The Voice of the Lehigh Valley Jewish Community
www.jewishlehighvalley.org
| Issue No. 500 | September 2026 | Elul 5786/Tishrei 5787 AWARD-WINNING PUBLICATION EST. 1977
Federation supports lots of important causes in Israel. Meet an Ethiopian Israeli teen who one program inspired to envision his potential. p5
SEPTEMBER 2026 | ELUL 5786/TISHREI 5787
Celebrate the New Year with local articles on making the choice to be Jewish, preparing kids for the holidays, and more. Special section and elsewhere
FROM THE DESK OF JERI ZIMMERMAN p3 LVJF TRIBUTES p9 JEWISH COMMUNITY CENTER p10-11 JEWISH DAY SCHOOL p12 JEWISH FAMILY SERVICE p13 DONOR HONOR ROLL p14-16 COMMUNITY CALENDAR p22-23
Little Edna’s War
Daughter-in-law bringing Edna Brill’s untold story of Holocaust heroism to LV
Dr. Janet Bond Brill
Dr. Janet Bond Brill expects two kinds of people to be at the Jewish Federation of the Lehigh Valley’s Women’s Philanthropy Lion of Judah and Pomegranate special event on October 29: those who hugged her mother-in-
law, Edna Brill z”l, at the synagogue and danced with her at a hundred community affairs, and those who never got to meet her. “I want them both to leave with the same fact lodged in them: that this small, blonde, impeccably dressed woman was one of the most courageous human beings of the 20th century and that hardly anyone knew it,” she said. “For a long time, not even her family knew the details.” Bond Brill is part of that family; Edna was her mother-in-law. An internationally recognized health and wellness author, Bond Brill
became the public witness to Edna’s childhood story of Holocaust heroism with her new book “Little Edna’s War: A True Story of Resistance and Hope.” She’ll bring that incredible story of resistance and hope to life in the presentation “From Wellness to Witness” to Federation’s Women’s Philanthropy event at Chabad of the Lehigh Valley on the October 29th. As a child in WWII Poland, Edna foiled the Nazi occupiers by sneaking food past guards at the Warsaw Ghetto to feed starving fellow Jews. She also delivered secret messages to the Polish resistance that, if discovered, could have got her killed on the spot. She managed to survive those tragic years. Years later, in 1966, she moved to Allentown. And there she thrived. She raised her boys,
change from the JCC’s outdoor pool. Fortunately, our friends at Jay’s Local eatery in Allentown opened their doors to provide a place to gather, eat, and celebrate together. The change of plans for this first event of the Federation’s 2027 Annual Campaign for Jewish Needs hardly diminished the celebration. The NextGen members and friends enjoyed a relaxed evening of conversa-
tion and community. The potluck was a particular success, with plenty of delicious homemade dishes and opportunities to try something new or to go back for seconds. The group was grateful to the Scherlines, frequent attendees at Jewish Federation events and an important part of NextGen. Lyell Scherline, who serves as a NextGen co-chair, helped bring people together for the evening at his family’s eatery. Although the pool party didn’t go quite as planned, the evening captured what NextGen is all about: bringing people together in a casual environment NextGen co-chairs Dominica Fox-DeMarco, Lyell Scherline, and Gia Jones with where new friendships can some of their children, and Lee Kestecher Solomon, Federation’s director of form and existing ones can community engagement. grow. Sometimes, all you ages 30-45 who are looking ences. We hope you’ll join us really need is good food, to connect with their peers at an upcoming event! good company, and a place in the Jewish community to gather. through social events, proNextGen NextGen is for adults grams, and shared experiMore photos on page 2
wore something stunning to every gala in the Lehigh Valley, and gathered loving friends around her. “Those who knew her knew that she appreciated every minute of every day,” Bond Brill said. “She was vivacious, larger than life, her warmth radiating across a room, her glamour spectacular. And that, in the end, was the greatest courage of all. Not just that she survived, but that she came out of it able to love deeply and build something magnificent.” Bond Brill points out that the youngest of Holocaust survivors are in their 80s now. “Very soon,” she continues, “the only thing standing between Edna and silence will be people like those gathered at the event in October. So I don’t want them to leave sad. I want them to leave with a pur-
pose.” Bond Brill’s presentation at this community-wide event hosted by the Women’s Philanthropy’s Lion of Judah and Pomegranates will begin at 7:15 p.m. Beforehand, Lions and Poms will gather for an invitation-only dinner reception with Bond Brill beginning at 5:30. All are invited to attend the community-wide presentation. Cost is $36 along with a pledge to the Jewish Federation of the Lehigh Valley’s 2027 Annual Campaign for Jewish Needs. Dessert will be served. Register to attend by October 15 at jewishlehighvalley.regfox.com/littleednas-war-community-presentation. Copies of the book will be available for purchase on that page until October 1.
NextGen Pool Party moves indoors, but still a splash By Billy Thompson Digital Marketing Associate
You could call it a pool party. That was the original plan, anyway. By the time the officially dubbed NextGen Pool Party began, however, you might more accurately have called it a puddle party. A storm in the hours before the Jewish Federation of the Lehigh Valley’s NextGen affinity group event had forced a venue
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