Community Briefs

Sherman Talks With Students

Rep. Brad Sherman (D-Sherman Oaks) took advantage of the anthrax scare-related days out of Washington, D.C., to speak with Valley constituents about the war on terrorism. On Monday, Oct. 22, Sherman stopped by Milken High School of Stephen Wise Temple for a special morning assembly of the school’s 11th- and 12th-graders. After a short speech in which he emphasized America’s commitment to Israel, Sherman took questions from the high school audience, many of them about security concerns here at home. Sherman assured the students that terrorist attacks in the United States are still a highly uncommon danger. “If you’re worried about your personal safety,” Sherman told the teens, “buckle your seat belts.” — Mike Levy, Staff Writer

Kol Ami Includes All

As many other synagogues, Congregation Kol Ami in West Hollywood held special memorial services on the Friday following Sept. 11, to mourn the victims of the terrorist attacks.

The difference at Kol Ami, whose membership is largely gay and lesbian, was that Christians also came for solace and support. When Rabbi Denise L. Eger recited the “Kaddish,” she included the names of Ron Gamboa and Daniel Brandhorst, a non-Jewish gay couple, and their young son David.

The three had been vacationing at Cape Cod and boarded American Airlines Flight 11 in Boston, which the hijackers crashed into the World Trade Center.

Grieving relatives of Gamboa and Brandhorst participated in the service.

The two men had belonged to the Pop Luck Club, made up of gay fathers, where they had made many Jewish friends. — Tom Tugend, Contributing Editor

Ramah Honors Millers

Camp Ramah will honor Judy and Lou Miller at its annual dinner on Thursday, Nov. 29 at Sinai Temple. Proceeds from the dinner, co-chaired by Adrian Miller, Caryn Miller Katz and Sheila Spiwak, will build a new bakery and expand the Ramah dining facility.

The Millers have been longtime supporters of Camp Ramah since 1975. Lou Miller, the immediate past chairman of the board of Camp Ramah in California and current member of its executive committee, also serves as a representative on the National Ramah Commission. Judy Miller, a former board member of Camp Ramah where she served as dinner chair for several events, is currently an active participant on the Ramah Scholarship Committee. Judy and Lou Miller are also founding members of the Ramah Regents, Ramah’s most distinguished collection of donors, which began in the 1970s.

Along with their work with Camp Ramah, the Millers are dedicated community leaders and have worked tirelessly on behalf of Jewish education. They are involved in the University of Judaism, Los Angeles Hebrew High School, the Anti-Defamation League, Brandeis-Bardin Institute, the Masorti Foundation/Schechter Institute, the Sheba Medical Center, Shalhevet High School and Milken Community High School. The Millers are active members of Temple Beth Am in Los Angeles.

For more information regarding the event, please call Tamara Melzer Levenson, business director for Camp Ramah at (310) 476-8571. — Staff Report