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Good-bye and Thank you for 22 years “Check out” these recent additions to the Kripke-Veret Collection Page 4

Jean Metzler’s visit Page 5

KAREN M. GUSTAFSON, MS, NCC, LIMHP his is what people are saying to me, but I want to turn this around and say it to EACH OF YOU!!!! THANK YOU for allowing me to serve the Jewish community for the last 22 years. I was originally hired by Steve Stiel in December of 2000. Steve had been my Intern at Child Saving Institute and Sally Kaplan my boss (she liked that title back then... before I became hers years later, LOL); Gloria Kaslow was the JFS Board President and Howard Epstein the Past President. Jenny Meyerson was the Assistance Coordinator and Tanya Siena the outgoing Coordinator of the Resettlement Program. I was not Jewish, am not Jewish, but more times than not people assumed that I was, and I was okay with that. When my 25-year-old son, Jared, attended the Child Development Center (CDC then), as a preschooler, driving him home with his car seat in the back, he asked, “Mom, are we Jewish?” I was raised (loosely) Catholic, got married in the Catholic Church, at Boys Town by Father Peter, but with my husband Jeff, we were raising our kids Lutheran. And, I had worked for the Methodist Community Counseling Program. No wonder Jared was confused. My answer to him was, “No, but we’re a mix of a bunch of things and being a part of other religions is our religion.” I have two sons, ages 28 and 25 who both played basketball at the J, spent their summers at the pool, grew up to be Camp Counselors here and loved it. They still come home See Karen Gustafson page 2

Karen Gustafson

Israel’s right-wing government has created a crisis Page 12

Passover at Beth Israel with the Abramovich family

Sunday Fundays: Music Bingo

REGULARS Spotlight Voices Synagogues Life cycles

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Credit: Eczebulon

MARY SUE GROSSMAN for Beth Israel Synagogue Still eating your leftover mishlonach manot goodies? Have a few yummy hamantaschen tucked away in the freezer? How about those delicious Girl Scout cookies stored in the pantry? Yes, it’s time to enjoy those goodies as everyone moves into the “No Chometz Zone” for Passover. The first seder is Wednesday See Passover at Beth Israel page 3

ANNETTE VAN DE KAMPWRIGHT Jewish Press Editor March 12 the Jewish Federation of Omaha hosted Music Bingo in the Shirley and Leonard Goldstein Community Engagement Venue. It was the first of our ‘Sunday Fundays,’ which are chaired by Rachel and Daniel Grossman. “A few months ago,” JFO Director

of Development Rachel Ring said, “We brought in Aaron Henne, the artistic director of theatre dybbuk, a company whose work focuses on Jewish folklore and history.” Aaron teaches storytelling throughout the country and has designed and facilitated workshops for Lucasfilm, Pixar, and Dreamworks. He was an American Jewish See Sunday Fundays page 2