FIDF and the IMPACT! Scholarship Program

FIDF Virginia Gala: Thursday, November 29, Hilton Virginia Beach Oceanfront

For many Jews around the world, Israel remains central to their identity, inspiring the hopes and dreams of the Jewish people. Every single day, the brave men and women of the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) risk their lives to protect those hopes and dreams. Friends of the Israel Defense Forces (FIDF) is devoted to supporting these defenders of Israel with educational and wellbeing programs and facilities. Since 1981, FDIF has played an important role in ensuring that IDF soldiers are cared for while carrying out their crucial tasks.

This year, in honor of Israel’s 70th year of independence, FIDF is hosting its first-ever Virginia Gala. A celebration of heroes and hope, it will be an opportunity to interact with and hear incredible stories from IDF soldiers.

FIDF cares for Israel’s soldiers through its six pillars of support: education, financial relief, construction projects, fallen and wounded soldiers, Adopt a Brigade, and Lone Soldiers—those who leave their native countries to join the IDF and serve with no immediate family in Israel.

The flagship FIDF education program is the IMPACT! Scholarship Program, which grants full, four-year academic scholarships to IDF combat veterans of modest means. Through this program, FIDF helps guarantee that Israel’s soldiers continue to grow as educated citizens and leaders.

Virginia has many families who support FIDF’s IMPACT! Scholarship Program, including Avraham and Patricia Ashkenazi. The couple sponsors scholarships for several students, including for Roi Azarzar, who is studying engineering at the Technion in Israel.

“When my wife and I learned about IMPACT!, we realized how important it is and we knew that we had to help the soldiers get an education,” says Ashkenazi. “This scholarship makes higher education possible for Israel’s best and finest.”

For the 2017–2018 academic year, FIDF granted 4,365 IMPACT! scholarships to IDF combat veterans who could not afford the cost of higher education, sponsoring students at more than 80 institutions throughout Israel. This program boasts an impressive 98.5% graduation rate, with 86% of the graduates currently employed.

When asked what it felt like to receive the scholarship, Azarzar says, “I was so incredibly happy and thankful—it felt like a huge weight had been lifted and I knew that I would be able to really focus on my studies and successfully finish my degree.”

IMPACT! students volunteer in the community for 130 hours each year of their studies, helping 20 different nonprofit organizations. Since its inception in 2002, IMPACT! students have volunteered more than five million hours, making it the top scholarship program in providing community service in Israel.

“I volunteer at The Foundation for the Benefit of Holocaust Survivors in Israel and I work with Shlomo, whose wife recently passed away,” says Azarzar. “At the time I met him, he was really lonely. At first, it was difficult to form a connection because he was really sad, but slowly he began to open up and now we have a great relationship. Someone helped me, and it feels good to be able to help someone else.”

So far, more than 8,000 IMPACT! graduates have entered the Israeli workforce, becoming engineers, doctors, lawyers, architects, and accountants, among other advanced degrees. The 2017–2018 class is comprised of students from more than 22 different countries of origin and almost 300 of them are the first in their family to pursue an advanced degree.

“Creating a new generation of educated individuals is a small investment in comparison to what they will contribute to Israel,” says Ashkenazi. “A soldier can become a scientist or engineer, creating and developing the next generation of inventions and software for the benefit of Israel. But you need to give them the chance to get to that stage.”

NEXUS Interfaith Dialogue

Gender Roles and Religion

Monday, October 8, 7:30 pm

Virginia Wesleyan’s Batten Student Center, Pearce Hospitality Suite

Panelists Rev. Kim Hodges, Pastor of Lynnhaven Colony Congregational, United Church of Christ (Protestant); Rabbi Rosalin “Roz” Mandelberg, senior rabbi of Ohef Sholom Temple in Norfolk (Jewish); Saher Mirza, community volunteer (Muslim); and Teresa Stanley, coordinator of Interspiritual Empowerment Project (Catholic), will explore “What does my religion teach about the equality or differences between males and females? What women stand out in my religion’s scripture? How do specific scripture passages in my faith cause pain, misunderstanding, and confusion about gender roles? How do they bring support or joy? How does my religion shape how gender is understood?”

Contact 757.455.3129 or visit vwu.edu.

Wonder Woman On Her Flesh: Queer Jewish Women and Pride Tattoos

Thursday, October 4, 11 am–12 pm

Virginia Wesleyan’s Blocker Hall Auditorium

The pink triangle has gone from a stigmatizing Holocaust symbol to an emblem of LGBTQ pride. Similarly, Jewish women using rainbow Stars of David have been accused of promoting political agendas and have been banned from certain LGBTQ pride events. Dr. Amy Milligan, Batten Endowed Assistant Professor of Jewish Studies and Women’s Studies and director of the Institute of Jewish Studies and Interfaith Understanding, at Old Dominion University, will discuss how these symbols and their use by women have taken on new meaning in their contemporary contexts. How are they used differently by women than men, by Jews than non-Jews, or by younger generations than old? And what are the implications when these symbols are tattooed on Jewish women’s bodies? Contact 757.455.3129 or visit vwu.edu.

Current Events with Seniors

Thursdays 10:30 am–12 noon 237

Simon Family JCC

Join a stimulating discussion on local, international, and world-wide topics. It is always an interesting and fun time.  For further information, call Bernice Greenberg at 757-497-0229.

Ohef Sholom’s Sanctuary Rededication to feature Rabbi Rick Jacobs

Saturday, October 13, 7 pm, Ohef Sholom Temple

One hundred years ago, Ohef Sholom Temple moved to the corner of Stockley Gardens and Raleigh Avenue, constructing the congregation’s magnificent sanctuary. While over the course of the century, nearly every other aspect of the synagogue’s structure has undergone renovations and additions, the sanctuary has remained a constant, with only minor adjustments made to assure its use in a contemporary world and restoration efforts rendered to preserve its beauty. It has been a place of worship, celebration, and mourning. For generations, the sanctuary has been home for Ohef Sholom’s congregants.

To celebrate this 100th anniversary milestone, the congregation will hold a rededication ceremony featuring Rabbi Rick Jacobs, president of the Union for Reform Judaism.

A sought-after speaker, Rabbi Jacobs regularly meets with world leaders on myriad topics—and never seems to shy from taking a stand. Rabbi Jacobs’ vision for Reform Judaism’s future is structured around three core priorities: Strengthening Congregations, Audacious Hospitality and Tikkun Olam (social justice).

The evening will begin with a Havdalah service, which will set the tone for a beautiful and meaningful program. Rabbi Roz Mandelberg, Cantor Jennifer Rueben, and Music Director Charles Woodward have designed a service that will be at once celebratory and inspiring. Ohef Sholom’s choir, of course, will also participate. The evening will conclude with a reception fitting for such a celebration. Sharon Nusbaum and June Saks, 100th Anniversary co-chairs, are making certain of that—from menu to décor, along with some surprises—it will be an event not to be missed.

The celebration of the Sanctuary’s 100th Anniversary will serve as the kickoff of a months-long series of events marking Ohef Sholom’s 175th Anniversary. The Lillian and Marvin Davis Lecture Fund is helping to make this event possible.

RSVPs to this special evening will help the committee plan. Call the office at 757-625-4295 or email reservations@ohefsholom.org. The entire community is invited.

Seniors in the Sukkah

Wednesday, September 26, 12:30 pm

Join the senior community to celebrate Sukkot this year with Senior Art in the Sukkah. Included with a ticket is lunch with drinks and dessert, music, an art project led by a community artist, friends, and lots of fun. Tickets are $6 and the event is open to the entire senior community. For more information, contact nhorev@simonfamilyjcc.org. RSVP is required, and limited space is available. Reserve a space by stopping by the JCC front desk or calling 757-321-2338.

This program is made possible by the Joseph Fleischmann* Memorial Fund.

October 10-23

10 am-6pm

An exhibition by the State of Israel Ministry of Foreign Affairs, on display at Regent University Library Atrium.

For more information or to schedule a visit, email Erin Flynn at events@regent.edu or call 888-372-1006. 

Friday, October 12, 7 pm

Rabbi Ellen Jaffe-Gill will lead Tidewater Chavurah’s second Friday Shabbat service at the home of Hal and Elaine in the Great Neck Meadows area of Virginia Beach. A “congregation without walls,” events are held in members’ homes or at other locations. An Oneg follows providing time to nosh and relax with friends. New faces to events are always welcome.

For event information and location address, email carita@verizon. net or dlqt@cox.net or call 499-3660 or 468-2675. Go to www. tidewaterchavurah.org or Tidewater Chavurah Facebook page for upcoming events.

Friday, October 26 and Saturday, October 27

A global, grassroots movement that brings Jews from across the world together around the shared heritage of Shabbat, the Shabbat Project initiative was introduced in South Africa in 2013. In the days that followed, the Jewish world heard, and was inspired by, how the majority of the community kept Shabbat, and how Jews were brought together in unprecedented ways.

The concept is simple: Jews from all walks of life, from across the spectrum— religious, secular, and traditional, young and old, from all corners of the world—unite to experience one full Shabbat together.

The Shabbat Project is about creating a new Jewish future based on Jewish unity, pride, and values. Transcending the barriers that seem to separate, it is an opportunity to rejuvenate family and community life, restore Jewish pride and identity, and strengthen Jewish unity across the globe.

For the past four years, Tidewater has joined this global movement. Last October, 200 people came together for a beautiful and inspiring Friday night dinner in Ghent. One of the guests publicly commented that she was now observing Shabbat on a whole new level thanks to the previous year’s Shabbat Project. People walked away from that Shabbat wanting more.

The Tidewater Shabbat Project wants to expand and bring together the entire community. To join or volunteer, visit https:// www.tidewatershabbatproject.com/.

A Norfolk Academy senior, Shelby Brown is an active member of BBYO’s Kruger chapter. She has held several offices both locally and regionally, and has participated in leadership conferences such as CLTC and Kallah.

Still, for Shelby, something was missing in her Jewish experience. She had never been to Israel. “I went to the Hebrew Academy when I was younger, and we learned about Israel, but I wanted to see and learn about it in person.”

This summer, with help from a Simon Family Passport to Israel Grant, Shelby travelled to Israel for three weeks with BBYO.

Shelby says she likes the BBYO environment because it focuses on teen leadership. “The teens lead the activities,” she says. While in Israel, along with learning about the country and experiencing the sites, she “led a program on body image and organized a dance party and a video for the talent show.” She says that her confidence has gone up from this experience, and her advice to other Jewish teens who are considering a similar program, is to “Do it! Get out of your comfort zone because it’s the only way to grow as a person. It’s a supportive environment that helps you be your best self.”

While in Israel, Shelby also enjoyed experiencing many different types of services. “This has helped me understand that I can make Judaism my own,” she says. “Havdallah at the Kotel was really cool. Wherever you pray in the world, you always face the Kotel, but this time, we were AT the Kotel. It’s serious, but fun. Everyone comes together, and we sing, with our arms around each other.”

Through her experience, Shelby made friends from across the United States, and the world, including from Serbia, Croatia, Argentina, and France.

Shelby says she believes the trip will impact her future in wanting to go to temple more often, trying new traditions, and even wanting her “own kids to do this when the time comes.”

For more information about the Simon Family Passport to Israel grant for teens, visit http:// jewishva.org/tjf-passport-to-israel to apply by October 8, 2018 or contact Barb Gelb at bgelb@ujft.org.

Norfolk—Robert Max Katz, 72, while surrounded by the people he loved most, went to be with the Lord on September 12, 2018.

Robert was born May 6, 1946 in Miami, Florida to the late Albert and Lorette Katz.

He enlisted in the Navy and proudly served his country. During his tour in Vietnam, Robert was injured and became a disabled Vietnam Vet. After many years in the jewelry business, he opened Robert’s Jewelry and then Goldbar Jewelers. Robert went to GIA Institute and learned to design beautiful jewelry, working with diamonds and many other precious stones.

Left to cherish his memory is his loving wife of 32 years Charlene Katz; ex-wife Susan; son, Rabbi Neal Katz and his wife Jennifer. Their three children Lila, Micah and Rebecca; daughter Robin Katz; a very near and dear granddaughter Lily. Many other nieces and nephews. A very special thanks to Dennis, Lisa, Kathy and Sherry who came to help during his illness.

A graveside service was held at Albert G Horton, Jr. Memorial Veterans Cemetery in Suffolk.

Virginia Beach—Fannie Cutler Miles passed away September 9, 2018 in Virginia Beach, Virginia.

She was born April 15, 1924 in Nassawadox, Virginia to the late Stella Cutler Simpson and Leonard C. Cutler. She was predeceased by her husband Richard Eugene Miles (Eugene) and son Bryan. She is survived by her son Richard (Dicky) Miles and his wife Miriam (Cookie), grandchildren Amy Bosher (Jason), Melissa, and Scott (Melissa A.), along with great grandchildren Saderiah, Haley, Jason Jr., Hunter, Luke, Coltrane, and Molly. She is also survived by her son Harley Miles (Jeanne), their son Scott (Julie), daughter Leigh Catherine (Ningy) and husband Matt, grandchildren Jefferson, Lorelei, and Alexander, and many nieces and nephews. Fannie was one of seven children.

She and her husband were born and raised on the Eastern Shore and grew up in Willis Wharf. Then the family resided in Exmore, Cape Charles, Cheriton, and Belle Haven. In the early sixties, the family moved to Salisbury, Maryland. Her husband Eugene died in 1981 and son Bryan died in 1991. She had a great passion for antiques and politics. She resided at Pine Bluff and for the past couple of years was in and out of nursing homes. Once she arrived at Beth Sholom Village in Virginia Beach, she blossomed. Her final year with Richard and Cookie, the grandchildren, and great grandchildren was a wonderful blessing. She was able to spend and enjoy more time with everyone.

We would like to thank David Abraham and all of his staff at Beth Sholom Village, especially the staff in the blue unit who was very attentive. We would also like to thank all the staff at Freda Gordon Hospice for their loving care. We would like to recognize fellow patients Charlean, Joyce, and Linda for their support and friendship, and thank Mary for her many prayers. Also, we would like to acknowledge Cantor Flax, who was attentive to our mother and well-liked by her.

A graveside service took place at Belle Haven Cemetery in Belle Haven, Virginia. Donations may be made to Beth Sholom Village, 6401 Auburn Drive, Virginia Beach, VA 23464 PH. # 757-420-2512 or a charity of your choice. Dr. Michael Panitz, the family rabbi, joined the Miles family for the ceremony. Online condolences may be sent to the family at foxandjamesfh.com Arrangements by Fox and James Funeral Home, Eastville, Va.

Norfolk—Joseph Charles Rostov, 25, passed away on Sunday, September 23, 2018.

He was born July 8, 1993, in Norfolk, Va., and attended Norfolk Collegiate and ODU.

Joe worked with his parents in their family-owned business and farm.

Joe was a loving son and brother and friend to all who knew him. He will be greatly missed. He is survived by his parents, Rob and Jane Rostov, his sister, Annie Rostov, and his aunts Jane Rostov and Ellen Rostov Hundley (Richard), and many other family members and friends.

A graveside service was held at Forest Lawn Cemetery in Norfolk. Memorial donations may be made to the Southeastern Virginia Foodbank, 800 Tidewater Drive, Norfolk, VA 23504 or a charity that is meaningful to the donor. H.D. Oliver Funeral Apartments.

Naples, Fla.—Surrounded by family, Dr. Gary Schechter passed away September 15, 2018 from a traumatic brain injury due to a fall.

Born and raised in New York, Gary attended Syracuse University, then graduated Summa Cum Laude, first in his class, from the State of New York College of Medicine, upstate. He interned at Montefiore Hospital in New York, served with the United States Public Health Service Hospitals, Norfolk, Virginia and Baltimore, Maryland. He was a resident in Ear, Nose and Throat specialty Washington University/Barnes Hospital, St Louis, Missouri.

Dr. Schechter began his professional career on the faculty of the Department of Ear, Nose and Throat at the University of Texas Medical Branch, Galveston, Texas.

He returned to Norfolk and became the founding chairman of the Department of Ear, Nose and Throat Surgeons at the Eastern Virginia Medical School, developing a Residency program, a Research division, a Hearing and Balance Center, and one of the country’s leading Head and Neck Cancer practices. His CV documents his participation in many state and national medical organizations.

Dr. Schechter, retired in 1999 as Professor and Chairman Emeritus, and then shared his time between Virginia and Naples, Florida.

Putting his years of sailing behind, he pursued his woodworking hobbies, his love of motor-homing, and fearless dedication to community activities that protect the environment.

He is survived by his wife of 60 years, Barbara, three children: Jordana Schechter Efland (Michael), Stefan Beth Schechter Rosenberg (Paul) and Rick Schechter (Sandy). Eight grandchildren: Jessica and Matthew Efland (Hallie), Elizabeth and Jacob Rosenberg, Kristina Skeen, Kaitlyn and Jack Schechter.

Donations may be sent to Public Broadcasting (Norfolk or Naples) or the Southwest Florida Conservancy (Naples, Florida). The family would also like you to consider being an organ donor.

A memorial service, followed by the meal of condolence, was held at Altmeyer Funeral Home at their new location, 5033 Rouse Dr., Virginia Beach, VA 23462.

WASHINGTON ( JTA)—Princeton Lyman, the Jewish American diplomat who played a critical role in organizing Operation Moses, the stunning 1984 airlift of Ethiopian Jews, has died at 82.

Lyman died Friday, August 24 at his home in the Washington suburb of Silver Spring, Maryland, The  Washington Post reported. He died of lung cancer.

The Post obituary celebrated the role of Lyman in helping to midwife the transition in South Africa from apartheid to democracy in the early 1990s when he was the U.S. ambassador to the country. Lyman had the trust of F. W. DeKlerk, the last apartheid president of the country, and Nelson Mandela, who led the African National Congress.

But he also played a critical behind-the-scenes role a decade earlier, when he was deputy assistant secretary of state for Africa, in organizing the airlift from Sudan to Israel of thousands of Ethiopian Jews who had fled their famine-ravished country only to face indifference and starvation in Sudan.

In a 1999 oral history for the Association for Diplomatic Studies and Training, Lyman said he was one of only two U.S. diplomats who was fully apprised of the operation, involving secret flights from Sudan to Israel. He helped coordinate logistics between Israel and Sudan, which did not have diplomatic relations, and strove to keep at bay Ethiopian Jewry advocacy groups in the United States who were scrambling for information, as well as the media.

“We had to keep the press quiet,” he said in 1999. “The Boston Globe, The Washington Post, The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal all had the story. Peter Jennings at ABC had the story. I had to go to every single one of them to beg them to sit on the story. I told them that if the operation were to go public, the Ethiopians would be in serious danger. I must say that every one of the media outlets suppressed the information they had; I don’t think that today that would be possible.”

It was an Israeli official, Arieh Dulzin, the chairman of the Jewish Agency, who revealed the operation at a press conference, and it was Israeli media that made it public.

“Unfortunately, the Israeli media was not so disciplined” as the U.S. media, Lyman said. Once the word was out in Israel, a Washington Jewish newspaper reported the story—ignoring Lyman’s pleas—and the U.S. media felt free to publish. Sudan suspended the operation after 9,000 Jews had arrived, leaving 500 stranded. Vice President George H.W. Bush then got involved.

Bush “went to Khartoum to see [Sudanese President Gaafar] Nimeiri and to tell him that we wanted the last few hundred Ethiopians taken out,” Lyman said. “Nimeiri agreed, but it too was to be a secret operation. So American C-130s were to fly from Europe to the Sudan, take them on board, fly them up through the Red Sea – avoiding Egyptian radar – and deliver them to Israel. That was done. It was a magnificent operation which I monitored from the Pentagon ‘war room’ listening to the radio broadcasts as the planes landed and took off.”

In a 2007 account of the rescue, “Blacks, Jews and Other Heroes,” Howard Lenhoff said other U.S. officials eagerly seized credit for the operation. “Lyman remained silent,” Lenhoff reported. “Always the consummate professional, Princeton Lyman is an unsung hero of the Ethiopian Jews.”

Lyman was born in 1935 to immigrant Jewish parents from Lithuania. Asked to explain his unusual first name, he explained in 1999 that he had brothers named Yale, Harvard and Stanford. “I guess it was an extraordinary example of immigrant parents determined that their children would go to universities,” he said. “Of course, being very practical, we all ended up in the University of California – not the expensive schools we were named after.”

He added: “My brother Elliott, who was the only son not named for a university, indeed did not go to college.”

Lyman was married for 50 years to the former Helen Ermann, who died in 2008. He is survived by his second wife, Lois Hobson, and three daughters, Tova Brinn of Israel, and Sheri Laigle and Lori Bruun, both of Maryland.

– Ron Kampeas

Introduction

One of the great things about being a journalist is traveling the world on story assignments. But it’s the remarkable people I meet, during my journey abroad, that fuels my passion for my profession.

I enjoy, for example, meeting people from diverse cultures and perspectives, and learning how their society has shaped their lives and culture. I especially admire visionary people, who have overcome great challenges and yet still carry hope in their hearts and a strong desire to leave posterity a proud legacy.

The Jewish Museum of Greece is one such special place.

The story

The Jewish Museum of Greece (JMG) is located in historic hub of Athens in the voguish Plaka District. The privately-owned, two-story, neoclassical building is easy to find. Its signature rose-pearl colored facade is reminiscent of a hybrid Spanish tea rose.

The museum, which was established in 1977, was initially housed in a room next to Beth Shalom Synagogue on Melidoni Street. The multi-talented Nikos Stavrolakis was one of the museum’s founders and its director, 1977–1993.

Stavrolakis is credited with creating and preserving the museum’s core collection of ethnic, religious, and historical documents and artifacts.

The first wave of donated memorabilia was painstakingly salvaged after World War II. New acquisitions such as religious vessels and exquisite jewelry, seized from the Jews of Eastern Macedonia and Thrace in 1943, also found refuge at the Jewish Museum.

The Jewish Museum was founded with the goal of collecting, preserving, studying, and exhibiting memorabilia. The Jewish heirlooms, made by artisans living in a world that no longer exists, are on display and profoundly touch one’s grateful heart.

“The Jewish Museum of Greece is not a Holocaust museum,” says Zanet Battinou, its current director. “It is a repository of historical and living memory—and of the religious practice of the Jewish communities of Greece.”

As precious donations continued to flow in from Jewish communities throughout Greece, the need for more museum space grew. With considerable financial support from the Greek Ministry of Culture (and the Associations of its Friends—including many other staunch supporters), the interior space was completely rebuilt into a 10-level structure. What resulted was a world class museum.

The interior design is an architectural wonder. A shaft covered by a glass dome wisely allows natural light to beam-in throughout the museum. Along the central axis of the skylight, a collage of intriguing angular shapes and structures are visible. With walls painted in soothing tones of offwhite and pale peach, the floors are covered with gorgeous natural wood and snowy white marble.

On March 10, 1998 the new museum was inaugurated.

The museum has also expanded its educational programs via more extended activities, more temporary exhibitions, creating special publications, and a strong focus on international relations and activities.

“We now have the most important Judaica library in Greece,” says Battinou. “It is extensive, with over 3,500 titles, in eight languages, and it’s open to the public to read at the museum.”

Today, the Jewish Museum of Greece is home to more than 8,000 artifacts and documents. And the dream of one-day giving back to posterity has become a reality.

If you go

The Jewish Museum of Greece Nikis 39, Athens 105 57, Greece website: jewishmuseum.gr Telephone:+30 21 0322 5582.

Did you know?

• The Hebrew name for Greece is Yavan.

• It is estimated that the earliest Jews arrived on the Greek mainland in the third century B.C.E.

• There’s a high probability that Jews traveled, or were forcibly transported to Greece via Cyprus, Ioninia, and the Greek Islands.

• The first Greek Jew known by name is “Moschos, son of Moschion the Jew,” a slave mentioned in an inscription dated 300-250 B.C.E.

• When Germany invaded Greece, on April 6, 1941, there were approximately 70,000 Jews living and thriving in Greece. At the end of the war, the Jewish population plunged to 10,000 broken souls.

Three Ways to Help the Greek-Jews

Greece is experiencing a sharp economic downturn and recovering from raging fires. Supporting the Jewish community of Athens will help maintain two magnificent synagogues, help the needy within the Jewish community and assist with the cost of armed security on Shabbat. 1. Amazon will donate 0.5% of the price of a purchase when registered at smile. Amazon.com. Name a charitable organization (American Friends of the Jewish Museum of Greece) and shop like always. 2. Join the Jewish Museum of Greece online: jewishmuseum.gr. 3. Become a member of the Sephardic synagogue, Beth Shalom, or the Romaniote synagogue, Etz Hayyim. Both synagogues and the Jewish Museum of Athens, are in the same eruv.

– Devorah Ben-David Elstein

Virginia Beach–Ingrid Nelson passed away on October 2, 2018.

She was born on March 16, 1948 in Managua, Nicaragua.

She is survived by her four children, five grandchildren and Whopper.

She peacefully joins her mother Albertina Eva Aleman.

Services were held at Forest Lawn Cemetery. “Aqui Me Quedo.”

H.D. Oliver Funeral Apts., Laskin Road Chapel. Online condolences may be offered to the family at hdoliver.com.

Lehigh Valley , Pa.—Mark L. Goldstein, beloved husband, father, and leader of the Lehigh Valley Jewish community, passed away on October 11, 2018, after living with cancer for an extended time. He was 60 years old.

Mark served as the executive director of the Jewish Federation of the Lehigh Valley for the past 16 years. The son of a Holocaust survivor, Mark committed his entire professional career to Jewish communal service and his life to Jewish causes. At 6-foot-3, he acted as both a literal and figurative pillar in the Jewish community and was an inspiration to all who knew him. With his signature mustache and Starbucks cup in hand, Mark worked tirelessly to bring the Lehigh Valley Jewish community together, to raise money, to strengthen programs, and to build relationships. He was a committed member of Temple Beth El and a committed supporter of the Jewish Community Center, Jewish Day School, Jewish Family Service, Jewish summer camps and all local synagogues. His greatest passions included leading the community on missions to Israel and dressing up for Purim. His leadership has had a lasting impact on the past, present, and future of the Jewish community.

Mark came to the Lehigh Valley in 2002 after a nine-year term as executive vice president of the United Jewish Federation of Tidewater. Prior to moving to Virginia, Mark worked at the Jewish Federation of St. Louis for nearly 10 years, serving the Federation in a variety of capacities. Mark also worked professionally for the Jewish Federation of Greater Los Angeles and was a regional program director for United Synagogue Youth.

He was born and raised in Nashville, Tennessee, and was the son of the late Leon and Helene (Kuttig) Goldstein. Mark has lectured at Washington University’s Graduate School of Social Work on organizational dynamics and human service management. He was a member of the United Jewish Communities Executive Committee and a former chairman of intermediate communities, an association of 60+ like-size Jewish Federations. He recently served on the board of the Jewish Agency for Israel. In 2009, Mark was awarded an honorary doctorate degree by Hebrew Union College for “his singular and effective leadership to Jewish Federations in Virginia, Missouri, California, and Pennsylvania, and for his talents as a fundraiser which have guided federations to new heights of success.”

Mark held a master’s degree in social work from the University of Southern California and a master of arts in Jewish communal service from Hebrew Union College. He was also a graduate of the University of Judaism, the west coast affiliate of the Jewish Theological Seminary of America. Mark was awarded the Louis Kraft Award from the Jewish Communal Service Association, was a Sherman Fellow from Brandeis University and was selected for the Federation Executive Recruitment and Education Program (FEREP) scholarship by the Council of Jewish Federations. He was also the undefeated “king of kosher ribs” in Tidewater, securing first place at the juried Tidewater Kosher Rib Cook-Off Competition, and an Allentown JCC latke cook-off champion.

In the Lehigh Valley, Mark worked closely with the Institute for Jewish-Christian Understanding at Muhlenberg College to spread the message of tolerance and acceptance. He shared his own father’s story as inspiration.

Mark is survived by his wife of 34 years, Shari Spark; his beloved children, daughter Carlyn Piasecki, and her husband Jason, and son Ezra; his sisters Esther Kelly and husband Ted and Marianne King and husband Roland, and many nieces and nephews. He is remembered by the hundreds of colleagues, community members, students, and friends whose lives he touched, and everyone who had the opportunity to share in his stories and his wisdom.

Funeral services were held at Temple Beth El, 1305 Springhouse Rd., Allentown, Pa. Interment took place in Beth El Memorial Park in Whitehall. Bachman, Kulik & Reinsmith Funeral Homes. Contributions may be made to the Jewish Federation of the Lehigh Valley or the Lehigh Valley Health Network Cancer Institute.

MADISON/VIRGINIA BEACH—Anita Daitch Parks, age 92, passed away suddenly of a stroke, on Sept. 8, 2018 in Virginia Beach, Virginia. surrounded by her children, Dr. Barbara Parks (Mike Basto) of Virginia Beach, Dr. Richard Parks (Dr. Miriam) of Huntington Beach, Calif. and Dr. Roberta Parks of Boston.

She was born in and lived in Madison, until four years ago, when she moved to Virginia Beach to live with Barb and Mike. She was predeceased by her husband of 66 years, Dr. H. K. Parks, a beloved and dedicated physician in Madison, who retired at age 88. His passion for medicine and compassion for his patients inspired all three of their children to become doctors.

She is survived by her children; grandchildren (Dick and Miriam’s Tamar, Hadas, Moriah, Michal, Taliah, and Avraham Eliyahu and Roberta’s Ben and Molly); and more than 25 great grandchildren!

Anita lived her life with four doctors, but she was the healer of the family. She loved and took care of Hy throughout their long life together. She was a wonderful mother—loving, sweet, optimistic, generous, and a problem solver who always gave everyone the benefit of the doubt. She was so proud of her children’s and grandchildren’s accomplishments, and of what good human beings they had become.

Anita was a rare thing—an activist. Together with Hy, they were always leaders in the Jewish Federation in Madison. She devoted her entire life to her family, to Zionism, and to the survival of the Jewish people. She was on the national board of Hadassah, which she felt was the crowning achievement of her lifetime of activism. With her intelligence and creativity, she nurtured the commitment to Judaism and Israel within so many families in the Madison Jewish community. She founded the Hadassah consignment Obituaries shop Collector’s Corner, in Middleton, as a source of charitable contributions to Israel which is still in business contributing 42 years later.

Leaving friends and family, and her beloved Madison for Virginia was difficult. But she had a wonderful life living with Barb and Mike, and visiting often with Dick and Roberta. She had lovely affectionate caregivers from JFS of Tidewater, to whom we are so grateful. She ended every day with the statement “I’m living in the lap of luxury.”

She leaves an invaluable legacy of her rich, meaningful, treasured life. We thank her for providing strength and comfort to all of us. We’ll miss her and love her forever.

Contributions may be sent to Hadassah or the Jewish Federation of Madison, or JFS of Tidewater.

Norfolk —Irvin Leonard Posner, MD, passed away on September 29, 2018.

He was born in Richmond, Va. On October 6, 1930 to the late George and Frances Posner.

Irvin graduated from Maury High School, University of Virginia, and University of Virginia Medical School. He was an ophthalmologist who practiced in Norfolk until his retirement.

Irvin is survived by his brother, Marvin Posner of Williamsburg, two nieces, Susan (Jon) Becker of Norfolk and Starr (Harry) Zarin of Rockville, Maryland and many great nieces and nephews.

The funeral was held graveside at the Hebrew Cemetery in Hampton. Donations to charity of the donor’s choice.