The Voice of the Lehigh Valley Jewish Community
www.jewishlehighvalley.org
| Issue No. 482 | January 2025 | Tevet/Shevat 5785 AWARD-WINNING PUBLICATION EST. 1977
Women’s Philanthropy celebrates Chanukah, pins a new Pomegranate, and collects toys for kids in troubled families. p6
See how the JCC is here for your wellness, learn about Israeli medical technologies that could change the world, and more. Health and Wellness p21-24
FROM THE DESK OF JERI ZIMMERMAN p3 WOMEN’S PHILANTHROPY p6 LVJF TRIBUTES p8 JEWISH COMMUNITY CENTER p10-11 JEWISH DAY SCHOOL p12 JEWISH FAMILY SERVICE p13 COMMUNITY CALENDAR p26-27
Unite for Impact!
Super Sunday to bring community together for fun, learning, and giving By Carl Zebrowski Editor The biggest Sunday of the year is right around the corner: Super Sunday. That day, January 26 (two weeks before that other famous winter Sunday), the Jewish community of the Lehigh Valley will Unite for Impact at the JCC for a morning and afternoon of educational and fundraising programs and activities. The event, sponsored by the Jewish Federation of the Lehigh Valley, begins at 9:30 a.m. at the JCC with a Maimonides Society Brunch and Learn. Dr. Frank Tamarkin, chief of urology for St. Luke’s University Health Network, will speak to the society’s healthcare professionals and other interested community
members. Meanwhile, volunteers will begin making phone calls to community members and continue throughout the day. They’ll be thanking donors for pledges to the Federation’s Annual Campaign for Jewish Needs or the Israel Emergency Fund, or requesting that community members make new pledges toward this year’s fundraising goals and the effort to support Jewish needs and programs here, in Israel, and around the world. At 11 a.m. Federation’s Women’s Philanthropy will come together for a program guided by the Jewish values: acts of loving kindness, friendship, and honor and respect. Volunteers will assemble Dignity Grows bags
filled with hygiene products, make friendship bracelets, and handwrite messages to recipients. Noon brings an Israelistyle lunch prepared by Around the Table Catering, which operated the food truck that used to be parked in the JCC’s Tilghman Street parking lot. Tim Brooks, regional security advisor, will talk to an audience at 1 p.m. about how to be prepared when crises arise. He’ll cover how to recognize suspicious behaviors and threats, and how to be proactive regarding synagogue and school security. PJ Library, in partnership with Jewish Family Service, is offering an event at 3 p.m. teaching kids what it’s like to live with visual impairment.
Free preschool vision screening will be available, and, of course, there will be a PJ Library story. Bringing the events of this day of unity to a close will be the unveiling of the Wings of Hope mural in the JCC lobby. Formed out of colorful PJ Library and Jewish Family Service invited the Ameriplastic, wood, can Sign Language Club from Parkland High School for an and metal toys ASL demonstration during the 2024 Super Sunday. collected from To register to make phone our commucalls or to attend any of the nity, the wings mural will be individual events of the day, dedicated to the Kutz famvisit jewishlehighvalley.org/ ily of Kibbutz Aza killed on supersunday. October 7.
3 doctors cement legacies through new Maimonides fund By Carl Zebrowski Editor
“The idea is for members to continue their commitment to the ideals of the Maimonides Society for the duration,” says Dr. Lawrence Levitt, a founder of the society and the founder of the Lehigh Valley Health Network neurology department. By “the duration,” he means in perpetuity. Levitt was describing the new Maimonides Society perpetuity fund, which he and Drs. Gene Ginsberg and Robert Kricun, also among the founders of the society, just signed onto as the initial
of the Lehigh Valley 702 North 22nd Street Allentown, PA 18104
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participants. The annual proceeds from each member’s investment will be donated to the Jewish Federation of the Lehigh Valley’s Annual Campaign for Jewish Needs. Those donated funds count as dues to the society of healthcare professionals for the year, which effectively keeps participants on the society’s membership rolls in perpetuity, forever linked to the sociDr. Robert Kricun Dr. Lawrence Levitt ety and remembered for their Dr. Gene Ginsberg society looks forward to its part of setting up the new was going to give directly to philanthropy and contribu40th anniversary in 2026 as Federation, and then when I tions to the general health and fund with the three doctors. the first Maimonides Society “With this endowment gift,” saw that,” he said, “I thought wellness of the community. in North America. Members he said, “our founding memI want to give it all through Aaron Gorodzinsky, direcof the society named for the bers are ensuring that their Maimonides, because that’s tor of development for the medieval Jewish philosopher, work in creating the vision what I was most involved in Federation, was proud to be theologian, and physician of the Maimonides Society is and meant the most to me.” continue, as they always have, able to continue and that it Kricun, retired chair of the Non-Profit Organization to come together do volunteer inspires other medical profes- Department of Radiology of U.S. POSTAGE sionals in the area to join the the Lehigh Valley Health Net- work in the community, raise PAID Lehigh Valley, PA division and continue honorwork, said that supporting the funds for Jewish Federation Permit No. 64 campaigns, and meet regularing the principles on which Jewish community and Israel ly for educational and social the division was founded— has been an important part of programs. providing quality health his estate planning. “ContribThese days, dozens of care and information to our uting to the Jewish Federation Maimonides Societies operate Lehigh Valley Jewish commu- and maintaining membership as affiliate groups of Jewish nity and beyond.” in the Maimonides Society in Federations across the United Ginsberg, a retired adult perpetuity is a perfect way States. The Lehigh Valley somedicine and geriatrics physi- to achieve these long-term ciety has over 100 members. cian, decided that the pergoals,” he said. petuity fund was the perfect The perpetuity fund is Maimonides fund donation vehicle for him. “I getting up and running as the Continues on page 4