One of the best-known figures in the Zionist world, Goldstein, generally known as BG, is the deputy executive director of the Jerusalem office of Hadassah, the Women’s Zionist Organization of America, and a former national vice president of Hadassah. She has been and continues to be the Hadassah representative in various Zionist umbrella organizations.
As a result of their mother’s constant involvement in Jewish activism, the three Goldstein siblings were raised by their father, the late Cantor Mordechai Goldstein; they inherited his love of music of almost every genre. Growing up, and even as adults, they often sang with him but decided that they would not perform at their mother’s milestone birthday. Looking for something that would be meaningful to her, they decided on the Meir Shfeya youth village near Zichron Ya’acov. Originally an Arab village, the property was purchased in 1891 by Baron Edmond de Rothschild, who named it in memory of his grandfather Amschel Mayer [Meir] Rothschild. Over the next three decades, the village was used as a school and an orphanage, which, in essence, made it the first youth village in the country. In 1923, Baron Rothschild deeded the village to Hadassah founder Henrietta Szold. It has since been developed in many directions by Hadassah, including BG’s own priority project of taking youth from the village to Poland to learn the history of the Holocaust and of prewar Jewry.
Working together with the Hadassah office in Jerusalem, the Goldstein siblings organized what they hoped was a surprise party at Meir Shfeya.
Invitees were asked to donate to the Poland project in lieu of gifts and contributed in excess of $100,000. Not everyone could come, especially those living abroad, but they sent their checks to honor BG, who had an inkling that something was going on, but she didn’t quite know what.
On the eve of her birthday, someone who couldn’t come apologized to her, but the penny didn’t drop till she was on her way to Meir Shfeya, which is a frequent stop for her. She received a phone call from World Zionist Organization chairman Yaakov Hagoel, who apologized profusely that he couldn’t come to her party. Among those who did come were people from various facets of BG’s life including singer Shuli Natan, who has accompanied many Hadassah missions at BG’s invitation, and who sang two of BG’s favorite Naomi Shemer songs: The Honey and the Sting; and Jerusalem of Gold. There was the Spack family from New Jersey which sang a witty ditty in BG’s honor. The Spacks and the Goldsteins were each other’s extended families in New Jersey, a factor that geographical distance didn’t change.
There was former Hadassah National President Nancy Falchuk, who explained that the reason that BG had never been a national president was her mouth. She didn’t know what it was to be politically correct, said Falchuk. She said what she thought, and everyone knew exactly where they stood with her.
Meir Shfeya director Yoram Panias, and its chairperson Eli Wagner spoke of BG’s no-nonsense approach to practical Zionism, and her abhorrence of wasting time with too much talk. Others spoke of the wonderful rapport she has with youngsters, they described her as a woman of both passion and compassion.
The Goldstein siblings said that they were often asked what it was like to have BG as a mother, and conceded that although she was not like other mothers, they loved her dearly and were very proud of her for trying to save the Jewish world. As an example of how different she was, Danny Goldstein related that their mother used to take them to rallies on behalf of Soviet Jewry and encourage them to yell the slogans of the day, which they lustily repeated at her birthday party.
Quoting from the Book of Jeremiah in which the Lord tells Rachel the Matriarch that her work will be rewarded, Barbara Sofer – BG’s Hadassah colleague and The Jerusalem Post’s fortnightly columnist – in an eloquent address told BG that there is a reward for her work.
In response to all the accolades, BG remarked that she could say a lot, but had decided not to. Aside from confirming that her mouth has gotten her into trouble since she was eight years old, and that she was proud to have a share in the lives of all those present, she told her children: “My greatest gift to you was that I was not at home.”
The Goldstein family celebrations did not end at Meir Shfeya.
On the following day, Friday, BG who in her youth had wanted to be a rabbi, officiated at the wedding of her grandson Tal Mushkin, the son of Shira and Noam Mushkin to Shany the daughter of Edit and Lorian Nuhomovici. Most of the guests who came to the Sharonit banquet facility at Kibbutz Mishmar Hasharon, had been at the birthday party the previous day, and later joined the two families at a hotel in Netanya over Shabbat.
BG wore the same dress that she had worn when her daughter Shira, a prize-winning photographer, had married Noam, more than a quarter of a century earlier. After all, this is the season for vintage fashions.
Because of the heat at the kibbutz, guests were given straw hats and fans. The ketubah was not a standard marriage contract but contained meaningful verses written by the bride and groom.
■ THERE IS always an element of sadness in events organized by the Malki Foundation, which might very well not exist if Malki Roth was still alive today. Malki was a happy 15-year-old who had gone with her closest friend to a now-defunct Jerusalem pizza parlor, where both met their deaths in a terrorist bombing in August 2001.
Like several other parents who have lost children to terrorism or to illness, Arnold and Frimet Roth wanted to perpetuate the memory of their daughter by expanding on her legacy. Malki was bright, vivacious, multitalented and with leadership qualities, but what she is best remembered for is the care she lavished on children with special needs – inspired perhaps by Haya Elisheva – the youngest of her six siblings, who was born blind and with other severe disabilities. Malki adored her and couldn’t do enough for her.
When he talks about Malki, her father usually refers to her musical and literary talents, her devotion to her sister and the fact that her killer Ahlam Tamimi who was responsible for the deaths of 15 innocent people, most of them minors, was one of 1,027 Palestinian prisoners released in exchange for the freedom of Gilad Schalit in 2011, and is living the good life in Jordan.
Last Wednesday, the atmosphere at the Henry Crown concert hall in Jerusalem was sufficiently charged with emotion, so Roth kept it short in explaining what the Malki Foundation does to ensure that children with disabilities can remain with their families and be cared for at home.
What he did say, however, is that no parent expects to make a speech about a deceased child or the legacy of a deceased child, but because Malki loved reaching out to children with special needs – especially her sister – this quality of hers is at the heart of the Malki Foundation.
The occasion was the annual Rainbow of Music concert, which was also the swan song for the Ramatayim Men’s Choir which has been the backbone of the Malki Foundation’s annual fundraising concert.
RMC founder Richard Shavei-Tzion was on a complete emotional high, veering from dancing as he conducted, to weeping over tributes to him and the choir.
All 750 seats in the concert hall were sold, and there was a long waiting list in case anyone dropped out. Happily, thanks to an anonymous donor, the concert was broadcast live on social media, and was seen and heard not only by fans in Israel but also in other parts of the world.
As impressive as the concert was – with soloists Simon Cohen, Yitzhak Meir, Avremi Roth, Colin Schachat, Tzvi Weiss, Naftali Weiss, Bernard San, Boaz Wultz, Daniel Feingold, Claude Hoenel, and Michael Wreschner accompanied by pianists Aviva Stanislawski and Raymond Goldstein plus other musicians – what was truly outstanding, and definitely a collector’s item, was the elaborately produced, large-sized playbill that included the names of all the singers, organizations, institutions and more with which the choir had – in one way or another – been associated over the years, plus lots of photographs. It is something that definitely will be appreciated by a future historian, because it also tells the detailed history of how the choir evolved.
Although it was billed as a farewell performance, and some of the members who are well advanced in age were happy to retire, one gets the feeling that some of the other choristers will continue to get together in small groups and continue to perform for their own pleasure and the pleasure of others, gently forcing Shavei Tzion to come out of his own retirement as a conductor and composer.
■ AT HIS New York meeting on Sunday with leaders of America’s Jewish community at the Moshe Safra Center on the Upper East Side of Manhattan, outgoing President Reuven Rivlin went to great lengths to stress Jewish unity and the importance of the relationship between Israel and Diaspora Jews, repeatedly talking of mishpoocha (the Yiddish word for family), and referring to his audience as his brothers and sisters – something he was reluctant to do at the beginning of his tenure.
“Even if we live many miles apart, across nations and across parties and ideologies, we are family,” said Rivlin.
He had wanted to meet with American Jewish leaders because he feels he has represented not just Israeli Jews, but Jewish people worldwide, he explained. “The long-lasting support of the Jewish world – and especially the American Jewish communities – for Israel make you an inherent part of the Israeli society,” he said, repeatedly addressing the crowd as his “brothers and sisters.”
The long-lasting support of the Jewish world – and especially the American Jewish communities – for Israel “make you an inherent part of the Israeli society,” he said. Well, not exactly. They’re not allowed to vote in Israeli elections, but neither are Israelis who are living or vacationing abroad unless their reason for being overseas is in service to the state.
■ PRIOR TO this meeting, Rivlin met privately with World Jewish Congress President Ronald Lauder, who thanked him for his many years of dedicated service to the State of Israel and the Jewish People.
But Israel has yet to adequately thank Lauder for what he has done for the State of Israel and the Jewish People through his meetings with world leaders, through his liaising on Israel’s behalf with leaders of countries that do not have diplomatic relations with Israel, through his multimillion-dollar investments in Israel, by establishing an employment service in the Negev, through his long time involvement with the Jewish National Fund and other Jewish organizations, for being the key funder for the preservation of the Auschwitz museum, for speaking out against antisemitism and all forms of racism, but most of all for bringing Jewish life back to Eastern Europe – primarily in Poland.
Former president Shimon Peres initiated Israel’s Medal of Distinction, (equivalent to America’s Medal of Freedom) but for whatever reason, failed to award it to Lauder. Throughout the seven years of his tenure, Rivlin did not award it to anyone. Hopefully, Isaac Herzog, who will become Israel’s 11th president in exactly one week, will see fit to revive the award and will select Lauder as one of the first honorees. As a former chairman of the Jewish Agency, Herzog probably understands better than anyone else the importance of such an award in closing gaps between Israel and diaspora Jewry.
■ RIVLIN’S DIRECTOR-General Harel Toubi, will not be moving out immediately from the President’s Residence. He is staying till the end of September when the transition in terms of staff will be complete. Commenting on Rivlin’s extremely cordial meeting with US President Joe Biden, Toubi said that the meeting which been scheduled to last an hour went on for an hour-and-three-quarters, and the US president was eager to learn whatever Rivlin could tell him about Israel’s new government.
■ LIFE THREATENING illnesses know no borders. Age, gender, ethnicity and geography are irrelevant. People of all ages, of either sex, of all ethnic groups and in all countries are equally susceptible.
Thus, in Israel, in the north of the country, as part of National Cancer Survivor Month, a flotilla of 50 yachts set out last Friday to support the Krayot branch of Shluvot, an organization dedicated to helping women who are in the often painful process of recovering from cancer. The Krayot branch is also part of the national support group that assists people with cancer at all stages of the disease.
Some 150 women from the group, together with their families, participated in the flotilla.
La Roche-Posay, which gives Israelis easy access to the best brands of European cosmetics, for several years has been supporting efforts to catch cancer at an early stage, and urges women to get tested even if there is nothing to suggest that something may be amiss. The company set up a mobile skin and mole testing station at the Kiryat Haim beach. An information stand was also set up with samples of products designed for protection from the sun, and free products were distributed to everyone on the flotilla as well as to other beachgoers. Ilan Naftali, CEO of the company’s Dermo Cosmetics division along with the entire senior staff of La Roche-Posay were on hand to offer moral support and advice.
The Larger than Life Association, which is dedicated to improving the quality of life for cancer-stricken children and their families, has joined forces with the Jerusalem Vineyard Winery at Mishkenot Sha’ananim for a wine-tasting event at Montefiore’s Windmill on Sunday, July 4. Proceeds will go toward the establishment of a Garden of Dreams in Jerusalem, similar to the existing educational and recovery center adjacent to the Sheba Medical Center in Tel Aviv. Essentially a kindergarten, it enables children to learn and make friends in a safe environment and is a break from the painful routine of treatments.
Jerusalem Wineries is the successor to the Shimshon Winery – one of the most veteran wineries in Jerusalem – that was established in the Old City at the beginning of the 20th century by Yona Mendelsohn, a Chabad Hassid who married into the well-known Shor family of wine makers. Following the War of Independence in 1948, the winery was forced to relocate and moved to the capital’s Beit Israel neighborhood, and in 1976 to Atarot.
In 2006, it was purchased by businessman and entrepreneur Ofer Guetta, who changed its name and its output, significantly expanding the variety and volume of its production, and in the process earning an admirable reputation for the winery in its new incarnation.
■ IF JULY 1, is any indication of what is happening in the month ahead, it’s going to be very busy. Here is a short list of some of the happenings on Thursday, July 1.
• President Rivlin will host a state dinner for German President Frank Walter Steinmeier and his wife.
• Bnai Brith World Center will present its annual Journalism awards.
• At the Jerusalem Cinematheque there will be a celebration of the 30th anniversary of the Visegrad Group comprising Poland, Hungary, the Czech Republic and Slovakia who are all members of NATO and the EU and cooperate on military, economic, cultural and energy matters. Polish Ambassador Marek Magierowski will formally hand over the presidency of V4 to Hungarian Ambassador Levente Benko.
• Kazakhstan Ambassador Satybaldy Burshakov will host the opening at the Port of Tel Aviv of the installation of the Kazakh yurt, a portable, comfortable, easily assembled circular tent home, transported on camels or horses; plus the National Day of Dombra, a traditional Kazakh musical instrument.
• Book launch of feminist Dr. Ilana Kwartin’s new book Imprisoned: Women in Extreme Controlling Relationships.
• Leah Koenig, the nonagenarian lauded as The First Lady of Israeli Theater, will appear in an Habimah production,
• The celebration of the 24th anniversary of Balagan, the Kibbutz Yagur amusement park.
• The opening of Jerusalem Design Week at Hansen House.
■ WHEN AUSTRALIAN expat, Sarah Hogarth posted a picture of an empty Vegemite jar on the site of the Australians living in Israel Facebook group, her call for help was answered by Australian Ambassador Paul Griffiths, who delivered a special package of Vegemite from his pantry. The story went viral and generated much social media comment – and not only from Australians – some of who sought to likewise benefit from the ambassador’s generosity and his understanding of withdrawal symptoms from the national savory spread.
Griffiths later tweeted in relation to the Vegemite drama: “Who says diplomacy is always serious?”
Other than Vegemite, Australians in Israel have expressed cravings for Cherry Ripe, Twisties, licorice – all sorts, Violet Crumble, and heavenly Alpha chocolates with plum or apricot filling swimming in liqueur. Happily, Tim Tam, the Australian cookies or biscuits as they’re called down under, are available in Israeli supermarkets. In addition, Australian lamb chops are sold in select butcher shops and supermarkets.
■ LAST WEEKEND, veteran radio program hosts Iris Lavie, Gideon Hod, Moshik Tamir and Yitzhak Noy presented their programs for the last time. Three of the above have been previously mentioned in this column as winding up at the end of June, but Lavie, who is a mine of information about the Israeli cultural and entertainment scene – past, present and future – had not been mentioned.
David Sela, who promotes nostalgia and history online, and who has featured on Tamir’s Shishi Ishi (Personal Friday Night), was among the people who were included in the final presentation. He noted that he and Tamir had gone to speak to KAN CEO Eldad Koblentz, who was very pleasant, mumbled something about budgetary constraints, and said that the decision was out of his hands.
Timor’s budget was NIS 400 for a weekly three-hour program.
Sela, who had launched a protest petition that was signed by more than 4,000 listeners, argued that with the exception of senior citizens, few people listened to the radio these days unless they were driving in their cars. If the decision to get rid of veteran programs and their presenters was designed to attract young listeners, he said, it was an exercise in futility, because radio today, cannot compete with the growing number of social media platforms on which young people are hooked.
Also disappearing from the airwaves is colorful, long-time political analyst Hanan Kristal, 74, who was the first full-time political analyst on Reshet Bet, as distinct from a reporter or in comparison with occasional commentaries by university professors and diplomats.
Perhaps some affluent fans would be willing to sponsor a digital radio station whereby all the radio old-timers who so desire, can continue to do their thing on a voluntary basis.
In Melbourne, Australia, there is a licensed community radio station that goes by the name of Golden Days Radio for Senior Citizens. It is entirely manned by volunteers. In addition to dealing with numerous issues that affect senior citizens, its musical programs consist of golden oldies, recorded in a preelectronic music period when the lyrics were discernible above the musical background.
Considering the ever-increasing numbers of senior citizens in Israel, a station like that would be immensely popular.
As a point of disclosure, the writer of this column can empathize with the hosts of the above-mentioned programs because up to 2004, she had been the fashion writer for The Jerusalem Post for around a quarter of a century. In 2004, she and Post photographer Marc Israel Sellem were part of the press entourage that accompanied then-president Moshe Katsav to Paris. During a rest period, they went to look at the window displays of some of the top Parisian fashion houses, and Sellem photographed the fashion trends of the day.
When they returned to Israel, they discovered that their effort had been in vain. A section editor said that there was no place for fashion in the paper and that anyone who was interested in fashion could buy the Burda magazine. Not long after that, the section editor left the employ of the Post, but a regular column on fashion never returned, although there have been sporadic items about fashion – primarily in Grapevine.
Similarly, the person who decided to ax the radio programs beloved by long-time listeners is likely to move on in the not-too-distant future, with the destruction left in his wake.
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