Metro Briefs October 1

NA’AMAT USA, Pittsburgh Council, is holding its annual Spiritual Adoption/Day Care Plus event on Wednesday, Oct. 14 at 6:30 p.m. at Beth Shalom. The evening will honor Gail Ryave and Sharon Ryave Brody. Cocktails and dinner will be served.

Proceeds from the event will benefit the NA’AMAT Women’s Health Center in Sderot, Israel. The Center will promote preventative medicine for female health issues, mammograms, ob-gyn exams and prenatal care. It will also provide educational programs for nutrition counseling for eating disorders, family planning and support groups for cancer patients and their families.

There is a charge for the event. Contact NA’AMAT at 412-521-5253 for more information and to make a reservation.

The Pittsburgh Arts and Lectures Series will feature Anita Diamant on Monday, Oct. 12. Diamant is the bestselling author of the novels “The Boston Girl,” “The Red Tent,” “Good Harbor,” “The Last Days of Dogtown” and “Day After Night,” and the collection of essays, “Pitching My Tent.” Diamant is an award-winning journalist whose work appeared in The Boston Globe Magazine and Parenting, and she is the author of six nonfiction guides to contemporary Jewish life.

Tickets start at $15. Visit pittsburghlectures.org to purchase tickets and for more information.

The Squirrel Hill Historical Society will hold its next free meeting on Tuesday, Oct. 13 at 7:30 p.m. at Church of the Redeemer at 5700 Forbes Ave. Wayne Gerhold, treasurer of the Squirrel Hill Urban Coalition, will speak on “Squirrel Hill Urban Coalition: History and Current Projects.”

Call 412-417-3707 or visit squirrelhillhistory.org for more information.

There are five places on Earth where people are living longer than anywhere else on the planet. The places are called the “Blue Zones,” and speaker Tony Buettner, who along with his brother Dan has studied each city for National Geographic, will share the secrets of those communities during the Jewish Association on Aging’s annual report to the community on Thursday, Oct. 15 at 6:30 p.m. at Rodef Shalom Congregation

The Buettner brothers visited the Greek isle of Ikaria; Sardinia, Italy; the Nicoya Peninsula, Costa Rica; Loma Linda, Calif.; and Okinawa, Japan, for a project commissioned by National Geographic three years ago. They found similarities among each culture, which became the basis of the bestselling book, “The Blue Zones.”

After identifying where the zones are, the brothers founded The Blue Zones Project, a preventive health care initiative in the United States where Tony is the senior vice president of business and product development. The Project focuses on restructuring communities so that healthy choices are also easy choices.

Buettner will share his discoveries in a 60-minute presentation and then take questions and comments. The meeting serves as the JAA report to the community on fiscal year 2015 as well as a salute to JAA Volunteer of the Year Dan Leger.

Admission for the event is free. RSVP to Beverly Brinn at bbrinn@jaapgh.org or 412-521-2586.

The Jewish Community Center’s American Jewish Museum presents “Jane Haskell: Drawing In Light” from Tuesday, Oct. 20 to Feb. 19, 2016 at the Fine Perlow Weis Gallery/Berger Gallery. The opening reception will be held on Saturday, Oct. 24 from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m.

“Drawing In Light” surveys Haskell’s (1923–2013) artistic scope and focuses on work in which the emphasis on light is key. The exhibition — the first in-depth examination of her work — includes some 30 light sculptures, paintings and drawings.

The exhibition’s title nods to Haskell’s explorations with the medium, content and context of light, and references a series of light installations she completed in 1998, named Drawings in Light. Haskell was influenced by her mentor, Samuel Rosenberg, Pittsburgh’s painter of light, and his philosophies about painting and light. Works Haskell made from the 1970s onward will be this exhibition’s focus.

“Drawing In Light” is about Haskell’s presence as a Pittsburgher who was committed to Pittsburgh’s cultural institutions, including the Carnegie Museum of Art and the Associated Artists of Pittsburgh. She not only experienced the changes in 20th-century art movements and shifts in public attitudes toward modern art, she assumed leadership roles in an era when a woman in those roles was not the norm.

During “Drawing In Light,” the Carnegie Museum of Art, where Haskell was a board member, will present a corresponding exhibition that accentuates her role as a collector, patron and tastemaker.

Dr. Vicky A. Clark and Melissa Hiller, American Jewish Museum director, curated the exhibit.

An illustrated exhibition catalogue with an introduction by Richard Armstrong and essay by the curators will be available during the exhibition.

Contact mhiller@jccpgh.org or visit jccpgh.org/page/ajm for more information about the opening reception and for more information.

FISA Foundation and JFilm: The Pittsburgh Jewish Film Forum, co-present the third annual ReelAbilities Film Festival from Thursday, Oct. 22 to Thursday, Oct. 29, showcasing films about the lives, stories and artistic expression of people with different disabilities. According to FISA Foundation Executive Director Kristy Trautmann, “We anticipate a terrific festival that will raise awareness, promote dialogue, change perceptions, and celebrate the many contributions of people with disabilities to our society.”

Screenings will be followed by receptions including vegan, kosher, and gluten-free options.

All films and programs will take place at Rodef Shalom Congregation at 4905 Fifth Ave. Free and accessible parking is available behind the building. All films will be presented with open captions, audio description and ASL interpretation. Rodef Shalom is fully accessible.

Tickets are available beginning Oct. 1. They can be purchased online at JFilmPgh.org or at the door if not sold out.

The festival schedule and additional information on the post-film programs and speakers can be found at JFilmPgh.org. Contact 412-992-5203 or Info@JFilmPgh.org with questions or financial assistance for ticket purchases.

Temple Emanuel of South Hills invites the community to its Cabaret Night featuring entertainer Dale Gonyea on Saturday, Oct. 24 at 8 p.m. at 1250 Bower Hill Road, Mt. Lebanon.

Gonyea, at age 5, began playing the piano without a single lesson and no piano in his home. He is a University of Michigan music graduate who now uses the piano as the springboard for his humor.

Named “Classic Comedian of the Year” by a New York radio station, Gonyea is also an Emmy winner, a Clio nominee, and his song-spoof, “I Need Your Help, Barry Manilow,” was Grammy-nominated for Comedy Record of the Year. His song, “Has Anybody Seen My Heart?” was featured in the HBO movie “The Girl Gets Moe” starring Tony Danza. He has also written songs for Disney, including the Sport Goofy anthem, “You Can Always Be Number One,” and the Genie’s song, “Nothing in the World Quite Like a Friend,” for “The Return of Jafar,” the sequel to “Aladdin.” His Cher parody was featured in the show “Catskills on Broadway.”

Admission is $36 per person; reservations are needed by Oct. 17.

There will be a cash wine bar and dessert auction.

Call Temple Emanuel at 412-279-7600 for reservations and more information.

OASIS intergenerational tutoring is recruiting tutors to help neighborhood children learn to read. No teaching experience is necessary, and training is free for adults 50+. All materials, books and supplies are provided by OASIS. Ongoing education is offered at no charge. OASIS offers tutoring in grades kindergarten through four in Woodland Hills and Pittsburgh Public Schools.

Training sessions will be on Friday, Nov. 6 and Friday, Nov. 13 from 10:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. The training will take place at the Greater Pittsburgh Literacy Council in downtown Pittsburgh.

Call John D. Spehar, M.Ed, Pittsburgh OASIS tutor program director, at 412-393-7648 for more information on becoming a tutor.

The Holocaust Center of Pittsburgh, in cooperation with JFilm: The Pittsburgh Jewish Film Forum, Classrooms Without Borders, P2G: Partnership2Gether and Pittsburgh Arts and Lectures, has opened the 2015-2016 Waldman International Arts and Writing Competition, Rebuilding of Lives: Post-Holocaust Life, 1945-1955.

The theme challenges students to explore the post-war experiences of survivors — life in Displaced Persons camps, emigration to Israel, the United States and/or other countries; rebuilding of families; and the impact of the Nuremberg Trials on survivors. Students should look into how survivors were treated when they tried to return to their home countries/towns; how they tried to find family members who might have survived; what was needed for them to emigrate from Europe to Israel, the United States or another country (and why that country was chosen); what it was like for them to meet their spouse and begin anew; and what impact (if any) the Nuremberg Trials had on them.

The competition is open to middle and high school students in the Greater Pittsburgh area and in the Karmiel-Misgav region of Israel. Visit HCPgh.org for more information about the competition, including the competition guidelines, the student entry form and resources for research. All entries must be received by 3 p.m. on Wednesday, Dec. 16.