SERVING NEBRASKA AND IOWA SINCE 1920 Vol. LXV No. 4 Omaha, Nebr.
16 TIshri, S748 Friday, Oct. 9, 1987
'Teen trip to Israel now to be a reality' By Sara Jaffe Culture Arts Director
Pliolo by Loh ElHtelii.
Sukkah booster David Siegel, president of B'nai B'rith's Comhusker Lodge, boosts son, Brian, so that the youngster could join in the decorating of the Suitkah at the Jewish Community Center last Sunday.
Ida Nudel: i
'I am not a refusenik anymore' JERUSALEM (JTA) - "I aui not a refusenik anymore," a joyous Ida Nudel told reporters in a telephone interview from Moscow Monday. But she does not believe her exit visa signals a new policy on the Kremlin toward Soviet Jews. Nudel, 56, was told by the Soviet authorities only last Friday that she wiU be allowed to leave the USSR to join her sister, £lana Fridman in Israel, whom she has. not seen for 16 years. Her name reportedly headed the list of Prisoners of Conscience which Foreign Minister Shimon Peres gave Soviet Foreign Minister Eduard Shevardnadze when they met in New York Sept.23. But she feels the Soviets are using her and other prominent refuseniks recently granted exi^ visas to achieve certain diplomatic goals and improve their image. "In ancient times, the Pharaohs used to please the chiefs of . neighboring countries with very exotic . thiqgq," Nudel said. "I feel that I am a wlilt^ terocodile. I was used to please Mr. Reagtm and Mr. Shultz before a naeeting of the superpowers." Observers here tended to agree. They suggested Nudel was granted her visa on the eve of Yom Kippur because of the added public relations impact Nudel, an engineerecozximist, was in Moscow for a hearing for permission to resume residence there after being forced for five years to live in the Moldavian city of Bendery. Before that she lived in exile in Siberia from 1978-82.
Israel Bond dinner Oct. 18 at Marriott Twenty-five patron-hosts met Sept. 30 at the home of Dr. and Mrs. Paul Shyken, cochairmen of the Corps of Patron Hosts, to . finalize plans for the Oct. 18 State of Israel Bonds Dinner of State. The 6:45 p.m. event at the Marriott Ho-' tel will honor Steven J. Riekes who will receivt the City of Peace award. Dr. Shyken said that invitations have been mailed to the general community and "the response has been excellent. If you have not yet returned your RSVP card, I urge you to do so." Mrs. Shyken added that people ^o did not receive an invitation may still make reservations by caUing the Israel Bond office.at 341-1177.
But instead of getting her Moscow residency permit, she was summoned by Rudolf Kutznetsov, head of the Moscow OVIR (emigration bureau) and told to return to Bendery to get her papers in order because she had permission to emigrate. Nudel toldthe Israeli-reporters that it will take several weeks before she leaves for Israel, due mainly to the volume of paper work.'' I will not remain here even one extra moment," she said. "I am so excited I want to cry. I am looking forward to come honie, to Israel." She added, "I am beginning to accept the fact that I am not a refusenik any more. Most of all, I frant to be a normal Israeli citizen and take my place in Israeli society. And I will, of course, work for the release of all my friends who I will be leaving behind." Meanwhile, another former Prisoner of Conscience, Yosef Bernstein, 50, of Kiev, is expected to arrive in Israel with his wife next Sunday. Bernstein, an industrial engineer, had been seeking an exit visa since June 1975. In 1984, he was sentenced to four years' imprisonment for "resisting police". He was released a year early after a review of his case.
The Jewish Community Center and Bureau of Jewish Education have announced plans for Artza: The Omaha Teen Trip to Israel. Artza, which literally means "to the land," is a three-week trip to Israel for Omaha Jewish high school students which will be held in August, 1988. Financial suppot't from the Jewish Federation of Omaha, the Bureau of Jewish Education, the Elsther K. Newman Memorial Fund, the B'nai Jacob Adas Yeshuron Endowment Fund, the B'nai Jacob Anshe Shalom Endowment Fund, and the Phillip J. Shrager and Tern C. Shrager Supporting Foundation, will enable Omaha teens to study about and visit the state of Israel during its 40th anniversary year. This is the first teen trip to Israel com, pletely planned and staffed by the Omaha Jewish commimity. Plans for the trip, which have been underway since March 1987, were officially announced following fuial funding approval by the Federation's Board of Directors at its September meeting. "With the funding now assured, the trip is definitely happening," said Artza chairman Margo Riekes. As she explained at the Federation Board meeting, the uniqueness of this trip is that it is the first teen trip to Israel which is specifically geared to the needs of Omaha teenagers. It is being plaimed, staffed, and funded completely by the Omaha Jewish community, and will
cross all synagogue and youth group boundaries by being a shorter, more affordable trip than the traditional six-week tour Mrs. Riekes stressed that, "This is not a vacation, it is an Israel 'experience.' They won't go there cold, they'll go with knowledge, foresight and expectations," as the trip will be preceded by a series of films, seminars, and a shabbaton. "The trip will be the culmination of a unique educational process which hopefully will encourage Omaha teens to continue their Jewish education and make a stronger commitment to the Omaha Jewish community." The itinerary is being developed by Artza director Sara Jaffe, along with BJE director Susan Driazen and the Artza committee, and win include many off the beaten track hikes, visits to Israel's most renowned sites, and special seminars and programs. Such a program, according to 1986 Ramah Seminar participant Shayna Rimmerman, gives you "feelings of pride and independence. It makes you feel a lot better about yourself, both physically and mentally. After the hikes, you really feel like you've accomplished something." Artza: The Omaha Teen Trip to Israel, will take place July 31-August 21, 1988. Subsidies from the above-mentioned organizations and endowments make possible a per student cost Qf $500. Interested students andyor parents must attend an Artza Information Session on Sunday, Nov. 1 at 3 p.m., or Sunday, Nov. 22 at 5 p.m. For more information, contact Margo Riekes at 333-8498.
Community invited
Bert Lewis, left. Women's Division chairman, is pictured with guest speaker Lois Zoller, and Miriam Simon, Chai Grand Gift chairman, following the learning luncheon Sept. 30.
The National Council of Jewish Women has invited the Omaha Jewish community to its Oct. 20 program at the Jewish Commtmity Center. Joseph I Telushkin, Jiewish authorj and speaker, will discuss "Jewish humpn what it| says about the Jews." The 7:30 p.m. program Telnahkin will be followed by a reception in honor of Mr. Telushkin. This past Spring, Mr. Telushkin published his first novel,.The Unorthodox Murder of Rabbi Wahl, the story of a female rabbi murdered in Los Angeles. He is presently working on a book about Jewish humor'entitled The Fifty Best Jewish Jokes and What They Show Aboat the Jews. Tickets may be purchased at the door for $5; $3.50 for seniors and students.
Women's Chai Grand Gift officially opens 1988 campaign dance at the luncheon and felt sure those By Joanie Jacobson who heard Ms. Zoller couldn't help but gain Federation pnblic relations director "No one does it as well as we do." That "from the experience. "Although we're accustomed to doing was the message from Lois Zoller, national UJA representative, to the captains and things the same way each year," continued workers of the women's Chai Grand Gift Di- Mrs. Lewis, "I feel we owe it to ourselves vision of the 1988 Jewish Federation Cam- and our community to do the best job we can. Exposure to such sessions can only be paign. Ms. Zoller, who travels the country shar- beneficial." Miriam Simon, chairman of the Chai ing her expertise in fundraising, was the featured speaker at a learning luncheon on Grand Gift Division, explained, "We have Wednesday, Sept. 30, at the Highland committed ourselves to more than just the Country Club. She emphasized the success distribution of cards and a dollar amount. of Jewish women at raising dollars and at- We believe in equipping our workers with tributed it to "the thiree C's—concern, car- the knowledge and stimulation necessary to conduct a successful campaign. ing and commitment." "We hope that our approach for 198fi will Bert Lewis, Women's Division chairman, remarked, "I was delighted with the at|en- be shared by all who participate."
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