Coming up
Anita and Morris Kornblit will talk about what it was like to be a modern Orthodox Jewish family living in Beijing for two and a half years at NA’AMAT Lunch and Learn Wednesday, Oct. 27, noon at the Labor Zionist Building, 6328 Forbes Ave. Morris was in China working on the 2008 Olympics. The program is free and open to the community. Call the office at (412) 521-5253 for more information.
Rodef Shalom Congregation Sisterhood will hold the next Solomon B. Freehof book review Wednesday, Oct. 27, at 7:30 p.m. in Freehof Hall. Sally Wiggin, WTAE news journalist, will review “Little Bee” by Chris Cleave.
Neighborhood Watch for the area south of Forward into Greenfield, will hold its second meeting Wednesday, Oct. 27, 7 p.m., at Shaare Torah Synagogue, 2319 Murray Ave. The meeting will explore ways residents can keep their homes and neighborhoods safe. Contact Beth at Beth.SqHillNeighborhoodWatch@gmail.com for more information.
Susan G. Komen for the Cure (the local chapter), Hadassah Greater Pittsburgh Chapter and the National Council of Jewish Women Pittsburgh Section will present “Taking Steps with Israel” Wednesday, Oct. 27, from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. at the Jewish Community Center in Squirrel Hill. This educational evening of breast health awareness and exercise is in celebration of the inaugural Komen Race for the Cure in Israel. Lynn Cullen will moderate a panel discussion with Dr. William Poller, radiologist, Western Penn Allegheny Health System; Dr. Barry Lembersky, medical oncologist, UPMC Cancer Centers; Sheila Solomon, genetic counselor, Hillman Cancer Center; and Chris and Jim Needles, breast cancer survivor and co-survivor. Following the panel discussion, participants can take part in a “virtual” Race for the Cure and light fitness routine led by Leslie Sansone’s Walk at Home team. There is a charge, which includes refreshments, a gift and the fee to join the national “Hadassah Heelers” virtual walk team. Proceeds benefit breast cancer programs of the Komen Pittsburgh Affiliate and Hadassah Hospital. Visit pittsburgh.hadassah.org to register.
Ben Jealous, president and CEO of the NAACP, and Rabbi David Saperstein, director of the Religious Action Center of Reform Judaism, will be the keynote speakers for the upcoming annual meeting of the Pittsburgh Area Jewish Committee, Thursday, Oct. 28, 7 p.m., at Rodef Shalom Congregation. The theme for that evening’s program is “Civil Rights in an Increasingly Uncivil Society.” Jealous is the 17th president and CEO of the NAACP, and the youngest person to hold the position in the organization’s nearly 100-year history. Newsweek Magazine named Saperstein America’s most influential rabbi in 2009. In his capacity as RAC director, he represents the Reform Movement to Congress and the Obama administration. Pittsburgh talk show host Lynn Cullen will be the moderator the program, which is free of charge. Visit pajc.org for more information.
National Council of Jewish Women Pittsburgh Section will kick off the 2010 Designer Days with “Fashion Flashback,” a patron party and fundraiser to raise funds for National Council of Jewish Women community service projects and advocacy efforts Thursday, Oct. 28, from 6 to 9 p.m. at the Monroeville Convention Center. Fashion designer Kiya Tomlin is the honorary chair for this year’s party. Contact NCJW at (412) 421-6118 or at ncjwpgh.org for more information about the Designer Days kick-off event or sale.
Joan Nathan, the author of 10 cookbooks and the host of the PBS television series “Jewish Cooking in America,” will conduct cooking demonstrations at the Shadyside Market District store at 5550 Centre Ave. Thursday, Oct. 28, at 5 p.m. Nathan’s appearance, where she will share recipes from her new book “Quiches, Kugels and Couscous: My Search for Jewish Cooking in France,” is free to the public.
Rabbi Donni Aaron, Jewish educator at the Jewish Community Center of Greater Pittsburgh, will hold a Family Shabbat program with the JCC’s My Baby and Me Friday, Oct. 29, during which she’ll play guitar and sing.
Chabad of Pittsburgh will hold a Shabbaton weekend with Rabbi Lazer Gurkow beginning Friday, Oct. 29, through Sunday, Oct. 30, at 6401 Forbes Ave. Gurkow is author of more than three hundred articles that appear regularly in both online and print publications. He is the author of a weekly Torah essay distributed by e-mail and included on websites. He serves as rabbi to Congregation Beth Tefilah and resides in London. There is a charge. Contact chabadpgh@verizon.net to make reservations and for more information.
Lynn Cullen, host of “Lynn Cullen Live,” pghcitypaper.com, has organized a fleet of buses and is heading to the Rally to Restore Sanity Saturday, Oct. 30, in Washington, D.C. This rally is the brainchild of Jon Stewart. Stephen Colbert will be hosting a “counter-rally” titled “March to Keep Fear Alive,” which is now being combined with the Rally to Restore Sanity. There are already four full buses heading to D.C. from Pittsburgh early morning Oct. 30 and more buses are being added. To make a reservation, e-mail sanityexpress@deboltunlimited.com or call (800) 4-DEBOLT. Deadline for all reservations is Oct. 22. There is also an ad at pghcitypaper.com with the direct link to more details on how to make a reservation.
Rodef Shalom Brotherhood and the East Winds Symphonic Band will present a concert Sunday, Oct., 31, 2:30 p.m. to benefit the Squirrel Hill Kosher Super Pantry. The concert at Rodef Shalom Congregation is free to the public, but guests are encouraged to bring bags of groceries or monetary donations.
The 75-musician East Winds Symphonic Band performs classical concert music, as well as Dixieland, Broadway show melodies and marches. Call Norman Kanel at (412) 241-6542 for more information.
The Squirrel Hill Health Center will launch its new mobile medical unit during a ceremony, Thursday, Nov. 4, 5 p.m., at the Health Center, 200 JHF Drive.
Jonty Blackman, a South African-born Jewish educator and lecturer who previously taught in Pittsburgh, will be a guest lecturer of the Young Adult Division of the Jewish Federation of Greater Pittsburgh, Monday, Nov. 8, noon, at K&L Gates Center, 28th floor, Downtown. Blackman will lead a discussion exploring Israel’s current situation, reviewing the past year and Israel’s long term challenges. Blackman has served as an educator on the Israel seminar of the Florence Melton Adult Mini-School. Blackman has also lectured in various countries, including Australia, England, South Africa, Canada and the United States. Contact Julie Rosenbaum, Shalom Pittsburgh associate, at (412) 992-5222 or jrosenbaum@JewishFederationPittsburgh.org for more information.
Ted Gup will speak about his new book, “A Secret Gift: How One Man’s Kindness — and a Trove of Letters — Revealed the Hidden History of the Great Depression,” Wednesday, Nov. 10, at 7:30 p.m. at the Jewish Community Center-South Hills, 345 Kane Blvd., Scott. The event is free and open to the community. The book tells the true story behind a small newspaper ad published shortly before Christmas, 1933 in Depression-scarred Canton, Ohio, that offered $10 to 75 families in distress if they submitted letters describing their hardships. The benefactor was the author’s grandfather, Sam Stone. Gup is the award-winning author of “The Book of Honor and Nation of Secrets.” He is a professor and chair of the Journalism Department at Emerson College. Gup’s appearance is co-sponsored by the Jewish Federation of Greater Pittsburgh, Temple Emanuel of South Hills, and Beth El Congregation of the South Hills. Contact Dan Garfinkel at (412) 278-1975 Ext. 208 or dgarfinkel@jccpgh.org for more information.
(Angela Leibowicz can be reached at angelal@thejewishchronicle.net.)
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