YINZ/YIDZ



Rodef Shalom Congregation will hold a panel discussion called “Domestic Violence 2010: Era of Change,” focused on teenage dating violence, Monday, Feb. 1, 7 p.m. The discussion, sponsored by the Jewish Domestic Abuse Task Force, will include local experts and will feature a proclamation, presented by State Rep. Dan Frankel, in support of House Bill 2026, which would mandate dating violence education in Pennsylvania schools. The panel kicks off National Teen Dating Violence Awareness Week in Pittsburgh, but, more importantly, the event is aimed to drum up support and awareness of H.B. 2026. Event organizer Shelly Sufrin, interim director at JDATF, believes dating abuse education is integral to the knowledge passed down by schools and parents to developing teenagers. The panelists include Dr. Gary Cuccia, whose daughter was murdered by her boyfriend in Monroeville last year; Mary Jo Harwood, associate director of the Center for Victims of Violence and Crime; Detective Denise Demarco of Pittsburgh Police’s Sexual Assault and Family Crisis Unit; and David Spurgeon, deputy district attorney of Allegheny County’s Domestic Violence Prosecution Unit. Frankel rounds out the panel, which will be moderated by Common Pleas Court Judge David N. Wecht. The discussion is co-sponsored by Ladies Hospital Aid Society, Rodef Shalom Congregation, Pittsburgh’s Chapter of Jewish Women International, National Council of Jewish Women and NA’AMAT USA, Pittsburgh Council. The panel is free and open to the public.

Rabbi Howard A. Berman, executive director of the Society for Classical Reform Judaism, will be the keynote speaker at the annual Milton E. Harris Interfaith Institute Luncheon and Lecture Friday, Feb. 5, at Rodef Shalom Congregation. Berman’s address is titled “Pilgrims and Patriots: Our Shared American Spiritual Heritage.” The Society for Classical Reform Judaism is a national voice of advocacy for the historic traditions of liberal Judaism in America. Berman is the rabbi of Boston Jewish Spirit, a Reform temple that shares its home and programming with Boston’s Emmanuel Episcopal Church, for which Berman also serves as rabbi-in-residence. He has lectured widely on American religious history, with a special interest in the Jewish influences on the Plymouth Pilgrims and founding fathers of the United States.His address kicks off a weekend of interfaith events, each of which is designed to introduce the dimensions of Reform Judaism as well as the mission and programs of the Society for Classical Reform Judaism.All are welcome. The Milton E. Harris Interfaith Institute promotes interfaith understanding among southwestern Pennsylvania clergy.

Campus Superstar, an “American Idol”-like contest displaying some of the best music talent at Pittsburgh’s college campuses, will hold its semi-finals Sunday, Feb. 21, 7 p.m. at the William Pitt Union Assembly Room. Twenty-five students from the University Pittsburgh, Carnegie Mellon University and Point Park University will compete for 10 finalist spots. The final competition itself is slated for Sunday, March 21, 7 p.m. at Carnegie Music Hall. The proceeds from the annual Campus Superstar program benefit the Hillel Jewish University Center. Contact Linda Myers at lmyers@hilleljuc.org or (412) 621-8875 Ext. 101 for more information.

Scott C. Alexander, director of Catholic-Muslim studies and department chair of intercultural studies and ministries at Catholic Theological Union, will explore values shared in Jewish, Christian and Muslim traditions during Founders Week at Duquesne University. Alexander’s presentation, which is titled “To Treat the Stranger as Neighbor: An Interreligious Imperative for Our Time,” will be held Wednesday, Feb. 3, at 7 p.m. in Duquesne University’s Power Center Ballroom, fifth floor of the Power Center, at Forbes Avenue and Chatham Square. A reception will follow the program, which is free and open to the public; reservations are required. Contact Duquesne at (412) 396-5131 or at universityevents@duq.edu.

Shaare Torah will hold its winter Blood Drive Sunday, Jan. 31, from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. To schedule a blood donation online, go to centralbloodbank.org and enter sponsor code G0020025 or contact Linda Pasternak at (412) 421-8855 or shaaretora@aol.com. All donors will receive a special edition key chain for “Nation Blood Donor Month” and be entered into a random drawing for The Big Game Promotion, which is two tickets for the Super Bowl in Miami on Feb. 7.  Hotel and airfare are included.

Armenian cellist Narek Hakhnazaryan, accompanied by his mother, Gayane Hakhnazaryan, will be performing as part of the Rodef Shalom music series Monday, Feb. 8, at 8 p.m. Hakhnazaryan has performed with the Boston Pops, won first prize in the 2008 Young Concert Artist International Auditions and the Khachaturian International Competition and has performed at the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C., Carnegie Hall in New York and the Ravinia Festival in Chicago. The concert is free and open to the community.

The 14th Ward Independent Democratic Club will host a Democratic gubernatorial candidates forum Sunday, Jan. 31, from 1 to 3 p.m., in the Wightman School Community Building, 5604 Solway St., Squirrel Hill. The League of Women Voters of Pennsylvania and the Pitt College Democrats are co-sponsoring the event. KDKA-TV Political Editor Jon Delano will be the moderator. All of the Democratic candidates have confirmed their attendance: Chris Doherty, Joe Hoeffel, Dan Onorato and Jack Wagner. Audience members will pose questions, and the candidates will have an equal opportunity to inform voters of their views. The panel discussion will begin at 1:30. The primary election will be held May 18. With more than 18,000 registered Democrats, the 14th Ward is the largest ward in the City of Pittsburgh and second largest in the state. The ward includes all or part of Squirrel Hill, Point Breeze, North Point Breeze, Regent Square, Park Place and Swisshelm Park.

The Squirrel Hill Historical Society’s next free program will be on “The Landscapes of Squirrel Hill, Frick and Schenley Parks. Geology Underlies it All,” with speaker Albert Kollar, of the geologist section of geology and invertebrate paleontology at the Carnegie Museum of Natural History Tuesday, Feb. 9, at 7:30 p.m. at the Sixth Presbyterian Church, corner of Murray and Forbes avenues.Visit squirrelhillhistory.org or call (412) 417-3707 for more information.  

The Rohr Jewish Learning Institute will launch its winter course, “Portraits in Leadership: Timeless Tales for Inspired Living,” in February. Portraits in Leadership is a study of the inspiring life story of six figures whose courage and determination helped Judaism weather its darkest hours. Lessons will examine a range of classic Jewish sources, drawing extensively from the stories of the Talmud and modern commentaries that point out their personal significance to our lives.  Rabbi Yisroel Altein of Chabad of Pittsburgh will teach the course Downtown in the Grant Building from 12:15 to 1:30 p.m.; a kosher lunch will be served. Call Chabad of Pittsburgh at (412) 421-3561 or visit chabadpgh.com for more information or to enroll.

J Street Pittsburgh celebrates the launch of its field effort along with dozens of other J Street locals across the country Thursday, Feb. 4, at 7 p.m. in Levinson Hall at the Jewish Community Center in Squirrel Hill. The program includes a live video broadcast with J Street’s executive director, Jeremy Ben-Ami. Meet and speak with existing and new activists, and share ideas to help strategize work in the months ahead and be a part of this moment in the pro-Israel, pro-peace movement.  Refreshments will be served; music by Ishtar. E-mail pittsburgh@jstreet.org to make reservations.

Community Day School will host a Tu B’Shevat celebration Sunday, Jan. 31, from 1 to 3:00 p.m. at the Squirrel Hill Dunkin’ Donuts. Families can enjoy free activities, donut decorating, entertainment by Community Day School’s Drum Olam and sing along with Rabbi Donni Aaron.Call Community Day School at (412) 521-1100 for more information.

Young Peoples Synagogue will host a Tu B’Shevat program featuring Rabbi Daniel Wasserman of Shaare Torah Congregation on Sunday, Jan. 31 at 10:30 a.m. in the Bnai Zion Building, 6404 Forbes Ave. The program is free and open to the public and refreshments will be served.

Pittsburgh artist Ben Schachter is about to open two area exhibits featuring contemporary Jewish Art. The first exhibit, “Tzit Tzit: Fiber Art and Jewish Identity,” at the Saint Vincent Gallery, Saint Vincent College in Latrobe, runs from Jan. 29 through Feb. 21. An opening reception is set for Thursday, Jan. 28, 6 to 8:30 p.m., and is open to the public. “Tzit Tzit” brings together ideas about materials with Jewish customs and laws. The exhibition includes five artists, including Leslie Golomb and Louise Silk. Schachter, whose wife is columnist Abby Wisse Schachter, is an associate professor of fine arts at Saint Vincent College. The second show, “Kosher/Treif and Eruvim,” opens at the Westmoreland Museum of American Art Sunday, Jan. 24, and runs through Sunday, March 21. A solo exhibition, “Kosher/Treif and Eruvim” draws comparisons between talmudic law and conceptual art. Schachter’s work has previously appeared at the Hebrew Union College and the Jewish Museum in New York and the American Jewish Museum of the Jewish Community Center in Pittsburgh.

Effie Eitam, former Israeli Knesset member and now a consultant and advisor on infrastructure and energy matters in Israel and overseas, will address students and faculty at the University of Pittsburgh Feb. 3 and 4. He will cover the nuclear threat of Iran, the morality and ethics of Israel and the raid on Entebbe. Eitam is touring college campuses as a speaker for Caravan for Democracy, an initiative of Jewish National Fund and Media Watch International that drives constructive dialogue on college campuses throughout the United States by bringing different speakers from Israel to discuss the issues affecting Israel, how it is covered in the media, and its unique role as the only democracy in the Middle East. As a member of the 17th Knesset from the National Union Party, Eitam served in various ministerial positions and was a member of the Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee. A retired brigadier general in the Israel Defense Forces, he faced Hezbollah in combat and commanded the Golani Brigade during the Entebbe rescue operation in 1976. He was awarded the Medal for Distinguished Service as a young officer during the Yom Kippur War. Eitam lives in Ramat Hagolan with his wife; he has eight children and two grandchildren. Contact Shoshana Hill at (212) 879-9305 Ext. 246 or shill@jnf.org for more information on the appearances.

 The Jewish Women’s Center of Pittsburgh will hold its annual Tu B’Shevat seder Sunday, Jan. 31, 6:30 p.m. at the Labor Zionist Center, 6328 Forbes Ave., Squirrel Hill. Rooted in the kabbalistic tradition, the JWC seder focuses on women, celebrating and comparing their lives to the changing seasons. Included in the seder will be four cups of wine/grape juice, various fruits and a chocolate fountain.There is no charge, but guests are asked to bring a bottle of red or white wine/juice and a cloth.  E-mail debbey_altman_diamant@hotmail.com through Jan. 26 for reservations.