Pittsburgh Jewish Chronicle 1-30-26

Federation security director

By David Rullo | Senior Staff Writer

When the Jewish Federation of Greater Pittsburgh’s community security director, Shawn Brokos, looks back on the past year, one thing that strikes her is the high number of federal arrests in Pittsburgh related to antisemitism.

“Not all of the individuals were charged with hate crimes,” she said of the eight federal defendants, “but scratching below the crimes for which they were charged, there is a motivating factor of antisemitism.”

Brokos said that often the initial crime appears to be somewhat minor — graffiti painted on a sign at the Jewish Federation of Greater Pittsburgh, for instance — but once additional information about the perpetrator is discovered, the significance amplifies.

“There were many people who initially said, ‘It’s just graffiti. We get it. It’s not great but how could it rise to the level of federal prosecution?’ Well, it absolutely did. Then we learned the multiple facets below the layer as it related to the perpetrators.”

In October 2024, Talya Lubit and

Mohamad Hamad were arrested for painting antisemitic graffiti at the Jewish Federation of Greater Pittsburgh and Chabad of Squirrel Hill. A superseding indictment from the federal government followed shortly after, connecting Micaiah Collins to the pair. Collins, who allegedly built bombs with Hamad, is the daughter of Valley View Presbyterian Church’s Pastor Chad Collins. Lubit eventually reached a plea deal with the federal government. Collins and Hamad, who identifies as a Hamas operative, are awaiting trial.

Brokos said a similar pattern emerged concerning two individuals who were holding Nazi flags on area bridges.

“Once we scratched below the surface, we saw that one of the perpetrators was looking to do highly vicious and violent acts in furtherance of his ideology,” she said.

And while one might be disheartened by the number of antisemitic incidents that occurred in the region last year —312, compared to 283 in 2024, and 300 in 2023 — Brokos said there is a bright spot.

“Our community excels in reporting and collaborating with law enforcement,

With federal grant, Pitt initiative aims to move campus dialogue beyond polarization

By Toby Tabachnick | Editor

Although calls to promote civil discourse on college campuses have intensified since Oct. 7, 2023, the University of Pittsburgh began working on the issue long before then.

Now, Pitt’s Center for Governance and Markets will be able to strengthen those efforts through a four-year, $2.7 million grant from the U.S. Department of Education.

The new initiative, called Pluralism360, is aimed at bolstering civil discourse not only across the university, but across the region.

The program will be led by Jennifer Brick Murtazashvili, the founding director of Pitt’s Center for Governance and Markets and a professor at Pitt’s School of Public and International Affairs.

Murtazashvili has been working on issues related to civil discourse since she was in graduate school.

“For me, it’s a method of how you think about the world,” said Murtazashvili, a member of Congregation Beth Shalom. “I work on different topics, but what I try to bring to everything that I do is what we call ‘value pluralism,’ or ‘viewpoint diversity.’”

Recent events have amplified the need to improve civil discourse and invest in more substantive efforts, she said.

“I think universities across the board — and I think we’ve seen this, especially since Oct. 7 — are really struggling to grapple with students who have very different, not just views, but values,” she said. “We see some of the federal legislation, or some of the universities, focus on civil discourse and viewpoint diversity, but I think a lot of this is often very superficial work.”

Headlines

No longer out of bounds: Pittsburgh teen lacrosse players finally visit Israel after canceled trips

By Adam Reinherz | Senior Staff Writer

Canceled trips to Israel didn’t preclude two Pittsburgh teens from making their way to the Jewish state. The journey, which involved years of scheduled visits, postponements and adjustments, culminated weeks ago when Reagan Surloff and Jacob Amster joined Israel Lacrosse Association for a nearly two-week winter break excursion, complete with touring, volunteering and competition.

Before their travels, Reagan, 16, and Jacob, 17, were supposed to spend the summer in Israel with Diller, a teen fellowship program operated by the Jewish Community Center of Greater Pittsburgh and supported by the Jewish Federation of Greater Pittsburgh. Regional unrest, however, required itinerary changes.

“About two weeks before we were supposed to leave, Iran started launching missiles,” Reagan, a Pine-Richland High School student said.

Organizers moved the summer 2025 activities to Washington D.C.

“I was pretty bummed,” Jacob, a Fox Chapel High School student, said.

Jacob’s disappointment was relatively familiar. A 2023 visit to Israel was upended by the events of Oct. 7, he said.

Before their Dec. 21-Jan. 3 trip, neither of the Pittsburgh teens had been to Israel. Both had met Israeli teens by participating in Diller — Israeli teens visit Pittsburgh as part of the program — and desperately wanted to see what life was like for their Israeli peers.

After learning about the Israel Lacrosse Association program, Reagan and Jacob registered. Based in Be’er Tuvya, a moshav located about 35 miles west of Jerusalem, the program offers service trips for Jewish teens.

“Going to Israel and playing lacrosse sounded great,” Jacob said.

“I felt like I had to go,” Reagan said. Both teens have played lacrosse for years. The opportunity to compete abroad, teach the game to young Israelis and net a small escape from

issue, the teens said, was the cost. Diller had credited each teen with $3,600 for future Israel travel but the lacrosse trip posted a $6,200 fee.

Israel Lacrosse Association suggested contacting RootOne, an initiative seeded by The Marcus Foundation and powered by The Jewish Education Project, which offers trip vouchers to eligible applicants who complete various pre-trip requirements, including virtual learning sessions and surveys.

Reagan and Jacob undertook the tasks and received funding to cover most of the trip’s remaining costs, each teen told the Chronicle.

Jacob received an additional scholarship from the Federation, according to David Heyman, Federation’s associate vice president of marketing.

As the long-awaited journey approached, the teens’ excitement grew.

“I was pumped to get there and finally experience what Israel is like,” Jacob said.

“Initially, I wanted to go just for lacrosse, but as we got closer to the trip,” Reagan’s enthusiasm and interests expanded, she said. “As we were traveling there, I thought I am finally going to be in Israel with so many people like me.”

Participating teens included about 35 high school lacrosse players from across the U.S. The trip, both Reagan and Jacob said, featured a

balanced itinerary involving teaching, touring

While in Be’er Tuvya, the teens stopped in several elementary and middle school

“The school visits were the best part of the trip,” Reagan said. “Some Israelis had never met Americans before and treated us like celebrities. They were like, ‘Could we get your Instagram?’”

The requests fetched smiles but conversations with fewer words garnered even greater connection, she said.

“Most of the students didn’t speak very good English. We had to figure out how to communicate through the game, and not through the language, which was fascinating,” she said.

With limited shared vocabulary, the players used Hebrew words such as yad (hand) and poh (here) along with demonstrations.

“The fact that language was not a barrier was very shocking to me,” Reagan said. “Before my trip I thought I needed to know Hebrew. Even with the few words I learned, it was really eye-opening that we could still work together well.”

It wasn’t the only discovery she made.

“When people ask me about my trip, I don’t really think about lacrosse,” she said. “I think about the people I met and my friend who I had met through Diller.”

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That friend, Reagan explained, was one of several Israeli teens from the Misgav region who visited Pittsburgh last year as part of the Diller program.

“We had them come stay with us for 10 days; and my friend, who I never thought I would see again, I got to go to her family’s house and have Shabbat dinner with them. They came to watch me play and I saw where they lived,” she said. “Seeing what life was like for her, or for kids who live on a kibbutz, was very cool.”

Shabbat proved particularly meaningful for Jacob as well.

“I got to stay at someone from Israel Lacrosse’s house,” he said. “I hung out with him and his cousins — it was the highlight of the trip. It was a real Shabbat dinner. They cooked all the food. They have a huge family. They all came. We all hung out, ate food then drove around on his golf cart blasting music.”

Experiential education is often praised for generating meaningful insights.

Among adolescents, preparing for and participating in a study abroad experience yields a “process of reflection and growth with both short-term and potentially long-term impacts,” researchers wrote in the Journal of Hospitality, Leisure, Sport & Tourism Education. The ultimate impact of these experiences can foster the “development of global citizenship among participating adolescents.”

Having finally reached Israel after years of delay, Jacob said he plans on returning to the Jewish state. Whether with Birthright Israel, or as part of a fraternity trip in college, “I definitely plan on going back.”

Reagan, who spoke to the Chronicle by phone en route to New York to observe the University of Rochester’s Women’s Lacrosse team, said that since returning to Pittsburgh her friends have asked numerous questions about the Israel trip.

The detail she often returns to, she said, “is how I stayed with my friend in Misgav, and how I picked fruit from a tree in her backyard.” PJC

Adam Reinherz can be reached at areinherz@pittsburghjewishchronicle.org.

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Headlines

Bethel Park teacher deepens Holocaust education through advanced seminar

By David Rullo | Senior Staff Writer

As a non-Jewish educator teaching about the Holocaust, Leigh Ann Totty feels a “big responsibility” to learn from experts in the field as well as survivors. Totty, a 10th grade English language arts teacher at Bethel Park High School, said her education on the subject began in the early 2000s through the Holocaust Center of Pittsburgh. The organization nominated her to attend the Jewish Foundation for the Righteous’ Summer Institute for Teachers in 2008, and in 2019 she attended a JFR advanced seminar as an Alfred Lerner Fellow

This year, JFR selected 23 middle and high school educators and Holocaust center staff from eight states to participate in its 2026 advanced seminar, which took place January 17-18 in New Jersey. The seminar is an inten sive two-day, graduate-level program focused on strengthening Holocaust education and addressing both historical and contempo rary antisemitism.

Speakers at this year’s seminar included Andy Pearce of University College London, Avinoam Patt of New York University, Noah Shenker of Colgate University and Holocaust historian and exhibition curator Paul Salmons. Participants in the seminar are already well versed in Holocaust history and are given the opportunity to study more focused topics relating to the Holocaust and antisemitism. Special emphasis was placed this year on the opportunities and challenges of artificial intelligence in Holocaust education and research.

Holocaust survivors in the room or in person and that is creating some challenges,” she said.

One of the sessions, she said, focused on how to get students engaged and see Holocaust education as relevant. Another centered on how to avoid misinformation about the Holocaust coming from AI.

Totty is unique among many who attend JFR’s programs and seminars because she isn’t

“I come to the Holocaust through the English language arts,” she said. “The timelessness that JFR, through all their programs, provides enhanced understanding that was relevant to the texts that I teach and be able to bring that knowledge to

Totty said the Holocaust lessons she teaches are part of the English course all students are required to take. In addition to classics like Homer’s “The Odyssey” and Williams Shakespeare’s “Macbeth,” students read “Maus” by Art Spiegelman and Elie

The South Hills teacher credits JFR Executive Vice President Stanlee J. Stahl for selecting teachers from across the United States that “value education and want to be

“We put ourselves in the mind of being the learner over the weekend, bringing in our experiences to help others, as well as trying to sit in the minds of the students,”

The session taught by Holocaust historian Paul Salmons, in particular, she said, focused on running lessons through the

Other sessions centered on contemporary situations and the challenges of the Holocaust; how the backgrounds of students might make learning about the Holocaust difficult; and how examining what’s currently happening in the United Sates might be relevant to consider when teaching the Holocaust.

“Whether it be immigrant or refugee status,

thinking about Holocaust survivors were faced with situations of where to go, what to do, feeling that uncertainty that is present in some of the literature and the experiences survivors have, and how that might connect to students today,” she said.

Totty said the topics presented this year were “relevant and important.”

“I value my connection to the JFR and with Stanlee,” she said.

Totty also is pleased to have the opportunity to speak with other educators teaching about the Holocaust.

“I think one of the values of JFR is having a connection of people that are interested in the subject to help continue to learn,” she said. “We had a chance to hear scholars talk about their ideas and their process of coming to their conclusions, and helping us to be attentive to things like AI or the challenges of living in a world where we won’t have survivors.”

The JFR experience begins though a local network, she said, pointing to Classrooms Without Borders and the Holocaust Center of Pittsburgh.

“I think any connection to the JFR begins with Emily Loeb of the Holocaust Center,” she said.

Her relationships with Loeb and Classrooms Without Borders Executive Director Zipora Gur have been fundamental, she said.

“They have really helped shape the teacher I am and have been great mentors,” Totty said. PJC

David Rullo can be reached at drullo@ pittsburghjewishchronicle.org.

By David Rullo | Senior Staff Writer

Muhammad Ali, who was arrested in June 2024 in connection with his participation in antiIsrael encampments at the University of Pittsburgh, will have to wait a while longer to learn if a judge will consider his claim of selective prosecution.

Selective prosecution occurs when certain defendants are charged with crimes while others in similar situations are not charged under the same procedures.

Ali has been charged with aggravated assault, riot with the intent to commit a felony, failure to disperse and obstructing the administration of law or other government functions.

At a Jan. 22 hearing in the Allegheny Court of Common Pleas, Assistant District Attorney James Sheets argued to Judge Jennifer Satler that Ali’s motion claiming selective prosecution already was argued before two separate judges and was denied each time. Both of those judges, Sheets pointed out, recused themselves after ruling on the motion.

Sheets asked Satler how many bites of the apple Ali and his attorney, Aaron Sontz, were entitled to, arguing that the judge should refuse to hear the defense’s motion.

Sontz argued that the issue had not been fully litigated by the previous two judges and that, in order for justice to be served, his client’s current motion should be heard and the evidentiary record reopened.

Sontz added that he was unable to participate fully in previous hearings because he didn’t have the power to investigate that the state did and that potential witnesses had ignored his subpoenas.

The defense attorney attempted to cast doubt on the previous two rulings, saying that Ali should have been given the benefit of the doubt and that there would be no harm to the state if the motion was heard by Satler. In order for selective prosecution to be proven, the defense must show that Ali was prosecuted while others who committed the same acts were not, and that the prosecution was done in bad faith because of the defendant’s race or religion, or to prevent the defendant’s exercise of his constitutional rights.

Sheets questioned Ali’s claim that any of those conditions were met. He noted that others being prosecuted for charges related to

the encampments are white and not Muslim.

Continuing to make his case for selective prosecution, Satler said that Ali had been exercising his constitutionally protected rights to protest, and seemingly blamed University of Pittsburgh Police Lt. Brooke Riley — who maintains she was injured by Ali and other rioters at the encampment — for the state’s unwillingness to offer a plea deal to the defendant.

Satler, however, was unsure if she had the authority to hear the motion, she said, and asked the defense why it did not file an interlocutory appeal of the previous motion. The defense attorney did not offer a reason for that failure.

Satler also raised the question of forum shopping — the practice of trying to find a court that is likely to yield the most

favorable judgment.

In the end, Satler said she wasn’t ready to hear the motion.

“We’re not there yet,” she said.

Instead, the judge asked the defense attorney to prepare a brief within the next 30 days explaining why she has the authority to hear the motion. The state will then have 30 days to respond to the brief and Satler will have an additional 10 days to respond to the briefs, meaning a scheduled February trial for Ali will be continued.

Ali was joined in the courtroom by approximately two dozen supporters, some donning keffiyehs, others medical masks. PJC

David Rullo can be reached at drullo@ pittsburghjewishchronicle.org.

Headlines

Shai Miller’s Old Country

By Eric Lidji | Special to the Chronicle

Ayear or so before he died, I asked Sheldon “Shai” Miller to take me through his old neighborhood. He grew up in a triangle of South Oakland bounded by Bates Street, the Boulevard of the Allies, and a hillside overlooking the Parkway East. Today it’s known as Oakcliffe, a name that dates to the early 1990s. In Shai’s day, it had no name.

Oakcliffe was a network of country estates until the early 20th century, when developers created a working-class neighborhood. Soon, six large apartment buildings anchored Craft Avenue, lead by the gigantic Saybrook Apartments. Aronson Realty Co. was advertising houses in this little enclave in the Jewish Criterion by 1905. Tree of Life relocated nearby on Craft Avenue in 1906. By the 1920 census, as many as half the families in this little enclave were Jewish, and their numbers were growing.

Today, though, only a few well-hidden clues attest to this Jewish past. I wanted Shai’s help summoning the history that couldn’t be easily found in available records.

We pulled off the Boulevard onto Craft Avenue. The bustle of the busy roadway faded behind us, replaced by neighborhood calm. “That has to be a sandwich shop,” Shai said about a building on the corner. “We used to go over there for lunch, best corned beef around. I used to get corned beef on a heel. It was the end of the rye bread. Delicious.”

He was talking about S&B Deli at 294 Craft Ave. It was Goodman’s Drug Store in 1930 and Simpson’s Pharmacy by the mid-1930s. In the early 1940s, it became S&B.

We turned right onto Joe Hammer Square. It was originally called Elsinore Square, part of a Shakespearian naming convention throughout South Oakland. The west side of Bates has Hamlet and Ophelia streets. The east side has Romeo and Juliet streets.

Joe Hammer was a child of Elsinore Square who was killed in action while serving with the U.S. military in France in September 1944. Over the next month, 60 residents of his street signed a petition, asking the city to change the name of the street.

As we wound through the neighborhood, Shai pointed out the former Jewish landmarks, stores like Nathanson’s Grocery, Peris Pharmacy and Schachter’s Grocery, and former synagogues like Anshe Lubavitch, Kahal Chassidim and Ohave Zedeck.

Ohave Zedeck was the main neighborhood shul. It began meeting as early as 1917 and bought a house at Craft and Niagara in 1921. With growth, it renovated the building in 1936, expanding the sanctuary into the front yard and adding a social hall in the basement. Then it established a cemetery, a religious school and a ladies auxiliary. It continued in the 1970s, when it gradually stopped meeting. The building is gone today. Just past the former Ohave Zedeck, Shai shifted into a different register. It sounded like he was accessing deeper, more essential memories. I readied myself.

If you’ve been driving around Pittsburgh long enough, you’ve likely made an innocuous turn off a city street and suddenly found yourself in some impossibly tight, undeveloped country road.

We were facing a housing project. “Here was a blank open space where the greatest baseball games played anywhere were played by Frank Thomas and his friends. Right here where these townhouses are. And, when you turn around … you’ll see where the left fielder had to cross Craft Avenue in order to catch Frank Thomas’ hits.” Thomas was the child of Catholic immigrants from Lithuania. He was the best baseball player in the neighborhood. He signed with the Pirates in 1947. They traded him to the Reds in 1959. He became a journeyman and retired with good stats — but shy of Cooperstown.

We turned right onto Opheila Street again until we hit Kennett Square from the other direction. Shai noticed an honorary street sign marking “Gene Rosner Corner.”

“Gene Rosner and his wife Irene were greenhorns. You know what greenhorn is? They were right off the boat. And they opened a little grocery store right there. You see where that air conditioner is sticking out? Right there. Max Nathanson passed away years ago. Gene used to go to Squirrel Hill at 5 in the morning, get lox, bagels, smoked fish, and bring them down here, so we’d be able to eat lox, bagels, and smoked fish and herring on Sunday morning, like the Jews in Squirrel Hill. Make a right, make a right.”

“That’s where we just came from,” I said.

“I know, I know … I just wanted to show

you one more thing. OK. You see where that wall is right there?” We were facing a small parking lot behind the townhouses where the makeshift baseball field had been. The parking lot was bounded by a low concrete retaining wall with ghostly patches of gray paint covering old graffiti. “So that’s the back of Isaly’s … Now there’s an alley there with garages … Is it still there? Yeah, right, there it is, man. See that alley? That’s where the garages were. You can get down there to the Boulevard. Well, if you can get by. You probably can.”

What he was calling an alley looked more like a trailhead, a narrow patch of asphalt disappearing into a cave of trees. I thought, “No way am I going down there.”

Shai pointed to a dumpster at the far end of the lot. “Craft Avenue turned into a dirt road beyond that garbage container there. And at the end of that dirt road was a house. We never knew who lived there, though, but they were nice people. And Isaly’s was right there. That’s where they made the ice cream. And this is where the left fielder stood. Back in here, the grass was up to his knees. Yeah, see, all the garages are here.”

He wanted me to drive down the alley, and despite my reservations, I obliged. I wanted him to have the experience of returning to the legendary outfield of his youth.

If you’ve been driving around Pittsburgh long enough, you’ve likely made an

innocuous turn off a city street and suddenly found yourself in some impossibly tight, undeveloped country road. Inching forward through the overgrown trees, along patchy asphalt, I could not believe we were still in an urban neighborhood. I couldn’t believe we were still in reality. It felt as though we had entered the wild recesses of Shai’s memory.

And then, suddenly, we were back in the city, pulling onto the Boulevard of the Allies. Shai pointed to a UPMC building to our right, “There’s the Isaly’s, whoa. Inside Isaly’s, not only down on the first floor, was a restaurant, like it was a cafeteria. You’d get a tray, and you’d get the best sandwich, fresh salad, egg salad, and everything. And then at this end, was the ice cream bar, when they came with the skyscraper cone. They had the long thin scoop. The ice cream above the cone was like this tall. 10 cents. Lime sherbet was my favorite. If I was a good kid all week, my mother would give the lady, the girl that walked me and Goldie to school, 30 cents and we’d all get ice cream cones on Friday. Isaly’s butter and Isaly’s dairy products were the choice of the world, man.” PJC

Eric Lidji is the director of the Rauh Jewish Archives at the Heinz History Center and can be reached at rjarchives@heinzhistorycenter. org or 412-454-6406.

Haviv Rettig Gur is a veteran Israeli journalist, host of the ‘’Ask Haviv Anything’’ podcast, Middle East analyst at The Free Press and senior analyst at The Times of Israel. He has covered Israel’s politics, foreign policy, education system and relationship with the Jewish diaspora since 2005, reporting from over 20 countries. He served as director of communications for the Jewish Agency for Israel, Israel’s largest NGO, and has taught at prestigious pre-military academies.

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Calendar

Submit calendar items on the Chronicle’s website, pittsburghjewishchronicle.org. Submissions also will be included in print. Events will run in the print edition beginning one month prior to the date as space allows. The deadline for submissions is Friday, noon.

q SATURDAY, JAN. 31

Calling all 21- to 39-year-olds. Join Congregation Beth Shalom’s YALA for Havdalah and Hang, an evening of Havdalah, wine, cheese and light bites. 7:30 p.m. $10. 5915 Beacon Street. crm.uscj.org/ civicrm/event/info?reset=1&id=1049

q SUNDAY, FEB. 1

Jewish Art Camp: Fun Jewish learning through the arts for ages 0 to third grade. Mommy and Me (0 to 3-year-olds and their moms), Mini Makers (4 to 5-year-olds), Master Makers (grades 1-3). Ages 0 to 5: $40/semester; grades 1-3: $65/ semester. 10:30 a.m. 1700 Beechwood Blvd. chabadpgh.com/art

In honor of Jewish Disability Awareness and Inclusion Month, join Beth El Congregation of the South Hills for a musical exploration of the five senses and celebrate the different ways people experience the world. With multi-sensory activities led by Azure musicians, you will discover the magic in how our own perceptions make us special. All ages, abilities and behaviors are welcome. An instrument petting zoo follows the concert. Free. 2 p.m. Beth El Congregation, 1900 Cochran Road. autismpittsburgh.org/azureevents

q SUNDAYS, FEB. 1–JULY 26

Join Chabad of Squirrel Hill for its Men’s Tefillin

Club. Services and tefillin are followed by a delicious breakfast and engaging discussions on current events. 8:30 a.m. 1700 Beechwood Blvd. chabadpgh.com

Join a lay-led online Parashah study group to discuss the weekly Torah portion. No Hebrew knowledge needed. The goal is to build community while deepening understanding of the text. 8:30 p.m. For more information, visit bethshalompgh.org/online-parashah.

q MONDAYS, FEB. 2–JULY 27

Join Congregation Beth Shalom for a weekly Talmud study. 9:15 a.m. For more information, visit bethshalompgh.org.

Join Temple Sinai for an evening of mahjong every Monday (except holidays). Whether you are just starting out or have years of experience, you are sure to enjoy the camaraderie and good times as you make new friends or cherish moments with long-term pals. All are welcome. Winners will be awarded Giant Eagle gift cards. All players should have their own mahjong cards. Contact Susan Cohen at susan_k_cohen@ yahoo.com if you have questions. /$5. templesinaipgh.org

Join Chabad of the South Hills for Lift Your Life, a Rosh Chodesh Society series. This month’s topic is “The Art of Managing Food and Munching for Meaning.” 7 p.m. 1700 Bower Hill Road. For more information or to RSVP, email batya@chabadsh.com. chabadsh.com

q TUESDAYS, FEB. 3–JUNE 30

Join Beth El’s Rabbi Alex Greenbaum and his Bible/ Talmud Adult Education class for a thoughtprovoking weekly session of Bible and Talmudic study. This program is available both in person and virtually. Call the office at 412-561-1168 to receive the Zoom link or to make an in-person reservation. 10:30 a.m. 1900 Cochran Rd. bethelcong.org

q WEDNESDAYS, FEB. 4–FEB. 18

Join Chabad of South Hills for its new JLI course, Captivating Cases in Rabbinic Responsa, a course on the real-life questions Jews asked sages across history. 7:30 p.m. In person or online. 1700 Bower Hill Road. chabadsh.com

Join Chabad of Squirrel Hill for its new JLI course, Captivating Cases in Rabbinic Responsa, a course on the real-life questions Jews asked sages across history. 7:30 p.m. $90. 1700 Beechwood Blvd. chabadpgh.com

q THURSDAY, FEB. 5

Join Rabbi Amy Greenbaum and the Beth El community for the all-virtual Beth El’s Virtual Hope and Healing Program on the first Thursday of the month. This is a safe space to chant, breathe, pray for healing and seek peace. Feel free to keep your camera off and just listen. Call the office at 412-561-1168 to receive the Zoom link. 5:30 p.m. Free. bethelcong.org

q SATURDAY, FEB. 7

Join Congregation Beth Shalom for Clues and Schmooze (with some booze), a fun trivia event, including an open bar and snacks. There will be a 50/50 raffle, so bring cash to participate. Trivia will be played with teams of three to six. Bring your own team or be matched up at the door. Must be 21 or older to participate. 7 p.m. $30. 5915 Beacon St. bethshalompgh.org/clues-and-schmooze-2026

q SUNDAY, FEB. 15

Chabad of the South Hills presents Jewish Comedy

Night with Ami Kozak. Kozak’s show will blend stand-up, spot-on impressions and music. 7 p.m. $54. Address provided upon RSVP. Sponsored by Chabad of the South Hills, Jewish Federation of Greater Pittsburgh, StandWithUs and the Pittsburgh Jewish Chronicle. Chabadsh.com/comedy

q WEDNESDAY, FEB. 18

“The Final Final Solution” is a fearless, hour-long stand-up cabaret that takes on Oct. 7, 2023, and its aftermath with biting wit and raw humanity. Fresh from a smash run at Estonia’s Freedom Festival and now on a U.S. tour, this performance transforms unimaginable pain into something incisive and deeply human. 7:30 p.m. $18 per ticket; $5 per student. Beth Shalom Congregation, 5915 Beacon Street. cwbpgh.org/event/the-final-final-solution

q SUNDAY, FEB. 22

Join Chabad of Squirrel Hill for a Kids’ Hamantash Bake. Make your own Hamantashen with entertainment by juggler Howard Mincone. 2:30 p.m. $10/child. 1700 Beechwood Blvd. chabadpgh.com/kidscooking

Join Chabad of the South Hills for its Family Hamantash Bake, a sweet, hands-on Purim adventure for the whole family. 3 p.m. 1700 Bower Hill Road. chabadsh.com/hamantash

q THURSDAY, FEB. 26

Join Rodef Shalom Congregation for “Understanding Online Risks for Our Kids – What Every Parent Needs to Know,” an informative and empowering session that helps parents understand the online behaviors and trends impacting today’s teens and young adults. John Pulcastro, supervisory intelligence analyst, FBI Pittsburgh, will provide a clear, accessible overview of emerging digital risks so you can better support and protect the young people in your life. 7 p.m. Free. Rodef Shalom Congregation, 4905 Fifth Ave. jewishpgh.org/event/ understanding-online-risks-for-our-kids-what-everyparent-needs-to-know  PJC

“Choose

The Pittsburgh Jewish Chronicle invites you to join the Chronicle Book Club for its March 1 discussion of “Snow in August,” by Pete Hamill.

From Amazon.com: “Brooklyn, 1947. The war veterans have come home. Jackie Robinson is about to become a Dodger. And in one close-knit working-class neighborhood, an eleven-year-old Irish Catholic boy named Michael Devlin has just made friends with a lonely rabbi from Prague.

“'Snow in August’ is the story of that unlikely friendship — and of how the neighborhood reacts to it. For Michael, the rabbi opens a window to ancient learning and lore that rival anything in Captain Marvel. For the rabbi, Michael illuminates the everyday mysteries of America, including the strange language of baseball. But like their hero Jackie Robinson, neither can entirely escape from the swirling prejudices of the time. Terrorized by a local gang of anti-Semitic Irish toughs, Michael and the rabbi are caught in an escalating spiral of hate for which there’s only one way out — a miracle ... .”

Your hosts

Toby Tabachnick, Chronicle editor

David Rullo, Chronicle senior staff writer How it works

We will meet on Zoom on Sunday, March 1, at 1 p.m.

What to do

Buy: “Snow in August.” It is available from online retailers, including Amazon and Barnes & Noble, and in some local Barnes & Noble stores. It is also available through the Carnegie Library system.

Email: Contact us at drullo@pittsburghjewishchronicle.org, and write “Chronicle Book Club” in the subject line. We will send you a Zoom link for the discussion meeting. Happy reading! PJC

Headlines

Penn calls Trump administration demand for list of Jewish employees ‘disturbing and unconstitutional

The University of Pennsylvania rebuked the Trump administration in a court filing last week for what it called “disturbing and unconstitutional” requests for a list of its Jewish employees, JTA reported.

“Singling out organizations and individuals for such an invasion of privacy based on their actual or presumed religious affiliation would be deeply troubling under any circumstances,” the university wrote in a filing in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania. “It is particularly chilling in light of the persecution that often has followed the compilation of lists of Jews in particular.”

The university’s response was endorsed in separate court filings by Rabbi Rick Fox, the executive director of MEOR Penn, Rabbi Gabriel F. Greenberg, the executive director of Penn Hillel, and Rabbi Menachem Schmidt, the co-executive director of Chabad at Penn.

The EEOC first began investigating allegations of antisemitism at Penn in December 2023, the same month that the school’s president, Liz Magill, resigned after she was criticized for refusing to say that calls for the genocide of Jews violated the school’s code of conduct.

While the EEOC has not accused Penn of violating anti-discrimination laws, its petition said it was unable to complete its investigation without contacting Jewish employees about the university’s response to allegations of antisemitism.

Federation expresses outrage at threatening images on its campus in Charlotte, NC

Signage featuring antisemitic language and Nazi images was discovered on the grounds of Shalom Park in the city of Charlotte, North Carolina, a campus that houses synagogues, schools and community organizations, including the Jewish Federation of Greater Charlotte, JNS reported.

A purported photo of the sign, circulated on social media, reads: “Whether you swung to the left or whether you swung to the right, we will simply swing you by the neck. Join your local Nazis.” The text is accompanied by imagery of a noose hanging from a swastika.

The Federation said the signage, found on the morning of Jan. 20, was removed promptly. “Let us be clear: This imagery is not political speech or protest,” the Jewish agency said in a statement posted to Facebook. “It is hate. It is intimidation. And it is intended to unsettle, threaten, and dehumanize members of our community. While deeply disturbing, it does not define who we are.”

It added that “importantly, no buildings were entered, and the materials were removed before the school day began.”

Federation said it is “working in close coordination with all Shalom Park agencies, Shalom Park Security and law enforcement to ensure the incident is fully documented, investigated and addressed with the seriousness it warrants.”

Anti-Israel activist Mahmoud Khalil to be deported to Algeria, DHS official says

The Trump administration plans to re-arrest and deport Syrian-born anti-Israel

Today in Israeli History

Feb. 2, 1915 — Diplomat Abba Eban is born

activist Mahmoud Khalil, according to Tricia McLaughlin, assistant U.S. secretary of homeland security for public affairs, JNS reported.

“It looks like he’ll go to Algeria. That’s what the thought is right now,” McLaughlin told NewsNation’s “Katie Pavlich Tonight.”

Khalil’s mother has family ties to Algeria, and as a result, Khalil holds citizenship there.

Khalil, a Columbia University graduate of Palestinian descent, holds a green card as a U.S. permanent resident. He has been accused of organizing encampments and other protests at the Manhattan campus, several of which turned violent and included rhetoric supporting Hamas.

Khalil has said he served only as the spokesperson for the protests and has denied supporting violence. He has been fighting efforts to deport him through the legal system since Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents arrested him in New York in March 2025.

While efforts to deport Khalil on the grounds that his presence undermined U.S. foreign policy interests were largely rejected by federal courts, the Trump administration found more success in its case that Khalil deliberately lied on his visa application form, concealing his previous work with the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East, which Israeli and U.S. officials have shown has ties to Hamas and other terrorist groups.

On Jan. 15, a panel of judges on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit issued a 2-1 ruling dismissing a habeas action Khalil filed against the U.S. Department of Homeland Security and ICE officials, challenging his detention and vacating the lower court’s release order.

Miracle on ice: Israel’s bobsleigh team clinches spot at 2026 Winter Olympics

Israel made ice-cold history last week after qualifying a bobsleigh team for the Winter Olympics for the first time, according to the Times of Israel.

The four-man team, headed by pilot AJ Edelman — who has been working tirelessly toward this goal for the past eight years — will hit the track at the 2026 Milano Cortina Games in just a couple of weeks.

The team managed to clinch a place after reallocation — finishing just one spot out of contention in the official rankings, but garnering an invitation to the Games after another country decided not to use all of its slots.

“This is a historic achievement,” said the Olympic Committee of Israel in a statement confirming it had received an invitation from the International Olympic Committee for the team.

Alongside Edelman, the bobsleigh team is made up of Menachem Chen, Ward Fawarseh and Omer Katz, with Uri Zisman also heading to Italy as an alternate.

Edelman, an American-Israeli athlete who represented Israel in men’s skeleton at the 2018 Beijing Olympics, has fought ever since then to qualify a bobsleigh team for Israel, finishing just one spot short in the 2022 qualification.

“Dreams do come true. For this dream, that day is today,” Edelman wrote on Instagram on Thursday. “The Israeli Bobsled Team is now ‘The Israeli Olympic Bobsled Team.’ We are headed to Milan.” PJC

— Compiled by Toby Tabachnick

Items are provided by the Center for Israel Education (israeled.org), where you can find more details.

Jan. 30, 1933 — Youth Aliyah program is established

Recha Freier founds the Committee for the Assistance of Jewish Youth on the day Adolf Hitler is appointed Germany’s chancellor. Later renamed Youth Aliyah, the program rescues more than 11,000 Jews.

Jan. 31, 1961 — Ben-Gurion resigns over Lavon affair

Prime Minister David Ben-Gurion resigns, triggering a Knesset election, to protest a Cabinet decision a month earlier to exonerate former Defense Minister Pinchas Lavon over a botched spy operation in Egypt in 1954.

Feb. 1, 1885 — Novelist, editor Peretz Smolenskin dies Novelist Peretz Smolenskin, the founder and editor of a Hebrew periodical, dies of tuberculosis at 43. He rejected assimilation and advocated Jewish immigration to Palestine after Russian pogroms in the early 1880s.

Abba Eban is born in South Africa. He plays a crucial role in the passage of the U.N. partition plan for Palestine and serves as Israel’s ambassador to the United Nations and United States, a Knesset member, and the foreign minister.

Feb. 3, 1919 — Zionists present case to Peace Conference

A World Zionist Organization delegation makes the case for a Jewish homeland in Palestine to the Paris Peace Conference. The delegation accepts the proposed British Mandate but asks that it support Jewish immigration.

Feb. 4, 1997 — Helicopter collision kills 73

Two CH-53 Yasur helicopters collide at night over northern Israel while ferrying troops and munitions to southern Lebanon, killing all 73 military personnel on board: Bedouin, Druze and Jews, secular and religious.

Feb. 5, 1890 —

1st Tu B’Shevat planting in Land of Israel

Zichron Ya’akov educator Ze’ev Yavetz takes students to plant trees on Tu B’Shevat, the trees’ birthday, starting a tradition in the Land of Israel that the Jewish National Fund and teachers unions adopt in 1908. PJC

Senior Living

Living well with occupational therapy

When people first hear of occupa tional therapy, they often say, “I’m retired” or “I don’t need a job.” It is a common misconception that occupational therapy is related to finding and/or maintaining work.

In occupational therapy, the word “occupation” refers to the everyday activities that fill your day — the things you need to do and the things you enjoy doing. Think of occupations as anything that occupies your time.

These activities may include:

• Getting dressed, bathing, using the bathroom and eating

• Moving safely around your home and community

• Using your hands for tasks like cooking, writing, or hobbies

• Managing medications

• Sleeping well

• Household tasks such as cooking, cleaning and laundry

• Enjoying leisure activities like knitting, fishing, woodworking, puzzles, or golf

• Staying socially connected in your community

• Supporting memory, attention and problem-solving skills

Occupational therapy uses a creative, personalized approach to help you stay safe, independent and engaged in daily life.

Occupational therapists help individuals develop healthy routines, adapt tools, tasks, or environments, learn new ways to do things and maintain or improve their ability to participate in meaningful activities.

Occupational therapists are also experts at recognizing that the “little things” are often the big things. Tasks that may seem minor to others can be deeply frustrating for someone who struggles with them. For many people, being able to tie their shoes, button a shirt, or open a milk jug is just as meaningful as being able to walk independently. Nothing is too small to address. If it matters to you, it matters to us.

Another common misconception is that occupational therapy is the same as physical therapy but “just for the arms.” While both professions work together, they have different primary focuses. Physical therapy often concentrates on strength, balance and movement, while occupational therapy focuses on how those physical abilities are used functionally in

daily life — from getting dressed to preparing meals to engaging in hobbies. You may notice some overlap, but each profession brings a unique lens that, when combined, maximizes your function and overall quality of life.

Occupational therapists work with people of all ages across a wide range of settings. You might see OTs in hospitals, schools, rehabilitation centers, outpatient clinics, nursing homes, hospice care, psychiatric units, or even in patients’ homes. OTs also practice in non-traditional, community-based settings — such as prisons, homeless shelters, adult day centers, or vocational training programs — all helping people participate fully in their daily lives.

Occupational therapy is also strongly supported by research. A 2022 systematic review found that people who participated in occupational therapy had lower hospital readmission rates compared to those who did not receive OT services (Lockwood & Porter).

Another large study from 2017 found that occupational therapy was the only service consistently associated with lower 30-day hospital readmission rates for conditions such as heart failure, pneumonia and heart attack (Rodgers et al).

Fewer hospital visits mean more time at home doing the things you love with the people you love. Your safety, participation, independence and quality of life matter, and occupational

therapy is here to help protect them.

Occupational therapy isn’t only for recovery following an injury or hospital stay — it supports people at many stages of life. Many people benefit from OT during everyday transitions — after a fall, following a new diagnosis, or when daily tasks start taking more time or effort than they used to. You do not have to wait until something feels “too hard” or “serious enough” to ask for help. Early support can prevent bigger problems later and help you stay confident, safe and independent longer. When it comes to maintaining high quality of life, prevention is key. Occupational therapy is often covered by Medicare and other insurance plans. A referral from your doctor is often all it takes to get the ball rolling to a healthier, happier, more efficient and independent version of yourself.

Changes from aging, injury, or life circumstances can make daily activities more challenging, but they don’t have to stay that way. Working with an occupational therapist can help you hold onto your independence and keep doing the things that matter most. Life can be tough, but even small changes have a big impact. PJC

Maddie Martin is an occupational therapist at To Life! Therapy and Wellness in Squirrel Hill.

Senior Living

South Hills Grandfriends program builds friendship across generations

By Deborah Weisberg | Special to the Chronicle

Two Mondays a month, preschoolers from Temple Emanuel in Mt. Lebanon trek to neighboring Concordia of the South Hills for a fun meetup with senior residents.

While decades — and sometimes a century — divide the two groups, the generation gap disappears as they dance, sing, craft, play games and tell stories together.

Now in its seventh year, Grandfriends is designed to enrich the lives of both young and old, and has delivered beyond expectations, said Shelly Schapiro, an educator at Temple Emanuel’s Early Childhood Development Center.

“The kids learn empathy, patience and self-regulation, and they bring the grandfriends great joy. The grandfriends feel less isolated and more valued. They become vibrant.”

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The program was conceived in the spring of 2019 by Jared Davis, a music therapist for Concordia, who wanted to foster intergenerational connections “and saw the physical relationship between Temple and Concordia as an opportunity to create something unique,” said Rebecca Closson, an ECDC music specialist. While the program was initially developed to “inspire community through singing, creative movement and simple instruments,” she said, “ultimately, music was just the vehicle for building human connection — learning about others who are different from oneself, sharing life experiences and creating new memories filled with joy, laughter and creativity.”

About 15 children, an inclusive class of 4- and 5-year-olds, take part. The grandfriends are age 70 and up. The newest, Annette Resnick, is also the eldest, having recently turned 103 — which was cause for a Grandfriends’ celebration.

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Senior Living

Helpful tips to navigate the future of aging

Guest Columnist

Mary Anne Foley

Deciding where and how to live as we age is one of the most significant choices individuals and families will make. Too often, these decisions are made during moments of crisis — after a fall, a hospitalization, or a sudden change in health — when stress and urgency cloud judgment. However, with thoughtful planning and honest conversations, these changes can be navigated with dignity, confidence and peace of mind.

The first step is recognizing that changing needs are not a failure of independence. Chronic illness, mobility challenges, memory changes, or safety concerns are natural parts of aging. Addressing them proactively allows individuals to maintain control over their future rather than reacting to circumstances as they arise.

Understanding the spectrum of care

There are far more care options for seniors than many people realize. Personal care services support activities of daily living such as bathing, dressing, meal preparation, medication reminders or administration, and mobility assistance. These services can be provided at home or in a residential setting, depending on personal preference and level of need.

Senior living communities offer a range of care levels — from independent living to personal care to assisted living to memory

care — within one supportive environment. Residents typically live in private or semi-private apartments and benefit from regular meals, housekeeping, social activities and 24-hour access to trained staff. These communities are designed for individuals who need assistance with daily tasks but do not require skilled nursing care.

Working with a senior community to choose the appropriate level of support is critical. The right fit allows individuals to remain active, engaged and supported throughout their life.

Assessing what truly matters

A thoughtful assessment is the foundation of a successful transition. Families should consider not only current needs, but how those needs may evolve. Important questions to consider may include:

• Which daily activities are becoming difficult or unsafe?

• Are there memory or cognitive changes that may lead to a safety concern?

• How critical are social engagement and daily structure?

• How will connections to family, faith, culture, and community be maintained?

These conversations should begin early and include the individual at the center of the decision-making process. Expressing both what you want — and what you wish to avoid — helps ensure that future care aligns with your values. Professional input from physicians, social workers, geriatric care managers, or care navigation teams can provide objective guidance and help families plan responsibly rather than react emotionally during this time.

Exploring practical options

There is no single solution that fits everyone. Common options include:

• Aging in place with in-home support is ideal for those who wish to remain at home while gradually adding personal care.

• Adult day programs provide supervision, engagement and care during the day.

• Respite care offers short-term stays that relieve family caregivers.

• Senior living communities provide built-in support, social connection and the ability to adjust care as needs change.

• Hospice care delivers compassionate, comfort-focused support in a community-based or facility-based setting. Families have the right to choose their hospice provider.

Touring senior communities and interviewing care providers early is essential. Ask clear questions about staffing, medical oversight, emergency procedures, meals, daily routines and amenities. Understand the financial structure: What is included? What costs extra? Which payment options are accepted? Ask whether the organization is a locally-based nonprofit, or national or regional for-profit, and how it supports cultural and religious practices. Equally important, inquire whether multiple levels of care are available to support changing needs over time.

Addressing the emotional side of change

Even well-planned transitions bring emotional complexity. Individuals may fear

losing independence, while family members grapple with guilt or uncertainty. These feelings are nomal — and they deserve acknowledgment.

Open communication is essential. Listen without judgment, speak honestly, and focus on the shared goal of safety, comfort and quality of life. Preserving routines, incorporating familiar belongings and continuing to foster meaningful relationships helps ease adjustment. Clearly articulating what makes a place feel like “home” can guide providers in delivering truly personalized care.

A thoughtful path forward

Choosing senior care is not a one-time decision; it is an ongoing partnership. The right environment welcomes family involvement, encourages questions and adapts as needs evolve. Strong relationships among residents, families and caregivers build trust and ensure care remains responsive over time.

Moving to a senior community does not mean surrendering independence or identity. With proactive planning and proper support, individuals can continue to live engaged, meaningful lives — while families gain confidence knowing their loved ones are safe and well cared for. Approached with clarity and compassion, the aging journey can be transformed into an opportunity for stability, connection and renewed well-being. PJC

Mary Anne Foley, RN, MSN is president and chief executive officer of the Jewish Association on Aging.

Senior Living Cataracts and the evolution of vision care

Guest Columnist

A common condition that develops quietly

One of the most memorable moments in my career came after cataract surgery, when a grandparent told me they were seeing their grandchild’s freckles clearly for the first time. The freckles were not new. The clarity was.

Vision shapes how we experience the world, and cataracts sit at the center of how vision changes with age.

Cataracts occur when the natural lens inside the eye becomes cloudy. This lens is normally clear and flexible, allowing light to focus sharply on the retina. Over time, proteins within the lens clump together, scattering light and reducing visual clarity. Many people first notice difficulty reading, increased glare while driving at night, or trouble tracking a golf ball, sometimes blaming declining golf scores on everything except their vision.

From crude beginnings to modern surgery

The evolution of cataract surgery is far more dramatic than most people realize. For centuries, the only treatment was a crude technique known as couching, in which the cloudy lens was pushed out of the line of sight with a sharp instrument. While this occasionally improved vision, it often left patients with severe limitations and risk.

A true turning point came in the mid 20th century, when Sir Harold Ridley observed that fragments of aircraft canopy material embedded in the eyes of injured pilots during World War II caused surprisingly little inflammation. That insight led him to perform the first artificial lens implant, transforming cataract surgery from simply removing a cloudy lens to restoring vision.

The modern era followed soon after, when Dr. Charles Kelman introduced phacoemulsification. Inspired by dental ultrasound technology, Kelman realized that sound energy could be used to break up a cataract inside the eye and allow it to be removed through a much smaller incision. This insight fundamentally changed cataract surgery and made minimally invasive treatment possible.

Cataract surgery today

Modern cataract surgery still relies on this same ultrasound principle, now refined through decades of innovation. Ultrasound energy is used to break the cloudy lens into small fragments, which are removed through a small, self-sealing, stitchless incision. For patients, this often means faster recovery and a smoother return to daily life.

Because of these advances, cataract surgery is often pursued earlier than in the past. Instead of waiting for severe vision loss, surgery can be timed when vision changes begin to interfere with even routine daily activities and quality of life.

Advanced technology lenses and personal vision goals

Once the cataract is removed, a clear artificial lens is placed inside the eye to permanently replace the natural lens. While traditional lenses provide clear vision at a single distance, advanced technology lenses represent a revolutionary shift in cataract surgery, allowing vision to be corrected at distance, intermediate and near ranges rather than limited to just distance vision.

Cataract surgery is now highly customizable. For many people who have relied on glasses for decades, this can mean reducing or, in some cases, eliminating dependence on them for much of the day.

Vision and brain health

Research has highlighted a growing connection between vision and brain health. Large studies show that individuals who undergo cataract surgery have a lower risk of developing dementia compared with those whose cataracts remain untreated. While surgery does not prevent dementia, restoring vision may help preserve mobility, independence and social engagement as people age.

Other common causes of vision loss after 65

Cataracts are often the reason people return to an eye doctor later in life, but other serious conditions may be developing at the same time. Glaucoma and macular degeneration are two leading causes of permanent vision loss after 65, and both can progress without early symptoms. Glaucoma quietly damages peripheral vision, while macular degeneration affects central vision needed for reading, recognizing faces and driving.

Dry eye and everyday comfort

Dry eye disease is extremely common, particularly during colder months, and can significantly affect comfort and visual quality even when vision is otherwise healthy. Many patients find relief with a combination of over-the-counter options and prescription therapies, and for those who cannot tolerate eye drops, there are also safe in-office procedures that can improve symptoms and quality of life.

Looking ahead

Cataract care has changed not only in how surgery is performed, but in what it offers patients. What was once something people endured late in life has become an opportunity to restore clarity and tailor vision to how people actually live. As advances in cataract surgery continue to improve how we restore vision, I encourage prioritizing annual comprehensive eye examinations as an equally essential part of protecting longterm eye health. Recognizing vision changes early helps people remain active, independent and able to clearly see the details that matter most. PJC

Joshua Paul, MD, is a physician and president of The Cataract and Vision Center of Pittsburgh. cvcofpgh.com, 412-963-0414, 1326 Freeport Road, Pittsburgh, PA 15238

Headlines

“The kids were very psyched to meet her,” Schapiro said. “We’d talked about what we could do that would be special for her birthday and decided on flowers and a big card.

“She was overjoyed. Said it was her best birthday ever. We visited her at her apartment and then invited her to Grandfriends in another part of the building. She said, ‘Sure, why not?’ and she joined us.”

Resnick’s use of a cane did not seem to faze the kids; nor does seeing other grandfriends with walkers and wheelchairs, Schapiro said. “They’re very understanding. I can recall just one instance when one of our kids was frightened by a walker, and her own grandmother helped her work through that.”

The children are equally relaxed around a grandfriend with stroke-related limitations, Schapiro said. “They never said a word or asked about it. When we tell them to choose a friend, kids don’t hesitate to choose him.”

The same participant gifted the children hand-painted books in December. “He loves to watercolor,” said Schapiro. “The kids gave him holiday cards and so he made each one a little book with a gingerbread story attached.”

The program enhances the grandfriends’ sense of purpose and improves mood, she said.

“It’s a bright spot in our residents’ week,” observed Concordia marketing director Christie Whalen. “They adore the kids. You can hear their laughter as soon as they come through the door.”

“There’s

Grandfriends “incredible” on many levels, beginning with the walk to Concordia.

“It’s an adventure they get to have every other week, which is absolutely lovely,” she said. “Getting there is quite a hike and wonderful exposure outside the classroom. The kids learn about safety.”

At Concordia, each child receives the

–DUNCAN HUGHES

Grandfriends Duncan and Stephanie Hughes are usually there to greet them.

“They’re a wonderful little bunch,” said Duncan Hughes, 83. “Some of us are not clear in our thinking or speech and they’re not put off by our infirmities. There’s a lot of personal interaction. Everyone has a good time.”

Hughes’ church donated pumpkins to the program last fall, to the delight of Quinn Kleinbaum, 4.

“We play games,” she said. “We get a pumpkin and try to toss a ring around it.”

Quinn’s mother, Kate Kleinbaum, called

individualized, undivided attention of a grown-up, which is “very enriching,” Kleinbaum added. “And they are learning how to react in a situation they’re not often in — being in an adults-only area and participating in a formal way.”

Of Duncan Hughes, Quinn said, “I feel like he’s not old.”

Anderson Lutz, 4, has bonded with Maureen McFeeley, 82.

“He wakes up with such joy knowing he’ll walk down that hill to see her,” said his mother, Julie Lutz, of South Fayette Township. “Their interactions are very special.”

At a recent family gratitude party, Anderson, accompanied by his father, Adam Lutz, presented McFeeley with an orchid in pink, her favorite color.

“Her smelled it and really liked it,” Anderson said. “It’s her favorite smell.”

McFeeley called Grandfriends “a great program,” adding, “These children are the way all children should be.”

Lutz teaches at Temple Emanuel and said the preparation Schapiro puts into each visit is a key part of the program’s success. “Shelly talks with the kids beforehand about what they will see … what to expect. It’s a lot of work.”

The magic that occurs during the meetups reflects the children’s innate openness, Lutz said.

“They have an innocence and curiosity. There’s something unspoken in the respect they know to give.”

Although the meetups are scheduled to last an hour they usually go longer, and they have occurred without interruption all these years, Schapiro said. “During the pandemic, we Zoomed.”

“A lot of learning goes on and we’re rewarded again and again and again.” PJC

Deborah Weisberg is a freelance writer living in Pittsburgh.

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Experience your new home that gives you more from life — and gives your family peace of mind.

Call 412-489-3550 or visit www.ProvidencePoint.org and experience life uplifted today.

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500 Providence Point Boulevard, Pittsburgh, PA 15243

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www.ProvidencePoint.org

www.ProvidencePoint.org

With Ran Gvili’s return, Israel’s leadership fulfills sacred obligation to the nation it failed on Oct. 7

“He went in first, he came out last. He came back home,” said an exultant Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, minutes after Gvili’s parents were given the news. “We promised, and I promised, to bring everyone back, and we brought everyone back … to the very last one.”

To the very last one.

That was the demand, the pledge, by the families of the hostages abducted by Hamas and other terrorists from Israel on that worst of days, Oct. 7, 2023.

The struggle was not over, national trust in the leadership could not be restored, and Israel could not truly begin to heal, the families and most of the nation recognized, until every single hostage, the living and the slain, was returned to Israel.

And on Monday, Jan. 26, 2026, day 843 of the war, that sacred, essential goal was achieved.

Three and a half months ago, on Oct. 13, the final 20 living hostages were released by Hamas, a development very few Israelis had believed could happen, because it seemed as though Hamas would be giving up the best leverage it held in its bid to survive, to rise and to resume its core purpose of destroying Israel. And now, the body of Master Sgt. Ran Gvili — who put on his police uniform and went to war with a broken shoulder on Oct. 7 — has been located by the IDF, identified and returned to Israel for burial.

new, non-threatening Gaza is to be eventually constructed.

Most imminently, Ali Shaath, the former Palestinian Authority deputy minister appointed to head the National Committee for the Administration of Gaza, announced last week that the Rafah Crossing between

Israel had two clear goals for a war it had no choice but to fight against Gaza’s terrorist government in the terrible aftermath of Oct. 7: destroy Hamas, and get all the hostages back.

Unlike Ron Arad, the Air Force navigator still officially missing in action four decades after he ejected over Lebanon; unlike Hadar Goldin, the Givati Brigade officer killed in a Hamas ambush in 2014, whose body was finally returned to Israel two months ago — this time, nobody has been left behind.

Formally, the recovery of Gvili’s body completes the first phase of President Donald Trump’s broader peace plan for Gaza, and ushers in the next phases, under which Hamas is supposed to relinquish its weapons, the Strip is to be demilitarized, the IDF is to gradually withdraw, and a

Gaza and Egypt would open within days in both directions. And Netanyahu, who is deeply wary that any such concession will be abused by the still potent Hamas, reluctantly went along, to the fury of his far-right coalition partners. His office on Sunday night conditioned reopening the crossing on the completion of the search for Gvili’s body — a condition now successfully met.

Hamas, it should not require stressing, has not wavered from its goal of eliminating Israel. Rather, it evidently concluded that releasing, first, all 20 remaining living hostages and now, finally, the last of the

28 deceased hostages, has paved the best path to avoiding ongoing, potentially intensified U.S.-backed Israeli military pressure. Still controlling almost half of Gaza, it believes it is creating conditions under which it will be able to fudge the issue of what exactly becomes of its arms, rebuild its personnel and resources, continue to benefit from the support of a world full of Israel-haters and fools, await more conducive U.S. leadership, and resume its “resistance” to the Jewish state.

Israel had two clear goals for a war it had no choice but to fight against Gaza’s terrorist government in the terrible aftermath of Oct. 7: destroy Hamas, and get all the hostages back.

The first goal is not completed; the war in its current form is over, but Hamas is not destroyed.

But the second, mercifully, has now been accomplished. Israel’s political and military leadership has cleared a critical hurdle in rebuilding its relationship with the citizenry it so catastrophically failed to protect 843 days ago. The hostages have been returned. To the very last one. PJC

David Horovitz is the founding editor of The Times of Israel. He previously edited The Jerusalem Post (2004-2011) and The Jerusalem Report (1998-2004). This article was first published on The Times of Israel.

German trains brought Jews to their death at Bergen-Belsen. They can’t be allowed to disturb the site.

Aproposal by officials at Deutsche Bahn, the German federal railway system, is serving up a potential train wreck of gargantuan proportions when it comes to preserving the memory of the Holocaust.

The officials have proposed a “preferred route” for a new high-speed rail line between Hamburg and Hanover that would run less than a quarter of a mile from the loading ramp where trains of Deutsche Bahn’s inglorious predecessor during the Nazi era, the Deutsche Reichsbahn, deposited prisoners destined for the nearby concentration camp of Bergen-Belsen.

The route that these officials are recommending risks damaging, even destroying, this ramp, which the officials know full well was a place of intense suffering and anguish during the years of the Holocaust.

Tens of thousands of Jews and other victims and enemies of the Nazi German regime, my parents and Anne Frank among them, arrived here between 1943 and

April 1945, when Belsen was liberated by British troops. Here, they were taken off trains that had carried them for days, sometimes longer, in the most inhumane conditions imaginable.

They were then forced to march some six kilometers to the camp’s barracks where many of them died of starvation and typhus and other diseases, or were viciously murdered at the hands of SS

As we observe International Holocaust Remembrance Day, one of our collective solemn responsibilities as a society is to safeguard the memorial sites of the Holocaust, and that includes the Bergen-Belsen loading ramp.

“Two weeks in cattle cars,” recalled Hanna Lévy-Hass, a survivor from Yugoslavia.

“Holed up, forty to sixty per car, men, women, the elderly, children. Hermetically sealed, with no air, no lights, no water, no food … we were suffocating in a tiny space saturated with filth, fumes, sweat, stench . . . ravaged by thirst and lack of space.”

Many of the arrivals at the ramp were forced to leave behind family members and friends who had died on the journey.

officers and guards.

Even without gas chambers and large-scale crematoriums, Bergen-Belsen was an instrumental killing site of Hitler’s Final Solution of the Jewish Question. In order to contain a raging typhus epidemic, the British liberators hastened to take the survivors, many of whom were critically ill and on the verge of death, to a nearby German army base that became the Displaced Persons camp of Bergen-Belsen.

On April 21, 1945, British officers and soldiers burned the barracks of what they had termed the “horror camp” to the ground.

The railway loading ramp is thus one of the very few authentic remnants of the perpetration of the Holocaust at what may not have been a killing field but was definitely a field of gruesome, harrowing death.

The annual commemoration of the liberation at the Memorial Site of BergenBelsen includes a moving ceremony at the ramp.

The proposed railway route could disturb all of this, unsettling an important site of Holocaust memory.

Elke Gryglewski, the memorial site’s director, wrote to the transportation committee of the German parliament earlier this month to raise concerns about the railway plans.

The ramp “plays an important role in our educational work,” she wrote. “Every day, we guide groups here and provide information about the history of the loading ramp and the journey of the concentration camp inmates and prisoners of war, which involved a 6-kilometer march to the Bergen-Belsen camps.”

Chronicle poll results: Trump’s efforts to acquire Greenland

Last week, the Chronicle asked its readers in an online poll the following question:

“Do you support the Trump administration’s efforts to acquire Greenland?” Of the 432 people who responded, 89% said no, and 11% said yes. Comments were submitted by 131 people. A few follow.

“Acquiring” Greenland would be illegal and dangerous. It would destroy NATO.

Our foreign policy should not depend on the whims of one man.

It’s all just distraction from the Epstein files.

Taking it by force is bullying and a return to 19th-century imperialism (which he already started with Venezuela). Buying it when we already have a huge deficit and it’s protected by allies is stupid. Doing either without the consent of Congress is illegal. The toddler-in-chief needs to grow up and stop trying to govern by tantrums.

The United States has a rich history of land acquisitions, primarily through purchases,

Rosensaft:

Continued from page 14

Gryglewski warned that historical structures at Bergen-Belsen could be damaged or destroyed during construction and that noise pollution and changes to the space could “violate the dignity of the site and disrupt educational work.” She even raised the possibility that construction work could unearth human remains of those who were killed or buried near the ramp during the deportations.

Senior members of the staff of the BergenBelsen Memorial Site have made the appeal in person, too. When representatives of Deutsche Bahn visited before making their proposal, the staff members not only explained the ramp’s historical importance but warned, among other concerns, that if the proposed new line were to run closer than one kilometer away, the construction

treaties and annexation — Louisiana, Florida and Alaska to name a few. Many past U.S. presidents have wanted to acquire Greenland. We need it more than ever now for the Golden Dome missile defense system to protect the western hemisphere.

We’ve become an international pariah. When is this madness going to end?

work involved risked causing significant if not irreversible damage to the ramp’s infrastructure.

The “preferred route” runs less than half of that distance away.

As we observe International Holocaust Remembrance Day, one of our collective solemn responsibilities as a society is to safeguard the memorial sites of the Holocaust, and that includes the BergenBelsen loading ramp.

The Deutsche Bahn bureaucrats have acknowledged that an alternate route running substantially further away from the ramp is indeed feasible. In the name of the survivors of Bergen-Belsen, their descendants, and their families, and also as chair of the Advisory Board of the Lower Saxony Memorials Foundation that oversees the Memorial Site of Bergen-Belsen, I call on the transportation committee of the German Bundestag

Greenland is at the critical location for effective defense from aggressive Russia.

These efforts create unnecessary instability within our necessary alliances. Concerns over national security may have some merit, but they’re outweighed by how destabilizing these actions are — risking global havoc and potentially provoking tensions that could lead to World War III with dangerous alignments between our allies and adversaries.

In a litany of embarrassing actions, this is the most embarrassing and extremely dangerous. It is unfortunate that Republican legislators do not recognize the potential damage that may, and is already, resulting.

While much of what he is doing is very positively active and productive, and in line with the previous pronouncements of the last several administration, I believe that we should just maintain our existing diplomacy and presence in this strategic region. No reason to ruffle feathers.

to reject Deutsche Bahn’s “preferred route” for the Hamburg to Hannover railway line and instead opt for the alternate route.

There could be upsides to having a heavily trafficked rail line running close to an important site of Holocaust memory. Germans could benefit from being forced to confront the country’s Nazi history in the course of doing business. And being able to hear ordinary Germans going about their lives from the Bergen-Belsen site could underscore the cruel circumstances in which the Holocaust unfolded.

But the risks to the site’s dignity and integrity are not worth chancing it — and Deutsche Bahn officials owe it to keepers of Jewish memory to listen to our preferences.

There is no question that the Reichsbahn made the perpetration of the Holocaust possible. “Without the Reichsbahn, the

Supporting Trump’s efforts to “acquire” Greenland would be comparable to supporting Putin’s attempts to acquire Ukraine.

I don’t support anything this administration represents or does.

I don’t think Trump really wants to acquire Greenland; he’s just trying to get the best deal possible.

An objective view of Trump sees that there is a “Good Trump,” a “Bad Trump,” and a “Crazy Trump.” This is “Crazy Trump.”

Let us hope that President Trump works out an agreement with Denmark and Greenland that NATO endorses. We should wait to see the outcome before rushing to judgment. PJC

— Compiled by Toby Tabachnick

Chronicle weekly poll question: Is intermarriage a threat to Jewish continuity? Go to pittsburghjewishchronicle.org to respond. PJC

industrial murder of millions of people would not have been possible” declared Susanne Kill, Deutsche Bahn’s in-house historian, in 2008.

There is also no question that Deutsche Bahn is the Reichsbahn’s successor. As such, it and its employees have a particular responsibility not only to acknowledge but to highlight the Reichsbahn’s complicity in the World War II genocide of European Jewry. One immediate way to accomplish this goal is by taking the necessary measures to preserve rather than risk damaging the loading ramp of Bergen-Belsen. PJC

Menachem Z. Rosensaft is a lawyer and human rights activist, adjunct professor of law at Cornell Law School, lecturer-in-law at Columbia Law School, and author of “Burning Psalms: Confronting Adonai after Auschwitz.” This artice was first published on JTA.

Headlines

not taking anything at face value,” she said. “That’s what sets our community apart from those across the country.”

Federal arrests were only one part of last year’s security landscape, though.

The Maccabi Games brought about 2000 teenage athletes to Pittsburgh over the summer, and despite a few anti-Israel protests, went off without a hitch. More than $10 million dollars in state and federal grants were awarded to Jewish institutions to enhance security. The BluePoint security system was installed in 36 locations. License Plate Recognition cameras were installed throughout Squirrel Hill. And 29 police boxes were added throughout the community. Those were just a few of the Federation’s security team’s accomplishments, Brokos noted.

Installing license plate recognition cameras, she said, was one of the more beneficial developments.

“We know for a fact that those cameras were used to locate and arrest two threat actors,” Brokos said. “We saw the direct correlation between a technology that was very much in need to protect our community

and its value.”

Another achievement was the hiring of Deputy Director of Community Security Eric Kroll, who was brought on in 2024 but completed his first full year in 2025. Kroll, a retired Pittsburgh police officer, “was able to identify and triage incidents in an effective

As an example, she pointed to typical programs that bring two people with opposing views together, where “everybody kind of walks away and feels good that they were exposed to different perspectives.”

That doesn’t go deep enough, she said. While it is not uncommon for people to change their views about a particular issue, she explained, “changing your values is not as frequent. And when people have values that are very clearly important to them, and they’re in a room with someone who has very, very different values that don’t seem to reconcile, how do you deal with this?”

That’s the meat of the issue, Murtazashvili said, and something she has focused on through various undertakings, including the Compassion Project, in which she and Abdesalam Soudi, an associate professor in Pitt’s linguistics department, co-moderated conversations centered around open and compassionate dialogue in the months following Oct. 7.

Since Oct. 7, she also has worked with the University of Haifa on issues of religious pluralism in Israel, concerning how societies govern themselves when they’re polarized.

“And not just polarized on who the next presidential candidate will be,” she said, “but really on different values, ranging from views on LGBT issues, or what is the role of government in society, or religion.”

Striving to move beyond polarization at the university level is important, Murtazashvili said. While people are widely urged to celebrate “diversity,” that often does not extend to diverse views.

“To me, a lot of the problems that we’ve

expansion of Federation’s partnership with the Secure Community Network. He’ll begin work in February.

Brokos said she’d like to see more people sign up this year to take part in Federation’s Virtual Community Watch program and is working to enhance connectivity between

“Our community excels in reporting and collaborating with law enforcement, not taking anything at face value. That’s what sets our community apart from those across the country.”

–SHAWN BROKOS

manner,” Brokos said. “And he was essential during the Maccabi Games. He led the law enforcement and community coordination and worked for close to a year coordinating 21 law enforcement agencies ensuring the games were safe and without incident.”

Looking ahead, the Federation recently hired Ed Milligan to serve as Community Security Intelligence Analyst, an

Federation’s security team and the area’s Jewish institutions.

Federation is working with another organization, Community Security Service, on the CSS Synagogue program, a pilot initiative that will provide training to help congregations educate members and form professional-grade security teams.

“A lot of them are already doing this

seen on our campuses — over the past two years especially — that have put this into stark contrast, is that there isn’t a lot of nuance,” she said. “There’s a lot of loud voices who tend to dominate, and that crowds out a lot of other people. We want to bring those other voices to center university life around conversations without the thinking that you’re going to convince someone else, but instead understand where they’re coming from.”

Pitt’s new program is called Pluralism360, Murtazashvili said, “because we’re providing kind of a wraparound for the student experience, and meeting students where they are.”

The effort will engage students online, in classrooms, in extracurricular experiences and through community partnerships. The project will support several initiatives in the David C. Frederick Honors College, including visiting scholars who will teach courses in politics and philosophy and discuss contested issue.

Pluralism 360 is intended to eventually reach

on their own but we want to unify the training, and we’d like to do this with our campus organizations, as well,” Brokos said.

Federation is also looking to increase coordination with the region’s Jewish institutions as they plan and host events, Brokos explained.

“In the aftermath of Oct. 7, we’re now asking that our organizations plan and coordinate with us so we can notify local law enforcement of the event, potentially request additional patrols or coordinate armed guard coverage. This is something we’ve been doing but are encouraging everyone to coordinate through us,” she said.

Pittsburgh continues to operate under an increased threat level, Brokos said, noting that there was an increase in antisemitic activity in the last week, including the vandalism of an Israeli flag on the North Side.

In 2026, Brokos said, Federation’s security team continues with the same mission they have each year: “to keep the community as safe as possible.” PJC

David Rullo can be reached at drullo@ pittsburghjewishchronicle.org.

“We’re going to engage with them, and then we’re going to give small grants to students and faculty to work with some of these organizations on projects,” she said. “So students are going to get hands-on experience navigating the complexity of the real world with people who are trying to tackle issues, to see that it’s not black and white.”

The project is especially resonant as the United States approaches its semiquincentennial, she said. “We want to celebrate the pluralism and the democracy that is this country at a time when people from the right and the left feel that it’s in peril.”

She hopes to engage interested community members, civic organizations and local political leaders, and to assemble a “panel of people just to show students how to do it.”

beyond the university community and across Pennsylvania, Ohio and West Virginia through two complementary regional networks. One will be a network of faculty working on civil discourse and bridge building, Murtazashvili said, and one will be a regional civic leadership network of bridge builders.

She stressed that the most common model of bridge building — uniting people of different identities who share political or social values — “is not sufficient for our current moment.”

“At different periods in our history, this may have been enough,” she said. “But at this time, it is imperative that people who share very different values begin to get together and work things out. This is the kind of bridge building — or value pluralism — that our time calls for.”

The intention, Murtazashvili said, is to “create a regional network of civic leaders who are really focused on value pluralism.”

Murtazashvili was awarded a Fulbright Distinguished Scholar fellowship, which will take her to the University of Tel Aviv where she will focus on issues related to the Abraham Accords. She will work remotely on Pluralism 360 until she returns to Pittsburgh in a few months.

Pluralism 360 will advance Pitt’s longstanding commitment to advance civil discourse, said Carissa Slotterback, dean of the School of Public and International Affairs.

“There are divisions across our communities,” she said. “In many cases, we don’t have day-to-day opportunities to be interacting with people who might think differently, and there are barriers to doing that. And so we really wanted to be intentional and proactive in thinking about the ways that we can build capacity across the university — for students, for staff, for faculty — to engage across difference.” PJC

Toby Tabachnick can be reached at ttabachnick@pittsburghjewishchronicle.org.

Life & Culture

HBO’s ‘The Pitt’ recalls Pittsburgh synagogue shooting

By Toby Tabachnick | Editor

The sense of authenticity in HBO’s “The Pitt” — a medical drama starring Noah Wyle and set in a fictional Pittsburgh ER — comes in part from its frequent local references.

Frick Park. Giant Eagle. Primanti Bros. Zambelli Fireworks.

The first season of the show saw the medical staff of the Pittsburgh Trauma Medical Center, led by Wyle’s Dr. “Robby” Robinavitch, caring for the victims of a mass shooting. While the fictional massacre occurred at a music festival, the event brought to mind the Pittsburgh synagogue shooting.

told the Chronicle.

Lando, who attended Hebrew school at Tree of life as a youth, and who was incident commander the day of the shooting, nonetheless appreciated that “The Pitt” acknowledged the shooting.

“As a Pittsburgher and someone who has very close ties to the Tree of Life, I appreciated that the producers of ‘The Pitt’ took the time to acknowledge the most tragic event in our city’s history,” said Lando, whose grandfather was a regular at Tree of Life Shabbat services, but happened to stay home that day because he wasn’t feeling well. “I thought it was done in a respectful way, and reinforced that the Pittsburgh community will never forget that horrific day.”

nurse, for the Muslim community’s support in helping fund the funerals after the shooting.

“That being such a significant event in the city of Pittsburgh, it seemed like a wonderful opportunity,” Wyle, who also wrote the episode and is executive producer of the show, told Variety.

But Episode 3 of Season 2, which premiered last week, dealt head-on with the Pittsburgh synagogue shooting.

The episode featured an elderly Russian woman named Yana Kovalenko (Irina Dubovna), coming to the ER for burns resulting from dropping a samovar on herself after being startled by the sound of July Fourth fireworks. As Robinavitch is treating her, she hears his last name and recognizes it as Jewish. She asks him where he goes to synagogue and he responds “Rodef Shalom.”

She then tells him she is a member of Tree of Life and explains that she was traumatized by the shooting.

“I was on my way inside, October 27th, 2018, to the synagogue, when the shooting

started,” she says. “There’s nothing I could do. I went in after the police arrived. I felt I had to. I’m better now, but New Year’s Eve, Fourth of July, when kids have their fireworks and firecrackers … ”

While having the Pittsburgh synagogue shooting featured so prominently in a hit television show felt validating to some Jewish Pittsburghers, it felt somewhat confusing to others. And for some, it felt inaccurate.

“While I understand that the producers of any show use some artistic license in telling or retelling any story, I do think it is important to clarify that no victim, witness, or member of the public was ever taken back into the synagogue the day of the shooting,” Jason Lando, Pittsburgh’s acting police chief,

Wine pairings for Tu B’Shvat

By Emma Riva | Special to the Chronicle

Though Tu B’Shvat celebrates the flowers, fruits and trees, it falls during one of the coldest, most depressing times of the year. No flowers in sight. Luckily, one agricultural product that can be enjoyed any time of year is wine.

The Tu B’Shvat seder is a tradition drawing from the holiday’s Kabbalistic origins. While unlike the Passover seder where there is a set, specific menu, many people turn to the Seven Species: wheat, barley, grapes, figs, pomegranates, olives and dates. In practice, “grapes” often means wine, though table grapes are also welcome.

This array of dried fruits and nuts calls for wine pairings that will balance out their sweetness and can stand up to the fullness of their flavor. If you think of wine as a spectrum, you don’t want cabernet sauvignon or Syrah necessarily, but you also don’t want a pinot grigio or vinho verde, either.

Pairing wine with food requires thinking of the characteristics of the food and the characteristics of the wine, and how they best interact with each other. The goal is to make both the food and the wine taste better. There’s no reason, also, that kosher wine should be looked down on. All of the

wines I’ve selected are available to order through kosherwine.com, which showcases the diversity in kosher wine.

For a red to pair with the Seven Species, Chianti is a good option. It has a bright acidity that will stand up to the figs and dates, but isn’t so juicy that it will be overpowered by the pomegranates. It’s a balanced, elegant wine that’s bold and hard not to like. I’ve never met anyone who had strong negative feelings about Chianti, as opposed to more polarizing wines like Lambrusco or buttery chardonnay. For a kosher Chianti, try Cantina Giuliano Chianti 2023 ($22.99, Mevushal). This is the first wine that Italian kosher winery Cantina Giulano produced, so it’s the most refined of their selections.

For other red options, try a rich garnacha like Capcanes La Flor Del Flor De Primavera Granacha Old Vines ($67.99, Mevushal) or

The morning after the episode’s premiere, Maggie Feinstein, executive director of the 10.27 Healing Partnership, began hearing from many community members, but “not because it was poorly done,” she said. “It was because for the people who know the events of 10/27 intimately, it feels confusing to have the reference in a fictional show.”

Other references in the episode to Tree of Life and the shooting include Robinavitch telling Kovalenko that he heard the synagogue is being rebuilt. She responds: “Yes, something new, ‘Remember, Rebuild, Renew,’ that’s their slogan,” referencing the Tree of Life’s rebuilding campaign’s actual former slogan.

In another scene, Kovalenko thanks Perlah (Amielynn Abellera), a hijab-wearing

the ancient Israeli grape varietal zuriman, Dalton Asufa Grounded Zuriman 2024 ($32.99, non-Mevushal). Using an ancient grape from the soil of Israel feels fitting with the holiday.

A fruit and nut plate also can pair really well with sparkling wine. A lightly sparkling wine like Koenig Crémant d’Alsace ($25.99, Mevushal) has the crispness to balance out the fattiness of the nuts or the richness of the dates. It is important to keep in mind, though, that Crémant d’Alsace is one of the less effervescent sparkling wines. If you’re expecting prosecco, Crémant is not that, it’s just got a subtle bite to it from the bubbles.

But if you do want prosecco, there’s a lot of kosher options to choose from, including the obvious choice of Bartenura. The Contessa Annalisa Collection Prosecco ($15.99, Mevushal), however, is a crisp, inexpensive prosecco that’s great cold.

A still white isn’t out of the question for Tu B’Shvat, but it has to have a bit more going on in it. A wine like sauvignon blanc will water down if paired with rich, sweet fruits, nuts and vegetables. Gewürtzraminer is a good varietal for Tu B’Shvat, and it also happens to be suited for the Golan Heights climate, so there are plenty of options from the soil of Eretz Yisrael. Yarden Heights Gewürtzraminer is a great choice from a quality winery.

Semillón, a white grape known for its

“When I started researching it, the aspects of it that moved me the most were the community outcry afterward from the Muslim community and the solidarity with the Jewish community of Pittsburgh working together to grieve and mourn the loss,” Wyle said. “It was the most underreported aspect of the story, and perhaps the most hopeful moving forward.”

Following the shooting, Muslim organizations raised hundreds of thousands of dollars for the victims of the shooting and their families.

On Oct. 27, 2018, an antisemitic gunman entered the Tree of Life building and murdered 11 people: Joyce Fienberg, Richard Gottfried, Rose Mallinger, Jerry Rabinowitz, Cecil Rosenthal, David Rosenthal, Bernice Simon, Sylvan Simon, Dan Stein, Melvin Wax and Irving Younger. He seriously wounded six others, including four first responders. He was tried in the summer of 2023, found guilty and sentenced to death. He is appealing the sentence. PJC

Toby Tabachnick can be reached at ttabachnick@pittsburghjewishchronicle.org.

“honeyed fig” tasting note, could also work and also grows well in the Golan Heights. Its price point tends to be a bit higher, but two bottles available are Shiran Semillón 2023 ($42.99, not Mevushal) and Yaacov Oryah Valley of the Hunters 2017 ($79.99, not Mevushal).

If you want to go a tad out of the box, try Morad Pomegranate Wine ($28.99, Mevushal). The pomegranate is part of the Tu B’Shvat seder, so this choice will doubly include the pomegranate. This wine is fairly sweet — closer to Manischewitz — but sometimes that’s what you want. If the sweetness feels like too much, you could try making a spritzer or drinking it in a small cordial glass.

Most people think of wine as a social lubricant or a part of a ritual, but one of the things I found most profound about learning about wine is using it to connect to the earth. By drinking wine, you drink the fruits of soil from faraway places. Wine has been a part of Jewish history for thousands of years. It makes a meaningful parallel to our traditions through the fact that grapes thrive and create some of the best wines in harsh conditions. So, this Tu B’Shvat — which begins this year on Sunday evening, Feb. 1 — celebrate both abundance and survival through wine. PJC

Emma Riva is a freelance writer living in Pittsburgh.

Celebrations

Birth

Rebecca Lerman and Jesse Helfer are pleased to announce the birth of their daughter Sari Rey Helfer on Jan. 9, 2026. Sari is named after her maternal late great-grandmother Sarah Schulhof. Grandparents are Cindy and Terry Lerman and Denise and Robert Helfer. PJC

Torah

Serach bat Asher and the responsibility of remembering

“In each and every generation, a person is obligated to see themself as if they left Egypt,” we read in the Passover Haggadah and in Mishnah Pesachim 10:5. We tell — we reenact — the story as if we ourselves knew the oppression of Pharaoh firsthand. On an evening of storytelling designed to provoke questions, wouldn’t it be wonderful to be able to inquire directly of one who was there, someone who could offer a firsthand account? Perhaps this year, when we pour a glass for Elijah, we should also leave a chair for Serach bat Asher.

where Joseph was buried. Only Serach bat Asher remained from that generation, and she could point Moses to where Joseph’s body had been placed by the Egyptians in a metal casket sunk into the Nile. It was her knowledge that enabled Moses “to take with him the bones of Joseph” (Exodus 13:19).

She was also willing to share her memories with subsequent generations. When Rabbi Yochanan attempted to explain the verse describing the Israelites’ crossing of the Sea of Reeds — “the waters forming a wall for them on their right and on their left” (Exodus 14:22) — he suggested that there had been some sort of impervious net. Serach appeared in the Beit Midrash to set the record straight, saying, “I was there, and it wasn’t like that — it was like a glass window” (Pesikta d’Rav Kahana 11:13). Serach does

We know Serach is special from the moment we first meet her. Genesis 46:7 begins the enumeration of the descendants Jacob takes with him to Egypt, conceptually including his granddaughters (in the Hebrew u’vanot banav, explicitly uses the feminine plural). The names of 53 grandsons follow … and only one granddaughter. Being mentioned by name as one of the generation to descend into Egypt makes Serach anoma lous, but it is her only other mention in the Torah that makes her extraordinary.

Numbers 26:46 as part of the generation to enter the Land of Israel. Even if she were a small child when entering Egypt, she would have been at least 250 years old by the time the Israelites entered the Promised Land (remember that Rashi counts the years of bondage as 210 rather than 400-plus). This improbability leads the rabbis to place Serach in distinguished company: Together with Enoch and Elijah, it is believed that she never died, but instead ascended alive to Gan Eden.

not contradict Rabbi Yochanan to diminish him, never making it personal, but to refine the story. Truth, she teaches, is not threatened by questions, but clarified through discussion.

Perhaps she would also be willing to share some of her knowledge with us, for I know that I continue to have questions. Why did it take 400 years for the Israelites to cry out to God? During their years of bondage, did the Israelites begin to adopt Egyptian worship and ritual customs, as some commentators suggest, or did they fiercely maintain their identities, as others insist? Why was the matzah baked in haste when the Israelites knew enough about their upcoming departure to collect the spoils of Egypt? Serach bat Asher knew where Joseph was buried and could testify to the experience of walking through the sea; we can only hope that, if invited, she would share some of

about biology alone, but about responsibility. To live across generations is to be entrusted with memories meant to be shared, as we see in this week’s Torah portion. As Joseph’s dying wish, he made his descendants promise to carry his bones from Egypt when they would be redeemed by God (Genesis 50:25).

Generations later, Moses faced a serious challenge. According to tradition (Sotah 13a), he knew of this responsibility but did not know

In lieu of her making an embodied appearance, perhaps her presence can still be felt in the questions we ask and the care with which we answer them. To do so is to make the story our own in every generation — neither simplified, forgotten, nor distorted. We do not just tell the story; we guard it, and we deepen it, until its

Obituaries

LEFF: Gerald E, Leff, on Jan. 21, 2026. Beloved husband of Anna Leff for 44 years. Son of the late Max and Sophie Leff. Brother of the late Judie (Don) Selig and Marcia (Joel) Platt; brother-in-law of Mary Ann (David) Roman and Kathleen Bernhardt. Loving uncle of Jamie (Nate) Bennett, Steven (Haliel) Selig, Shari Glatter, Wendy (Michael) Wilson, Jim (Dahlia) Platt, Stacy (John) Vensko, Melissa (Scott) Ross, Michelle (Terry) Roman, Jonathan (Jocelyn) Bernhardt and Timothy (Erin) Bernhardt. Also survived by 23 great-nieces and -nephews. Jerry graduated from Braddock High School and served in the Airforce and then the Reserves. Jerry also attended Duquesne until he left school to work side-by-side with his father, running the family business of M. Leff Radio and Parts. Jerry successfully turned the business into Leff Electronics, which was the biggest electronics distributor on the East Coast. Jerry was an avid skier and served on the Seven Springs ski patrol for 57 years. In the summer nothing gave him more pleasure than riding in the motorcade with the Shriners and community parades and entertaining on his boat. Jerry was a 32nd degree Mason and Shriner for over 50 years. Jerry will always be remembered as a loving, giving person who was always willing to help someone. He never met a stranger and will be greatly missed by all who knew and loved him. Services were held at Ralph Schugar Chapel, Inc. Interment Agudath Achim Cemetery, Forest Hills. In lieu of flowers, contributions may be made to a charity of donor’s choice. schugar.com

NIELAND: Michael Louis Nieland, M.D., a resident of Moon Township, formerly of Squirrel Hill (1972-2020), died Wednesday, Jan. 21, 2026, at UPMC Shadyside due to complications of cardiac amyloidosis. He was 87 years old. His survivors include his beloved and devoted wife, Lilli June, three beloved children, Jennie Louise Niedelman (Chakra) Chennubhotla, Nathaniel Ezra (Angela) Nieland, Ariel Emily Forbes, and five adored grandchildren, Nancy Grey Forbes, Jasper Hart Forbes, Ethan Ezra Nieland, Starla Daisey Forbes and Dylan Claire Nieland. Dr. Nieland was born in Baltimore on Dec. 13, 1938, and moved with his parents to Boston in 1943 when his father, a cellist, joined the Boston Symphony Orchestra after playing 10 years in the National Symphony Orchestra where he was assistant solo cellist. Dr. Nieland grew up in Boston, attended the Boston Latin School, Harvard College and Harvard Medical School, graduating in 1964. He was an intern and resident in medicine for two years at the University of North Carolina in Chapel Hill, then a research associate (lieutenant commander, U.S. Public Health Service) in the Laboratory of Parasitic Diseases at the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (1966-1968), then a research fellow in dermatology at the Johns Hopkins Hospital (1968-1970), then the Earl D. Osborne Fellow in Dermatopathology at The Armed Forces Institute of Pathology (1970-1971), followed by a three-year VA Career Development Award. After spending the first year of the Award in Memphis he transferred to the Pittsburgh VA Hospital where he became chief of dermatology and joined the faculty of the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine. During his research years he published a number of first authored papers utilizing the electron microscope, biochemical techniques, and light and immunofluorescence microscopy. While at Pitt he founded the first Dermatopathology Laboratory at the Medical School and for two years was acting director of the Division of Dermatology and of the Dermatology Training Program. When he entered private practice in 1977 he established the first private laboratory devoted to dermatopathology in western Pennsylvania (Pittsburgh Skin Pathology Laboratory, P.C.) and he was the first physician in western Pennsylvania to earn the Special Competence Certificate in Dermatopathology awarded by the American Boards of Dermatology and Pathology. At the time of his retirement from teaching at Pitt he was an associate clinical professor of pathology. After many years practicing clinical office dermatology as well as dermatopathology, Dr. Nieland spent his last 12 active professional years as regional director of dermatopathology at Quest Diagnostics. During all his practice years his skills in the early diagnosis of malignant melanoma and of other skin diseases saved the lives of hundreds of patients. He was especially proud of the fact that because he did not subscribe to bogus or fraudulent concepts rampant in his field and now largely abandoned, such as that of the so-called “dysplastic” nevus (mole), and because he did not practice defensive medicine, however lucrative, he spared confidently and successfully tens of thousands of patients with problematic nevus-melanoma issues the trauma of unnecessary additional surgery. Dr. Nieland was intensely interested in family issues and his child custody ordeal was the subject of discussion in 1998 in three issues of the Pittsburgh Legal Journal. His 10-year saga in the ethical squalor of the Allegheny County Family Division was documented by Robert Mendelson in the 547-page expose entitled

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Contact the Development department at 412-586-2690 or development@jaapgh.org for more information. THIS WEEK’S YAHRZEITS —

Sunday February 1: Irving Glicken, Morris Goodman, Mollie Greenfield, Harry Gruskin, Clara Ida Harris, Esther Mankovitz, Martha Rogal, Edgar Schaffel, Harry D Wald

Monday February 2: Esther Berkman, Harry A Cohan, James H Darling, Ida S Goldberg, Jacob J Gordon, Sidney Hyde, Walter E Katz, Carl Labovitz, Nathan Labe Land, Ludwig Landman, Sheldon G Lindner, Philip Rosenthal, Harry Shapiro, Jennie Shrager, David Silverblatt, Minnie Rhea Silverblatt, Jennie Sobel, Dorothy Spolan, Annie Stearns, Julius Wolf

Tuesday February 3: Jacob Adler, Ida Alpert, Simon Bostocky, Frumie Fraidel Brown, Eva Cohen, Mollie Hilsenrath, Michael Hoffrichter, Helen Honig, Nathan H Leventon, Esq , Daniel Levinson, Rebecca Luick, Dorothy Pollock, Elaine Portner, Leon Prinz, Mollie Ryave, Max Schoenberger, Enoch Sisselsky, Benjamin W Steiner

Wednesday February 4: Hyman Browarsky, Louis Fishman, Ethel Golanty, Morris D Herwitt, Hyman Klahr, David Lundy, Isadore Lupovitz, Joseph Markovitz, Lew J Miller, Isadore Pachtman, Milton Ripp, Eunice Roth, Lena G Skirble, A Leonard Winer, Ivan Lee Wolinsky

Thursday February 5: Myer Borovetz, Saul Frank, Marcus Gropper, Max Halle, Irving Hochhauser, Lillian Y Horwitz, Samuel M Krause, Ernest Metzger, Mildred Pechersky, Jennie Pink, Elsie L Plesset, Freda Z Rosen, Rose Rosenfeld, Irving Ross, Alexander Roth, Mark J Serbin, Philip Solomon, Leon Stein, Mabel Z Swartz, Lois C Waldman

Friday February 6: Bertha Ackerman, William Barnett, Newman Cohen, Esther Goodman, Ethel Greenberg, Myer Grossman, Selma B Katz, Sally Marcovsky, David Miller, Rose Schlessinger

Saturday February 7: Fannye P Balkman, Edith Cohen, Reuben A Cohen, Hattie Debroff, Hannah R Eliashof, Rose Fireman, Celia Glantz, Herman Glass, Robert Kane, Rose Klein, Haim Lazarus, Dr William B Lieberman, Mathilda Marcus, William D Orr, Rena Pollock, William Racusin, Sara Rubenstein, Philip Schmeiser, Frank Stark, Joseph Stein, Geraldine Tyson, Ruth Weinberger, Arthur Weiner

Headlines

‘Our pride is greater than our sorrow’: Family of Ran Gvili hails his heroism, Israel’s strength, as body comes home

By Times of Israel Staff

Standing over the coffin of his son that had been draped in an Israeli flag, Itzik Gvili appeared at a loss for words.

For 843 days, since Ran Gvili left home on Oct. 7, 2023, to fight Hamas terrorists before being killed and taken to Gaza, Itzik Gvili and his wife, Talik, had held out the slimmest of hopes that their boy was still alive — despite overwhelming evidence to the contrary.

Now, standing bereft over the coffin, the father lifted up his hand and raised his eyebrows. “What can I say?” he asked, sighing.

Then, in the presence of police officers and soldiers accompanying Ran Gvili on his final journey home, Itzik spoke to his son.

“You dummy, you had every chance to stay at home,” he said, a soft smile playing on his lips. “But you said, ‘Dad.’ What did you tell me? ‘I won’t leave my friends to fight alone.’”

He continued, “You should see the respect that you’re getting here, everyone who brought you. The whole police force is with you, the whole army is with you, the whole nation is with you.”

As his hand patted the coffin, he added, “I’m proud of you, my son.”

Then he bent down and kissed the coffin.

The coffin was then taken to Tel Aviv’s National Institute of Forensic Medicine for a more robust identification process. Gvili was set to be given a proper Jewish burial on Wednesday.

Itzik Gvili’s words were a striking moment in an evening full of emotion for Israel, as the return of Ran’s body marked the end of the more than two-year-long ordeal of the hostages and their families.

“I want to thank everyone who stood by us

Obituaries

Obituaries:

for the last two years,” Talik said outside the family’s home on Monday night. “We’re very proud to get to this place, especially because we know that those who took Rani out of that cursed place were IDF soldiers.”

She added, “We’re proud of you, the police, the government, everyone who gave so, so much strength. To our prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, and his wife, to U.S. President Donald Trump, to [U.S. envoy Steve] Witkoff, to [Trump’s son-in-law and adviser Jared] Kushner, to the Israel Police … I hope we can get through this difficult period and win.”

“Our pride is much, much stronger than our pain,” she said. “The people of Israel lives and is strong.”

Ran’s brother Omri echoed his mother’s words, saying: “Our pride today is much greater than our sorrow.”

“I had the prize of being the brother of an Israeli hero, who did the unbelievable,” he added.

Said Itzik: “If you’d have asked Rani how he wanted to go, it would have been like this. This is his way.”

“He saved us, saved the people of Israel, saved Kibbutz Alumim, he saved everyone,” Itzik added. “Rani always loved bringing people together, and [now] he’s united the country. I don’t know how, but he did.”

His sister, Shira, said, “I just feel a crazy sense of freedom. I feel relief. I’m sad, very sad, that it ended this way. But it needed to end sometime, and I’m so happy he’s come back home. Rani is on the way. Rani is coming.”

The operation in which Gvili’s remains were found by the Israel Defense Forces in a Gaza City cemetery was dubbed “Courageous Heart.” In addition to concluding the efforts to bring the hostages home, the operation successfully ended months of searches for Gvili’s remains in locations throughout Gaza.

The emotional resonance of the moment was immediately clear. Before the body left Gaza, soldiers gathered around it to sing “Ani Ma’amin” (I Believe), a traditional Jewish song of faith and resilience sung in times of strife.

Later, the IDF’s top brass saluted the body, wrapped in an Israeli flag, as soldiers sang the national anthem, “Hatikvah.”

After Gvili’s body crossed the border into Israel, police posted a livestream of the convoy carrying the coffin.

The livestream showed Itzik Gvili speaking with IDF Chief of Staff Eyal Zamir, reminiscing about his son.

“I believe Rani in some way brought the nation together,” he said. “The situation, the story, everything that happened, it’s like he connected everyone. He was a magnet, like, he was a magnet in his life, for all of his friends.”

Itzik recalled that when his son was serving in the IDF and had to stay on base on Fridays, he would ask his parents to bring him enough food for 50 or 60 soldiers.

“The nation of Israel needs to come together in his merit,” Itzik said.

After Itzik embraced people who had come to accompany him, he walked ahead of pallbearers carrying the coffin, behind a banner reading, “Israel is waiting for Rani, hero of Israel.”

As the procession moved forward, a rabbi began chanting Psalm 91, which speaks of not having fear in the shelter of God. He then chanted another liturgical poem, “Ana B’Koach,” beseeching God for protection. He then recited the mourner’s kaddish.

Police Commissioner Daniel Levy called Gvili the force’s “DNA,” and lamented that he could not have come back alive.

“We salute you, we respect you, and we apologize… that we could not save you and bring you back alive,” he said. “May your memory be for a blessing.” PJC

Continued from page 19

“A Family Divided: A Divorced Father’s Struggle with the Child Custody Industry” (Prometheus Books, Amherst NY, 1997). Eventually, the psychologist appointed by the court in Dr. Nieland’s case was censured by the Greater Pittsburgh Psychological Association and the Pennsylvania Psychological Association and he was reprimanded and put on probation by the American Psychological Association. Also, Dr. Nieland was for a time the president of the Pittsburgh chapter of the Children’s Rights Council. Dr. Nieland was known as an accomplished violinist and supporter of music and musicians. He frequently played chamber music in his home with members of the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra and other professional musicians and he was a past member of the advisory board of the PSO, of the Pittsburgh Youth Symphony Orchestra (executive vice president), of the Bedford Springs Festival, the Y Music Society, the Pittsburgh New Music Ensemble, and the Rodef Shalom Music Committee. Dr. Nieland was known also as an art collector. He gifted a substantial collection of late 19th- and early 20th-century figurative sculpture to the permanent collection of the Westmoreland Museum of American Art. These beautiful and alluring objects were the subject in 2017 of an exhibition at the museum and a magnificent 252-page catalog entitled: “A Timeless Perfection: American Figurative Sculpture in the Classical Spirit: Gifts from Dr. Michael L. Nieland to the WMAA.” He also donated many examples of European sculpture and decorative arts to the permanent collection

of the Carnegie Museum of Art. In addition, Dr. Nieland and his mother, Stella, permanently endowed his father’s chair in the Boston Symphony Orchestra and he gifted, inter alia, to the BSO a large collection of rare and out-of-print books on bows and stringed instruments and two fine 18th-century Italian instruments, a Nicolo Gagliano violin (1778) and the ex-Zazofsky G.B. Guadagnini violin (1754) in loving memory of his father, Mischa, a member of its cello section for 45 years. These instruments are now played in the orchestra by its members. Yet another project of which Dr. Nieland was especially proud was his initiation and facilitation of publication of the Silvertrust edition, with the cooperation of the DaVinci String Quartet, of Charles Martin Loeffler’s previously unpublished String Quartet (1889). He also arranged its first-ever complete performance in Symphony Hall, Boston by the DaVinci Quartet. Loeffler was for many years at the turn of the last century the BSO’s assistant concertmaster and he was at the time America’s most renowned composer. Dr. Nieland also had the honor of addressing the audience in Carnegie Music Hall before the performance of Loeffler’s “A Pagan Poem” for piano and orchestra with the Duquesne University Symphony Orchestra under the direction of the late Sydney Harth. Professor Harth had also previously invited Dr. Nieland to play in the orchestra’s violin section. A chamber music memorial service in Dr. Nieland’s memory is planned for a later date and time. The chamber music memorial service shall be held at Michael’s former 1400 Inverness Avenue residence. There will be no viewing. Interment is private at West View Cemetery of Rodef Shalom Congregation in Pittsburgh. Arrangements entrusted to Ralph Schugar Chapel, Inc. schugar.com PJC

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pittsburghjewishchronicle.org

Local Jewish artist featured in ‘Envisioning a Just Pittsburgh’ exhibition

— ART—

By Emma Riva | Special to the Chronicle

When Yafa Negrete showed her son, Daniel, a handful of Mexican pesos for his coin collection, he exclaimed: “Look, Daddy, coins in Spanish!” Negrete, whose Sephardic family emigrated from Syria to Mexico, created a watercolor collage based on this moment.

Because Daniel is autistic and has a speech delay, his exclamation was especially meaningful to her — a rare opportunity to connect with her son through words.

“I told him, ‘Those coins are from where your mommy and daddy were born,’” Negrete remembered. “It was a very exciting moment.”

The collage she created, titled “Look, Daddy, Coins in Spanish!”, uses Negrete’s grandfather’s migration card, family photographs and maps depicting where Daniel’s ancestors came from. She submitted the collage to the “Envisioning a Just Pittsburgh” showcase put on by the Carnegie Library, the August Wilson African American Cultural Center and 1Hood Media after hearing that the exhibition wanted work inspired by archives.

“I could talk for hours about libraries and archives,” Negrete said. “My father had shelves full of books at home and we didn’t watch much television — we more listened to music or read. My parents also took me to museums a lot as a little girl.”

Negrete uses her interest in archives to meticulously document her family’s genealogy. For her master’s thesis at Chatham University, she studied Mexico’s Jewish community by connecting with researchers like Monica Unikel, who runs a museum in Mexico dedicated to Jewish history.

Negrete’s artwork merges her academic background in archives with her innate creativity and honed skills. “Look, Daddy Coins in Spanish!” features a watercolor portrait of Daniel, surrounded by collage elements that include personal artifacts and some of Negrete’s other paintings. At the collage’s center, Daniel’s pale blue eyes look back at the viewers, and in the upper right corner similar blue eyes appear on her husband’s grandfather. Though Negrete is best known for her portraiture, this piece takes her technical skill at photorealistic faces and blends it with her personal archive.

Though Negrete said her son just says, “That’s Danny!” when he sees the portrait and doesn’t understand its themes, the piece has given him a visual way to relate to his family history. The moment when he saw the pesos helped Daniel connect to his cultural background and gave him the words to express it.

Negrete also hopes her collage helps people better understand Jewish identity.

The mission statement of “Envisioning a Just Pittsburgh” states that it “invited artists from across the region to respond to the question: What if our beloved region worked for everyone?”

At a time when so much of the Jewish community feels alienated from conversations around social justice, the inclusion of Negrete’s work in the exhibition is an opportunity for dialogue and education. The 2026 call for art focused on whose stories get told in archives and how those stories are preserved. For Negrete, her art practice is a way of shedding light on the lives of Jews in Latin America.

“When I came here, people asked me ‘Are there Jews in Mexico?’ I said, well, there are 40,000 of us, and my grandparents came from Syria. They then would ask ‘Oh, they were Muslim, then?’ when we are Sephardic Jews,” Negrete said. “It’s important to show them that we Jews come from anywhere, and stories change from family to family.”

The exhibition “Envisioning a Just Pittsburgh” opens February 20 at 6 p.m. at the August Wilson African American Cultural Center and is free and open to the public. PJC

Emma Riva is a freelance writer living in Pittsburgh.

Israeli AI model can predict diabetes years in advance

the Mohamed Bin Zayed University of Artificial Intelligence in Abu Dhabi and Israeli startup Pheno.AI.

By JNS Staff

An artificial intelligence model developed by Israeli researchers improves the ability to predict the risk of diabetes and other lifethreatening medical conditions up to 12 years before they are generally diagnosed, a study published this month shows.

The model, known as GluFormer, analyzes blood sugar patterns collected through glucose monitoring systems, which are used to determine future disease risk.

The AI technology’s predictions were found to be more accurate than other clinical tools, including the widely used HbA1c blood test, the standard for diagnosing diabetes.

The new model could help doctors and patients adopt preventive treatment strategies earlier, predict response to drugs and treatments in clinical trials, and reduce the economic impacts of dealing with diabetes, which could reach approximately $2.5 trillion globally by 2030, Nvidia said.

The research was developed in collaboration between Nvidia’s research group in Israel, researchers from the Weizmann Institute of Science in Rehovot,

“GluFormer’s success in predicting diabetes and other disease risk demonstrates the significant potential of integrating artificial intelligence into medical research,” said Professor Gal Chechik, senior director and head of Nvidia’s Artificial Intelligence Research Center in Israel.

“We are moving toward an era where AI-based models enable clinical insights from patient data on an unprecedented scale and support more accurate medical decision-making, including early detection and intervention that may reduce the risk of disease development,” Chechik added.

Nvidia AI researcher Guy Lutzker, the study’s lead author and a doctoral student at the Weizmann Institute, said, “The project demonstrates how advanced AI technologies can be harnessed to tackle complex medical challenges and contribute to improving medical care for millions.”

About 589 million adults — one in nine — are living with diabetes worldwide, a number projected to rise to 853 million by 2050.

The results of the peer-reviewed study were published in the scientific journal Nature. PJC

Day off day on Community Day School honored Martin Luther King Jr. Day by joining local organizations for several service projects. Jewish day school students and staff partnered with Our Giving Kitchen, The Friendship Circle of Pittsburgh, Beverly’s Birthdays, Caitlin’s Smiles, One Day to Remember and City Of Pittsburgh Bureau of Police.

With the recent storm arriving in the midst of Yeshiva Schools of Pittsburgh’s fundraiser the

Teach your children

Hillel Academy of Pittsburgh welcomed MafTEACH fellows from Yeshiva University to interact with students, teachers and community leaders. The program enables college-aged fellows to visit Hillel Academy several times per year and contribute to various activities

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