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In Memoriam: Howard Goldstein Tzedek Teens support the greater Omaha community and beyond Page 2

Stories worth telling ANNETTE VAN DE KAMPWRIGHT Jewish Press Editor In 1987, Kelly Tichauer Kirk wrote a poem, grappling with the memories of the Holocaust. At 13 years old, she wrote: “From now on, we must be the teachers.” She dedicated the piece to her grandparents, Helena and Walter Tichauer, and Minia and Ben Maurer. All four were Holocaust survivors. Years later, in 2005, Leo Adam Biga interviewed Helena for the Jewish Press. She told the painful story of how she survived and said: “I don’t wish on my worst enemy what occurred. That’s why we have to remember.” Her story can be found at www.ihene.org.

Camp Gan Israel: The Greatest Camp in the Universe Page 7

ANNETTE VAN DE KAMP-WRIGHT Jewish Press Editor oward David Goldstein passed away on July 13, 2025, at the age of 86. After growing up in Omaha and attending Central High School, Howard attended the University of Oklahoma where he joined the Pi Lam fraternity. He remained close to his Pi Lam brothers his entire life. After leaving school, he moved to Houston, working in the busi-

ness world, raising his families, especially spending time traveling and sharing fun experiences with daughter Holly, and lovingly taking on a significant role in the life of niece Mollie. Howard remained in Houston for 40 years until he returned (as he liked to say) “home to Omaha.” Howard loved working and never fully retired. Most of all, he loved people; he remained close to his Texas world, his family, making new friends along the way and See In Memoriam page 11

New in the Kripke-Veret Collection Page 8

Kohen named inaugural Kripke chair

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UNIVERSITY OF NEBRASKALINCOLN The Norman and Bernice Harris Center for Judaic Studies at the University of Nebraska—Lincoln is pleased to announce that Dr. Ari Kohen has been named the inaugural Kripke Chair of Judaic Studies, beginning in the 2025—2026 academic year. Kohen, who holds BAs in International Relations and Political Theory from Michigan State University and an MA and PhD from Duke University, came to UNL in 2007. He is Professor

of Political Science and has held the Schlesinger Professorship of Social Justice for the past 18 years. He served for eight years as Director of the Forsythe Family Program on Human Rights and Humanitarian Affairs and is beginning his sixth year as Director of the Harris Center for Judaic Studies. Dr. Kohen is the author of two books—In Defense of Human Rights and Untangling Heroism—and two dozen articles and book chapters on human rights, restorative justice, Holocaust education, and heroic behavior. He is also the co-editor of Unlikely Heroes and Antisemitism on the Rise, the first two volumes published in the Contemporary Holocaust Studies book series that Kohen co-edits for the University of Nebraska Press. The Kripke Chair was endowed by

Rabbi Myer and Dorothy Kripke (z”l), central figures in the Omaha Jewish community for many decades and major philanthropists for Jewish causes in Nebraska and across the country. Rabbi Kripke served as the rabbi of Beth El Synagogue in Omaha See Kripke Chair page 2

Kelly Kirk

Another 20 years have passed, and this spring, granddaughter Kelly, who is also a successful licensed real estate agent at Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices Ambassador Real Estate, is on the board of the Nebraska Jewish Historical Society. She was recently appointed the Advisory Chair of the Institute of Holocaust Education and graduated with a Master of Arts in Holocaust and Genocide Studies from Gratz College in Pennsylvania. How she arrived there is a story worth telling in and of itself. In 2018, Kelly, her sister Randi, and their father Fred traveled to Poland and Germany. “The trip was meant for us to piece together the puzzle of our family history,” Kelly explained. “And along the way, I did find some answers.” Fred was born in Uruguay, where his father arrived after being imprisoned in Buchenwald for a short time, and where his mother, Helena, settled after the War. In 1963, the Tichauer Family immigrated to the United States and reunited with Helena’s sister, Lola Reinglas, who had come to Omaha with her family much earlier. Kelly’s mother, Marty, was born in the Landsberg Displaced Persons Camp in Germany. At just three months old, she and her family were brought to Omaha with the help of the Federation of Jewish Services, as it was then called. See Stories Worth Telling page 3