From left: 2017 Daniel Pearl Fellows Nicholas Cheng of Malaysia and Salman Yousafzai of Pakistan, both of whom spent one week this summer reporting for the Journal, participated in a discussion at the Steve Allen Theater. Photo by Ryan Torok The 2017 Daniel Pearl fellows, Nicholas Cheng of Malaysia and Salman Yousafzai of Pakistan, discussed “Views on America” at the Steve Allen Theater in Los Feliz on Aug. 17.
Jewish Journal Publisher and Editor-in-Chief Rob Eshman moderated the discussion, which followed a cocktail reception, and drew about 80 attendees.
Also attending were Ruth and Judea Pearl, parents of slain Wall Street Journal reporter Daniel Pearl, who was kidnapped and murdered by Pakistani terrorists in 2002. In memory of their son, the Pearls established the Daniel Pearl Fellowship in 2003 in partnership with Alfred Friendly Press Partners.
The fellowship brings journalists from Muslim-majority countries to work in major U.S. newsrooms for five months, including a week at the Jewish Journal. There have been 24 fellows since the establishment of the program.
At the event, the panelists discussed, among other topics, anti-Semitism in their respective countries, misconceptions about Islam among Americans and the challenges facing journalism in their countries.
“Journalism is not a field anybody wants to go into in Malaysia,” Cheng said.
In closing remarks, Judea Pearl described journalists as “the elite force of the army of decency and the army of commitment.” A computer science professor at UCLA, Judea Pearl said he initially did not understand Daniel’s decision to go into journalism but eventually learned about the importance of the field.
“Journalism is transferring an existing particle [of information] from here to there,” and is necessary because a “lack of information is a major source of the trouble we have in our generation,” he said.
Marion Goldenfeld was honored Aug. 10 at The Associates of the Los Angeles Jewish Home’s 87th Tree of Life Luncheon at the Four Seasons Hotel Los Angeles at Beverly Hills.
Goldenfeld, a longtime member of the women’s auxiliary, was the recipient of the 2017 Zelda White Woman of the Year Achievement Award for her “long-standing history with the women’s group and her impressive involvement in the community” said Debbi Fishel, manager of The Associates.
The luncheon was chaired by Florence Gorlin, as well as honorary luncheon chair Lynn Ziman.
Sandy Stackler, president of The Associates, welcomed the attendees, while entertainment chair Shirley Ashkenas introduced the guest performer, Maya Paredes, a piano student at the Colburn School of performing arts.
The Jewish Home serves senior members of the Los Angeles community by providing multilevel health care services through residential and community-based programs.
Molly Forrest, Jewish Home’s CEO, said in a statement, “Everyone recognizes the baby boomers will expand the number of seniors in our community. If the Jewish Home didn’t exist, leaders in the community would be creating it.”
The luncheon, which also included a boutique, raised approximately $150,000. All proceeds will go to the Los Angeles Jewish Home.
— Julie Bien, Contributing Writer
More than 700 brothers of Alpha Epsilon Pi (AEPi), from 190 chapters in seven countries, attended the Jewish fraternity’s 104th international conference in Las Vegas on Aug. 2-5.
Speakers included Russell Robinson, CEO of the Jewish National Fund, who appeared at the opening ceremony.
“I challenge you young leaders to talk about the greatness of the Jewish people, the land of Israel and the people of Israel,” Robinson said. “We can no longer have conversations about what our enemies want us to talk about.”
Representatives of 45 partner organizations — including the American Jewish Committee, the Anti-Defamation League and the Simon Wiesenthal Center — engaged with undergraduate students and alumni, and discussed issues of importance to the international Jewish community and Jewish life on college campuses.
“AEPi exists to provide its members with deep and transformative friendships within a context that strengthens Jewish identity, hones leadership skills, teaches philanthropy and inculcates an abiding commitment to the Jewish people and the State of Israel,” said Los Angeles County Deputy District Attorney Elan Carr, an active alumnus and a past international president of the fraternity. “Through this impact, AEPi brothers, both students and alumni, become force multipliers for Jewish leadership and for the future of our Jewish community.”
Other attendees included AEPi Executive Director Andrew Borans, conservative pollster Frank Luntz, Rep. Eliot Engel (D-N.Y.), Jewish Journal President David Suissa, Israeli American Council Chairman Adam Milstein, and Israeli-American philanthropists Shawn Evenhaim and Naty Saidoff.
“The strength and significance of our fraternity was seen every day,” Borans said. “I’ve never been more proud to be an AEPi brother.”
Sam Forman, an incoming UCLA junior who attended the conference, said, “I was able to make connections with undergraduate brothers from around the world, and I connected with potential employers and alumni at the career day job fair.”
— Mati Geula Cohen, Contributing Writer
About 50 people turned out Aug. 20 for “Bagels on the Boardwalk,” a walking tour of sites of Jewish significance in Venice Beach, including the Israel Levin Senior Center, Mishkon Tephilo and the Pacific Jewish Center (PJC).
Stephen Sass, president of the Jewish Historical Society of Southern California, and Jeremy Sunderland, a board member of the organization, each led groups on tours of the three locations. At the Israel Levin Senior Center, which operates in a building owned by The Jewish Federation of Greater Los Angeles and offers programs coordinated by Jewish Family Service of Los Angeles, the attendees enjoyed a breakfast of bagels, coffee and orange juice before watching the Academy Award-winning documentary “Number Our Days.”
The Whizin Center for Continuing Education of American Jewish University organized the sold-out event. As they moved from site to site, participants took in the bustling activity of the Venice boardwalk on a Sunday morning.
Speakers included Mishkon Tephilo Rabbi Gabriel Botnick, Mishkon Tephilo President Melissa Tarsky, PJC Executive Director Joanne Feldman and Milton Simon, a PJC congregant. PJC is an Orthodox shul that for 40 years also has been known as Shul on the Beach.
Sass, an attorney for HBO, said the future is bright for the Jewish community in Venice.
“It’s kind of an electric time to be here,” he said.
Ariel Wexler was honored as the Summer 2017 Segil Farm and Garden Fellow at Shalom Institute during the second session of Camp JCA Shalom on July 9 in Malibu. The fellowship, funded by Shalom Institute board member Dr. Clive and Larraine Segil, provides a hands-on learning experience about sustainable organic farming infused with Jewish teachings.
Wexler spent the summer sharing her passion for and knowledge of urban farming, Judaism and the environment with hundreds of Camp JCA Shalom campers. She is a graduate of UC Santa Cruz, where she majored in environmental studies with a focus on sustainable agriculture and a minor in Jewish studies.
The Segils own The Little Farm in Encino, and each summer they donate $5,000 to ensure that a staffer is hired to further environmental education and sustainability through a Jewish lens. As a fellow, Wexler’s responsibilities include supervising the summer Shemesh Organic Farm program.
“We are grateful to the Segil family for their ongoing commitment to Shalom Institute’s Shemesh Organic Farm and the establishment of the Segil Farm Fellowship. Ariel was an excellent choice — we learned from each other and could see the impact she had on Camp JCA Shalom campers,” said Shalom Institute Executive Director Rabbi Bill Kaplan.
“The Segils’ generosity enables us to strengthen what we do, grow our farm and educational programs on the environment, which impact thousands of campers and adults who participate in Camp JCA Shalom and the Institute’s year-round programs.”
— Virginia Isaad, Contributing Writer
Moving & Shaking highlights events, honors and simchas. Got a tip? Email ryant@jewishjournal.com.
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