SERVING NEBRASKA AND IOWA SINCE 1920 Vol. LXIV No. 50 Omaha, Nabr.
Chapel dedication iionors Rabbi Alex Katz tonight r Tonight at 6 p.m., the chapel at Beth El 'Synagogue will officially become the Rabbi Alexander Katz Chapel. The honor is being ^ bestowed upon a man who has served the >: Beth El congregation for nearly 46 years. \ Born in a little Lithuanian village in January 1897, Alexander Katz was the only one I of five sons to follow in his father's footl steps as a rabbL According to his son-in-law Donald Nogg, the young Katz became a [rabbi partly because of his education, which [was mostly in religious schools.^ [-Another factor in this decision was his [friendship with the German Officer Corps 'daring World War I. Katz, who spoke a ' number of languages, acted as interpreter > for them. They liked him and suggested he i go into the rabbinate which would save him ' from bemg put into the forced working (.group. Alex Katz took their advice and was i eventually ordained in Lithuania, also bef coming a mohel and shochet. I Like so many others at that time, Alex; ander Katz and his wife left Lithuania. They ^.arrived in New York in 1923 and headed (directly to Chisholm, Minn., where Katz's ! older brother had already settled. It wasn't Uong before the rabbi was offered his first i pulpit in the U.S., in Fond du Lac, Wise. He ^ remained there for nine months before tak[ing a post in Virginia, Minn., where he f served a nunaber of towns along the iron range which had an appreciable Jewish I population. _. .. ' He left Minnesota in 1927 for a position in Fargo, N.D. As the only rabbi in North Dakota, he not only served the Jews in Fargo but received a minister's pass on the Great Northern Pacific Railroad. The rabbi would travel, usually in the caboose, to .towns with small Jewish populations. He
Rabbi Alexander Kats would marry them, bury them, perform Bar Mitzvahs and brisses and, as shochet, slaughter their MnimalH, WMe in Fargo, Rabbi Katz was also part of a chamber of commerce committee whu:h brought wganized baseball to Fargo. (Until his vision began failing faim several years ago, the rabbi still enjoyed going to baseball games.) Fiu-go is also where the rabbi's wife died. Rabbi Katz, who by this time iiad two sons, remarried and adopted his new wife Belle's dauj^ter. Another son, the youngest of the rabbi's children, was booa in Fargo in 1942. In 1944, the rabbi and his family moved to Minneafxdis where his oldest brother, an entrepreneur, was now living. Rabbi Katz left the rabbinate to take the helo> <tf one of his brother's bu8ine4|K*S^tatp clxip factory. This was short-lSved because the rabbi discovered he was not a businessman and also because they worked seven days a week and he could not bring himself tb work on the Sabbath. (Continued on Page 11)
17 Elul, 5747 Friday, Sapt. 11, 1M7
Women to 'ask the experts' about financial planning The Foundation of the Jewish Federation of Omaha and FirsTier Bank N.A., will present "The art of managing jrour future: ask the experts," a women's symposium on financial planning to behekl on Sept. 29,10 a.m.-2:46 p.m. There is a $10 registration fee which includes lunch, a Foundation spokesman said. "Funds were made possible, in part, by generous grants from the Carl Frohm Memorial Foundation and the Milton S. and Corrine H. Livingston Foundation, Inc.," Jerry Rosen, Foundation endowment director, said. Reservations for the symposium may be made by calling'Mr. Rosen at 3S48200, Ext. 275. "The thinking woman of today knows that it's her responsibility to learn all the different areas and options affecting her financial well-being," said Marlene Hechtman, chairman of the sjrmposium's steering committee; pther members of the committee are Marcia Cohen, Cheryl Cooper, Wendy Hahn, Lisa Lewis, Suzie Singer and Mimi Waldbaom. "This seminar is an excellent opportunity to get an overview of important financial conditions," continued Mrs. Hechtman, "and to g^t definitive answers to specific questions. I urge all women of our Omaha Jewish community to set aside five hours on Sept. 29. No one can afford to miss this day of financial learning." "TjtafiUfiem^t (Ms seminar is to faring maasa into the mainstream of financial planning," said Murray H. Newman, chairman of the Foundation board. "Because women live longer and often find themselves more financially responsible today than ever before, we as a Jewish community have a responsibility to educate them. If
these women leave knowing one or two things more than when they came, we have done oar job." Representatives from FirsTier's Estate and 'Trust Division assisted in the planning and development of this program by the Foundation's professional advisory committee, attorney Paul Brown and the women's symposium steering committee. "We'll be talking about things women want to know," Mrs. Hechtman explained. "Wills and trusts, investments, credit, social security survivors' benefits, probate, 'suddenly single'—there's so much to learn." Attorney Howard Kaslow of Abrahams, Kaslow & Cassman, will serve as moderator. Presentors will include William Startzer (Frankel, Zacharia, Nissen & Stamp); Blake Ltind (Weber, Noordam & Lund, Inc.); Marshall Lewis (Bhmt, Ellis & Loewi); Mary Obal Jewell and Stephen Lundholm (FirsTier Bank Omaha); Robert Nelson (Grace-Mayer Insurance); attorney Lisa Lewis (Byrne, Rothery, Lewis, Bedel, Tubach & Zidinski) and Yvette Walker (Norwest Bank Nebraska N.A.). "This is not a fund-raisii|g event," enqdiasized Mr. Newman. "Of course, we want women to know the advantages of charitable giving and the important part it can play in a financial plan. At the same time, we hqw to ensure the long-term viability of our Omaha Jetdsh biAitmnflity and its institutions through heightened awareness of the Foundation of the Jewish Federation of Omaha. "This is a public service offered by the Foundation and FirsTier Bank. It also promises to be a very important day for Jewish women in Omaha."
Labor Day announcement frees long-time refuseniks By Susan Bimbaiun NEW YORK (JTA) - Within three hours Monday, Labor Day, several prominent and very long-time refuseniks in the Soviet Union were told they had received permission to emigrate. The list, an impressive one, includes losif Begun, Viktor Brailovsky, Vladimir Lifshitz, Arkady Mai, Lev Sud and Semyon Yantovsky. Information comes from Israel Radio, from the Long Island Committee for Soviet Jewry and the National (inference on Soviet Jewry. Begun, 56, a Moscow mathematician, lost his job when 'he first applied to emigrate in 1971. He is the best known
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of the group of clandestine teachers of Hebrew and was sentmced to more than three years in prison on charges of antiSoviet activities. Begim was recently refused permission once more to teach Hebrew. He is married to Inna and has a son, Boris. Intwview dtes elation In an interview with Israel Radio, Begun said he was elated hut at the same time "suffwing" over the fact that Ida Nudel and many other refuseniks were still trapped in the Soviet Union. "We have to work together" for their release, he said in a live broadcast phone conversation with Labor Member of Knesset Ora Namir, who recently visited him in Moscow when she was there as part of a ddegation
of Israeli women to a women's conference. Hesaid he did not yet kn6w when he would make aliya, but expected "to wind.up my affairs in Moscow and leave soon." Begun's cousin in Brooklyn, Chaim Tapper, said he didn't want these releases to be considered more than s}anbolic. "We want to see an onging continuous flow of refuseniks being allowed to leave the Soviet Union." Tepper was about to give NY Gov. Mario Cuomo two machzorim to take with him on his upcoming trip to the USSR. The machzorim are word for vrmd translations from Hebrew to English. "We want to have a similar book printed from Hebrew to Russian, for continuing education (Continned on Page 11)
Pope to meet with Jewish leaders in Miami today
southeastern United States, presumably because the MiBy Margie Olster MIAMI (JTA) — Papal btmiper stickers and pins read- ami Catholic community has grown significantly with the ing "I Love Pope John Paul II" are the hottest items in - influx of Cuban and Latin American refugees. The Pope town and <nie local bar has invited papal enthusiasts to pose has strong ties to Latin American Catholics, a more conwith a life size cardboard cut-out picture of the pontiff as servative community than the larg^y liberal American Miami gsarsd up for his first visit to this south Florida dty Catholic population. On Thursday and Friday. Highlight of the Miami visit VirtuaUy all major thoroughfares and arteries to downAmong the highlights of the visit to Miami are: A meettown Miami will be closed Thursday and Friday for crowd ing with President Reagan at Vizaya, an old Italian mancontrol and security during the Pope's two^lay visit which sion with breathtaking gardens and fountains, at which the includes a meetmg with some 200 Jewish leaders Friday two are expected to discuss U.S. foreign policy and disarmorning. mament; several public masses; and a meeting with 196 Security is extremly tigi^t in every venue the Pope will Jewish leaders Friday at the Miami Fine Arts Center where Visit on his U.S. trip. But extraordinary security measures the Pope will also view an exhibit of Judaica from the are planned in Miami for the Pope's meeting with Fiesilient Reagan. Both the Pope and Reagan have b^aiahot Vatican. fn assassination attempts. Reagan will greet the Pope at The Church in Miami has called on local Catholics to get airport when he arrives by jet Thursday at about 2 p.m. out to see the Pope in p«w>n instead of simply viewing the t not only security win be heavy for the Papal visit. Some visit on network television. One of the places people will ,000 leporto-s have received oedentials for the Pope's have an importunity to see the Pope is at the Papal Pa' it in Miami and the majw networks will carry live cover- rade Thursday at 7:16 a.m., where police estimate a crowd jpge of most or all of the events. For the Pope's entire U.S. of 250,60O will turn out. The Pope will ride in his popemoyisit, about 20,000 repotteTB have requested credentials. bile^ a Mercedes with a special bullet-proof bubble top, so Pope's first visit he can see and be seen. (Two popemobiles have been This is Pope John Paxkl II's first visit to Miami or the brought over for the Papal visit so that one can await him .rlr'-'^-HI'
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in every dty. The secret service in Miami will not permit the press or even organizers of the Papal visit to view the popemobile in advance and will not disclose its location.) The popemobile will move slowly down Biscayne Boulevard in downtown Miami because the Pope wants to see the faces in the crowd, organizers said. Jewish meeting a first The iheeting with American Jewish leaders Friday morning is also a first—the first time a Pope has met with Jews in America. The meeting will consist of an address by Rabbi Gilbert Klaperman, president of the Synagogue (Council of America, followed by a Papal response. Representatives of the International Jewish (Committee on Interreligious (Donsultations (IJCIC), the American Jewish Coknmittee, American Jewish Congress, Anti-Defamation League of B'nai B'rith and American rabbinical groups will be present at the meeting. The exchange between the P(^ and Jews will begin with the Pope's tour of the JudsiCsdihibit from the Vatican. An evdi larger contingent of about 600 JeMsh representatives will attend a reception and dinner Thursday night at the Omni Hotd with Jdiannes Cardinal Vi^brands, president of the Holy See's Commissiim for Religious Relations with the Jews, and high-ranking Vatican officials and American Catholic leaders.