Shabbat Shalom:
I am not sure where to even begin this week’s message. I had hoped that once people received the COVID vaccine we would resume our joyful, carefree lives. However, over the past few weeks once again we have experienced sadness and devastation. Many of us have lost long-time friends and community members and we have witnessed the collapse of the high-rise building in Miami leaving death and destruction in its wake. We pray for the people of Miami and for Dr. Gary Cohen’s family here in Birmingham who are still awaiting news on their loved ones. And let us not underestimate the toll of the social discord occurring between friends and neighbors regarding how the Mountain Brook School System teaches our children to be more tolerant and to become positive catalysts in our society. It almost makes me long for the peaceful silence of COVID.
While I don’t want to dwell on the issues going on in the Mountain Brook Schools, I would be remiss if I didn’t mention it in this week’s column. As you may know, I serve on the Mountain Brook Schools Diversity Committee. I was encouraged when this committee was formed in the aftermath of an Antisemitic incident in March of 2020. I saw this as an opportunity for real change, even though I was told not to get my hopes up. The committee was thoughtful, thorough, and diverse – all of us agreeing that changes needed to be made for the betterment of our children – even the student representatives agreed.
Now more than a year later we find ourselves in a social civil war. I have had conversations with many of you over the last two weeks and I want to assure each of you that the Federation is continuing to pursue an active dialogue with the school district so that we can indeed effect the change that so many of us long to see. While the disassociation with the ADL has many of us heated, I urge you not to lose sight of the result – to create a more diverse, tolerant, and accepting atmosphere for our children. The path to get there may not have been what we thought it would be, but it’s important for us to walk that path even with obstacles thrown in front of us until we get the results we so desperately need.
With all the loss and noise going on around us, I think it’s important to find ways for you and your family to enjoy life today and every day. The 4th of July is approaching, and I don’t know about y’all, but I intend to take a moment and celebrate all the good things in life. The laugh of my daughter while she swims, the taste of sweet watermelons and peaches of summer, and the joy of spending time with friends, old and new - that is what I am going to concentrate on this weekend over Shabbat and the holiday.
Wishing you a restful Shabbat, a joyous holiday, and a week of peace.
B’Shalom,
Danny
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In Surfside, an Israeli medic lends expertise and navigates an unstable rescue site |
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"For Israeli medic Dvir Dimri, who has spent several days and nights shuttling between the pile of rubble at Champlain Towers South and a nearby private home trying to console grieving Jewish families, the tragedy unfolding in Surfside, Fla., hits close to home.
Dimri and his wife spent four years teaching at a Jewish day school in Chicago from 2012 to 2016 and feel intimately connected with the American Jewish community. And while he never planned to work as a teacher in America, Dimri said his time at Hillel Torah North Suburban Day School, near Chicago, was an “experience that changed my life.”
Now, Dimri, 37, part of a team of 10 volunteers from the Israeli medical-relief agency SSF-Rescuers Without Borders, is using his familiarity with the American Jewish community to help the team navigate different social norms while assisting in relief efforts.
“Our brothers and sisters are here. We’re here to help,” Dimri told Jewish Insider, acknowledging the number of Jewish residents — by some counts close to 30 who remain unaccounted for — of the partially collapsed condominium building. The survivors Dimri is searching for, he said, are “not only human beings, not only Jews, they are friends of friends, family of friends.” As of Wednesday evening, the number of confirmed dead had risen to 18, after the bodies of two children were recovered.
Dimri, CEO of Karta Investments, an Israeli company that invests in real estate and construction, left his family and work to participate in the ongoing emergency response at the towers north of Miami Beach. It is his first such overseas rescue mission; members of the SSF team have previously volunteered in the aftermath of the 2010 Haiti earthquake and the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami.
The Israeli volunteers were assembled with little notice Sunday afternoon, during a Jewish fast commemorating the breach of Jerusalem in 70 AD. They were given only four hours to travel to Ben Gurion Airport and receive a COVID-19 test before boarding a flight early Monday morning.
After fasting all day Sunday, Dimri left for the airport just as his family was sitting down to eat the fast-breaking dinner. He stressed the importance of modeling behavior for his children: “I think this is part of the education that I give them… the best education I can give [is] to give my values to my children.”
As the Surfside community gathers, with hope fading every hour that survivors will be pulled from the rubble, Dimri and the other Israeli volunteers have sought to console the grieving families and assure the survivors and families of the dead and missing that Israelis are united with them in solidarity: “We are one nation, we are with you,” Dimri said. As a small gesture of support, SSF sent gifts with the volunteers to distribute to children affected by the collapse.
During the days tirelessly working on the pile of debris, Dimri has little mental energy to focus on his surroundings or the emotional despair caused by the tragedy; he concentrates solely on the task at hand. “As in the army… you put all the emotions on the side,” he said.
Between shifts, Dimri thinks about the significance of his efforts. Jewish tradition teaches that every soul is a world, which compels the immense sacrifices Israeli volunteers are undergoing to help in the search-and-rescue mission. “If you understand that you are following a value that life is above everything, and that the respect of bodies is above everything, so this is why you stop everything, you put all your money, all your business on the side, and you help to come to work, and you come to do your best.”
Previously Dimri responded to other tragedies, including the Versailles Wedding Hall disaster, a building collapse in Jerusalem in 2001 that killed dozens of wedding guests.
This year has been an eventful year for Dimri: one year ago, almost to the day, he was the victim of a boating accident in the Sea of Galilee, and has since undergone three surgeries. A year later, he is helping others.
The continuing rescue operation in Surfside is painstakingly difficult because the segment of the Champlain Towers South that is still standing is unstable. While the likelihood of finding survivors is greater near the standing portion of the building, team members said, searching the area is dangerous because engineers fear the remaining tower could crumble. Dimri said architects were continuously analyzing the structural support of the south tower and were advising rescuers about safe routes for search tunnels.
Dimri explained the Israeli delegation is focused on three missions: saving survivors, affording dead victims respectful treatment in accordance with Jewish tradition and showing support for the American Jewish community and the wider community affected by the tragedy.
The 10-member team is staying at a nearby private home, praying at a local synagogue and offering communal support in addition to technical expertise. When they are not searching for survivors, the SSF members are helping to console families: “We try to help them, try to speak with them,” said Dimri.
The Israelis bring experience in rescue missions across Israel and around the world. Itzik Itach, one of the volunteers, works with ZAKA, an Israeli volunteer organization that specializes in search and rescue and recovering remains for proper burial under Jewish law. Earlier this year, Itach responded to the Mount Meron tragedy, a stampede on Lag B’Omer in April that killed 45 worshippers, thought to be the most deadly civilian disaster in Israel’s history.
SSF was founded in 2000 “with the main goal to provide first aid to Israeli and Palestinian populations in case of war, natural disasters and terrorist attacks,” according to the group’s website. When the second intifada broke out in September of that year, the team volunteered across Israel to administer first aid after terrorist attacks. In the following years the unit expanded its assistance on an international scale.
The team of Israeli medics currently on site in Surfside is scheduled to fly back home on Sunday, after which a new team may replace them, according to Dimri. The volunteers serve as SSF’s eyes on the ground, advising them on whether further assistance is needed.
With nearly 150 people still believed to be missing in the rubble of Champlain Towers, the search-and-rescue mission is continuing, even as the chances of finding survivors dims. Besides Dimri’s SSF volunteers, a group of IDF National Rescue Unit construction engineers and population behavior officers responsible for assembling a computerized 3-D model of the building to aid in the search, is also in Surfside, according to spokespeople from the unit who spoke Wednesday night at a Friends of the IDF briefing. There are also volunteers from Mexico as well as local, state and FEMA authorities participating in the response."
Jewish Insider
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Sending Love To All Those
Affected By This Tragedy
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As an organization dedicated to healing the world, Hadassah sends its support to the families impacted by the tragic condominium collapse in Surfside, Miami, especially our beloved co-President Mindy Cohen’s husband Gary and his brother Brad.
Many of us are left wondering what we can do to help. Mindy has stated that the Israeli rescue teams on the ground are wonderful. She would like us to support them. Hadassah has set up an emergency Surfside Rescue Fund, which will direct all funds to the Greater Miami Jewish Federation, an organization that is working locally to help with short- and long-term needs of those impacted and displaced. Hadassah is waiving all administrative fees so that 100% of your donations will directly support local rescue efforts.
Please join us in taking immediate action by supporting local rescue efforts — and thank you, as always, for your support.
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To ensure your donation is designated to the Surfside Rescue Fund, please be sure to keep "Greatest Need" selected when making your donation. Donors who designate any other fund will be contacted to confirm where they would like their donations allocated.
For those who would like to donate by check, they should write code "SURFSIDEFLRESCUE" in the check note field and mail it to:
Hadassah Fundraising
PO Box 1100
New York, NY 10268-1100
International credit card processing:
To use a non-US credit card, please call Hadassah's Customer Service Center of Excellence at (800) 928-0685 for assistance.
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The Israel-World Jewry Bureau:
Sofia's Story
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The Israel-World Jewry Bureau is a unique allocations process, developed in 2004, that has allowed The Birmingham Jewish Federation to help fund smaller, yet equally important agencies, doing vital work for people in need in Israel and around the world.
Through the Israel-World Jewry Bureau allocations process, dollars raised by our annual campaign, as well as dollars contributed by the Birmingham Jewish Foundation, are not only making an important difference in the lives of those we help, but also enable members of our Birmingham community to work in direct partnership with our brothers and sisters in Israel and elsewhere around the globe.
From the JDC:
The 2021 allocation to the JDC is $73,650, and with a unique matching opportunity you unlock an additional $36,825, and your total impact amounts to $110,475!
The strong foundations built with your vital support this year, will enable JDC to continue saving lives in the former Soviet Union, while ensuring that we can nimbly respond to emerging needs as they come.
On behalf of Sofia Mandel from Chisinau, Moldova (click on her name to make a virtual home visit) and the tens of thousands of others whose lives you touch each and every day, JDC extends our heartfelt gratitude.
You are a valued partner in our global mission of saving lives and building Jewish life, and we couldn't do it without you.
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NextGen and YBIB Campaign Event
Saturday, July 10th at 8 CST
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We only have a few spots left!
Get your tickets today!
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Bearing Witness
July 6th at 7-8:30 PM
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Minna Goldberg, BHEC Intern, has spent the last year editing Holocaust survivor stories for the BHEC archives and website. Join us as she shares some of these amazing stories and the impact this experience has had on her.
This event will be held over zoom.
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Honey From The Heart
Place your order by July 7th
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Would you believe that Rosh Hashonah begins Monday, September 6 (the night of Labor Day!), and what better way to wish your family and friends a L’Shanah Tovah than by sending them a jar of DELICIOUS honey! Sisterhood of TBE received rave reviews on this fundraising project and is once again offering you the opportunity to participate.
Each beautifully-packaged gift box (containing an 8 oz. jar of Kosher, gluten-free honey along with a lovely personalized gift card) will be mailed to your recipient for FREE but you have to order by Wednesday, July 7.
After that date, you will still be able to order, but in addition to the $13 per jar price, a shipping fee of $5.50 per jar will be added. No worrying about going to the post office to mail each package! Once you place your order on the Honey from the Heart website and remit your credit card payment, you have completed the process. Each recipient will receive your gift prior to Rosh Hashonah.
Easy, peasy - but don’t delay! You have one month to place your order(s), so do it NOW while it’s fresh on your mind. CLICK HERE TO START YOUR ORDER. Please share this flyer with those who you think might also want to place an order. QUESTIONS? Contact Arlene Fisher, 205-249-1620.
~Sisterhood thanks you for supporting this project~
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Knowing Your Genetic Risk
Can Be Life-Saving
A Virtual Information Program
Tuesday, July 20, 2021
12:00 PM - 12:45 PM CST
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- Learn how JScreen’s genetic tests can help ensure healthy babies and prevent cancer
- Inspire others to know about their genetic health risks
- Engage your community in saving lives!
info@jscreen.org
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A Program of the BJF's Israel Connections Committee
July 26th 11 AM - 12 PM
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Please join the Birmingham, Greater New Orleans, and Lehigh Valley Jewish Federations for a pop-up lunch & learn program as we hear from Iris Posklinksy, Head of Partnership in the North Region of the Jewish Agency for Israel, – on Monday, July 26th, 2021 at 11:00 a.m. CDT.
Iris will lead us through a discussion of the Complexities & Trends in the Jewish Nation including:
- Demographic data and what it means – what is the future of the Jewish Nation
- Changes and Challenges in Israel - Diaspora relations.
- Israel as common denominator to a partisan issue.
- Trends in Jewish Philanthropy.
- Historic and contemporary perspectives.
This event is jointly hosted by the Rosh Ha'ayin Partnership2Gether Steering Committee, the Jewish Federation of Greater New Orleans, the Birmingham Jewish Federation, and the Jewish Federation of Lehigh Valley, in partnership with the Jewish Agency for Israel's Partnership2Gether program.
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After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the meeting. |
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Help Welcome The Stranger:
Train to Become a Volunteer with ALIRP
August 4th 6 PM - 8 PM
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Alabama Interfaith Refugee Partnership (ALIRP) is an interfaith group of religious leaders and laypersons, as well as representatives of other community groups who have come together for the purpose of helping refugees and asylum-seekers, in light of the current migration crisis that has displaced millions of people.
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The Jewish Community Relations Council and the LJCC, with help from TBE and TEE’s Social Action Committees, are hosting a community-wide volunteer training session for Alabama Interfaith Refugee Partnership (ALIRP), at the N.E. Miles Jewish Day School, Wednesday, August 4th from 6:00 pm to 8:00 pm, (dinner will be provided starting at 5:30 pm). Training will also be offered virtually that evening.
There is more than one way to be an active volunteer for ALIRP:
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Committee Volunteer – Committees include Advocacy, Communications, Direct Support, Education, Finance, and Fundraising and Outreach.
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Be a part of a CARE Team - CARE teams provide direct support for each family. CARE team volunteers must complete a background check. Volunteers will be responsible for the cost of their background check ($40.00).
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Responder for Immediate Needs- At times ALIRP has situations or needs arise that need to be dealt with immediately. You will be added to a JCRC contact list to help meet them quickly.
Please note that for the health and safety of all, we respectfully request that only those who are fully vaccinated attend in person.
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Bearing Witness:
Why Document Survivor Stories?
Tuesday, July 6 @ 7:00 PM - 8:30 PM
Birmingham Holocaust Education Center
Minna Goldberg, BHEC Intern, has spent the last year editing Holocaust survivor stories for the BHEC archives and website. Join us as she shares some of these amazing stories and the impact this experience has had on her.
Lunchtime Torah Study
Wednesday, July 7 @ 12:00 PM - 1:00 PM
Temple Emanu-El
This Torah study meets via Zoom and will cover that week’s Torah portion. All levels welcome.
Summer Beit Midrash: This is Real and
You Are Completely Unprepared
Thursday, July 8 @ 12:00 PM - 1:00 PM
Temple Beth-El
Our Thursday Beit Midrash is planning to continue meeting through the summer, on Mondays and Thursdays from 12-1PM. In preparation for the High Holidays they will be reading This is Real and You Are Completely Unprepared by Alan Lew.
Join using the link below and the password “Learning”
NextGen/YBIB Campaign Event
Saturday, July 10 @ 8:00 PM - 11:00 PM
The Birmingham Jewish Federation
Join us on Saturday, July 10th, at Back Forty Beer Company Birmingham for an evening of friends, fun, and more! This event features a live music performance by The Peytones. Join us for live music, drinks, desserts, and a great time with our community.
Purchase tickets here:
Summer Beit Midrash: This is Real and
You Are Completely Unprepared
Monday, July 12 @ 12:00 PM - 1:00 PM
Temple Beth-El
Our Monday Beit Midrash is planning to continue meeting through the summer, on Mondays and Thursdays from 12-1PM. In preparation for the High Holidays they will be reading This is Real and You Are Completely Unprepared by Alan Lew.
Join using the link below and the password “Learning”
Lunchtime Torah Study
Wednesday, July 21 @ 12:00 PM - 1:00 PM
Temple Emanu-El
This Torah study meets via Zoom and will cover that week’s Torah portion. All levels welcome.
Summer Beit Midrash: This is Real and
You Are Completely Unprepared
Thursday, July 22 @ 12:00 PM - 1:00 PM
Temple Beth-El
Our Thursday Beit Midrash is planning to continue meeting through the summer, on Mondays and Thursdays from 12-1PM. In preparation for the High Holidays they will be reading This is Real and You Are Completely Unprepared by Alan Lew.
Join using the link below and the password “Learning”
Financial Assistance Available
for Jewish Community Members
Thanks to a grant from the Greatest Needs Fund of the Birmingham Jewish Federation’s COVID Relief Campaign, Collat Jewish Family Services is offering financial assistance to Jewish community members who are facing financial insecurity because of job loss, caring for family or other issues. Confidential assistance is available to members of the Birmingham Jewish community who need help with rent or mortgage payments, utilities, prescription costs or other needs. To learn more, please email CJFS Clinical Director Marcy Morgenbesser LICSW, marcy@cjfsbham.org or call 205.879.3438.
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The Federation and Foundation have been having issues with our post office box. Please send all correspondence to our physical address at
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The Birmingham Jewish Federation
@jewishbirmingham
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