By Jerry Klinger Passing through Indianapolis in early August, I had to stop at the Greatest Car Racing Track in the World, the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. I wanted to see “it.” The “it” was more than the dedicatory paver/brick I had placed for the Jewish American Society for Historic Preservation outside the Museum. The big […]
Jews, the Indianapolis 500, and the Story of a Brick Read More »
Jerry Klinger, Jewish History, Opinion, USA
By Selwyn Isakow SAN DIEGO — This week we mark Tisha B’Av, the saddest day in the Jewish calendar. So many tragedies have happened to the Jewish people on this date – the 9th of Av, including the destruction of the First Temple of Jerusalem by the Greeks, and 656 years later the Romans destroyed
Tisha B’Av Reflections: Building a Better Future Read More »
Jewish History, Jewish Religion, Opinion, San Diego County
By Gedaliah Borvick JERUSALEM — Israel enjoys a strong relationship with the Czech Republic and Slovakia, two countries that comprise the former Czechoslovakia. To understand the root of this special relationship, let’s go back over 130 years and focus on Tomas Masaryk. The name Masaryk may ring a bell, as streets in over half a
Like Father, Like Son Read More »
Gedaliah Borvick, International, Israel, Jewish History, Middle East
By Jerry Klinger Recently, the Jewish American Society for Historic Preservation’s U.K. branch placed a new historical, interpretive marker in Whitechapel, London. The marker was placed on a building that replaced the Adler House. The Adler House was named in honor of the Chief Rabbi of the British Empire, Hermann Adler, 1891-1911. The text of the
Whitechapel: ‘Centre of Jewish Immigrant Life’ Read More »
International, Jerry Klinger, Jewish History
The Book of Jewish Knowledge, Rabbi Yanki Tauber, ed., The Rohr Jewish Learning Institute, Brooklyn, NY, ©2022, ISBN 978-1-63668-012-5 p. 432, plus Appendices, $69.75. By Fred Reiss, Ed.D. WINCHESTER, California – Is it feasible to adequately convey the skills, information, and wisdom acquired by the Jewish people who, after nearly 4,000 years of living in
Surveying the Full Range of Jewish Life Read More »
Books, Poetry & Short Stories, Fred Reiss, EdD, Jewish History, Jewish Religion
A member of the Jewish community, known for his self-deprecating sense of humor, Kolender grew up at the Reform Congregation Beth Israel. However, when it was time for his bar mitzvah, he honored his grandfather’s wishes and had it at Beth Jacob Congregation, which is Orthodox. “The rabbi there was Baruch Stern, and it was the first bar mitzvah for him after the war,” Kolender told me back in 1996 when I profiled him for the now defunct San Diego Jewish Press-Heritage. Rabbi Stern’s children “had been killed in front of him by the Nazis, and he started crying and I started crying, and I’m not sure if we ever did get through the whole thing. It was something I never will forget.” [Donald H. Harrison]
Kolender Was City’s First Jewish Police Chief, County’s First Jewish Sheriff Read More »
California, Donald H. Harrison, Jewish History, San Diego County, Travel and Food, USA
By Laurie Baron SAN DIEGO — Dr. Richard A. Freund passed away in Charlottesville, Virginia on July 14, 2022 from complications arising from the rejection of a bone marrow transplant he had received 18 years ago. He held an MA, PhD, and rabbinic ordination from the Jewish Theological Seminary and the Bertram and Gladys Aaron
Jewish Studies Scholar Richard Freund (1955-2022) Read More »
Jewish History, Lawrence Baron, San Diego County, USA
A highlight of the proceedings was a ten-minute video, Jews in Medicine: A Legacy of Healing and Hope, much of it based on the book written by Dr. Ron Eisenberg, Jews inMedicine: Contributions to Health and Healing Through the Ages (Urim Publications, 2019). [Eileen Wingard]
Genesis Prize Ceremony Relied on Work of Doctor/ Author Ron Eisenberg Read More »
Eileen Wingard, Jewish History, Middle East, Science, Medicine, & Education
The Book of Life symbolizes promises from one generation to the next – – promises that ensure the long-term strength and vibrancy of our Jewish community. The Book itself is a treasured community archive and housed at the Jewish Community Foundation. [Press Release]
‘Book of Life’ Ceremony at Beth Am Aided Jewish Continuity Read More »
California, Jewish History, San Diego County, USA
September 23, 1940, German bombs smashed into a residential pub in Manor Park, Newham, a few blocks from where Lewis was stationed. Beneath the pub was a bomb shelter with 60 people trapped inside. The building burning, collapsing. A water main burst. The basement shelter was flooding, threatening to drown any survivors.
Lewis and a colleague ran to the site. [Jerry Klinger]
King George VI Personally Pinned Medal on Jewish Air Raid Warden Read More »
International, Jerry Klinger, Jewish History
Try as we might, we cannot turn back the hands of time. But there are a few things we can do. We can face the world with our eyes open, and never allow ourselves to become accomplices by apathy again. [Rabbi Bernhard H. Rosenberg]
Prayers for Ukrainians and an Appeal to President Zelensky Read More »
Bernhard H. Rosenberg-Rabbi, International, Jewish History, Jewish Religion
Sidney’s life changed in the theater of New York. The specialist, Dr. Emil Loch, a renowned dermatologist, reported him to the authorities as a leper. The police swept up Sidney, almost overnight. With a small suitcase that contained his life, he was sent secretly, swiftly and with as little human contact as possible to vanish into the interior of America. He was shipped to the very isolated world of Carville, Louisiana on the banks of the Mississippi River. Carville was the continental United States’ concentration camp for victims of Leprosy. Standing naked before a board of medical examiners in Carville, Sidney Maurice Levyson was assigned a number that he was to be known forever more as, patient #746. [Jerry Klinger]
Searching for Stanley Stein Read More »
Jerry Klinger, Jewish History, Science, Medicine, & Education, Travel and Food, USA
Members of the Jewish community who have served on the Port Commission since its creation in 1962 were Harvey Furgatch (appointed 1969), Milton “Mickey” Fredman (1970), Ben Cohen (1977) and Louis Wolfsheimer (1979), all of whom had passed away prior to my undertaking this book, and Robert Penner (1988), Lynn Schenk (1990), Stephen Cushman (1998) and Laurie Black (2007), all of whom I had the opportunity to interview. All these Jewish Port Commissioners represented the City of San Diego, except for Penner and Cohen, who were appointed by Chula Vista and Coronado respectively. [Donald H. Harrison]
Four Jews Who Served as Port Commissioners Tell of Their Tenures Read More »
Business & Finance, California, Donald H. Harrison, International, Jewish History, Middle East, San Diego County, Travel and Food, USA
There was a time the San Diego International Airport was known by everyone as Lindbergh Field after the aviator Charles Lindbergh, who spent a lot of time in town overseeing the construction of his airplane, “The Spirit of St. Louis,” by Ryan Aircraft. After the job was completed, Lindbergh made several stops across country en route to New York, including in St. Louis. This was where donors lived who had financed his plane. Then, on May 21, 1927, Lindbergh, the 25-year-old pilot, completed the first solo flight across the Atlantic Ocean, in the process becoming an international celebrity. If he had simply retired on his laurels at that point in his life, the name “Lindbergh Field” today might still be emblazoned across the airport entrance. [Donald H. Harrison]