Nominated for 

Two Year Term 

Scott Cartwright 

Larry Mozes 

Erich Olson 

Randy Pollack 

Roy Rubin 

Gary Weinberg 

Vicki Wheelock 

Karl Zeff 

NOMINATION BY PETITION - According to the by-laws of Mosaic Law 

Congregation, Additional nominations for officers may be made by petition 

over the signature of at least twenty-five (25) members of the congregation 

submitted to the President with a copy to the Secretary of the congregation 

not later than ten (10) days prior to the Annual Meeting. Only those members 

nominated by the Nominating Committee and those persons proposed 

by timely submitted written petition shall be presented to the congregation 

for election. (Article XIII, Section 13.2). Past Presidents are permanent 

members of the Board of Trustees. 

Shepping Naches 

Shepping Naches is what Leo Rosten calls it. Rosten 

has been the unofficial arbiter of Yiddishisms, those 

pithy phrases that suggest memories of the old country 

but capture with uncanny precision deep felt sentiments 

or emotions that just can't be defined in mere 

English, no matter the breadth of 

vocabulary or depth of communication 

skills. Shepping Naches 

according to Rosten's "The New 

Joys of Yiddish," means to "get 

contentment or pleasure," particularly 

from the accomplishments 

of a child. 

(Continued on page 2) 

Services & Festivals 2 

From the President 5 

From Director of Education 6 

Bar/Bat Mitzvah‟s 7 

From the Men‟s Club 7 

From the Sisterhood 8 

K-O-H Library & 

Cultural Center News 11 

Board Notes 14 

Minyan Notes 15 

Community News & 

Dates to Save 17 

Birthdays & Anniversaries 18-19 

Donations 20-22 

Mazel Tov! 22 

Kiddush Sponsors 23 

Condolences 23 

Page 1 

2300 Sierra Boulevard | Sacramento, CA 95825 | (916) 488-1122 | Fax: (916) 488-1165 | www.mosaiclaw.org

The Scroll 

June 

Services & Festivals 

Shabbat Candlelighting 

Times 

June 3 - 8:08pm 

June 10 - 8:12pm 

June 17 - 8:15pm 

June 24 - 8:17pm 

Shabbat 

Shabbat Morning Service – 9:00am 

June 4 - Parashat Naso 

Havdalah - 9:11pm 

Zoey Wittlake Bat Mitzvah 

June 11 - Parashat Be‟ha‟alot‟kha 


June 18 - Parashat Shelah Le‟kha 


June 25 - Parashat Korah 


Jonathan Gutmann Bar Mitzvah 

Minyan Schedule 

Mornings 

Sunday – 8:30am 

Monday, Thursday & 

Rosh Chodesh – 7:15am 

Federal Holidays – 8:30am 

Afternoons 

Monday – Thursday – 5:45pm 

Friday Kabbalat Shabbat – 5:45pm 

July 

Services & Festivals 

Shabbat Candlelighting 

Times 

July 1 - 8:17pm 

July 8 - 8:16pm 

July 15 - 8:13pm 

July 22 - 8:09pm 

July 29 - 8:03pm 

Shabbat 

Shabbat Morning Service – 9:00am 

July 2 - Parashat Hukkat 

Rosh Chodesh Tammuz 


July 9 - Parashat Balak 


July 16 - Parashat Pinehas 


July 23 - Parashat Mattot 


July 30 - Parashat Mas‟ei 


Minyan Schedule 

Mornings 

Sunday – 8:30am 

Monday, Thursday & 

Rosh Chodesh – 7:15am 

Federal Holidays – 8:30am 

Afternoons 

Monday – Thursday – 5:45pm 

Friday Kabbalat Shabbat – 5:45pm 

Rabbi 

(Continued from page 1) 

And that's what parents and grandparents do. 

Shep Naches. And that is what we did on the 

third weekend of May. 

The weekend of May 13th thru the 16th was a 

memorable one for the Taff, Finkelstein and 

Altman families. It was the weekend culminating 

in the Rabbinic Ordination for my oldest 

son, Avi, who was ordained as Rabbi, Teacher 

and Sage of Israel at the Ziegler School of Rabbinic 

Studies in Los Angeles. The weekend 

began with a Shabbat dinner for family hosted 

by Avi‟s Aunt Shari and Uncle Mike, Avi‟s 

mom Judy Finkelstein-Taff and myself. Sunday 

morning continued the weekend celebration 

with the commencement at the American Jewish 

University campus where Avi and his 8 

rabbinic senior classmates were conferred with 

their diplomas of Masters of Arts Degree in 

Hebrew Letters and Rabbinic Literature. Judy 

and I and our machatanim, Judy and Michael 

Altman, then hosted a brunch at their home in 

Sherman Oaks. Later in the evening the graduating 

seniors and their families joined together 

at the home of the Dean of the Rabbinical 

School, Rabbi Brad Artson for a reception. On 

Monday, May 16th all of the families gathered 

at Sinai Temple in Los Angeles for a preordination 

dinner. The ordination followed at 

7:30pm in Sinai‟s main sanctuary. During the 

ordination, a Bet Din (Jewish court) presided 

and each candidate had a mentor or teacher 

present him to the Bet Din which consisted of 

Rabbi Artson and two faculty members of the 

rabbinical school. Avi‟s mom and I had the 

honor of presenting Avi to the Bet Din. Let me 

share with you the script that each presenter 

was given to say: 


Tuesday, June 7th at 9pm - Tikkun Leil Shavuot 

Shavuot is considered to be the anniversary of the Giving of the Torah at Mount Sinai. Tikkun Leil Shavuot is the custom of 

staying up the entire night (leil) of Shavuot studying with the community in order to relive the experience of standing at Sinai. 

Members of our congregation will join Rabbi Taff in presenting on many different topics. We invite all members of our congregation 

to join together for Mosaic Law's Tikkun Leil Shavuot which will begin on Tuesday night, June 7th. We will begin with a 

brief Maariv Service at 9pm in the Finegold Chapel followed by an all-night study session in our Youth Lounge. Refreshments 

will be served throughout the night. The Tikkun will end at sunrise. If you have never experienced a Tikkun Leil Shavuot, now 

is the time. Shavuot services will be held on Wednesday and Thursday, June 8th and 9th in the Friedman-Lichter Sanctuary. 

Yizkor will be held immediately after the chanting of the Haftorah on Thursday, June 9th. To insure that there will be plenty of 

food for the Tikkun, please RSVP to mary@mosaiclaw.org if you plan to attend. 

Page 2

The Scroll 

Rabbi 


Rabbi Bradley Artson: 

I am pleased to call upon Avi Slepak 

Altman Taff of whom Rabbi Reuven Taff 

and Judy Finkelstein-Taff, his sponsors, 

have said: Avi, since you were little you 

have possessed a spark of the divine 

and a Jewish soul that shines its light 

onto others.” 

(Avi Taff and Rabbi Reuven Taff and 

Judy Finkelstein-Taff ascend the Bima 

and approach Rabbi Artson.) 

Rabbi Reuven Taff and Judy Finkelstein-Taff: 

Rabbi Artson, we are pleased to be able 

to present Avi Slepak Altman Taff, our 

son, and now our Talmud-Haver, our 

colleague, as Rav. 

(Rabbi Artson and the Presenters wrap 

the tallit around the student. The student 

takes his place on the Bimah facing 

the Beit Din. The sponsors return to 

their seats.) 

Placing the Tallit around Avi‟s shoulders 

was one of those emotional moments 

that will be indelibly etched in 

our memories as he was presented to 

the Bet Din. Suffice to say that the ordination 

was an exciting moment for our 

entire family. Some of you are aware of 

Avi‟s journey to the rabbinate. For 

those who are not, Avi‟s path to the rabbinate 

was of his own choosing. Some 

of you may recall that after he graduated 

the University of Arizona he spent 

some time working as a youth director 

and teacher at a large conservative congregation 

in Pikesville, Maryland. He 

then decided to serve on the staff of 

NATIV, United Synagogue‟s first-year 

college program in Israel. After that 

experience he decided to make Aliyah 

to Israel and served for two years in an 

elite unit of the Tzanchanim, a paratrooper 

unit of the Israel Defense 

Forces. His unit was trained as an antiterrorist 

unit and Avi and his fellow 

soldiers spent a good deal of time in 

(Left to Right) Josh Taff, Judy Finkelstein-Taff, Amy Altman Taff, 

Rabbi Avi Taff, Rabbi Reuven Taff, and Ari Taff 

Arab villages and towns searching for 

and arresting alleged terrorists. The 

army experience impacted Avi in numerous 

ways. It was after the army that 

Avi made a decision to apply to rabbinical 

school, expressing to us that he feels 

that the profession as a rabbi was his 

calling (I tried to talk him out of it, but 

he was persistent :). 

For the Ordination Program Booklet 

each sponsor or presenter was asked to 

submit a paragraph to be included. The 

following is what his mom and I submitted 

together: 

"A religious man is a person who holds 

God and man in one thought at one 

time, at all times, who suffers harm 

done to others, whose greatest passion 

is compassion, whose greatest strength 

is love and defiance of despair." 

Abraham Joshua Heschel 

Avi, from the time you were little you 

have possessed a spark of the divine. 

You have always had a Jewish soul that 

shines its light onto others. Your humility, 

passion for teaching and compassion 

for people are qualities which we 

know will be instrumental in helping 

you to build a strong foundation for 

your rabbinate, one that will deeply 

touch those who will be fortunate to call 

you their rabbi and teacher. Your journey 

to this moment has been marked by 

your education, both formal and informal. 

Together with your life experiences, 

family and friends have shaped 

who you are as a person. As your parents, 

we are so proud to call you our son 

and as Jewish educators, we are excited 

for you to embark on the next phase of 

your journey and are proud to welcome 

you as our colleague. 

We hope you will always keep the ideas 

and writings of Abraham Joshua 

Heschel close to your heart and remember 

what he taught: that “praying with 

our feet” is the way we truly make a 

difference in the world and in people‟s 

lives. Avi, may God continue to bless 

you, Amy and Ethan with good health, 

love and success. 

Abba and Eema 

So, now that there is another rabbi in 

the Taff and Finkelstein families many 

may be wondering what Avi will do to 

earn a living (to help pay back his loans 

from seven years of rabbinical school). 

Fortunately, Avi (who has been a rab- 


Page 3

The Scroll 

Rabbi (Continued from page 3) 

binic intern this past year at Valley 

Beth Shalom Congregation in Encino, 

California) has been engaged as 

VBS‟s fifth rabbi. Avi is most fortunate 

to serve this well-established 

synagogue led by Rabbis Ed Feinstein 

and Harold Schulweis, two of this 

country‟s most prominent and influential 

rabbis. The congregation also 

is blessed with two cantors, a Ritual 

Director, Executive Director, Religious 

School Director, Head of the 

Day School, kosher caterer and support 

staff. Suffice to say that I am 

proud of Avi‟s accomplishments and 

only wish for him a career in which 

he feels contentment and fulfillment. 

Ok, some of you are saying to yourselves, 

„our rabbi is bragging.‟ Well, 

I wouldn‟t call it „bragging‟, just 

Shepping Naches. And I don‟t think 

there is anything wrong with that. I 

thank you for allowing me to share 

our naches with you because all of 

you at Mosaic Law are very much a 

part of my extended family. 

B‟shalom, 

Rabbi Reuven H. Taff 

Avi Taff in Israeli uniform 

Ritually Speaking 

Prayer and the liturgy involved in prayer has always been 

a mainstay of our Jewish heritage. This is especially true 

during the High Holidays when our Machzor contains the 

ancient format that is known the world over. 

This coming year we will be blessed with a new Machzor 

entitled Lev Shalem, a whole heart. This new Machzor is 

the result of 12 years of work by the Rabbinic Assembly 

and is a stunning masterpiece of traditional and modern 

Conservative Judaism. The translations and commentary 

will truly enrich our High Holiday experience. 

These Machzorim (1400 in all) are a magnanimous gift 

from Hy Kashhenberg in response to a plea by Rabbi Taff 

last Rosh Hashanah. Mr. Kashenberg has graciously 

donated these Machzorim to our synagogue in memory of 

his parents, Ben and Sarah Kashenberg, may their memories 

be for a blessing. 

For those who would like to explore and discover the 

riches of this new Machzor prior to the holidays, there will 

be 10 Machzorim available in the KOH library. I urge all 

who are interested to spend some time familiarizing themselves 

with this new addition to our synagogue. Please 

respect the fact that these Machzorim are not to leave the 

Mosaic Law premises. If any participants in the service 

need to have copies of their parts in the service made for 

them, the office will have a copy of the Machzor for photocopying 

purposes. As you can imagine these Machzorim 

are quite expensive and we would hate to suffer attrition if 

these Machzorim are removed and not brought back. 

Along these same lines, if 

anybody has Chumashim 

or Sim Shalom prayer 

books at home, there is an 

amnesty program where 

you can return them to the 

synagogue office with no 

questions asked. Please 

consider this so that we 

don‟t incur the expense of 

ordering additional books 

for no reason. 

Lastly, please take a 

moment to offer your 

thanks to Mr. Kashenberg 

who always comes forward without hesitation to answer 

our congregational needs. (I for one cannot express my 

deepest thanks for this amazing donation.) It truly is a high 

form of Tzedakah as it will enable so many people to have 

an enriching High Holiday experience. 

Todah Rabah! 

Dr. David Lerner 

(The editor would like to acknowledge the Lerner Family 

for their gift of two large print Machzorim for use on the 

Bimah) 

Page 4

Reflections from the President 

Final Scroll Article from 

President 


To continue where I left off in May, I 

would like to use this space to show 

some RESPECT for individuals in 

the congregation for whom I am 

thankful. When we last left this 

space, I was in the process of thanking each of our board 

committee chairs, our office staff, our professional staff, 

KOH founders, and the many volunteers who have participated 

in fundraising and special projects at the synagogue. 

This month, I wish to start by recognizing the amazing group 

of office volunteers we have at MLC. We have several office 

"regulars," who do everything from answering the phones to 

writing thank-you cards for donations to managing our Yahrzeit 

lists, and more. These reliable individuals include: Jeffery 

Morris, Maddy Marks, Shirley Cohodes, Sandy Shaffer, and 

Ben & Harriet Schuster. 

In addition to the office volunteers, I have incredible respect 

for two individuals who go the extra mile to transport congregants 

who can longer no drive to the synagogue, Bernie Goldberg 

and Arnold Zuckerman. 

Jim Lawson is another unsung hero; hopefully you have seen 

his beautiful craftsmanship with the "Latke Cup” trophy case, 

children's Ark, and most recently aesthetically pleasing step 

stools for the bimah. 

Our Gabbai Rishon, Lew Gray, shows his dedication to the 

congregation by preparing our Torahs for reading on a 

weekly basis and frequently learning aliyot at the last minute, 

not to mention leading the preliminary services on an almost 

weekly basis (rotating with Marty Skeer). 

Our High Holyday Hazzanim, David Lerner, Danny Weiss 

and Benjy Wald, who don't just volunteer their time and talent 

one time per year, but pretty much for every major and minor 

holiday that we have, as they lead us in Hallel or special 

Torah readings or different Megillot. 

Ricki Lobel, Debbie Azer-Brown, Dr. Daniel Khazzoom and 

now Dr. Bob Zeff, who is taking over from Dr. Khazzoom, all 

enhance our spirituality and our learning with the classes they 

lead on Shabbat mornings. 

Our minyannaires, often led by Larry Mozes, Jonathan Lightman, 

David Navi, Dwight Freund or Ethan Levy, as Daveners 

and Torah readers, and our Mincha/Ma‟ariv Davening leaders, 

Larry Long, Daniel Racket, Goldie Block and Linda 

Reitzenstein, always do their best to guarantee that no one has 

to say kaddish alone. Also a big thanks to our latest pushke 

counter, Tillie Schiff. 

Page 5 

Big thank you to our mashgichim, individuals who ensure 

that everything coming out of our kitchen is kosher and are 

chaired by Bill Thomas. 

Thank you to Phyllis Needelman, who always donates her 

time and expertise to take photos for the synagogue. 

Kudos to Jolie Baron, who puts together book clubs, movie 

clubs, and a rotating schedule of volunteers to "man" the 

KOH Library and Cultural Center. 

Mehrnaz Halimi brings us amazing artists to display their 

works and educate the public at KOH. And our Volunteer of 

the Year 2010, Taliah Berger, continues to put in more than 

40 hours per week at the Center, assisting both Laurie 

Schmalzel and the KOH group in countless tasks. 

There are some individuals who, while they are not necessarily 

volunteers, work well beyond the modest compensation 

they receive from the synagogue. These include Rande Zaretsky, 

who runs the counseling program, and our b'nai mitzvah 

tutors (some of whom are volunteers): Hannah Olson (who is 

also teaching an adult b'nai mitzvah class), Hester Joelson, 

Daniel Gumpert, Michelle Silver, and Ricki Lobel. We have 

an entire roster of religious school teachers and youth group 

advisors who, again, work far more than what they are paid to 

ensure that our youth are well-educated and connected to the 

Jewish culture. 

Phew! I know I probably forgot an entire segment of individuals…but 

I will have one more chance to redeem myself at 

the Annual Meeting on Wednesday, June 15th! Dinner, generously 

donated by Yair Luria, will be served at 6:30pm in 

the Social Hall, followed by the meeting in the Sanctuary at 

7:00pm. During the meeting we will hear annual reports from 

our various committees, present scholarships to our teens participating 

on Israel trips, announce our Volunteer of the Year 

and our Key Board Member of the Year, install the incoming 

board members for USY, Sisterhood, Men's Club, and the 

Board of Trustees, and say good-bye to the outgoing volunteers. 

We will also take a few moments to say "thank you" to 

Rina Racket for her five years' of service at MLC as our only 

Program Director. Finally, I will have one last chance to 

thank the individuals I failed to mention in these last two columns…and 

to thank my husband Louis, daughter Talia, and 

son Zachary for being so patient with me these past two 

years. I hope to see you all there. 

B'shalom, 

Deborah Hoffman Gonzalez 

The Scroll

The Scroll 

From the Director of 

Education and Youth 

Religious School 

We had a wonderful last day of 

school BBQ, thanks to our wonderful 

volunteers, especially Roger Cochran, 

Bill Thomas, Trent & Deanne 

Meyer and Debra Brown! 

Below are some pictures taken at the BBQ. 

Our first day of Religious School next year begins on Monday, 

September 12th at 4:15pm for 3rd through 6th graders. 

7th grade begins on Wednesday, September 14th at 

4:14pm. Our School Year Kickoff BBQ will be on Sunday, 

September 18th and will be followed by a Youth Activity 

Kickoff for all youth groups (3rd - 12th grades). 

Have a great summer and we look forward to seeing you 

next year! 

Youth Groups 

As you may know, I have assumed responsibility for the 

Youth Groups for MLC. This includes B‟nai Mazel (3rd & 

4th Grade), Machar (5th & 6th Grade), Kadima (7th & 8th 

Grade), and USY (9th through 12th Grade). 

We want to take this time to CONGRATULATE the Sacramento 

USY which, holds four regional offices next year: 

1) President-Miriam Gilbert 

2) Executive Programming V.P-. Sara Rochman 

3) Membership/Kadima V.P.- Kayla Soskin 

4) SA/TO- Jenya Green 

This is an AMAZING accomplishment for our chapter. We 

are soooo proud of all of you. We know you will do a great 

job for our region. Mazal Tov! 

Please register your 3rd through 12th graders early so we can 

prepare properly for next year. Forms are available online and 

at the MLC office, or you can email blue@mosaiclaw.org and 

she will send them to you. Your family must be a full or associate 

member to participate in the youth groups. 

If you have questions about either the Religious School or 

Youth Groups, please contact me at orit@mosaiclaw.org or 

call me at (916) 488-1122 x17. 

B‟Shalom 

1 

Orit Morgenshtern 

5 

2 

4 

1. We had a wonderful turnout for our Aliyah 

Ceremony. 

2. Our amazing Teachers and Teacher‟s 

Assistants. 

3. In line for food. 

4. Getting a drink 

5. Enjoying the day. 

Page 6 

3

Bar/Bat Mitzvah’s 

The Scroll 

My name is Zoey Wittlake. I am currently a student at Arden Middle School 

in the High Achievement Program. I also attended Shalom School, where I 

have many wonderful memories. I enjoy cheerleading, dance, my friends, 

and family. My Torah portion on June 4 th , 2011 is Nasso. Studying this portion 

helps me appreciate my family and the rights that I have. My Mitzvah 

projects were helping a Shalom School Drama production, tutoring the Adult 

Bat Mitzvah class in Hebrew, and volunteering at Saint John‟s Women‟s 

Shelter. I want to thank Hannah Olson, my tutor, for all her guidance through 

this experience, Leslie Kuperstein for helping with my D‟var Torah, and 

Deborah Gonzalez for her helping while Hannah was in Israel. 

Shalom, my name is Jonathan Gutmann. On June 25th, 2011, I will have the 

honor of becoming a Bar Mitzvah. My Bar Mitzvah portion, Korach, tells the 

story of an unsuccessful rebellion against the authority of Moses and Aaron. I 

look forward to sharing this important milestone in my life with you. 

For my mitzvah project I am assisting an elderly neighbor with various tasks, as 

well as simply keeping her company. Due to the fact that her husband has 

passed away, and her relatives all live out of town, she is often lonely. I take 

great pleasure in making her life more enjoyable, and I hope to continue helping 

her as long as possible. 

I currently attend Arden Middle School in the High Achiever Program and my 

favorite subjects are Science, Math, English, and History. My hobbies and interests 

include Science Olympiad (a competitive program designed to help students 

explore the world of science), playing the French horn and piano, and geography. 

Most importantly, I enjoy spending time with my family and friends. 

From the Men’s Club 

Go River Cats! 

Our next Men‟s Club event will be on June 

19th at Raley Field for a River Cats baseball 

game! This is definitely a family event 

so I want to encourage bringing out 

spouses and family to the game. Sundays 

here are great because, after the game, kids 

can run the bases with their parents (usually the kids win). Please contact Alex Zamansky at 

azamansky@rivercats.com or call at (916) 376-4869 to order tickets. 

A set of seats have already been blocked off for us as this day is historically a sell-out - so we need to 

buy now! I have been challenged by a senior member that if we couldn‟t get 30 to the poker night, we 

can‟t get more than 75 out for the game (which seems ridiculous), but I accepted his challenge (he will 

remain un-named for now). 

Any questions please let me know, and I look forward to seeing the MLC Men‟s Club represent on 

Father‟s Day! 

Page 7

The Scroll 

From The Sisterhood 

“No one has yet realized the 

wealth of sympathy, the kindness 

and generosity hidden in the soul 

of a child. The effort of every true 

education should be to unlock that 

treasure.” 

(Emma Goldman) 

It is difficult to believe that I am writing the Sisterhood 

article for the June/July Scroll. It doesn‟t seem possible 

that I have been at the helm of the organization since July 

2010. As I review our goals, I feel a sense of pride and a 

great frustration. Our wish list was full and we “kvell” 

over our successful projects like the beautifully decorated 

Sukkah, the dynamic and warm Torah Fund Brunch, a 

beautiful and spiritual Sisterhood Shabbat, the Directory, 

the renovation of our Judaica Shop, and the participation 

of our congregation in the Flower Project honoring 

Aghdas Halimi. 

As with every full plate that spills over, we left much of 

our agenda in limbo. With the time constraints of a very 

busy society, finding volunteers to assist with our work is 

so challenging. I look forward to our second year, as I 

have passed the learning curve for much of my job and 

hope to bring many more of our women into our organization. 

I have tried to acknowledge the leadership roles in previous 

articles, but I find that I have many others to thank. To 

our dedicated and overused Board members, you are truly 

the wind beneath my wings. Thank you Orit for bringing 

so much joy to this “wannabe grandmother” by the love 

and warmth that I enjoy with our Sunday School children 

each week. Selfishly, I do not look too hard for Sunday 

shop volunteers so that I get my hugs as the children come 

into the shop for the Jelly Bellies and “show and tell” their 

completed projects. 

Very special thanks to Deborah Gonzalez for her support 

and guidance as President of our congregation. She has 

always made the time to listen to our proposals and support 

us in every way. We have been blessed with her leadership. 

My appreciation extends to our Board of Trustees 

for being attentive and supportive of our work on behalf of 

Mosaic Law. 

Our office staff is amazing. Never too busy to stop and 

show me, yet again, how to use the postage machine, the 

copy machine or to locate everything that I can‟t find. Not 

to mention, the warm hugs, cup of hot coffee or support 

for any time I appear overwhelmed with a Sisterhood project. 

A very special thank you to Laura Wendel and Barbara 

Blue for their infinite patience as they await our 

monthly articles for the Scroll. Also, they make us sound 

like we know how to write! 

To Jody, my partner in crime and VP, you make it all 

much easier. Goldie, Terri, Betsy, Melanie, Karen and Pia, 

your friendship through this shared project is worth more 

than gold. Thank you to Erich and the Men‟s Club for always 

stepping up and uniting our organizations to reach 

our goal of a connected and loving congregation. I would 

be remiss if I did not thank Harry for the tremendous skill 

and humor that he brings to our shop. I am so lucky that he 

is willing to step in and help. 

OKAY, NOW ANOTHER COMMERCIAL FOR 

THE JUDAICA SHOP 

OUR SUMMER HOURS WILL BE: Monday and 

Wednesday, 3 pm - 6 pm and Friday, 1 pm - 3pm. We are 

always available by appointment. Please call Carol anytime 

at (916) 927-5220 or Goldie at (916) 480-9193. I often 

wonder if anyone reads my column…or gets to this 

point in the article. To that end, I am offering an additional 

5% off any Judaica shop purchase when you stop by and 

say “I read it all.” 

Thank you to our entire congregation for the gift of serving 

you in my capacity as President of Sisterhood. While 

many of you may think it is too much work, too much time 

etc. etc., let me tell you that the return is the gift that I receive. 

That commercial on television for a credit card that 

mentions the price of many items but ends with something 

that is priceless. Take it from me, that is exactly what all 

of this participation is to me, wonderful, fulfilling and 

“priceless.” 

See you in shul, 

Carol 

Page 8

The Scroll 

Memorial Day Service at 

Home of Peace 

Flyover by the USAF 

Thank you to all 

who attended the 

ceremony this year. 

Page 9

The Scroll 

PJ Library 

Let The PJ Library honor the fathers 

and grandfathers in your life for 

FATHER’S DAY 

June 19th 

With a gift of „chai‟ ($18), a child in 

our region will receive a book each 

month all summer long. To send a Father‟s 

Day Tribute card, contact The 

PJ Library chair Sue Sperber at 

ses@winfirst.com. 

Page 10

Kashenberg-Ostrow-Hayward 

Library and Cultural Center 

The Scroll 

The KOH Library and Cultural Center is open to everyone 

in the greater Sacramento area. It was established to provide 

a vast array of Jewish cultural programming in addition 

to a growing catalog of books and movies for loan. 

We are self supporting and always looking for financial 

sponsorship and volunteers in order to continue growing 

and meeting the needs and interests of the community. 

The Jessie Yoshpe Women’s Study Group is on hiatus 

for the summer. It will resume again in September. 

KOH Fiction Book Club - DATE CHANGE - We will 

be holding our June meeting on Thursday, June 23rd. 

There are 6 copies left of "Peep Show" available for purchase 

in the library. 

The KOH Library and Cultural Center will be closed 

on Monday, June 20th. 

Jolie Baron, Taliah Berger, Gay Tanner and Mehrnaz 

Halimi will be meeting Hy Kashenberg in Montreal to 

attend the annual Association of Jewish Libraries convention. 

We will be leaving on June 18th and will be returning 

on June 22nd. 

Special Donation 

We have recently been chosen to receive an amazing collection 

of 2,000 books from the library of the late Dr. 

Gordon Weiner, department head of Jewish Studies at Arizona 

State University. We are very busy processing these 

books and plan on contacting the local colleges to make 

available these books to anyone interested in Jewish studies. 

All paperbacks and duplicate books will be offered for 

sale at our annual book sale, October 30-31, 2011. 

If you like to play games, the KOH Library is a great place 

to hang out! We have Scrabble, Cribbage, Cards, Mah 

Jongg sets, Jigsaw Puzzles, Chess, and Backgammon 

available for use in the library. We currently have a Mah 

Jongg game on Monday afternoons and a Canasta game on 

Wednesday afternoons. We now have a chess set available 

for use in the library. 

Library Hours 

Sunday - By appointment only 

Monday - 10:00am - 1:00pm 

Wednesday - 7:00-9:00pm (during Yachad) 

Thursday - 10:00am - 1:00pm 

Friday - 10:00am -1:00pm 

We will be closed when there is no religious school and 

for all Jewish and secular holidays. 

Phone: 

(916) 485-4143 

Address: 

2300 Sierra Boulevard 

Sacramento, CA 95825 

KOH Blog – The KOH Library and Cultural Center has 

its own blog at www.kohlibrary.blogspot.com. Comments 

are always welcome. 

Mosaic Law 

Leisure League 

June 2nd, 2011, at 12pm 

Our entertainment will be The Harmonicoots, under 

the direction of head coot Bud Gardner. 

Cost of the luncheon was $5 per person for those 

people whose checks and reservations were received 

by the deadline of Monday, May 30th, 2011. Payment 

at the door of $10 each for those missing the 

deadline will be accepted only if you have called in 

your reservations to Lloyd or Sandy at 332-6561. 

Make your check payable to Mosaic Law Leisure 

League and mail or deliver to Mosaic Law Congregation, 

2300 Sierra Blvd, Sacramento, CA 95825. 

Please remember the deadline for receipt of checks 

is May 30th. 

As always, we need help in setting the tables and 

serving food. If you can help, please call Lloyd or 

Sandy. 

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The TZOFIM are coming! The TZOFIM are coming! 

The Israel Friendship Caravan, 

known as the “Tzofim” (Scouts in 

Hebrew) are coming to Sacramento 

and Davis on Shabbat weekend of 

Friday and Saturday, June 10th and 

11th. 

They consist of ten highly talented 

teens, boys and girls, ages 16 and 17, 

who crisscross North America each 

summer as emissaries, sharing their 

lives in Israel through song, dance 

and story. 

All participants are members of the 

60,000 member strong Tzofim (Israel 

Scouts) Movement, the only nonpolitical 

and non-sectarian youth 

movement in Israel. The Caravan puts 

on a show filled with life, music, 

song, energy, dance and most of all, 

heart. 

The first performance is on Friday, 

June 10th, at The Center at Twenty- 

Three Hundred, 2300 Sierra Blvd in 

Sacramento, located on the Mosaic 

Law campus. 

This performance will take place 

from 6:15 - 7:15pm, and is free and 

open to the public. 

Following the performance, there will 

be a Shabbat Dinner, Israeli style, at 

7:15pm. The cost for the dinner is 

$38 for a family of four (2 adults, 2 

children), $18 for a couple, and $12 

for individuals, if reservation is received 

before Wednesday, June 8th at 

3pm. Prices go up after that, so reserve 

early! A Shabbat service will 

follow the dinner at 8:15pm. Contact 

blue@mosaiclaw.org to register. 

On Saturday June 11th, the Tzofim 

will perform at The Davis Farmer‟s 

Market at the Oak Tree stage located 

at “C” Street, between 4th and 5th 

streets in downtown Davis. The performance 

is free and open to the public 

and will take place from 11:00 am 

to 1:00 pm, with a 15 minute recess in 

between. 

The evening of June 11, the Tzofim 

and community are invited to a dairy 

potluck and havdalah and welcome 

gathering at Congregation Bet 

Haverim, at 1715 Anderson Road, 

Davis, Ca. More details to follow 

next month. 

For more information, please contact Gail Rubin at gamarub@aol.com. This program is sponsored by the Sacramento 

Jewish Community Relations Council (JCRC) and the Jewish Federation of the Greater Sacramento Valley. 

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Board Notes 

The Board of Trustees met on April 14th and May 19th, 

2011, and the following reports were presented to the 

board. 

Fundraising Report 

Cantor Wald Tribute has been scheduled for October 

29th. Mark Cohn and Steve Polansky are co-chairs. 

Art show raised $8,500 for the general fund; the Rebecca 

Plack concert raised $1,000. 

Education 

The Purim auction raised $5,000. 

Orit Morgenshtern‟s contract has been renegotiated. 

Mosaic Law has offered Orit a four-year contract, fulltime 

with her duties to now include all youth programs 

in addition to K-7 grade education. 

Programming 

The position of Program Director has been eliminated 

due to funding. Programming will now fall to volunteers. 

Sisterhood 

Sisterhood donated $2,000 to camperships for Mosaic 

Law children attending Jewish camps/USY Pilgrimage 

this summer. 

Men’s Club 

Men‟s Club: June 19 Fathers Day at the River Cats. 

Contact Men‟s club for tickets. 

The Men‟s club donated $3,000 to camperships for 

Mosaic Law children attending Jewish camps/USY 

Pilgrimage this summer. 

The Center at 2300 

At the April board meeting Frank Gumpert, Dan Ott 

and Erich Olson presented recommendations for the 

board to consider all options for making our campus 

profitable, without compromising our kashrut policy. 

Additional committee work is forthcoming. 

Old Business 

The Rabbinic Intern Committee met to decide if the 

program should be continued/renewed. The committee 

recommends continuation, contingent on funding. 

Someone needs to step forward to be the program coordinator. 

This person would arrange travel, accommodations, 

and all details associated with the monthly 

intern program. 

Rabbi Taff has agreed to spread out his sabbatical to 

two months each year for four years. The Rabbi said 

he is scheduling the sabbatical months around the existing 

B‟nai Mitzvah calendar. Deborah Gonzalez 

thanked him for making this decision, which will save 

MLC the expense of hiring a rabbi to cover an 8- 

month sabbatical. The Sabbatical Committee needs to 

continue to meet to arrange coverage for Shabbats and 

funerals. 

High Holyday seat holders will be asked to donate 

unused seats back for re-sell at the price of $300 per 

seat. 

New Business 

Endowment Fund for Second Clergy 

The idea of an endowment to fund a second clergy is 

being researched. This professional staff position will 

need outside funding; our general fund cannot support 

it. The second clergy is needed for: Adult Ed, programming, 

minyanim, b‟nai mitzvot, ritual, pastoral 

care, life cycle, musical enhancement, and Torah reading. 

There was discussion about whether or not our 

congregation would be better served meeting the acute 

needs of a second clergy, with a drive to increase donations 

over a 3-4 year period to cover the salary. 

Deborah will meet with her committee and come back 

with a recommendation. 

Mosaic Law Foundation Board Appointments 

Leyne Milstein and Arlen Opper have been appointed 

to serve on the Foundation Board; they join Ken Fahn, 

Marc Sussman, Steve Polansky, Mark Cohn and Alan 

Brodovsky. 

Home of Peace Board 

The Home of Peace meeting is scheduled for August 

30th at Mosaic Law, congregants are welcome to attend. 

The Mosaic Law Board of Trustees meets the second 

Wednesday of the month at 7:00pm in the Youth Lounge. 

Meetings are open to the congregation except when in executive 

session. **Note: In place of the June Board 

meeting, all are encouraged to attend the synagogue's 

annual meeting to be held Wednesday, June 15th at 

7:00pm. (Dinner served at 6:30pm). 

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Minyan Notes 

We have regular a minyan each Sunday morning at 8:30, 

Monday and Thursday mornings at 7:15am (8:30am on 

Federal holidays) as well as Monday - Thursday Mincha 

minyans at 5:45pm. All these Minyan services take 

place in the Finegold Chapel. 

A Minyan of 10 people need to be present for mourners 

to say Kaddish, as well as to bring out the Torah. If you 

can join the Minyannaires at least once a month, no one 

will be unable to say Kaddish for their loved ones due to 

the lack of a Minyan. 

Each Sunday at 8:30 we have our Shacharit Service after 

which we have breakfast and, most Sundays, a guest 

speaker. We have the following speakers scheduled for 

upcoming Sundays. Please join us for this time of worship 

and fellowship. 

Bernie Goldberg - “I Made It Up and It‟s True,” a retrospective. 

Bernie Marks from Congregation B‟nai Israel will be 

speaking on Jewish Geneaology. 

Mike Lightman, the father of our own Jonathan Lightman, 

will be speaking about working with social services 

serving the Jewish community in LA.. 

Harvey Cantor will speak about Nuclear Energy. 

Jonathan Lightman will speak about politics from a Jewish 

perspective. 

Janice Lightman will speak about Israeli style song and 

dance. 

For questions about the speakers, or to volunteer to 

speak yourself, or to sponsor a breakfast, contact Jeffery 

Morris at (916) 342-5940. 

$200 Deposit Secures a Space for our 

December 25th - January 5th 

Trip to Israel 

On Sunday, December 25, 2011, members of Mosaic 

Law, relatives, friends, and others throughout our community 

will have the opportunity to join Rabbi Reuven 

Taff on a memorable 10 day tour of Israel. 

The trip is for adults and families, first-timers and those 

who have already been to Israel. Highlights of the tour 

will include staying at deluxe five-star hotels, and an 

optional one-day tour of the ancient ruins of Petra, 

Jordan. The itinerary includes a jeep tour of the Golan 

Heights, including a visit to the mystical city of Tzfat, a 

tour of Massada and a day of leisure at the beautiful 

southern city of Eilat. 

Those traveling with Rabbi Taff will fly non-stop from 

Los Angeles on Sunday, December 25th. The group will 

return to Sacramento on Thursday, January 5, 2012. Opportunities 

to extend beyond the tour are available as 

well. Look for the complete information (itinerary and 

costs) which is attached to our monthly e-scroll. For further 

information please contact Mary Blumenstein at 

mary@mosaiclaw.org or Rabbi Taff directly at 

rabbi@mosaiclaw.org. Most importantly, do not delay! 

This trip is expected to be sold out. 

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Community News and Dates to Save 

Community News 

Sunday, June 5th from 6-9pm - An Evening in Eden 

Step into the garden when you join us for an "Evening in 

Eden" as Kenesset Israel Torah Center hosts its annual 

auction gala. RSVP now. Tickets are $75. Sponsorships 

available. Invitations are available for download http:// 

www.kitcsacramento.org/KITCEdenInvite2011.pdf or call 

Rose Mary Swart at 916 812.5831 for more information. 

Tuesday, June 7th at 9pm - Tikkun Leil Shavuot 

Shavuot is considered to be the anniversary of the Giving 

of the Torah at Mount Sinai. Tikkun Leil Shavuot is the 

custom of staying up the entire night (leil) of Shavuot 

studying with the community in order to relive the experience 

of standing at Sinai. Members of our congregation 

will join Rabbi Taff in presenting on many different topics. 

We invite all members of our congregation to join 

together for Mosaic Law's Tikkun Leil Shavuot which will 

begin on Tuesday night, June 7th. We will begin with a 

brief Maariv Service at 9pm in the Finegold Chapel followed 

by an all-night study session in our Youth Lounge. 

Refreshments will be served throughout the night. The 

Tikkun will end at sunrise. If you have never experienced 

a Tikkun Leil Shavuot, now is the time. Shavuot services 

will be held on Wednesday and Thursday, June 8th and 

9th in the Friedman-Lichter Sanctuary. Yizkor will be 

held immediately after the chanting of the Haftorah on 

Thursday, June 9th. To insure that there will be plenty of 

food for the Tikkun, please RSVP to 

mary@mosaiclaw.org if you plan to attend. 

Friday, June 10th at 6:15pm - The Tzofim are Coming! 

The Israel Friendship Caravan are coming to Sacramento 

and Davis in June. See your April Scroll for details. The 

Tzofim will perform on Friday, June 10th, at The Center. 

The performance will first take place from 6:15 to 7:15 

pm, and it is free and open to the public. Following the 

performance, there will be a Shabbat dinner, Israeli style, 

at 7:15 pm. The cost for the dinner is $38 for a family of 

four (2 adults, 2 children), $18 for a couple, and $12 for 

individuals if reservation is received before Wednesday, 

June 8 at 3pm. Prices go up after that, so reserve early! A 

Shabbat service will follow the dinner at 8:15pm. Contact 

blue@mosaiclaw.org to reserve. 

Wednesday, June 15th - Annual Congregation Meeting 

Election & Installation of Officers and Board of Trustees. 

Dinner at 6:30pm in the Social Hall followed by the meeting 

at 7pm in the Sanctuary. A Report of the Nominating 

Committee will be sent in the e-scroll or can be obtained 

in the office. 

Sunday, June 19th at 1:05pm 

Join the Mosaic Law Men‟s Club at Raley Field to see the 

River Cats vs. the Fresno Grizzlies! Take part in the fun! 

Pick up a flyer in the foyer for details. 

Tuesday, June 21st at 5:30pm 

JERICHO Jamboree Jonathan Lightman is being honored 

at the JERICHO Jamboree. The Celebration will be at Cathedral 

of the Blessed Sacramento, 1115 K Street, Sacramento, 

CA 95814. Tickets are $45.00. There will be food 

and drinks provided by Sacramento's finest, a live auction 

and a silent auction. For information, visit the web site: 

www.jerichoca.org or call 916-441-0387. 

SAVE THE DATE! 

October 29th, 2011 - Mosaic Law will be honoring 

Cantor Emeritus George Wald. Mark your calendars and 

come out to honor this beloved member, and former Cantor, 

of Mosaic Law. Additional honorees are Dr. David 

Lerner, Danny Weiss, and Benjamin Wald for their many 

years of lay Cantorial service. 

Misc. Info 

Broaden your perspective by opening your heart and home 

to a foreign exchange student. YOUTH FOR UNDER- 

STANDING supports the advancement of moral and ethical 

standards in all aspects of life and has linked more than 

250,000 exchange students with families around the world 

since 1951. For more information, visit www.yfu-usa.org 

or Phone 1-866-493-8872 today and see lives change. You 

are not going to want to miss this opportunity to play an 

active part in helping to promote world peace and understanding. 

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Jewish Genealogical Society 

of Sacramento 

June 20th, 2011 at 7pm and July 18th, 2011 at 7pm 

basha 

The Jewish Genealogical Society will 

hear from Bay Area genealogist and 

website guru Steve Morse on Monday 

evening, June 20 at 7pm. His topic 

will be "DNA and Genealogy." Steve 

says he's not geneticist, not a biologist, 

and not a chemist. And he has no affiliation 

with a DNA testing laboratory. 

He's an engineer. 

He put together his June presentation because DNA has 

become a hot topic in genealogy, but most people really 

don't have the DNA basics. He'll focus on genes, chromosomes 

and DNA to give us a better understanding of 

what they're all about. 

On Monday, July 18, 7pm, the group will hear from 

Marian Kile on "Organizing Your Research." Marian 

will show how to set up a simple system to complete and 

file documents that allows easy access. She'll also provide 

tips on how to store electronic images for convenient 

access. 

Both meetings will take place at the Albert Einstein Residence 

Center, 1935 Wright St., Sacramento. For more 

information about the Jewish Genealogical Society of 

Sacramento, visit www.jgss.org, e-mail the JGSS at 

jgs_sacramento@yahoo.com. 

Mosaic Law Counseling Center 

There is a saying in our Talmud: “Who shares in 

the community‟s troubles will also share in its 

consolation” (Ta’anit 11a). 

Our synagogue offers short-term counseling with 

a volunteer professional licensed therapist. 

Rande Zaretsky, a licensed Marriage and Family 

Therapist (MFT) has offered her services as a 

volunteer to the members of our congregation. 

Counseling is a process of confidential discussions 

with a trained licensed therapist. With the 

support of an objective therapist you can identify 

and develop alternative coping skills. Appointments 

are open to children, teens, adults and couples 

of all ages. The therapist will have private 

office hours on Tuesdays, hours to be arranged. 

Alternative arrangements may also be available. 

A fee to the synagogue of $36 is to be paid at 

each session. No one will be turned away because 

of inability to afford the fee, but everyone 

will be expected to pay something. 

To schedule a confidential appointment, please 

call (916) 488-1166 and when you get the recording, 

immediately push extension 25 to leave 

a message for the therapist. Be sure to speak 

clearly and slowly, leaving your name and phone 

number. 

The therapist will be checking for messages 

twice each day and will return calls within 24 

hours, Mondays thru Thursdays. 

Should you have any questions about this program, 

feel free to contact Rina Racket, Program 

Director or Rabbi Reuven Taff. Strict confidentiality 

will be maintained. 

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Birthday Wishes for June 

1 Alice Cartwright 

1 Dillon Gold 

1 Donald Heller 

1 Ayala Luria 

1 Aron Olson 

1 Leah Winter 

2 Joshua DePeel 

2 Mason Dewing 

2 Susie Herberholz 

2 Simone Naftulin 

2 Daniel Roth 

2 Susan Sperber 

3 Bernie Goldberg 

3 Ilana Weisberg 

3 Danny Zeff 

4 Jonathan Gutmann 

4 Zachary Ott 

4 Zoey Ott 

5 Dianna Oglethorpe 

5 Joe Samuel 

5 Shir Toledano 

6 Rachel Adelman 

6 William Ben-Reuven 

6 Stanley Greenberg 

6 Irving Herman 

6 Ro'e Kuperstein 

6 Yuval Luria 

6 Debra Malenovsky 

6 Kylie Miller 

7 Talia Spector 

7 Eli Vaknin 

7 Nathan Weisberg 

7 Karl Zeff 

8 Abby Edber 

8 Daniel Sokoler 

9 Sean Arenson 

9 Joshua Frost 

9 Stacey Stauber 

9 Susan Weinstein 

10 Rita Frumberg 

10 Nathan Goore 

10 Leslie Kuperstein 

10 Judith Lewis 

10 Larry Lieb 

10 Bert Polan 

11 Howard Futerman 

11 Ella Sharg 

12 Zachary Baron 

12 Avi Shapiro 

13 Irwin Herman 

13 Robert Mehler 

13 Michael Opper 

13 Rita Swedlow 

14 Marcia Goldmark 

14 Wendy Hoffman- 

Blank 

14 Meredith Howe 

14 J. Daniel Khazzoom 

14 Michelle Ortego 

15 Joyce Weinberg 

16 Larry Brownston 

16 Valerie DePeel 

16 Naomi Holland 

16 Steven Merksamer 

16 Larry Mozes 

17 Andy Baron 

17 Darci Naftulin 

17 Dan Ott 

18 Karen Gray 

18 Hester Joelson 

18 Sophie Rubin 

18 Harriet Ruderman 

18 Aviva Spector 

19 Steve Kutler 

19 Maddy Marks 

19 Bernice Schumer 

19 Omer Shenhar 

19 Danny Weiss 

20 Chuck Adelman 

20 Scott Dosick 

20 Shira Gilbert 

20 Samantha Greenspan 

20 Joshua Kravitz 

20 Yael Rosenberg 

21 Nancy Bernheimer 

21 Viva Ettin 

21 Sylvia Greenstein 

21 Rachel Holland 

22 Nina Goldberg 

23 Alexandra Barth 

23 Jamie Lerner 

23 Lloyd Rich 

25 Stanley Berrin 

26 Jonah Howe 

26 Elayne Metzger 

27 Gail Rubin 

27 Richard Weisberg 

28 Michael Greenspan 

28 Abbie Lewis 

28 Leo Liberman 

28 Jeffrey Schmelter 

28 Beverly Zimmerman 

29 Evelyn Bigelyaizen 

29 Bernice Bromberg 

29 Devorah Samuels 

29 Patricia Scharlach 

29 Keith Schwarz 

29 Rebeka Shapiro 

30 Robert Brown 

30 Bari Gregory 

30 Eric Ratinoff 

30 Rachel Sussman 

June 

Anniversaries 

3 Miles & Clara Miller 

3 Eric & Patrice Ratinoff 

5 David Asch & Wendy Phoenix 

5 Jerry & Leslie Kuperstein 

7 Chuck & Susanne Brabec 

9 Ashley & Jennifer Keating 

10 John & Debbie Lewis 

10 Eliot Reiner & Debbie Metzger 

11 Philip & Shelly Crane 

12 Larry & Evie Lieb 

14 Bert & Alice Polan 

15 Andy & Ruth Baron 

15 Roger & Richelle Cochran 

15 Art & Julie Terner 

16 Leslie & Enid Malkin 

16 David & Linda Poisner 

16 Malcolm & Melanie Segal 

17 Gene & Eleanor Elzufon 

17 Oded & Orit Morgenshtern 

17 Steve & Karen Polansky 

18 Charles & Goldie Block 

18 Yoav & Orna Harel 

18 Bob & Loretta Lentzner 

19 Peter & Sylvia Greenstein 

19 Stephen & Mehrnaz Waks 

20 Frank & Janie Gumpert 

20 Harry & Susan Sperber 

21 Bob & Rosalie Mazur 

21 Allen & Judy Prohofsky 

22 Joe & Harriette Schwartz 

23 Steven & Cheryl Block 

23 Joe & Teresa Green 

23 Marvin & Linda Kamras 

23 Daniel Weitzman & Jill Stecher 

24 Ron Dworitz & Eva Teilmann 

25 Ed & Rita Abbott 

25 Lew & Toni Rosenberg 

26 Larry & Jan Highman 

26 Karl & Sheri Zeff 

27 Freddy & Stephanie Cohan 

27 Jeff & Randy Goldstein 

28 Bob & Tamra Ruxin 

28 Mark & Dee Tannenbaum 

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Birthday Wishes for July 

1 Lindy Asch 

1 Claudia Breglia 

1 Juliana Weinstein 

2 Gisela Spigel 

2 Carl Stein 

3 Sorelle Berger 

4 Ellen King 

4 Shelli Lavender 

4 Enid Malkin 

5 Phil Fine 

6 Jennifer Klein 

6 Tita Nazarian 

6 Benjamin Rubin 

6 Robert Spector 

7 Victor Strasser 

8 Leslie Malkin 

8 Norman Weiner 

10 Joe Cohan 

10 Phyllis Needelman 

10 Naomi Villanueva 

11 Bruce Anapolsky 

12 Deborah Frost 

12 Joshua Heller 

12 Yair Luria 

12 Linda Reitzenstein 

12 Daniel Salman 

12 Jonathan Salman 

12 Nathan Samuel 

12 Esti Shapiro 

12 Zoey Wittlake 

13 Loretta Lentzner 

13 Debbie Metzger 

13 Carole Sussman 

13 Linda Yassinger 

14 Steven Gregory 

15 Robin Berrin 

15 Marcy Friedman 

16 Jessica Mador 

16 Bebe Pollack 

17 Scott DePeel 

17 Jeffery Morris 

17 Sheli Varshawsky 

17 Alex Verpukhovsky 

17 Rebecca Yaghoubian 

18 Ruthie Edelstein 

18 Sheryl Long 

18 David O'Riva 

18 Tali Shenhar 

19 Isaac BarShahar 

19 Annette Davis 

19 Jeremy Futerman 

19 Irene Green 

19 Sandy Shaffer 

19 Marc Sussman 

20 Lisa Breslau 

20 Diane Dulberg 

20 Cynthia Goldberg 

21 Rick Cohen 

21 Ava Miller 

21 Sophia Samuel 

21 Marjorie Swartz 

21 Devan Varshawsky 

22 Samantha Epworth 

22 Morgan Haberman 

22 Dana Long 

22 Michelle Masoner 

23 Diane Mozes 

24 Susanne Brabec 

24 Noa Elliot 

24 Edward Kobrin 

24 Stacy Spector 

25 Aaron Tomiyama 

25 Eli Wolf 

26 Adam Davis 

26 Hellan Dowden 

26 Rachel Miller 

26 Josiah Ortego 

26 Judah Ortego 

26 Philip Reiser 

26 Pat Thaler 

27 Gus Ballis 

28 Fred Gardon 

28 Linda Merksamer 

28 Hannah Poisner 

28 Eliot Reiner 

28 Boris Rozenberg 

28 Ally Wickham 

29 Marilyn Bargman 

29 Julia Saunders 

29 Laura Saunders 

29 Lauren Weil 

30 Stephen Opper 

31 Yehonatan 

Morgenshtern 

31 Estelle Opper 

31 Eva Revesz 

31 Janet Solomon 

31 Amanda Wolf 

July 

Anniversaries 

1 Hanoch & Meladee McCarty 

1 Philip & Roxanne Stanger 

2 Chuck Adelman & Anna Joy 

2 Alan & Nancy Brodovsky 

4 Mitch & Teri Ostwald 

5 Bill Blank & Wendy Hoffman- 

Blank 

5 Arkady & Sofia Komsky 

6 Steve Gregory & Melinda Yaffee 

6 Fred & Meredith Howe 

8 Steve & Linda Merksamer 

11 Todd & Jennifer Barth 

11 Ken & Annette Davis 

11 Chuck & Barbara Spooner 

13 Matt & Mary Friedman 

15 David & Bobbette Morvai 

15 Mike & Betsy Singer 

22 Bradley & Hellan Dowden 

24 Murray & Gail Haberman 

24 Donald & Lesley Heller 

25 Sy & Beverly Karfiol 

25 Dan & Melinda Ott 

26 Craig & Ezilda Samoville 

27 Rick Gould & Michelle Masoner 

28 Eric & Leyne Milstein 

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Generous Gifts From Thoughtful People 

Donations Made Between April 21 through May 20 

Aliyah Fund 

In appreciation of their Aliyah. 

Gayle & Ed Fishkin 

Beryl Schuster Bar/Bat 

Mitzvah Fund 

In honor of Jonah Cartwright on his 

Bar Mitzvah 

In honor of Mia Fahn on her Bat 

Mitzvah 

Lisa & Robert Velazquez 

Building Fund 

In memory of Loretta Yassinger 

Lesley & Carl Stein 

In memory of Minerva Heller 

In memory of Myrna Baylinson, his 

mother-in-law 

In memory of Nettie Gordon 

Irv Goldberg 

Education Director’s 

Discretionary Fund 


Laurie, Michael, Alex & 

Ryan Kamras 

Education Fundraising/ 

Programming 

In memory of Archie Vine 


Speedy recovery to Alvin Mund, 

father of Linda Kamras 

Sharon & Sam Anapolsky 

Ernest & Sylvia Fahn Israel 

Scholarship Fund 

In honor of Arlene Pearl on her special 

birthday 

In honor of Ron Klafer on his 

“special” birthday 



Rowena Fahn 

Mazal Tov! Holly & Michael Fahn on 

the naming of your daughters 

Betty & Gershon Salomon 

General Synagogue Fund 


Betsy & Mike Singer 

Laurie & Larry Meyer 

Shira & Don Golbert & 

Family 

In memory of Dean, the son-in-law of 

Shelly Meshulan 

Joyce Berger 

In memory of Doris Schaffer, dear 

mother of Michael 

Shira & Don Gilbert & 

Family 


Betsy & Mike Singer 

Janie & Frank Gumpert 

Kaneski Associates 

Laurie & Larry Meyer 

Leona Boris 

Judah Jacobson Mitzvah 

Fund 

In memory of Marilyn Stecher, her 

mother, on her 40th Yahrzeit 

Jill Stecher 

In memory of Yetta Block, their Aunt 

on her Yahrzeit 

Jill Stecher & Dan & Mychal 

Weitzman 

Kesher Fund 


In memory of Archie Vine, a wonderful 

gentleman 

Susan & Larry Long 

Rande & Henry Zaretsky 

Page 20 

KOH Library & Cultural 

Center 

Speedy Recovery to Leslie Malkin 

Enid, Fred, Jerrold & Mort 

Malkin 



Milly & Michael Hayward 

In honor of Rita & Ed Abbott on their 

50th Anniversary 

Enid & Les Malkin 

Mazon Food Closet 

Mazel Tov! Mosché Cohen on her Bat 

Mitzvah 

Charlotte Ballard & Bob Zeff 

In appreciation of Randy Pollack & 

Bebe Halimi for their continued kindness 

Susanne Leitner & Robin 

Berrin 

Men’s Club 


Leslie, Jerry & Roe 

Kuperstein 

Mishebayrach Fund 


Maddy & Herb Marks 

Murray Bachman Minyan 

Fund 

In memory of Ada Goldberg, Bernie‟s 

dear mother 

Molly & Bernie Goldberg 

In memory of Elaine Bailin 

Iris & Ron Bachman 

(Continued on page 21)


In memory of Eugene Schwarz, 

beloved father of Jerry 

Leslie & Jerry Kuperstein 

In memory of Helen Goldberg 

Rowena Fahn 

In memory of Joseph Pleva, her father 

Betsy Singer 

Past President’s Youth 

Fund 


Arlene & Elliot Pearl 

Janet & Mort Ehrlich 

Joyce & Stephen Weinberg 

Judy Persin 

In honor of Arlene Pearl on her 

special birthday 

Charlotte Ballard & Bob Zeff 



Judy Persin 

In memory of Betty Stecher 

In memory of Karen Singer, Sister of 

Larry Long 

Suzie & Bob Lauer 

In honor of Lexi Goldwyn for winning 

the top prize in the Eleanor J. 

Marks Holocaust Essay Contest 

Louise & Michael Caplan 


Arlene & Elliot Pearl 


Jill Stecher & Dan Weitzman 

Joyce & Steve Weinberg 

Judy Persin 


In honor of Ron Klafer on his 80th 

birthday 



Rabbi’s Discretionary Fund 

Wishing a speedy recovery to Al 

Shemano 


In honor of Amy Taff‟s recovery 



Davina & Barbara Dubnick 

Elena Friedman-Weiss & 

Danny Weiss 


In memory of Betty Stecher and in 

appreciation of Rabbi Taff 

Leonard Stecher 

In appreciation of her Aliyah 

Joyce Berger 

In memory of Joe Blackstead, her 

husband 

Barbara Dubnick 

Good wishes to Libby Parr 



DataLink Corporation 

Davina & Barbara Dubnick 

Elena Friedman-Weiss & 

Danny Weiss 

Evie & Larry Lieb 

Faculty & Staff of the Nursing 

Program, Sacramento City 

College 


Maddy & Herb Marks 

In honor of Rabbi Avi Taff on his 

ordination 

Shirley Cohodes & family 

In appreciation of Rabbi Taff 

Lynne Gailin 

Rose Neibrief 

In appreciation of Rabbi Taff for his 

support 

Sid Yassinger 

In appreciation of Rabbi Taff for the 

interesting & funny baby naming 

Holly & Mike Fahn 

The Scroll 

Mazal Tov! Ron Klafer on his 80th 

birthday 

Marsha & Ralph Guggenheim 

& family 

In appreciation of the honor of having 

an Aliyah 


In memory of Zerman Assayag, sister 

of Sima Toledano 


Sisterhood 

In appreciation of Sisterhood Shiva 

Committee 

Linda & Sid Yassinger 

In appreciation of the meal of 

condolence 

Leonard Stecher 

Yahrzeit 

In memory of Ben Zuckerman, his 

father 

Arnold Zuckerman 

In memory of Etta Abbott, his mother 

Ed Abbott 

In memory of Gerald Levine, her 

brother 

Delores Spitzer 

In memory of Gretl Neuwald, her 

mother 

Karen Neuwald 

In memory of Helen Kaufman, her 

mother 

Sylvia Greenstein 

In memory of Herbert Spitzer, his 

brother 

David Spitzer 

In memory of Jacob Weinberg, his 

grandfather 

Harry Weinberg 

In memory of Jacqueline Edelstein 

Evans, her beautiful daughter 

Lilyan Edelstein 


Page 21

The Scroll 

Donations (continued from page 21) 


Gayle & Edward Fishkin 

Susanne Leitner & Robin Berrin 

In memory of Margaret Bregman, Janie‟s dear mother 


In memory of Martin Jacobson, her father 

Gayle Fishkin 

In memory of Miriam Whitman, Sharon‟s mother 


In memory of Nettie Jerris, his aunt 

Charlie Block 

In memory of numerous family members 

Abraham Freedman 

In memory of Paul Berlowitz, Susan‟s father 

Susan & Marvin Brienes 

In memory of Raymond Marks, her father 

Terry Marks 

In memory of Rose Goldstein, his mother 

Jeffrey Goldstein 

Mazel Tov! 

Kerry Wittlake-Taylor and Tim Taylor on the birth 

of their son. 

Charlie & Goldie Block on the birth of their 11th great 

-grandchild, Thomas Augustine Block. 

Michelle Baron, daughter of Jolie Baron, granddaughter 

of Bill & Shola Ostrow, received her PhD in Performance 

Studies, with a minor in Women‟s Studies, 

from UC Berkeley on May 16th, 2011! 

Peter & Judy Daru on their daughter, Michele, graduating 

Valedictorian & Magna Cum Laude from West 

Coast University in Dental Hygiene. 

Charlie & Goldie Block on the birth of their 12th & 

13th great-grandchildren, twins Bella Sabra and Sophia 

Georgette! 

Steven & Mehrnaz Waks on their son, David, graduating 

from Berkeley Law, University of California-Boalt 

Hall this past week; and their son, Michael, graduating 

from the University of California at Berkeley, Phi Beta 

Kappa and Suma Cum Laude in Economics and will be 

attending Harvard Law School in August! 

Martha Negrete, our wonderful custodian, on the birth 

of her third grandchild, Mia Valentina! 

Marty & Susan Skeer on the birth of their new granddaughter, 

Ariella Dani Corcoran! 

Mosaic law member Joshua Steven Masoner Gould 

will be called up on the occasion of his Aufruf together 

with his fiancé Michelle van Tijen on July 2, 2011. 

Joshua's parents, Richard Gould and Michelle 

Masoner welcome the congregation to join and celebrate 

this important simcha afterwards during a hosted 

Kiddush lunch. 

Courtyard Bricks 

May means Graduations, Weddings and Showers. 

Mosaic Law Courtyard Bricks are a nice 

way to honor or memorialize someone special in 

your life. Consider having a brick placed in our 

lovely courtyard. We need 11 more brick orders 

for them to be installed before the High Holydays, 

so if you have been thinking about it, now 

is the time! The cost is $125.00 a brick. Contact 

Judy Persin, Courtyard Brick Chairperson, at 

(916) 487-0088 or jbpersin@aol.com for more 

information. 

Page 22

The Scroll 

Kiddush Sponsors, Hosts and Co-Sponsors for 

April 24 - May 28 

Dana & Alan Edelstein in honor of their son, Jason and his fiancee, Leah Wagner on their Ufruf & wedding 

Marlene & Mel Chernev in honor of Marlene's birthday 

Marlene & Mel Chernev in memory of Nettie Goppman, Marlene's mother 

Milly & Michael Hayward in honor of Michael's birthday 

Scott & Alice Cartwright in honor of the Bar Mitzvah of their son, Jonah 

Federico & Stephanie Cohan in honor of the Bat Mitzvah of his daughter Mosché 

Jim & Judy Lawson in honor of Jim‟s birthday 

Harriet & Ben Schuster in honor of their anniversary 

Tillie Schiff in honor of her birthday 

Lisa & Micha Ben-Reuven in honor of their anniversary 

Estreilla Allen in honor of her mother, Marie Levander 

Parents of our 10th Grade Confirmation 

The Fahn Family in honor of the Bat Mitzvah of Mia Fahn 

Condolences for April 24 - May 28 

Lorraine Katz on the loss of her dear father, Louis Neibrief of blessed memory. Louis, a Holocaust survivor, died peacefully 

at the age of 95. 

Sima Toledano on the loss of her dear sister Zermen Assayag, of blessed memory. 

Susie Long, Barry Goldberg and Rande Zaretsky on the loss of their dear aunt, Helen Goldberg of blessed memory. 

Michael Schaffer on the loss of his dear mother, Doris Schaffer of blessed memory. 

Judith Goodman on the loss of her dear cousin, Eric Elkin of blessed memory. 

Hanoch McCarty on the loss of Jessica Gabor of blessed memory, sister-in-law of his daughter 

Shayna Gabor. 

Shirley Vine on the loss of her dear husband, dear father of Linda Yassinger (Sid) and Barbara Spooner (Chuck), and our 

dear member, Archie Vine of blessed memory. 

Dr. Jerry Schwarz on the loss of his dear father, Eugene Schwarz of blessed memory. 

We are saddened to announce the death of our dear member, Nina Kovacs, dear mother of Dr. Ted Feinstat (Christine) and 

Gerald Duzenman (Randi). 

Alice Polan on the death of her dear father Peter Thomas, of blessed memory. 

FIRST PULPIT EXCHANGE ON SHABBAT, JULY 9TH, 2011 

On the Shabbat of July 9th, Mosaic 

Law Congregation and Kenesset 

Israel Torah Center will participate in 

the first of its kind; a pulpit exchange 

between Rabbis Reuven Taff and Joel 

Zeff. Rabbi Zeff, who is the new 

Interim Rabbi at KI has been in our 

community since May 1st and will 

continue to serve the KI community 

through August 31st. Rabbi Zeff, who 

grew up at Mosaic Law, holds a BA 

from UCLA in Hebrew Language, an 

MS in Jewish History from Yeshiva 

University, and received Rabbinic 

Ordination from the Rabbi Isaac 

Elchanan Theological Seminary of 

Yeshiva University. Rabbi Zeff 

served as the spiritual leader of the 

Westwood Kehilla Congregation in 

Los Angeles for seven years before 

moving to Israel in 1994. For the decade 

since making Aliyah he was Senior 

Lecturer at the David Shapell College 

of Jewish Studies in Jerusalem. 

In 2007 Rabbi Zeff became Rosh 

Yeshiva of Yeshivat Torat Yosef- 

Hamivtar, succeeding its founder, 

Rabbi Chaim Brovender. He is currently 

finishing a book on the philosophy 

of Rabbi Abraham Isaac 

Kook, a favorite topic in his teaching. 

Rabbi Zeff and Rabbi Taff will begin 

the morning officiating at their 

respective congregations and then 

will walk to MLC and KI as each will 

address the two congregations with 

Divrei Torah before (or after) the 

Musaf Service. At the Kiddush luncheon 

of each congregation each rabbi 

will conduct a brief study session. 

This is a first for our community. We 

encourage all members of Mosaic 

Law to extend a warm welcome to 

Rabbi Joel Zeff and attend MLC on 

the Shabbat of July 9th. And we 

know that Dr. Bob Zeff and Dr. Karl 

Zeff are shepping lots of naches as 

their son and brother is making an 

important contribution to our Jewish 

community over these months ahead. 

Page 23

Published monthly by: 

Mosaic Law Congregation 

2300 Sierra Boulevard 

Sacramento, CA 95825 

A member congregation of United 

Synagogue of Conservative Judaism 

Scroll Deadline 

There is a 350 word limit on articles 

submitted for The Scroll. Deadline for 

all issues is the 15th of the month prior 

to publication date. Please send your 

article to laurawendel@comcast.net 

and blue@mosaiclaw.org. 

Submissions received after the deadline 

will be held until the next scroll is 

published. 

Mosaic Law Congregation 

The Scroll 

Rabbi 

Reuven Taff……………………....ext 13 

email: rabbi@mosaiclaw.org 

Cantor Emeritus 

George Wald 

email: elge@earthlink.net 

Rabbi’s Secretary 

Mary Blumenstein……………….....ext 19 

email: mary@mosaiclaw.org 

Administration/Facilities 

Director 

Barbara Gibson…………………..ext 20 

email: barbara@mosaiclaw.org 

Education Director 

Orit Morgenshtern………………..ext 17 

email: orit@mosaiclaw.org 

Program Director 

Rina Racket……………………....ext 16 

email: rina@mosaiclaw.org 

Education/Program 

Administrative Assistant; 

Weekly/Monthly Scroll 

Barbara Blue……………………..ext 18 

email: blue@mosaiclaw.org 

Accountant 

Lisa Wade………………………...ext 12 

email: lwade@mosaiclaw.org 

President 


email: president@mosaiclaw.org 

Men’s Club President 

Erich Olson 

email: mensclub@mosaiclaw.org 

Sisterhood President 

Carol Loew 

email: mlcwlsac@aol.com 

The Scroll Editor 

Laura Wendel, Editor 

email: laurawendel@comcast.net 

Office Hours: Mon-Thu: 9am - 5pm Fri: 9am - 4pm Sun: 9am - 1pm (during the Religious School year only) 

Telephone: (916) 488-1122 Fax: (916) 488-1165 General Mailbox: Ext. 10 

Page 24

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