Parshah Pinchas 

Parshah study partners Brad, left and Eyal, right

An Israeli and American duo met to learn the weekly Torah portion together. In the process, they discovered they had two totally different but equally meaningful interpretations of the same text. Eyal’s perspective incorporates the words of Israel’s beloved national poet, Chaim Bialik, while Brad’s perspective grounds us in the census-like American recordkeeping during the pandemic. While their perspectives are different, their conclusions about what we can learn from the Parshah are universal and can apply to us all. Please enjoy the first-ever Double D’var: Parshah Perspectives brought to you by BaInyanim at the ICC@OFJCC.

Eyal Akiva moved from Israel to the Bay Area in 2010 with his wife, Dafna, and two kids, Naama and Yoav. Following two postdoctoral fellowships at UCSF, he joined the biotech industry, and is now working as a staff bioinformatics scientist in a food tech startup in the field of alternative proteins. He has been active in the local community by participating in the ICC@JCC’s Gvanim program, volunteering, studying Talmud, co-establishing a Talmud study group and writing commentaries to weekly Torah portions.

Brad Heller is a scientist from New York who moved to San Francisco in 2014 to take a postdoctoral position at UCSF. He has since moved to Los Angeles with his wife where he is working on a new venture called Achieve Clinics that will make cell therapy more effective and less expensive.

Says Eyal, “Brad and I have known each other for seven years, ever since we were postdoctoral fellows at UCSF. Back then, we organized student events based on the Jewish calendar; we even got to set up a sukkah in the green courtyard of Mission Bay campus! Now, we regularly study Talmud in English (with short forays into Hebrew and Aramaic). 

“Recently, during a meeting of Parshah commentators that publish in the ICC@JCC’s online Bainyanim newsletter, the idea of writing commentaries in English and Hebrew by writers from both communities was suggested. The Jewish scriptures can serve as a fundamental common ground and meeting point between Israelis and Jews born here, and the attempt to decipher the text together from two perspectives—including mutual feedback and conversation—can bring us closer and promote deeper mutual understanding. 

“We found that the combination of the clear translation of the Torah into English and the richness of reading the Torah in its source language complement each other. That being said, our perspectives of the same text are totally different. The first bilingual Torah interpretation is hereby published, and we hope the trend will continue!”

(Scroll for English.)

מספר הפלא 600,000 / אייל עקיבא 

מה השמות של ספרי התורה באנגלית? אני מודה שאני  תמיד שוכח… ספר “במדבר” בו מצוייה פרשת השבוע, פרשת “פנחס”, נקרא “Book of Numbers” בואו נאמר שזה לא בדיוק איך שגוגל היה מתרגם. מדוע הוא נקרא כך? כי יש בו הרבה מספרים – למשל תוצאות “מִפְקַד האוכלוסין של הלשכה המדברית לסטטיסטיקה” שפורסם השבוע בפרשה. משה מבקש “שְׂאוּ אֶת־רֹאשׁ  כׇּל־עֲדַת בְּנֵי־יִשְׂרָאֵל מִבֶּן עֶשְׂרִים שָׁנָה וָמַעְלָה לְבֵית אֲבֹתָם כׇּל־יֹצֵא צָבָא בְּיִשְׂרָאֵל”. מדובר באחד מתוך שלושה מפקדים בספר במדבר ‐ השניים האחרים נערכו 38 שנה לפני כן, מיד אחרי יציאת מצרים. קצת הופתעתי לקרוא שמספר בני ישראל בכל המפקדים היה זהה – כולם היו סביב “מספר הקסם” שש-מאות אלף. למה בכלל לספור? איך זה שתמיד המספר זהה? האם יש משמעות מיוחדת למספר 600,000?

הנה קטע שמצאתי באתר הלמ”ס: “בעולם העתיק נערכו מפקדים לצורך מיסוי, גיוס לצבא, ובקרה של המבנה החברתי…מטרתם הייתה חיזוק השלטון המרכזי… במדינות מודרניות דמוקרטיות המפקדים נועדו לאסוף מידע חיוני למילוי חובתה של המדינה לשרת את האוכלוסייה”. לא אתווכח עם חכמינו מציון, אבל פרשנותם כאן די קולעת ‐ בני ישראל נמצאים על סף הכניסה לארץ המובטחת, רגע לפני עימותים צבאיים רבים. פשוט סופרים את הגייסות. המפקד הנוכחי שימש גם לתכנון חלוקה שוויונית של הארץ, כל שבט לפי גדלו (מפתיע – לא לפי כוחו הצבאי או הפוליטי) ‐ “לָאֵלֶּה תֵּחָלֵק הָאָרֶץ בְּנַחֲלָה בְּמִסְפַּר שֵׁמוֹת. לָרַב תַּרְבֶּה נַחֲלָתוֹ וְלַמְעַט תַּמְעִיט נַחֲלָתוֹ אִישׁ לְפִי פְקֻדָיו יֻתַּן נַחֲלָתוֹ”. מעניין גם שהאנשים שנספרו בפרשת “פנחס” היו אחרים בתכלית מאלה שנספרו במפקדים הקודמים. למעשה – חוץ ממשה, יהושע וכלב בן יפונה, כל הדור הקודם, יוצאי מצרים, מתו במדבר כעונש על חטא המרגלים. שוני נוסף הוא שבניגוד למפקדים קודמים, בהם הוזכרו ונספרו השבטים כיחידות הַמְּנִיָּה, הפעם הוזכרו בשם גם כל המשפחות בכל שבט ושבט. הדור הנספר עתה לא מסתפק בשיוך לשבט, אלא למשפחה. הדור הקודם היה אחיד יותר, נע ביחידוֹת של שבטים, בדור הנוכחי ‐  לכל אינדיבידואל יש שיוך משפחתי ‐ ולכל משפחה כבר יועדה נחלה מיוחדת לה בארץ המובטחת. אולי חל כאן תהליך של הכרה ברזולוציה הולכת וגדלה – מעם לשבטים ולמשפחות. מתמונה אחידה לתמונה רגישה יותר לפרטים. לבסוף ‐ גם המשימה והייעוד של הדורות האלה היו שונים. דור אחד יצא ממצרים, השני ‐ נכנס לארץ ישראל.

כשקראתי את החלק הזה בפרשה נזכרתי בשיעור ספרות לפני כ-30 שנה, בו שמעתי את תיאורם של שני הדורות האלה. לפי התיאור הזה, מה שנשאר מדור מתי המדבר הוא אתר רחב ידיים, צחיח ונשכח המלא בשיירים מאובנים של אותם שש-מאות אלף (פחות שלושה) ‐ תיאור בעברית יפהפיה ומלאת הוד ואבק. התיאור של הדוֹר הנספר עתה היה אחר לגמרי: 

“פֶּתַע פִּתְאֹם יִתְנַעֵר דּוֹר עִזּוּז וְגִבּוֹר, דּוֹר גִּבּוֹר מִלְחָמָה

…

וְהִרְעִימוּ אַדִּירִים בְּקוֹלָם, קוֹל שִׁשִּׁים רְבָבָה,

…

וַנִּזְקֹף רֹאשֵׁנוּ שָׁמָיְמָה וַיֵּצְרוּ בְעֵינֵינוּ –

וַנַּעֲרֹק לַמִּדְבָּר וַנֹּאמַר לַצִּיָּה “אִמֵּנוּ!”

עַל-רָאשֵׁי הַצּוּרִים בֵּין מִפְלְשֵׁי עָבִים

שָׁתִינוּ מִמְּקוֹרוֹ הַדְּרוֹר עִם כָּל-נִשְׁרֵי שָׁמַיִם –

וּמִי אָדוֹן לָנוּ?!

גַּם-עַתָּה – אִם-סָגַר עָלֵינוּ מִדְבָּרוֹ אֵל נָקָם,

כִּמְעַט נָגַע בָּנוּ שִׁיר עִזּוּז וָמֶרִי – וַנָּקָם!”

(מתי מדבר/ ח”נ ביאליק).

בשנת 1901, ביאליק מתכתב עם המקורות, מזכיר את “מספר הפלא”, שישים ריבוא, ולמעשה מתאר – שלושה דורות – דור מתי המדבר, הדור העומד על סיפה של הארץ, ועוד דור – זה שהתקבץ להקים את מדינת ישראל – שאף הוא יִמְנֶה, כעבור 47 שנה מכתיבת הפואמה, שש מאות אלף אישה ואיש. ביאליק חוזה שהדור החדש גם הוא יהיה חלק ממהלך היסטורי: אותו מספר, 600,000. כולם אוחזים בחזון גדול וביכולת ליצור משהו חדש – בדרך אחרת מזו שנקטו בה אנשי הדור הקודם, שכן זו נכשלה.

מה יש במספר הזה? האם זהו הגודל המינימלי של קהילה שיש בה מספיק שונות וכוח להגדיר עצמה באופן משמעותי ולחולל שינוי?

איפה עוד יש 600,000 סביבנו? ממש קרוב! שש-מאות אלף הוא גם מספר היהודים החיים פה במפרץ. המספר הזה צץ שוב כשחיפשתי מפקדים עדכניים, ומצאתי שראשית, מספר ה”שבטים” הצטמצם משמעותית. שנית, במפקדים של היום יחידת הספירה היא households ‐ כלומר ייצוג ברזולוציה גבוהה יותר. שֵׁם המשפחה כבר אינו מספיק, יחידת המניה היא אנשים החולקים את אותה קורת גג. לבסוף, מצאתי שיש שוני עצום בהערכות של מספר הישראלים החיים במפרץ (שאינם נספרים ע”י אף גוף רשמי). בשורה התחתונה, סך היהודים החיים כאן הוא כשש-מאות אלף (ישראלים מהווים– 15-5 אחוז). אז אנחנו כאן, ומספרנו זהה לזה שהתפקד בכניסה לארץ. דור המדבר? דור על סף שינוי? 

אני קורא את הפרשה והמחשבות שלי נעות בין הדור ההוא שהלך במדבר, לבינינו – פה ועכשיו. האם לקהילה/ות השונה/ות יכול להיות חזון משותף, חדש ובר-מימוש, כזה שאינו משותף עם דור ההורים? אולי… בכל מקרה, נראה ששני מרכיבים לפחות נחוצים כתנאים מקדימים: צעדים קטנים (למשל שיתופי הפעולה בין ה OFJCC ל-ICC, ומפעלים כגון כתיבת פרשנות דו-לשונית לפרשת השבוע…), והנכונות של שני הצדדים להשתנות בכדי לשנות – (“אדם יכול להשפיע על אחרים רק במידה שהוא נשפע מהם על פי דרכו, באופן מיוחד לו, ואת השפע הזה המיוחד לו ישוב וישפיע עליהם” (א.ד. גורדון, “מכתב שלא נשלח בזמנו”).

נתראה במפקד הבא!

===

600,000: The Magic Number

by Eyal Akiva

What are the names of the books of the Torah in English? I admit I keep forgetting… This week’s Parshah, ‘Pinchas’ is part of “Bamidbar,” known as “The Book of Numbers” (“Bamidbar” means “In the desert,” which is not the same as “numbers.”) Why? Because it has many numbers in it. For example, the results of the “Census of the Desert Bureau of Statistics” are published this week in the Parshah. Moses asks, “Take a census of the whole Israelite community from the age of twenty years up, by their ancestral houses, all Israelites able to bear arms.” This is one of three censuses in the Book of Numbers; the other two were conducted 38 years earlier, just after the Exodus. I was surprised to realize that the number of Israelites counted in all the censuses was the same—they were all around the “magic number” of six hundred thousand. Why were these censuses conducted? How come they all ended up with the same count? Is there any hidden meaning to this number, 600,000? 

Here is what I found on the website of the Israeli Central Bureau of Statistics: “In the ancient world, censuses were conducted for the purpose of taxation, conscription, and control of the social structure. Their purpose was to strengthen the central government… In modern democratic countries, the censuses’ purpose is to gather vital information to fulfill the duty of the state to provide services to the population.” I will not argue with our modern sages of statistics, and I feel they were right in the sense that the people of Israel were on the verge of entering the Promised Land, just before multiple military clashes. They just counted the soldiers. This census was also used to equally divide the Promised Land, each tribe according to its size (surprisingly, not according to its military or political power) — “Among these shall the land be apportioned as shares, according to the listed names: with larger groups increase the share, with smaller groups reduce the share. Each is to be assigned its share according to its enrollment” (Num. 26:53-54).

It is interesting that the people counted in the “Pinchas” census were completely different from those counted in the previous censuses. In fact, except for Moses, Joshua and Caleb son of Jephunneh, all the previous generation, the participants of the Exodus, were gone. They all died in the desert as punishment for the sin of the spies. Another difference is that unlike previous censuses, in which the tribes were mentioned and used as a basic counting unit, this time all the names of the families within each tribe were used as the basic counting unit. The current generation is not satisfied with being affiliated with a big tribe, but rather with a family. The previous generation was more uniform, it moved in 12 tribal units, while now each individual is affiliated by name to a family, and each family is allotted a specific portion of the land of Israel. Perhaps one can recognize an increase in sensitivity—from people to tribes to families. From a uniform perspective to a reflection more sensitive to individuals and their aspirations. Finally, The mission of these generations was also different. One generation came out of Egypt, the other entered the Land of Israel.

When I read this part of the parshah, I remembered a literature studies class I attended in high school, about 30 years ago, where I heard the description of these two generations. According to this description, what was left of the people that died in the desert is a vast, arid and forgotten site full of fossil remains of those six hundred thousand (minus three)—a description in beautiful Hebrew full of grandeur and dust. The description of the generation that followed was totally different:

Suddenly, a generation will shake itself, a generation mighty and valiant, 

a generation strong in battle,

…

And they thundered in their mighty voice, a voice of six hundred thousands

…

We raised our heads to the sky but found it constricted in our eyes –

We deserted to the desert, and named this wilderness: “our mother”!

On the top of the mountains, between the clouds

We drank freedom from its source with the heaven’s eagles – 

Who is our lord?!

Even if a vengeful God would have engulfed us with his desert,

a song of strength and revolt would have touched us – and we shall rise!”

 

—”The Desert’s Dead” by Chaim Nahman Bialik, Israel’s national poet

In 1901, Bialik engages with the scriptures, mentions the “magic number” of 600,000 and essentially describes three generations: The desert’s generation, the generation standing on the brink of the Promised Land, and yet another generation, the one gathered to establish the state of Israel. Forty-seven years after Bialik wrote this poem, their count was the same—600,000 women and men. All having a grand vision and the ability to create something novel, in a manner different from previous generations, since their ways were not successful. 

What’s in this number? Is this the minimum size of a community that has enough diversity and power to define its identity and bring about change?

Where else are there 600,000 around us? Really close to home! Six hundred thousand is also the number of Jews living here in the Bay Area. That number popped up again when I was looking at the most recent census. First, I found that the number of “tribes” had decreased significantly. Second, in today’s censuses the count unit is households—representing even higher parallel to the biblical censuses. The family name is no longer enough—the base unit is people that live under the same roof. Finally, I found that there is a huge difference in the estimates of the number of Israelis living in the Bay (they are not counted by any official establishment). The bottom line is that the total number of Jews living here is about six hundred thousand (Israelis make up around 5-15%). So we’re here—the same number as the people that were close to entering the Land of Israel. A generation of the desert? A generation on the brink of change? 

I read the Parshah and think about the other generation that was walking in the desert, and our generation—here and now. Can our community/(ies) have a shared, novel and achievable vision, one that was not fulfilled by the older generation? Perhaps… In any case, at least two elements seem to be necessary as preconditions: Making small steps (e.g. the cooperation between the American and Israeli communities here in Palo Alto at the OFJCC, and initiatives such as writing bilingual commentaries on Torah portions…), and the willingness of both communities to change in order to make change. “One can affect others only to the extent that one is influenced by them in his/her own way, in a way that is special to him/her, and that affection that is special to him/her can affect the other” (from “A letter not sent in time” by Aharon David Gordon).

See you at the next census!

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Count our Blessings 

by Brad Heller

Our weekly Parshah begins with Pinchas’s act of zealotry that effectively ends a plague—perhaps one not unlike COVID-19. Once the plague was over, the very first thing that Moses and Eleazar did as leaders was to conduct a census—a count of the survivors (“Take a census of the whole Israelite community from the age of twenty years up, by their ancestral houses, all Israelites able to bear arms.”). Much commentary exists about why the census was taken after the plague, and the simplest explanation is that “whenever the Israelites were struck, they needed to be counted, as a shepherd will count the sheep after a wolf attacks” (Midrash Tanhuma Pinchas 4). This is the opposite of what we have been doing since last March, that is counting the number of those who became sick and died. We are not taking a count of those who live.

It is tempting to conclude simply that the lesson is to focus on survival, not suffering. But the Talmud (Taanit 8b) doesn’t let us off so easily. The sages cite a situation in which someone enters their barn to retrieve grain. The appropriate blessing has to be said before the grain is measured. Otherwise, if said afterwards, it is considered a futile blessing. This is because you can only bless that which is hidden from sight. A blessing is a matter of faith—and you don’t need much faith once you’re sure you have what you want.

So if the blessings on grain that was already measured are in vain, what does that mean for blessings on survivors of a catastrophe after they are accounted for? Indeed, the Talmud debates this as it pertains to the census in Parshat Pinchas. Perhaps our inclination to focus on those who perished from COVID-19 may not be so bad after all.

As COVID-19 ebbs in America, it continues elsewhere and we do not know how many more will die, let alone how many will survive. But we have learned here that it is precisely this ignorance of outcomes that creates space for faith and the opportunity to make meaningful blessings: A blessing for those who developed the vaccines, a blessing for the frontline workers who continue to keep our society functioning and a blessing for the rest of us to strengthen our community as it recovers and assists those who still struggle.

Shuli Zilberfarb-Sela from the OFJCC’s Befed Kefet Hebrew Language Afterschool Program shares her personal take on the hardships of this year and how they relate to this week’s Torah portion. This article originally appeared in Hebrew in BAInyanim.

This week’s Torah portion, “Re’eh” arrives for me with perfect timing that relates to our situation. The Torah portion opens like this: “Behold, I have set before you this day a blessing and a curse.” The children of Israel are just before the end of the journey in the desert and about to enter into the Land of Israel. They will come to the Promised Land in which life is an unfamiliar reality full of uncertainty for them. The story opens with God’s demand from the people to make a decision prior to entering the new environment, to a world that has both blessing and curse. The story continues with explanations: a blessing if you have walked in the way of God and the commandments, a curse if you turn away from God.

Shuli’s son, Barak, learning Hebrew with Beged Kefet in April

Like the children of Israel, although we will not really compare five months of the coronavirus pandemic to 40 years in the desert, we too are today on the verge of crossing the river. Are a moment before entering a new and unclear academic environment. An environment that seems almost impossible and has new and binding commandments and laws. Will we accept it as a blessing or a curse. And do we even have a choice? We learn from the story that in the divine vision, the choice is in the hands of each and every one of us. God tells the children of Israel that they have a choice—a blessing or a curse—it is up to you.

Blessing or curse—it depends on us… I also believe that not only do we have a choice, but we have an obligation. An obligation to choose to adopt the new rules and see them as the blessing—they maintain our health. Ours and our children’s. True, we have a lot of frustration with the system, and we wanted more certainty, and more flexibility and more correctness. Now, at the end of the summer (we managed to get through it!), we are on the verge of entering the proverbial Land of Israel. If we choose to enter it in a positive spirit, leave out the great frustration and the desire to blame, we can lead the way for our family and for our community.

It is so important that just before they return to the virtual school, we parents are chosen to embrace with them the mitzvos and laws in humility and completion so that a year and its blessings begin.

A significant difference in the situation is that we do not have “Moshe Rabbeinu.” The commandments and laws come to us from foreign sources and not from a leader whom we followed from slavery to freedom. It is difficult. There is even a crisis of confidence. The Children of Israel were faced with a choice but their starting point is much better than ours. They have a common trust in leadership, acquaintance, culture, history and memory. They are also facing a dream come true, the end of a long journey towards the coveted goal of the Land of Israel. The road was difficult, and even now Moshe is preparing them for the challenges that will come, they are not going out to freedom, they are on the way to fight for the new land, to build houses, an economy. Everything is going to be different. But they have leaders, Moses leaving them with his successor Joshua son of Nun.

And what about us? With us it is more complex, we have less confidence in the leadership. Despite this, I think that even if we [Israelis] do not have representation in the leadership, and even if our connection to local culture and politics is not natural, we have our community. It is an amazing community with action, caring and positivity that pulls forward on so many planes of doing and giving. A big blessing.

Later in the Parsha, Moshe gives the children of Israel some instructions, mitzvot, and equips them with the tools for the new challenge they will face. For the first time they will have land, they will have property, and naturally there will be those who will have more and those who will have less.

One of the commandments that Moses describes in the Parsha is the commandment to care for the poor, for those who have no land and livelihood in the land of Israel: Just as God announced that there is a blessing and there is a curse, God announces here that there will be poor. It is a fact that there are poor people in every human society. In recent months our community has proven that our people have accepted this mitzvah.

Shuli’s daughter, Nili, taking her Kindergarten assessment on Zoom.

More than ever, initiatives have emerged that aim to take care of those who are having a hard time during this complex period. To help those in isolation, to keep in touch with those who need it, to take care of the neighbors, to support them mentally, to remember to call, to walk in the park and be free, to shut themselves together inside and go through it together. Our community, as always, implements and cares and we will understand later what is needed.

This week’s Torah portion begins with the word, “Re’eh,” or “see,” and I want to expand and wish us all to see and feel seen. We will take the reminder that we have a choice. See the options and be able to choose your spirit. This is not a one-time choice, this is an almost daily choice that does not get easier with time and uncertainty. But, I hope we can choose it and succeed in it. To send the kids to the virtual schooling environment with a smile, patience and love. Remember that these amazing children, far from grandparents and the rest of the extended family, are going through the pandemic themselves and choosing daily between a blessing or a curse. We will choose well and demonstrate it for them. We will convey trust in the system, participation and responsibility, and it will permeate them.

Welcome to “Seeing” the sitution with new eyes for all of us, a year of schooling, work and friendship and of course as good health as possible.

As I spoke with my mother over the phone, she shared her plans to watch Saturday Night Seder live on YouTube this past Saturday. Curious, I asked her about it. The event was made up of an all-star cast of Hollywood celebrities, talented writers, editors and sound mixers who decided to get together and put on an entertaining Passover-themed event from their own homes to raise money for the CDC Foundation’s Coronavirus Emergency Response Fund.

That sounded pretty fabulous to me, so I cleared my schedule and got set up to live-text with my Mom about it. Although I admit the show was on mute for part of the time since I was multitasking, I enjoyed a delightful array of Jewish, Jewish-adjacent and thoroughly American treats all in the service of the Passover message of freedom and supporting those who need it very much right now. I’d like to share a non-exhaustive list of my favorite things about the show. Enjoy and catch it here.

• Broadway’s beloved Idina Menzel singing the Four Questions. Enough said.
• A hilarious “Queer Eye for the Sinai” skit with style expert Tan France advising a very confused Israelite (played by Beanie Feldstein) how to fashionably prepare for 40 years in the desert (“A herringbone scarf??”)
• Live texting back and forth with my Mom while watching (Mom: Billy Porter! <3; Me: Billy!!!)
• Pride that so many of the performers have been involved with the Oshman Family JCC in some way. Comedian Jason Alexander performed here on December 1, speechwriter and author Sarah Hurwitz graced us with her presence in September, and Stephen Schwartz’s The Prince of Egypt musical premiered at TheatreWorks in 2017 with a special performance by the OFJCC Community Choir.

Even in the midst of darkness, this program gave me a little smile on my face and, that, my friends, is a Passover miracle.

“She is such a force of nature,” says Susan Wolfe, good friend of Deb Kurland and a longtime leader at the OFJCC, having served as Director of Communications, Vice President of the Board and Chief Development Officer.

But Susan is not the only OFJCC leader that has clear memories of those days back in the 1980s when Deb Kurland and her family went through an unthinkable loss.

Sandy Blovad, former Executive Director of the JCC, says, “Debbie was a preschool parent and she had young children. And then, Samuel was born and died tragically of Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS) at six weeks. It reached my level and I reached out to Debbie. She wanted to be active at the OFJCC and wanted to be active in the community. I said that a wonderful way to always remember Sam is to develop a scholarship fund in his honor. She embraced the suggestion and moved forward with that.”

“She was very focused on channeling the grief into something positive,” adds Susan.

Deb and her husband Fred established the Samuel Benjamin Kurland Campership Fund. “She didn’t feel that she could seed the fund by herself but she has tremendous energy and creativity,” says Susan. “She really had a drive and a vision.” Together, Debbie and Susan put on major events that drew hundreds of attendees and raised money for the scholarship fund. “I think it healed her in the process. She was able to channel all that sadness into making happy times for other people’s children.” At the time, there was also a children’s kitchen built in the preschool by Phoebe Bressack in memory of Samuel Kurland. It bore the inscription, “May this kitchen be used in joy and laughter.”

Today, Deb and her husband Fred are reinvigorating the Samuel Benjamin Kurland Scholarship Fund, which will provide funds for preschoolers to attend summer camp at the OFJCC.

“One of the great things about the JCC in my mind,” says Susan, “is the friendships that were formed there and the community that comes from a JCC. I know Debbie works out there many days a week. Poor thing, the workout takes her twice as long as it takes anybody else because she’s got so many people to talk to! That’s one of the great byproducts, whether you’re involved at the preschool or fitness center or you’re dropping by for a cultural arts event and going to the café. My best friends in life are the people that I met through the JCC preschool. We’ve been through our whole lives together.”

Sandy explains, “I think it’s important that people understand the history of the JCC. This doesn’t happen in a vacuum—there is major history. People who are members, whether they are Jewish or not, are part of that history. They have met a number of people. They have had positive experiences. The Kurland family and all of her friends are a perfect example of that. Being part of the JCC was a defining moment in their lives. It is an institution that helps to define them. It is a wonderful place to come with blended families where cultural Judaism lives. Even if you are not a practicing Jew, it is still an exposure to Jewish values and Jewish culture.” And so, too, the Jewish influence in remembering Sam. “That was always a philosophy—let’s keep the memory alive, let’s keep the name alive. It’s a core value of Judaism.”

Says Deb, “There is probably not a week that I don’t think of Sam! He is forever in our hearts. The campership fund is a way to turn a memory into a blessing—and a way to demonstrate our love for our children, grandchildren, friends and community.”

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Last summer, a total of $54,000 in camperships gave 50 children the opportunity to enjoy J-Camp at the Oshman Family JCC. Your generosity makes these experiences possible.

If you would like to make a gift in honor of the Samuel Benjamin Kurland Campership Fund, you can donate online at paloaltojcc.org/donate and designate the fund in Step 4 or send a check to the below address and note “Kurland Campership Fund” on the memo line:

Attn: Myles Blackmon / Oshman Family JCC / 3921 Fabian Way / Palo Alto, CA 94303

Shuli Zilberfarb Sela is closing the door on a meeting room so full of school supplies, you can’t sit down. It all came out of the power of weaving an idea across multiple groups who were primed to help.

Two weeks ago, in a Hebrew-speaking Facebook group where people can give things away, an Israeli posted that her friend had started to work as a teacher in a school in East Palo Alto. The teacher, Heidi, realized she was missing class supplies and had a very small budget. She asked if anyone had notebooks or supplies to help her out.

Shuli Zilberfarb Sela, the head of Beged Kefet Hebrew language afterschool program, saw the post and said to herself, What if we can do more than that? What if when we buy new school supplies for our kids, we buy double and we give that to kids in East Palo Alto to start the year on the best terms?

Shuli contacted Heidi for a complete list of the supplies that were needed. She also reposted the request to the Gvanim group, an Israeli leadership program at the Israeli Cultural Connection of the OFJCC. “I saw this and it really moved me. I think every student should go back to school with what they need to make it a successful year.”

Shuli and a group of Gvanim alumni started a WhatsApp group of who would set up collection stations in front of their houses. Within a few days, collection stations were set up in Menlo Park, Foster City, San Jose, San Mateo, Cupertino, Los Altos, Palo Alto, Sunnyvale and Mountain View. People brought supplies to the Ten-Year Festival at the OFJCC. The Ronald C. Wornick Jewish Day School became involved at the school-wide PTA level to promote the drive because one Gvanim graduate advocated for it. Says Shuli, the school drive even went into small gatherings like an Israeli back-to-school picnic.

Together, the group amassed supplies for 500 students in 18 classrooms: notebooks, pens, markers, vacuum cleaners, scissors, cleaning supplies and more. At the end there was even one Israeli who donated a $180 gift card for any last minute purchases that might be still missing. All of the supplies were delivered to Runnymede Charter School on Wednesday, August 28. The Runnymede staff were excited to see Shuli and a team of people bringing brand new supplies. Many hugs were exchanged as the two groups got to know each other and thought about how to do more for their students and work together in the future.

“To me, what’s important is that you don’t have to wait for a big thing to happen or for an organization to come to you,” says Shuli. “It takes two weeks to do something as important and meaningful that will have an impact on kids’ lives for a whole year. You don’t have to invent everything. People see who best to weave you with. I’m weaving my idea with someone from Wornick and the group of Gvanim alumni, with the ICC, with the JCC and suddenly we have something.

“One person is interested, and they get their friends to do it. So we had this room full of supplies.”

If you’re picturing an absolutely irresistible, hilarious member of the community who you wish was your aunt, you’ve found her in Deb Kurland.

A retired LCSW, Deb and her husband got involved in this JCC in 1984. “My kids went through preschool, summer camp and our daughter became a counselor on board here,” says Deb. She has remained involved, especially with the youngest generation of her family. “I came to volunteer with my grandchild Elizabeth when she was a preschooler here.”

Deb is known for her sociability. “I come here and I work out.  I do more talking than working out because I have friends of many different ages here. My husband jokes that it’s hard sometimes for me to get to the machine.”

She’s also got pearls of wisdom for you:

• On showing up: “It’s just a great community. We show up for each other. There’s history.”

• On meeting other people: “It’s always about connection. It’s always about community. It leads to joy.”

• On making mom friends: “Be the one who organizes the coffee, the brunch for other parents.”

Thank you, Deb for your wisdom, years of volunteering and giving back to the community!

For longer than the biblical Israelites wandered in the desert, the Jewish Community Center of Palo Alto wandered in search of a home.

Although the Palo Alto JCC existed in some form since 1961, we didn’t have a permanent location until 2009. It was a miracle that the Taube Koret Campus for Jewish Life came together when and where it did; otherwise, the JCC of Palo Alto was at risk of becoming homeless. Up until 2001, all of the land that the JCC had considered for a permanent site was too expensive or too small.

Demolition of the SUN Microsystems building in 2007.

The first miraculous thing to happen was that SUN Microsystems put its headquarters up for sale, the largest property to go on the market in Palo Alto in 20 years. Because of the dot-com bust, the cost to buy the land was more affordable than it would have been at the height of the bubble. Even then, it was still more than the community nonprofit could afford. Then the second miracle happened – the campus landed a partnership with BRIDGE Housing, who would buy back a portion of the land from to build Altaire.

Because of these factors, the committee was able to purchase the land.

But the actual cost to build the facility—a groundbreaking combination of senior housing, fitness center, preschool, cultural arts hall and classroom space—would be much more.

The fundraising campaign was a task that required singular vision and indefatigable spirit. This is what Carol Saal brought to the JCC of Palo Alto. At the time, the San Francisco-based Jewish Community Federation called it “the largest project the Bay Area Jewish community [had] ever undertaken.” The architecture of the campus was designed to resemble the narrow streets and cream-colored stones of Old Jerusalem. Architectural touches on the building subtly reference biblical symbols, facts and stories. The landscaping of the building and its village-like environment were all designed by an accomplished team of architects under Rob Steinberg.

The JCC successfully shepherded the campus application through the City of Palo Alto approvals process, organizing 18 public meetings and over 100 testimonials from community members. According to Shelley Hebert, former Executive Director for Campus Development of the future Oshman Family JCC, “Our goal was to be what I would describe as the gold standard of community process and community outreach” (Daily News 2007). And it was. The campus sailed through the approvals process and received permission to break ground.

Ten years later, the fitness programs, arts and culture events, multicultural family programs, senior workshops and Hebrew-language programming at the Oshman Family JCC touch thousands of lives each year. We are so grateful to all of our OFJCC members, our community members and the supporters who made this monumental campus a reality. The OFJCC is a community-supported nonprofit and without you, this would not have been possible. We are honored to celebrate the first ten years on the Taube Koret Campus for Jewish Life and we look forward to the next ten! Follow the story all year long at #10YearTuesdays.

Club J kids at the Oasis.

This week, two preschool teachers from the Krakow JCC are spending a week of intensive learning at the Oshman Family JCC in Palo Alto, California. The visit is focused on incorporating Jewish values into their teaching practice and also learning more about the constructivist educational philosophy followed by the Oshman Family JCC and other American Jewish preschools. This experience is made possible by the support of the Early Childhood Morim Program of SOS International: Enriching Jewish Identity.

Debbie Togliatti is the OFJCC Leslie Family Preschool‘s Garden Pedagogista who has been part of the school for over 30 years. In 2018, Togliatti traveled to the Krakow JCC in Poland to help strengthen value-based Jewish learning at the site. Togliatti is also responsible for establishing the Giving Garden at the Leslie Family Preschool, where young children help grow produce that will be donated to those in need. The Polish visitors to Palo Alto are accompanied by Fran Pfeffer, a former Palo Alto JCC educator and volunteer for SOS International who was part of the 2018 exchange trip to Poland.

One of the most striking differences between the two schools is the size: the OFJCC Leslie Family Preschool is 20 times the size of the Krakow preschool, which is just over a year old.

The method of transmitting Jewish values at the OFJCC Leslie Family Preschool also offers a source of inspiration and best practices for the preschool educators. “It’s important to see a thriving school of Jewish educators with a very connected and involved community,” says Togliatti.

The Leslie Family Preschool offers a student-centered, constructivist approach to teaching core values. As Togliatti explains, “The preschool garden is rich for opportunities to practice Jewish values. That’s everything from sharing food, to composting and not wasting, to honoring the bees and the ladybugs.”

Sally Flinchbaugh, OFJCC Chief Operating Officer, notes, “This is a visit dedicated to continuity. We hope there will be an opportunity for more cultural exchange in the future.”

What’s your background?

My name is Zhibo and I’m an engineer at Google. My hobbies include traveling to Europe, mathematics and weight loss. I joined OFJCC in January 2018 and I’ve been coming to the gym six times a week.

Why did you decide to change your lifestyle?

My original weight was too high and I wanted to totally change my lifestyle, including both healthy diet and exercise.

How did you find your personal trainer Kevin Magro?

Actually I contacted Bonnie [McLaughlin, OFJCC Fitness and Personal Training Manager] first. As Kevin is an expert on weight loss, Bonnie arranged some starter class with him. The class was very impressive and I could feel progress even after just one, so I chose Kevin as my personal trainer for following my weight loss plan.

Could you tell us about your fitness plan?

I went from 228 to 170 pounds thanks to cardio exercise and the ketogenic (“keto”) diet. After training with Kevin, I lost 20 more pounds.

What made it work?

The whole process includes three sections:

The first thing is keeping the keto diet. Before training with Kevin, I did cardio exercise six times a week, each cardio exercise included one hour of cycling and one hour of swimming. Then, I usually had a training session with Kevin every Friday, which was mainly 55-min HIIT exercise. In addition, for the rest of week, I did one hour of cycling and 30 minutes of HIIT, applying what I learned in the training session.

What advice do you have for others who would like to make a change in their lives?

Weight loss should be a long-term goal. Don’t be anxious when you don’t see the desired result after a day, week or even a month. Just keep exercising and stick with your diet every day. Life will be different than what you expected afterwards.