JCC FOCUS. Jewish Community Center of Corpus Christi. December 2016 Kislev/Tevet 5777

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1 JCC FOCUS Jewish Community Center of Corpus Christi December 2016 Kislev/Tevet 5777

2 Jewish Community Council of Corpus Christi Board of Directors President - Carla De Pena Vice President - Iris Lehrman 2nd Vice President - Renee Solomon Secretary - Nene Schmukler Treasurer - Perry Sands Board Member - Lois Blum Board Member - Helen Wilk Board Member - Carol Solovey Board Member - Ruth Josephs Board Member - Meredith Ryan Board Member - Rikki Schmitchel Board Member - Leah Goltzman Board Member - Jaki Hausman Board Member - Leslie Levy Board Member - Mike Trimyer Board Member - Kari Oshman Rhodes Board Member - Matt Adler Board Member - Jaron Sela Board Member - Jackie Franklin Sisterhood Rep. - Linda Snider CBI - Rabbi Emanuel CBI Rep. - Gary Blum JCC Preschool Rep. - Manuela Sela Jewish Organizations in Corpus Christi Congregation Beth Israel 4402 Saratoga Blvd. (361) bethisraelcc.com Rabbi Ilan Emanuel President: Chris Adler Combined Jewish Appeal (361) President: Nedra Lockhart Assistant: Norma Levens Coastal Bend Havurah hkwilk48@gmail.com (361) Representative: Helen Wilk Chabad Coastal Bend Rabbi Naftoli Schmukler (361) Annual Board Meeting TBA Dear JCC Friends, As we get ready to welcome the last month of the year and Chanukah upon us, people ask me, why the holiday is spelled so many ways??? Is it Chanukah, Hanukkah or Hanukah??? Well, my answer is, spell it however you like. The meaning is always the same, which is to celebrate the triumph of light over darkness. Remember that long ago G-d made miracles in Jerusalem. Have a great and Happy Hanukkah and may it be bright with family, friends and good health. Fondly- Norma page 2

3 Jewish Community Center 2016 Members Patrons Chris & Robert Adler Susser Family Foundation Sustainers Dr. James Caplin Jaki & Richard Hausman Beatrice & Richard Hinojosa Annette & Melvyn Klein Laurie & Michael Mintz Toby Shor Rona & L. A. Train Angels Ginger & Richard Harris Glenda & Jerry Kane Leigh & Andrew Sheinberg Linda Weil Members Matt Adler Randall Berry Lois & Gary Blum DDS Clara Braslau Jeanne & Mac Brenz Jeannetta (EdD) & Lawrence Caplan Leah & Bill Cohen Members Carla De Pena Gayle & Charles Doraine Elizabeth Falk Carol & Don Feferman Roz & Ron Ferrell, DDS Emily Gold* Leah Goltzman Marian (Sussman) & Michael Hiatt Betty & Sam Hill (PsyD) Suzanne & John Hilliard Kathy & David Hirschman Jana & Josh Hopkins Ruth & Hank Josephs Karen & Harold Kane Ruth Kane Carol & Sammy Kins Jeri Kolpack Amy & David Krams Chris & Carl Kuehn Dianne & Jim Lee Iris & Andy Lehrman Bobbie & Len Leshin Norma Levens Leslie & Carl Levy Members Nedra Lockhart Gail Gleimer Loeb Kenneth Maltz Marcia Marks Susan & Bill Martin Theresa & Abraham Moss Kari & Scott Rhodes Mary Lynn & Tom Rhodes Phyllis & Rabbi Kenneth Roseman Meredith & David Ryan Cathleen & Perry Sands Nene & Rabbi Naftoli Schmukler Barb & Chip Schwamb Manuela & Jaron Sela Nina Shannon Linda & Dean Snider Renee Solomon Joe Summers Marlene & Jack Super Elizabeth & Jerry Susser Michael T. Trimyer Phyllis Weissman Helen Wilk Arrena Sue Williams IT S TIME TO RENEW YOUR JCC MEMBERSHIP! Call us at (361) , or come by the JCC and visit us at 750 Everhart Rd. Please Support Your JCC! January 1, December 31, 2017 $ $ Patron Sustainer $ Angel $ Family $ Couple $ Single page 3

4 The Miracle of Bubbie's Menorah By Eli Hecht My sweet grandmother is a small woman, barely five feet tall. Her two feet tall candelabra was more than just a candle-holder. It was a family symbol, a magnet that brought us all together. On Shabbat evenings Bubbie would don a special Shabbat kerchief. With great fanfare she would light each candle. When she finished lighting the last candle, she stood in front of the candelabra and closed her eyes. Tears ran down her cheeks. She prayed for her husband, her married children and her grandchildren. She spoke in Yiddish, "Her mein tier tata, hiet oif mein man, kinder un di eyniklach..." (Dearest Father in Heaven, watch and protect my husband, children and grandchildren. May it be your will that they grow up to be good people who are loyal to our religion. Please grant my dear husband a livelihood and patience. Watch over us all.) We all stood by the Shabbat table in awe. Bubbie looked like a queen speaking to the King of Kings, the Almighty G-d. When she finished her prayer, we began our Shabbat. As our family grew, Bubbie spent more time with her candles. By the time she reached her 94th birthday, she had many married grandchildren, who also had children of their own. There were five generations in Bubbie's family. When lighting the candles, Bubbie prayed for each family member. Her candelabra was made of solid silver with a heavy silver base. All year-round it had three branches of two candlesticks. In the middle was a stem for another candle. The traditional custom for Shabbat eve is to light one candle each for the father, mother and children. As each child is born, another candle is added to the Shabbat lighting. Throughout the year Bubbie's candelabra was fitted for five candles. During the week of Chanukah, she added another branch of two candlesticks each, making a total of nine candles. The candelabra was built in such a way that the candle holders could be removed and oil cups could be inserted for the special lighting on Chanukah. Our Shabbat candelabra became a Menorah. During the week of Chanukah she gave her prized candelabra to my grandfather to light candles for the holiday. Chanukah was our happiest time. All the children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren came to Bubbie and Zaydie to receive Chanukah gelt and join in the Menorah lighting. Imagine the two-foot menorah with nine candles shining in all its glory. Zaydie stood proudly like a Kohain, the high priest in the temple, when he lit the menorah. When Zaydie died, Bubbie would spend her winters in Miami Beach. She took her candelabra with her. Every Shabbats Bubbie would shine the silver candelabra and pray, "May my mazel (luck) always shine!" All this came to an end when someone stole her menorah. Bubbie was livid. Her small body shook like a willow in the storm as she spoke about her most prized possession, her candelabra. How could anyone steal it? Her only concern was how she would light her candles. She believed the menorah would return. "I have prayed that the menorah would protect us, and I'm sure that the menorah has done just that. Now I pray that the menorah protect itself and be returned to me." With silent determination she prayed and prayed. The family did not know what to do. Unexpectedly a childhood friend from Austria, Bubbie's birthplace, once visited us and announced, "I never saw another menorah like yours until today. Surprisingly I saw a replica of your menorah, in the window of a gift store." We were dumbfounded. Could it be that our guest had seen the stolen menorah? Bubbie jumped back and said, "Let's get my menorah back! It soon will be Chanukah and I need the menorah back." Bubbie, my parents, Bubbie's girlfriend, and a policeman made their way to the gift shop. With a gleam in her eyes and a shout of joy Bubbie pointed to her menorah and said to it, "Yes, you have done well. You have protected us and now you have protected yourself. Come back home with me." Before anyone could say anything, Bubbie grabbed the menorah off the shelf and held it close to her heart. Nobody could stop her. Neighbors, Jewish and non-jewish, joined Bubbie in her triumphant walk home. The closer she neared home, more and more people joined her. Bubbie, dressed in the European manner, with her slight frame carrying a menorah almost as big as her, followed by a procession of excited family and friends, was a sight to see. It truly was a grand Chanukah parade. The menorah was given a special cleaning, and that Chanukah was the brightest in Bubbie's home. Who says that miracles don't happen anymore? page 4

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8 One for My Husband and One for Me The Woman Who Won a Lottery--and Built Synagogues By:Mirish Kiszner Rare is the grandmother who doesn't love to show off her grandchildren. A framed portrait gracing the coffee table depicting a toddler romping in the grass. A video clip of a little boy throwing his head back in laughter, his lilting voice like music. The mini photo album tucked into a proud grandma's purse filled with smiling, happy children at play, at the park, at a wedding But the pictures crowding the photo albums of Dubbe ("Dubbele") Stern are of a different stock. No pictures of smiling babies peer out from those pages, no family portraits, no images of fathers looking down at their sons with unmasked pride. But this elderly woman displays her own set of nachas with unadulterated joy. In Dubbele's albums, if you get to thumb through them, you will find pictures of synagogues, lecterns and prayer-books. There are pictures of a TorahScroll dedication celebration. Of dancing and leaping in tight circles around a canopy Torches burning bright held high by little children parading before the new Torah Sitting beside Dubbe at a circumcision, I listen as she tells me the story behind those albums. "I don't have anyone," she begins. "Not a husband, not a sister, not a child, not a grandchild. I have G d," she says with a twinkle in her eyes and that sincere smile that never leaves her face. She's dressed simply, in plain clothes, old and worn, that belie a woman known to have won the lottery. "Tell me about yourself," I say. She laughs; a delicate, tinkling laughter like the sound of the china dishes the waiters are carting away. A Childhood Cut Short "I was born in Warsaw, Poland," she begins. "Tatte [Father] was very religious. But bread there wasn't and we lived in a cellar. My parents came to live in Warsaw from a small shtetl nearby to look for a livelihood. I went to the Bais Yaakov school for girls. "Then the war broke out in I was caught one day as I was walking on the street, and then I was liberated by the ninth armored division," she says, opening and closing this harrowing chapter of her life in one breath a subtle clue, perhaps, that explains her unwavering joyfulness. I wait for more. Those words war, 1939, the Warsaw Ghetto history-packed words they dangle before me, enticingly, as I look up at the woman who carries all those memories in her heart. "How old were you?" I gently prod, searching for a side entrance to that pain-filled domain. "I was a young girl, maybe twelve or thirteen. We were six children: Moshewho learned in Baranovitch, Kalmen, Yankel, David, Rivkale and me Dubbela. I was hungry. I would go out to look for bread, my brother and I. I was always on the alert, scanning the countryside for signs of danger I knew that if a Jewish child is discovered a kilometer away from the city, she was shot. "One day, as I was roaming the countryside, I saw a man moving cautiously along. He was using a walk stick to feel out what's around him, he was obviously blind. As he came closer, I heard him muttering under his breath that whoever will escort him will have what to eat. So I offered to accompany him and he was happy. We went up to a little shack and he knocked on the door. A polish peasant woman opened the door and the blind man began to sing a Christian song. Hearing him, the woman ushered us into her home and served us some soup "In this way, we spent a few weeks, wandering and begging, the blind man and I, knocking on doors, subsisting on a piece of bread, a plate of soup, and every now and then, an egg. Until, out of the blue, the blind man disappeared. "I was on my own again. When hunger overtook me, I would walk up to one of the little huts dotting the roads and beg the gentiles living there to give me something to eat, a corner to sleep." Dubbele's looks up at me, there's laughter in her eyes. "You could make a movie out of my story, eh?" She continues her story: "And so roaming the fields, I discovered an underground bunker where Jews were hiding out and they allowed me to join them. Whenever our food supply ran out, we would sneak out again to search for food: some corn, a bit of flour, every bit was precious. One day, as I was making my way across a highway in search for a farmer, a group of SS men swooped down on all the passersby and threw us into waiting trucks. page 8

9 "I found myself in a transport sent to the Skarżysko-Kamienna slave labor camp. There I worked in a munitions factory, filling bullets with explosive powder, and then loading heavy, sixteen kilo barrels onto railway wagons. Later I was sent to a munitions plant in Leipzig. With the help of the UNNRA I came to Israel in I ask about the rest of the family and she tells me she never heard from them again. "Maybe they died in Treblinka, or of starvation in the ghetto, I'll never know. My brother Moshe who learned in Baranovitch," she becomes thoughtful, "maybe he'll read this story and we'll find each other " The Lotto Ticket Dubbele got married to her husband, Tuvia, in 1957 and put her holocaust experiences behind her. She wanted nothing more than to build a new generation of Jewish children. However, it wasn't destined to be. She never had children. Still, Dubbele's joie de vivre never waned. Always she found ways to fill her life with joy, giving of herself, spreading happiness wherever she went. "I had an interesting hobby. "Every week I would go out to buy a lottery ticket. There was one number I played with, all the time, 15,1957 the date of my wedding. My husband would laugh, 'A million people buy the lottery,' he would say, 'you'll be the winner? It's impossible. Don't burn up money, give it to charity, if you must.' But Dubbele always assured him that one day she will indeed win the lottery. "One day, I was walking down Allenby St. with a dance in my step and humming a tune to myself when I met Rebbetzin Mund. 'Dubbela, why are you singing?' She asked, 'What's making you so happy?' I told her, 'It's my day today. I'm on my way to buy a lottery ticket and I'm sure that I'll win. "Rebbetzin Mund, the wife of Rabbi Simcha Mund, was a righteous woman, a goodhearted woman. She must have felt like humoring me. 'If you're going to win,' she said, 'let me join you. I'll be your partner in the lottery.' I said, 'Great, you're a rebbetzin, you are a holy woman, I can hardly stand next to you. You be the one to pull out the ticket.' "'No,' she said. 'It's your day, you be the one.' So I bought a lottery ticket, placed the receipt in my pocket, thanked the rebbetzin, and was on my way." That week, Dubbele's wedding date turned out to be the winning numbers. She won fifty thousand dollars a small fortune in the late 1960s. Without a moment's hesitation Dubbele hurried to the rebbetzin and presented her with half the money. The rabbi and his rebbetzin were incredulous. "It's your money," they protested. "You could build yourself a beautiful five storey home!" "No it belongs to both of us," Dubbele insisted. "We made a partnership." In addition to the twenty five thousand dollars, Dubbela counted out two thousand five hundred dollars and handed it to the rabbi. "This is a tenth of the money. Give it to the charity of your choice." The rest of the money Dubbele presented to her husband. "It's for you," she said. "What do I need?" The Dividends Tuvia invested the money in a real estate property and Dubbele stopped buying lottery tickets. Years passed. Tuvia Stern left the world. Dubbele was alone once again. And yet, the joy on her face, her zest for living never left her. Eventually she sold the property her husband had purchased and used those funds to build two synagogues: "One for my husband and one for me." Today, if one ventures to walk through the timeless arches and quaint twisting alleyways of the Meah Shearim neighborhood in Jerusalem, one comes across a small, "humble structure. "Tuvia's Shteeble," reads the placard that hangs over the entrance. And in a city not too far away, the city of Ashdod, there stands another synagogue, "Beit Feige Dubba." Each one a silent tribute to a woman who once searched for bread to nourish her body and now hungers for food to nourish her soul. And Dubbe herself? She can be found inside a hospital cafeteria or a senior citizen home, feeding a forlorn patient, smiling to an elderly woman, spreading her sunshine, giving to others wherever she goes. "I have no one," she says. "No one but my Father in Heaven." And of course, the albums filled with pictures of the two synagogues she built her greatest joy in life... page 9

10 1st Leigh Sheinberg 3rd William Adams 6th Chaim Blend 6th Elizabeth Susser 6th Nedra Lockhart 7th Keith Gould page 10 12th Ronnie Liedeker 15th Mo Canales 16th Nina Shannon 25th Carl Kuehn 26th Sam Horner 27th Jana Hopkins 27th Mel Klein

11 Jewish Community Center Calendar December 2016 Kislev/Tevet 5777 Sunday Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday 1 2 CBI Shabbat Services 7:30 p.m. CBI 10 a.m. (Bat Mitzvah Rebecca Simpson) Torah 11 a.m. 1 Kislev 2 Kislev Shabbat begins 5:16 p.m CBI Shabbat Services 6:00 p.m. (Family dinner to follow) 3 Kislev Shabbat ends 6:12 p.m. CBI a.m. Torah 11 a.m. 4 Kislev 5 Kislev 6 Kislev 7 Kislev 8 Kislev 9 Kislev Shabbat begins 5:17 p.m CBI Shabbat Services 17 CBI 10 7:30 p.m. (Bar Mitzvah for Aaron Lebowitz) Torah 11 a.m. 10 Kislev Shabbat ends 6:13 p.m. 11 Kislev 12 Kislev 13 Kislev 14 Kislev 15 Kislev 16 Kislev Shabbat begins 5:19 p.m CBI Shabbat Services 6:00 p.m. 17 Kislev Shabbat ends 6:16 p.m. CBI 9 a.m. Torah 11 a.m. 18 Kislev 19 Kislev 20 Kislev 21 Kislev 22 Kislev 23 Kislev Shabbat begins 5:23 p.m JCC & CBI Chanukah CBI Shabbat Services 31 Party at the JCC 7:30 p.m. 24 Kislev Shabbat ends 6:19 p.m. CBI 9 a.m. Torah 11 a.m. 25 Kislev 26 Kislev 27 Kislev 28 Kislev Shabbat begins 29 Kislev 1 Tevet 5:27 p.m. 2 Tevet Shabbat ends 6:24 p.m. page 11

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13 The Menorah That Lit Up My Life By Laura P. Schulman Two years ago during Chanukah, two of our Baltimore events turned out for various reasons to be disappointments for us. One was a menorah lighting at Johns Hopkins University, and the other was a parade of Mitzvah Tanks which was supposed to cover the downtown area. Rabbi Gopin (theshliach at Hopkins) and I just accepted it for what it was, and moved on to other programs and projects. After all, even Babe Ruth didn t always hit home runs. Not exactly so, as you will discover in the following story, which appeared in the Jewish Press. Rabbi Shmuel Kaplan, Chabad of Maryland Two years ago I was in Baltimore on business, and happened to pass by the public menorah in front of Johns Hopkins University just as the first light was being lit. My eyes welled with tears. Although I was raised a secular Jew, my family has always celebrated Chanukah. To be away from my family that first night of the holiday felt cold and lonely. Now, seeing the lights of the first night s flames of that big menorah, my heart lit up also, and I felt the warmth of my people all around me. The next day I was walking by the waterfront, and a young man in a black hat ran up to me and politely asked, Excuse me, are you Jewish? Somewhat surprised that anyone would care, I answered in the affirmative. Do you know that it s the second night of Chanukah tonight? he asked earnestly. I nodded. Do you have a menorah? he inquired, looking a bit anxious. No, I replied. Do you want one? he asked hopefully. Do you have one? I asked, almost shouting with joy. Yes, I ll get you one! he replied, almost as excited as I. He ran off, and returned moments later with an entire menorah kit in a box: little brass candleholder, box full of the right number of candles, and complete instructions. Also a DVD full of Chanukah stories, how-tos, even recipes. I politely declined the offer of a doughnut (fried foods are traditional on Chanukah, but I have to pace myself), and raced off to my hotel room to examine the contents of the box and watch the DVD. Childhood memories of Chanukah lights, my father telling stories of the Maccabees, the miracle of how one day s worth of oil somehow lasted for eight days... it all came flooding back. I knew I had been given a gift that Chanukah in Baltimore: the gift of the return of Judaism to my life, and of my life to Judaism. All this because of a menorah on the steps of a public institution. And all because I happened to be passing by that day, and the flame of the menorah ignited the spark that had been sleeping in my Jewish heart for nearly 50 years. When I returned to Seattle the following week, I called a rabbi for the first time in my life. I told him what the menorah in Baltimore had stirred in me. Over the next two years, with his wise and gentle guidance, I found my way as a fully observant Jew. The spark that was rekindled by a public menorah is now a steady burning flame. How grateful I am to live in a country that is founded on the right to worship as we choose, in the manner in which we choose. I thank our founding fathers who crafted the Constitution of the United States of America, which recognizes our freedom to express and practice our religion. And I thank those who have the courage, in these sometimes dark times, to defend those rights. We never know how many hearts and lives are touched and, yes, even transformed by the sight of the miraculous Chanukah lights, shining into the darkest reaches and reminding us of miracles long ago and not so long ago. All those selfless souls whose courage and staunch commitment fuel the kindling of light the world over deserve our heartfelt gratitude. I know they have mine. page 13

14 15 Happy Birthday! 2nd Ashley Narvaez 3rd Kim Emard JCC Preschool Information 2nd Shabbat 9:00 am/ Mitzvah - Ms. Christal Loving Kindness 9th Shabbat 9:00 am/ Mitzvah - Ms. Christal Loving Kindness 9th 9:30 am PTO Spring Fling Committee Meeting 14th 10:00 am Four yr. old Chanukah Program for School 15th 10:00 am Four yr. old Chanukah Program for Parents 16th Shabbat 9:00 am/ Mitzvah - Schoolwide Chanukah Celebration 16th Early Dismissal for Students at 11:30am/ Luncheon for JCC Staff 19th - Jan 2nd Winter Break (No School/ Holiday Care 19th - 23rd) 24th - Jan 2nd Chanukah page 14 For more information contact: Preschool/Summer Programs Director - Manuela Sela Call (361) or jewishcommunitypreschool@yahoo.com JCC The Place To Be!

15 For more information contact: Executive Director - Vanessa Nisbet Call: (361) or director@risecorpuschristi.org page 15

16 Jewish Community Center 750 Everhart Rd. Corpus Christi, TX (361) jcccorpuschristi.com Please Note: The JCC Focus is only mailed out to JCC Members. Don t let this be your last FOCUS! Renew your JCC Membership to continue to receive our monthly newsletter. Thank you for your support!! Return Service Requested 2017 Membership January 1, December 31, 2017