Volume 50, Issue 12

JERUSALEM (JTA)—After a Kassam rocket attack seriously injured two brothers in the Israeli border town of Sderot, Prime Minister Ehud Olmert again came under intense pressure to launch a major military strike against Hamas in the Gaza Strip.

A year after taking a group to help Biloxi, Miss., recover from Hurricane Katrina, Rabbi Daniel Isaak took about 50 volunteers to Vernonia to help residents of that Oregon town dig out from December’s floods.

Ever since she graduated from Portland Jewish Academy, Wilson High School junior Vanessa Meyerowitz, like many Jewish students in public school, has asked teachers for and completed assignments that will fall on Jewish holidays.

Tom Lantos dies

WASHINGTON (JTA)—Tom Lantos, 80, the only Holocaust survivor ever elected to the U.S. Congress, a Democrat from California, died at Bethesda Naval Hospital in suburban Washington, Jewish sources said Feb. 10.

Irish Rabbi opposes honor for Mel Gibson.

JERUSALEM (JTA)—An Irish rabbi reportedly assailed the decision to honor Mel Gibson. The Irish Film and Television Academy will pay tribute to Gibson, an actor and director, at its award ceremony Feb. 17 for his contributions to world cinema.

Gore, Oz among Dan Prize winners

JERUSALEM (JTA)—Al Gore, Tom Stoppard and Amoz Oz are among the 2008 Dan David Prize winners. The winners in each category from three time periods—past, present and future—will be presented $1 million prizes in a ceremony in May at Tel Aviv University.

WASHINGTON (JTA)—Jimmy Hoffa: the mysterious disappearance, the giant of the U.S. labor movement, the battles with the Kennedys over alleged improprieties, yes.

Though Roz Heffner was in charge of hospital units by age 21, helped several hundred injured workers find new jobs and was a presenter at a Presidential Forest Conference with President Clinton in

Magician, kabbalist, Talmudist, author and genealogist Arthur Kurzweil explains the Jewish root of the most famous magic word in the world—Abracadabra—during his Feb.

Portlander Lawrence Norman and his USA master’s basketball teammates Eric Kriftcher, Michael Fishman and Saul Salama, brought home a gold medal in Masters (35+) Basketball  with five wins in five games.

Growing up in a Jewish family where education was considered very important, Amy Dishlip decided she wanted to go into education and make a difference in kids’ lives.

Inspired by his dad’s entrepreneurial spirit, Andrew Cogen aspired to run his own company, but with an additional goal: to help others.

There was a time in the early to mid-20th century when the Swiss-American Jewish composer Ernest Bloch, who spent the final 18 years of his life in Oregon, was the second most popular composer in America after George Gershwin. That’s measured in terms of how frequently his music was performed by leading symphony orchestras between 1924 and 1946.

Cao Hamburger always knew about his grandparents’ pioneering work in Sao Paolo’s Jewish community. The Brazilian filmmaker has now made his own substantial contribution—with a pen and a camera.

“The Year My Parents Went on Vacation,” set during the dictatorship Emílio Garrastazu Médici and amid the frenzy of the 1970 World Cup, is a bittersweet story of a 12-year-old boy at loose ends after his political parents go into hiding.

The work of 26 artists will be featured in an exhibit of 56 prints from the Collections of Jordan D. Schnitzer and his family foundation at the Art Gym at Marylhurst University near West Linn, just south of Lake Oswego on Hwy. 43.

Portland writer and performance artist Miriam Feder will present a new one-woman show at HipBone Studio the weekend of Feb. 22.

SEEING RED—The seventh annual Oregon Jewish Museum Gala art auction plans to “paint the town red” on Sunday, May 4, at the Governor Hotel downtown.

Israel is almost 60, a living testament to the Jewish people’s steadfastness and ingenuity, and our ability to overcome adversity, time and again.

It’s a source of great sorrow among American Jews that the struggle continues. On a recent trip to Israel, Robert Horenstein was able to view up close the suffering of Israelis in the western Negev.

We were deeply disturbed by Robert Horenstein’s piece titled “Bush Optimism Needs Western Negev Reality Check” (Jewish Review, Feb. 1), which suggested that President Bush’s attempts to advance the Israeli-Palestinian peace process have failed because they are “totally detached from the reality on the ground.”

The relationship of science and religion, and how that influences education, has far reaching implications for the future of this country. That belief was a driving force behind the creation of Evolution Weekend, during which some 750 congregations across America hosted programs such as Temple Beth Israel’s “Conversation in Two Realms” in Portland Feb. 10.

A recently received report from the Oregon Air National Guard notes that Brig. Gen. Fred M. Rosenbaum has been honored by the OANG for his many years of service and leadership.

Toni Gretz of Mind and Body Yoga leads the Portland Jewish Women’s Circle in relaxation. At “Yoga for the Body and Soul,” women got to do relaxation, meditation and stretching as they explored some sources for G-d’s energy in this world. For more information about the Womens Circle, email PJWC@ChabadOregon.com or call 503-977-9947.

Drs. Gregg and Marcia Coodley, founders and partners at Fanno Creek Clinic, have filed an initiative with the city of Portland to provide health insurance for all uninsured children attending Portland Public Schools.

Oregon Secretary of State Bill Bradbury will lead a presentation on global warming on March 9 in Salem sponsored by Temple Beth Sholom, Our Savior’s Lutheran Church and Westminster Presbyterian Church. The event will be held at Temple Beth Sholom beginning at 2 p.m.

Judith R. Baskin, Ph.D., will be welcomed back to Portland as the featured speaker at Women of Reform Judaism/Beth Israel Sisterhood’s Shabbaton, Saturday, March 1.

Alysia and Merridawn Duckler, the cultural mavens of Mittleman Jewish Community Center, have teamed up with young adult party planner extraordinaire Jodi Berris to create an exciting cross-generational Studio 54 Dance Party.

Ozreinu, a Torah study/spiritual support group for parents of children with any type of special needs, has added a third meeting site.

Scholarships to give all children the opportunity to attend Maimonides Jewish Day School are made possible by the school’s annual auction—this year slated for March 2 at the Mittleman J

John Efron, speaking about “The Rise of the Modern Jewish Doctor,” is this year’s second event of the Institute for Judaic Studies’ Writers and Scholars Lecture Series.

Oral historian Sandy Polishuk will create a fascinating portrait of a life-long activist told through her own oral history in “Julia Ruuttila: The Making of an Extraordinary Life.” Kol Shalom, Community for Humanistic Judaism, will host this Oregon Chautauqua from the Oregon Council for the Humanities. This free, public program will take place at 10 a.m., March 2, at the Mittleman Jewish Community Center.

A recently received report from the Oregon Air National Guard notes that Brig. Gen. Fred M. Rosenbaum has been honored by the OANG for his many years of service and leadership.

Comcast Cable, which serves Oregon communities including Portland, extended the availability of Shalom TV to more than 14 million digital customers as a free video-on-demand service Feb. 1.

To the editor:

I was pleased to read Paul Haist’s article, “Stampfer finds seeds of anti-Semitism in ‘Israel Lobby.’”

CHLOE STEVENS

Elisa and Joshua Stevens of Portland announce the birth of their daughter Chloe Makena Stevens on Jan. 28. Chloe is named in memory of her great-bubby Celia Bobb. She is the granddaughter of Anne and Harvey Taub, Sharyn and Dennis Spitzer and Judy and Michael Stevens. Great-grandparents are Muriel and Bob Miller.

JERUSALEM (JTA)—In the wake of last week’s assassination of arch-terrorist Imad Mughniyeh, there are fears in the region that a massive attack by Hezbollah against Israeli interests could spark a new Middle East war.

LOS ANGELES (JTA)—Joseph Cedar, the Orthodox director of the Oscar-nominated Israeli film “Beaufort,” has resolved a thorny Shabbat dilemma.

PRIZREN, Kosovo (JTA)—On a forlorn road dotted with half-built houses, Ines Quono reflects on her struggle in a land so remote to most Americans it might as well be Oz.

MIAMI (JTA)—Fidel Castro’s announcement this week that he’ll step down after 50 years as president of Cuba may be cause for celebration in South Florida—but Cuban exiles here say precious little will change for the few Jews remaining on the island.