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Moving & Shaking: JWW Fundraiser, Big Brothers Golf Classic

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May 17, 2018

Jewish World Watch (JWW) held its annual Global Soul fundraiser on May 8 at the Annenberg Space for Photography in Century City, raising funds and awareness for the organization’s work fighting mass atrocities and genocide.

The Encino-based nonprofit celebrated its 14th year since its founding by honoring Ben Reznik, an attorney, philanthropist and activist who is also the husband of JWW co-founder Janice Kamenir-Reznik.

Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti delivered a video address praising Reznik and JWW for their activism.

“My thanks to Jewish World Watch for your tireless efforts to build a world without genocide,” Garcetti said.

Officials and prominent community members in attendance included Consul General of Mexico in Los Angeles Carlos Garcia de Alba; Los Angeles City Councilmembers David Ryu, Paul Koretz, Mike Bonin and Nury Martinez; Jewish Federation of Greater Los Angeles President and CEO Jay Sanderson; and Rabbis Mark Borovitz, Richard Camras, Noah Farkas, Ed Feinstein, Nina Feinstein, Arthur Gross-Schaefer, Chaim Seidler-Feller and Richard Spiegel, a JWW board member. Also present were Pastor Kasereka Kasomo of the African Christian Community Church of Southern California; attorney and activist Sam Yebri; Beit T’Shuvah founder Harriet Rossetto and Aziza Hasan, executive director of NewGround: A Muslim-Jewish Partnership for Change.

Former Los Angeles County Supervisor Zev Yaroslavsky, a JWW board member, presented the Global Soul honor to Reznik, recounting their days carpooling to Hebrew school together and their activism in the Soviet Jewry movement, calling Reznik “a tough lawyer” and a “mensch.”

“He’s got the courage of his intellect and his convictions,” Yaroslavsky said.

The open-air event featured traditional African music — a nod to the organization’s humanitarian work in Africa — as well as excerpts from the play “Sister Africa” by playwright Stephanie Liss, performed by actors Takesha Meshé Kizart and Christopher McLellan, based on testimonies from survivors of rape and mass atrocities in the Democratic Republic of Congo.

The event also showcased JWW’s work with impacted communities in Syria, Myanmar, Chad, Sudan and Iraq. Reznik, whose parents were Holocaust survivors, said the work of JWW is necessary to ensure that the world does not remain silent in the face of mass atrocities as it did during the Holocaust.

“That is why this honor from this organization means so much to me,” Reznik said. “I can think of no more deserving cause to support with my heart, my soul and my wallet.”

Friends of Sheba Medical Center supporter Marilyn Ziering (left) and 2018 Marjorie Pressman Legacy Award recipient Dvorah Colker attend the Friends of Sheba Women of Achievement Luncheon. Photo courtesy of Friends of Sheba Medical Center.

Friends of Sheba Medical Center held its annual Women of Achievement Luncheon at the Beverly Wilshire hotel on April 26, raising more than $350,000 to benefit Sheba Medical Center, Tel HaShomer.

Drawing 450 attendeees, the event honored Judy Flesh Rosenberg with the Women of Achievement Award and Dvorah Colker with the Marjorie Pressman Legacy Award. Helene Boston and Parvin Djavaheri co-chaired. Lynn Ziman served as the honorary chair and Beverly Cohen as the vice chair.

Serving as the emcee, Israeli-American actress Moran Atias (“Tyrant”) highlighted Sheba Medical Center’s position at the forefront of the fight against cancer. Sheba patient Tamir Gilat discussed his battle against an aggressive form of cancer under the care of Sheba Medical Center, thanking Sheba’s remarkable staff for providing world-class treatment, hope and support to him and his entire family.

“We were very happy to welcome so many new friends to our community and together make a direct impact on cancer treatment worldwide,” Friends of Sheba Medical Center President Parham Zar said after the event.

Sheba Medical Center, Tel HaShomer is the largest and most comprehensive medical center in the Middle East. It combines an acute care hospital and a rehabilitation hospital on one campus, and it is at the forefront of medical treatments, patient care, cutting-edge research and education. As a university teaching hospital affiliated with the Sackler School of Medicine at Tel Aviv University, it welcomes people from all over the world. “

Esther Kustanowitz, Contributing Writer

From left: Joey Behrstock, Bob Waldorf and Steve Miller turned out for the Jewish Big Brothers Big Sisters of Los Angeles 23rd annual golf classic. Photo courtesy of Jewish Big Brothers
Big Sisters of Los Angeles.

Jewish Big Brothers Big Sisters of Los Angeles (JBBBSLA) held its 23rd annual golf classic on April 23, honoring former camper and longtime supporter Bob Waldorf.

The tournament brought together more than 150 players and supporters at the Valencia Country Club.

The event raised $265,000, which will enable underserved children to attend the agency’s camp, Camp Bob Waldorf on the Max Straus Campus, for free this summer.

The event’s lead sponsor, Gelt, Inc., was founded by Keith Wasserman. Wasserman and his wife, Gelena, are volunteers in the agency’s mentoring program.

JBBBSLA CEO Randy Schwab said he was thrilled with the community support of this year’s golf classic.

“Camp Bob Waldorf is more than a summer camp. Campers from all over Los Angeles attend dynamic and innovative programming year-round. From our social justice winter break camp to teen electives that help them explore their passions, all our programs focus on positively impacting our camper’s self-esteem and feeling of community,” Schwab said. “Most importantly, they get to have a break from the stressors of their home life and just be kids.”

Many of the campers that attend Camp Bob Waldorf face disadvantages like food insecurity, poverty and crime-ridden neighborhoods. Through community support, campers receive partial or full financial aid.

“This annual event ensures that these vulnerable youth are able to experience the support, valuable life lessons and character-building skills that camp provides,” a JBBBSLA statement said.

Owned and operated by JBBBSLA, Camp Bob Waldorf on the Max Straus Campus is a nondenominational residential camp located on 112 acres in the Verdugo Mountains of Glendale. Since 1938, the camp has helped more than 60,000 underserved children, offering youth development activities for children as young as 9 and providing services to them through the age of 17 and beyond.

From left: Incoming Temple Beth Am President Avi Peretz, L.A. City Councilman Paul Koretz and Outgoing Beth Am President Susan Hetsroni enjoyed the Temple Beth Am groundbreaking gala.
Photo by Steve Cohn Photography.

Conservative congregation Temple Beth Am held its groundbreaking gala on May 6.

More than 350 people attended the evening event, which began with an outdoor reception and a “Passing the Shovel” ceremony, which recognized many in the community who have been involved in the congregation’s construction projects for nearly a decade.

The congregation will be renovating its historic sanctuary and building a new middle school facility that will provide innovative space for project-based learning and an enhanced STEAM (science, technology, engineering the arts and mathematics) curriculum.

The gala featured a dinner in the temple’s ballroom, where the congregation honored outgoing Education Vice President Karen Fried and President Susan Hetsroni for their passion and dedication to Pressman Academy of Temple Beth Am, the congregation and the broader Jewish community.

Fried’s successor is Jennifer Elad and Hetsroni’s successor is Avi Peretz.  The new officers begin their terms on July 1.

Attendees included L.A. City Councilman Paul Koretz, who praised Temple Beth Am for its work and the partnerships it has forged.

From left: Sinai Temple Gala co-chairs Ebi and Lida Simhaee, Sinai Temple Rabbi David Wolpe, Gala Co-Chair Judy Flesh, Sinai Temple President Angela Maddahi and Gala Co-Chair Tom Flesh celebrated Wolpe’s 20 years of leadership during the Sinai Temple Gala. Photo courtesy of Sinai Temple.

More than 720 Sinai Temple members and friends gathered to honor Sinai Temple Max Webb Senior Rabbi David Wolpe’s 20 years of leadership during the Sinai Temple Gala on May 6.

The themes of the evening were inclusion, acceptance and unity.

The Sinai Temple Gala not only celebrated Wolpe’s legacy of leadership and community building but also marked the official announcement of the naming of the Elaine and Gerald Wolpe Parenting Center of the Alice and Nahum Lainer School of Sinai Temple, in memory of Wolpe’s parents.

Accepting his award, Wolpe spoke words of admiration and appreciation for his parents, who, he said, shaped him into the inspirational, spiritual leader he is today.

Additional highlights of the program included a choir performance by Alice and Nahum Lainer School and Sinai Temple Religious School students, led by Cantors Marcus Feldman and Lisa Peicott; a musical performance by Craig Taubman; an invocation by Rabbi Bradley Shavit Artson; a video presentation highlighting the effects of Wolpe’s work and a ha-Motzi recitation, led by rabbis who have each touched Wolpe’s life over the years.

Emcee Rick Lieberman kept the program flowing and infused humor into the festivities.

The Sinai Temple Gala raised more than $1.6 million to benefit synagogue programming and the parenting center. The Younes and Soraya Nazarian Family Foundation provided the lead gift.

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