jewishatl, Author at Jewish Federation of Greater Atlanta

A Little Taste Of Life: How Tradition Kitchens Changed Atlanta For The Better

Rachel Binderman and Rebecca Kann, Strong Women Fellows, co-authored this article originally published in VOXATL.

Food brings people together — families, friends, and strangers alike. Food brings together communities from all backgrounds and has the ability to bond people over a home-cooked dish. Some of our fondest memories are around meals, and food engages some of our strongest senses: smell, and taste.

For Rachel, food has always been a huge part of her family and Jewish identity. For as long as she can remember, her family sat around our dinner table every Friday night, sang the prayers, lit the candles, and ate Mom’s delicious challah. As she got older, this tradition became less frequent until COVID hit. If you ask her mom, that was the upside to COVID, having the whole family home every Friday night. Since last March they have had dinner together every Friday night. As teenagers, we often would rather hang out with our friends on Friday nights, but her family’s weekly Friday night dinners allow us to spend one special night together.

We continued to have these conversations about our family’s traditions when Julia Levy spoke with JumpSpark’s Strong Women Fellowship this spring. By day, Julia Levy leads internal communications at a startup, and pursues her side projects passions at night. She co-founded a podcast with her father called Peach and Prosperity, which discusses stories around economics, and cultural and historical stories about the Atlanta area. Julia recently spoke at TedXEmory about her various projects and how she manages to keep up with her passions, including Tradition Kitchens which she began with her mother, making kitchens into a learning space around Judaism and other cultures.

During the meeting, Julia and her Kitchen Ambassadors — Ruby, Brianna, and Lauren — talked about their experiences with the community that has been built through Tradition Kitchens. Tradition Kitchens’ classes originally took place in people’s homes throughout the Atlanta area. However, due to the pandemic, that all changed. Tradition Kitchens now has online classes you can stream or watch the recordings. They also go farther than just discussing food; they talk about the significance around the food and the history behind it. For example, for Black History month, Karon, a friend of Julia’s, made fried chicken tenders with biscuits while talking about restaurants with stories from the Civil Rights Movement. The best thing about the program is that it is volunteer-based, so anybody is able to partake as either a student ready to learn more about different cuisines or as a teacher sharing your favorite recipes. Food is a way for people to bond and gives people the opportunity to learn more about other cultures. In cities such as Atlanta there is a wide variety of people that eat different foods. There is a great opportunity for learning and laughter at Tradition Kitchens.

Rachel Binderman is an 11th grader at The Weber School, and Rebecca Kann is an 11th grader at Pace Academy. Both are Peer Leaders for JumpSpark’s Strong Women Fellowship.

jewishatl In JumpSpark

A Day in the Life of Virtual School in America

The 2020-2021 school year has not been the easiest for anyone. Around the world, students have had to adapt to learning virtually. Many students have yet to go back to their school building since March of 2020, including me.

Every day I wake up at 7:20 am and get myself dressed and my parents drive me to my friend’s house. We go to her basement where we have two tables set up across the room from each other. We each sit at our own table. We log on to class every morning at 8:20 and have four 70 minute classes. We make lunch and eat outside so get some fresh air.

For lunch we keep kosher and we usually log on to our Jewish Culture Club meetings. At these meetings we have a rabbi teach us about each weeks torah portion. The torah portions bring up many interesting conversations. We usually have some music playing to make it a little more fun as we sit and listen to our classes.

Usually during the day I also talk to some of my camp friends. I attend a Jewish summer camp in the mountains of Georgia. Last summer was supposed to be our last summer as campers but Covid cancelled camp. So our unit has stayed connected virtually and are really looking forward to Israel this summer.

Doing school with a friend has caused less anxiety and stress by giving us some social interaction. Virtual school is not easy but I have adapted and made myself successful.

jewishatl In Atlanta Jewish Community, Caring, Jewish Journeys

First Came Oliver, Then Rosemary

The Blessings of Our Fertility Journey
by Scott Anklowitz & Sarah Ashton

Scott: When Sarah and I met as colleagues at AT&T, we clicked right away. We dated for a year and a half, and when we married, Sarah was 36 and already concerned about her ability to conceive. We knew we had to get started trying right away. Little did we know there would be fertility issues on both sides. We began to see fertility doctors in Atlanta and for the next year it was bad news after bad news.

Both of us turned out to be cystic fibrosis carriers. I had a rare chromosomal translocation, so we were both infertile for multiple reasons. After two unsuccessful rounds of IVF we did not produce healthy embryos. Our doctor was frank: “You can keep doing this, but the costs and emotional and physical stress are going to be intense.” It was. We took a break for a few months.

The unexpected turning point came when our financial advisor, Elie Engler, shared his personal experience working with the Jewish Fertility Foundation (JFF) to build his family. Elie was absolutely pivotal in directing us to JFF’s Fertility Buddies program. Connecting with JFF, especially as an interfaith couple, introduced us to other wonderful resources and opportunities in the Atlanta Jewish community. JFF partners with PJ Library, 18Doors, and with organizations that help build families. It has reconnected me to Jewish life and given our family a deep appreciation of Judaism we never imagined.

Sarah: Ultimately, we went the egg donor route and had success right away. Oliver was born in 2019 and then came Rosemary in September 2020. We are so thankful that JFF and Elie pulled us into something warm and embracing. Elie guided us that being Jewish is different for everyone and it was up to us to define what that means for our family – this made us feel embraced.” JFF found us, and it has become a real source of passion and strength.

During COVID we hosted a JFF virtual wine and cheese tasting with 18Doors, which works with interfaith families. Our gathering included other interfaith couples, couples dealing with infertility, gay couples, and other nontraditional families. Rabbi Malka, who leads 18Doors is now part of our life. We’ve talked about trying to make this gathering an in-person event, a couple of times a year.

I’m not super religious but everyone has made me feel welcome. Scott became a Fertility Buddy and joined the JFF board. We’ve been to JFF CEO and Founder Elana Frank’s house for Shabbat dinner. I’m enjoying exposing Oliver and Rosemary, and my own parents, to this tradition. We read PJ Library Books every night to Oliver. None of this would have happened if not for our infertility journey. We have finally found a community of people that feel like “our” community through JFF.

jewishatl In JumpSpark

A Typical Day For Me As An Israeli Teen

Each day for me starts when I take my dog for a walk. Because of the pandemic I study some days though Zoom and some in school. So, I wake up every morning according to the way I study that day. Today I’ll tell you about my typical Sundays. American teens may not realize it, but Israelis go to school on Sunday! Our weekend is on Friday and Saturday because Shabbat is part of our culture and Sunday is just a regular day!

School on Sundays starts at 7:45 a.m. so I wake up at 6:20 and take my dog for a walk. When we get back, I quickly get ready for school, eat something and go out. I usually go to school on foot because it’s close to my house. My first class is English literature. English is a language I really like, so I enjoy studying it. After the English class I have a free period that I usually use to finish homework that I didn’t have time to do, eat or just sit and talk to friends. Next I have a two-hour math class and three hours of physics. I study the Bible in school, but other than that, I am not a very religious person. I enjoy hearing different interpretations of the Bible stories since some of these solutions make more sense.

I finish school at 2:50 p.m. When I get back home I eat lunch and watch Netflix or read a book until 4-5 p.m., do my homework if I have any, and after that I usually hang out with friends or go back to watch Netflix. Because of the Coronavirus I don’t have a lot of options for activities after school so my week is usually the same. At about 8:00 p.m. I have dinner with my family, then at 11/12 at night I go to bed. Sunday is a relatively free day for me, so in addition on Tuesdays for example I have an entrepreneurship and computer science course, and on Fridays I usually go to the sea to surf.

jewishatl In JumpSpark

Judaism As Part Of My Daily Life

Judaism is a big part of my daily life, I celebrate Jewish holidays with my family, and keep the Jewish tradition in our family. For example, I want to talk about my Bar Mitzvah experience. When I turned 13 I did an “Aliyah latora” at the west wall in Jerusalem! After that, we went celebrating my Bar Mitzvah at a big restaurant with my whole family. I would never forget that experience, and to this day I wear the golden David star necklace my grandparents gave me.

The feeling of silence on Shabbat or Yom Kippur is really calming and peaceful. Those are the days when people just stop everything in their lives for a few days.

The holidays are very special for me. I meet my family, eat really good food with them, and feel festive.

When traveling with my family around the world (but also in Israel) we go to alot of places that are related to Judaism and Jewish history, and we feel the power of it.

I also feel the Jewish history in my family’s history. My grandfather and all of his family are Holocaust survivors and today, he is proud to be Jewish, and proud to be living in Israel as a Jewish person.

I am not very religious, but I try my hardest to keep holiday traditions and keep kosher.

Other then being Jewish in Israel, I have many other interests. I like music, hanging out with friends, watching movies and tv shows, and gaming.

jewishatl In Atlanta Jewish Community, Caring, Jewish Abilities Atlanta, People in Need, Philanthropy

Doing the Work to Close the Inclusion Gap or A Framework for an Inclusive Jewish Atlanta

Community Study on Disability Inclusion

Annie Garrett, Jewish Abilities Alliance Manager

In early 2020, the Jewish Abilities Alliance (JAA) engaged in a community study of disability inclusion in Jewish Atlanta. The study was an opportunity to reflect on our community’s past efforts with disability inclusion and to re–evaluate needs and areas for deeper focus and support. Shortly after we embarked on this work, the COVID-19 pandemic began to unfold. As we started to understand the impact of the pandemic, this study took on even more importance. Individuals with disabilities are disproportionately affected by the pandemic, facing increased social isolation, cuts in crucial services, and increased vulnerability to their health and wellbeing. This study has shed light on our community’s most current and pressing needs and will provide crucial data and direction to continue lifting disability inclusion as a priority across all aspects of Jewish life.

JAA worked closely with a consulting team from Matan, spending many months interviewing Jewish communal professionals, lay-leaders, self-advocates, caregivers, and family members. As a result, we have identified a framework that promotes and enhances a vision of a Jewish Atlanta that is fully inclusive of individuals with disabilities and their families across the lifespan. This framework identifies several areas of inclusion work over the next several years to close the gap between what currently exists and what the community aims to accomplish:

Establishing and supporting coordinated communal inclusion efforts and unified community goals
Prioritizing funding for inclusion across the lifespan and ensuring sustainability
Creating a shared communal vision of acceptance and support for individuals of all abilities
Training for all community professionals and lay leaders to create an even landscape of inclusion knowledge and capability

We look forward to sharing the outcomes of this study and our road map for the next several years as we deepen our work alongside our community partners, in making Jewish Atlanta a place where people of all abilities are welcomed, included, and embraced in all aspects of Jewish life.

jewishatl In JumpSpark

Moving from Strength to Strength

I wanted to take a moment to write with some bittersweet news. For the past four years, it has been my greatest honor and privilege to serve as the Director of JumpSpark. I have come to know and love so many teens, parents of teens and youth professionals and I have been blown away by the amazing things happening here in our community. Watching how strongly the Atlanta Jewish teen community has responded to the challenges of the past year has been a humbling process to be a part of. That is why it is so hard to share that recently, I was offered and decided to accept, the role of North American Education Director for the Diller Teen Fellowship.

The Diller Teen Fellows program is an immersive leadership program inviting a select group of Jewish 10th and 11th graders from 6 continents and 32 communities to step up, lead their communities, and repair the world. My role as North American Education Director will be to guide the educational vision and experience for the fellowship, working with the amazing Diller team to build an international network of empowered Jewish teen leaders. While I am so sad to be leaving JumpSpark, this was not an opportunity I could pass up.

While I am beyond excited for this new endeavor and adventure, it is of course, not without some painful consequences. I am so proud of the work JumpSpark has done over the past four years to grow and support the Atlanta Jewish teen landscape. At JumpSpark, we are in the relationship business and I have built so many amazing relationships through this work. I am struck at this moment by the words from Pirkei Avot, “Make for yourself a teacher; acquire for yourself a friend, and judge every person on the positive side”. For the past four years, every member of the Atlanta Jewish community has been my teacher helping me to grow both personally and professionally. I have developed many deep friendships and have come to see the good in every person and organization in our community. I will miss working with all of you every day.

There are so many people that I need to thank, but I want to first say thank you to the amazing JumpSpark team. The deep commitment each of you shows to your work and to the Atlanta Jewish community has driven me every day to be better. I am so proud to have worked with all of you and wish you nothing but success moving forward. I also want to thank Eric Robbins, Rich Walter, and Jori Mendel from the Jewish Federation of Greater Atlanta for being champions of the work of JumpSpark and mentors to me personally on this journey. I also would be remiss if I did not thank everyone involved with the Jewish Teen Education and Engagement Funder Collaborative, the national umbrella under which JumpSpark falls. Being a part of this amazing group of educators and leaders has been the opportunity of a lifetime and I treasure all I have been able to learn from each of you. Finally, thank you to all JumpSpark Community Partners who are doing the holy front-line work of supporting the teens, parents of teens, and youth professionals in our community. You are all so amazing and our community is so lucky to have you.

As I say often, I truly believe that teens are the center of the Jewish world. My teen years in the Jewish community set me on the path that I am on today and everyone who works with teens knows we are not just building the Jewish future; we are investing in these amazing people today. JumpSpark has strived to create more defining moments for Jewish teens in Atlanta to inspire them to build strong Jewish identities and a lifelong commitment to the Jewish community. We have amplified teen voices and supported them in advocating for themselves.

The Jewish Federation of Greater Atlanta is committed to continuing the work of JumpSpark as a core priority. Annie Fortnow, JumpSpark Engagement Manager, will be taking on additional responsibilities for the rest of this program year. In August, she will also be transitioning off the team to attend graduate school at Brandeis University in the Hornstein Jewish Professional Leadership Program and is honored to participate in the Wexner Graduate Fellowship/Davidson Scholars Program alongside her graduate studies. We are excited that JumpSpark has been able to support our professionals in their growth to become lifelong leaders in the Jewish communal field. A plan is forming for next year and beyond as we continue prioritizing Jewish teen education and engagement at the Jewish Federation of Greater Atlanta.

As a note of practicality, I will be remaining in Atlanta and my new position will keep me working in the teen world. I look forward to continuing to be working with, thinking with, and creating with all of you for many years to come!

From Strength to Strength,

jewishatl In Atlanta Jewish Community, Atlanta Jewish Foundation, Philanthropy, Young Leadership Division

Because It’s Our Turn: Thoughts on NextGen Philanthropy

Jonathan Arogeti always heard his parents and grandparents say that giving back to the community was a central family value. “They told us, you have three options with money — spend it, save it, or give it away. And they believed by far that giving it away, if you are able, was the very highest value. During this time in my life, I’m doing all I can to encourage my peers to get involved in philanthropic giving. It’s our generation’s time to build on and sustain this incredible Atlanta community.”

Arogeti vividly remembers how his family’s support for Hillels of Georgia brought the commitment home. “We all attended the dedication ceremony of the new Hillel building at Emory,” Jonathan says. “It was just a few years after my grandfather’s death, and there was so much meaning to see my grandmother’s pleasure at the depth and impact of this gift. I was in college, and it felt so relevant to my stage of life.”

Now, when he can direct his philanthropic giving, Jonathan works closely with Staci Eichelbaum, Atlanta Jewish Foundation’s Director of Philanthropic Advising. He serves as a mentor to Atlanta young adults who have grown up blessed with family resources. With Eichelbaum, Arogeti has led two cohorts of a four-month NextGen Legacy group that helps NextGen donors clarify their own philanthropic interests — and equally important, teaches them to initiate discussions about where they would like to see family resources allocated and how they can participate.

Arogeti explains, “When you are coming of age in a family with the capacity to be generous, we want you to think about what your philanthropic interests look like from a structural and decision-making standpoint. In the group, we ask, ‘Does your family let you speak up and participate in philanthropic decisions? If not, how can you get more involved?’ “

He adds, “When the COVID-19 Emergency Response Fund was gearing up last year, we encouraged our Legacy participants to ask their parents if they were participating. Some had never asked about these decisions before.”

Arogeti also empowers the NextGen Legacy groups to be very specific about their personal priorities. “For example, tell your family, ‘I’m interested in environmental projects that lower carbon footprint. How can you support me in that?’” Jonathan is a founding member of the Repair the World Advisory Council and makes his own gift, but he also asks his family to make a gift to amplify the commitment. “They do it because I asked them,” he says. “It’s tremendously empowering!”

“We’re a fortunate group, but we agree that talking about money is always hard — even with your parents. The idea is to get these conversations started. The first thing I ask each new group is, ‘How many of you told your families that we asked you to participate in NextGen Legacy?’ I’m frequently surprised by how many have not! Having peers on the same journey as you takes away some of the hesitancy and helps you learn what is possible.”

To learn more about NextGen Legacy, and upcoming cohorts, contact Staci Eichelbaum, Director of Philanthropic Advising, Atlanta Jewish Foundation.

jewishatl In AgeWell Atlanta, Atlanta Jewish Community, Caring, Global News, People in Need, Philanthropy

Supporting Holocaust Survivors: “Barry’s” Story

by Cherie Aviv, Chair, Holocaust Survivor Support Fund

“Barry” (his name has been changed for privacy) grew up in a loving Jewish home attending synagogue, observing Shabbat, playing dreidel, and eating Jewish foods. But when the National Socialists came to power and enforced Nazi rule, Barry was forced to wear a yellow star, quit school, leave home, and was transported by train to Auschwitz. By jumping off the train, and not getting caught or killed, he hid in the forest and used his skills, determination, and drive to survive. His family was not as fortunate, and the horrors of that period left a mark on him, as they did on all Holocaust survivors.

Survivors of the Holocaust like Barry deserve to live out their lives comfortably, with dignity and support. Barry made a life for himself in Atlanta. As his health deteriorated, without family to care for him, financial resources to meet Barry’s needs became paramount. Jewish Family & Career Services (JF&CS) provided case management, and The Holocaust Survivor Support Fund (HSSF) provided funds so he could live his remaining days respectably and not alone, with a caregiver at his side. HSSF also provided Barry with grocery gift cards, medical assistance, prescription assistance, and transportation help.

HSSF, convened by Federation, provides funds to meet the needs of Holocaust survivors, like Barry, as they get older and to supplement Claims Conference funds from Germany that are sent to social service agencies, in this case JF&CS. Claims Conference funds are insufficient to meet the needs of Barry and others like him, making HSSF support vital.

To support this important outreach: https://jewishatlanta.org/give/donate/

Our Responsibility
Holocaust survivors have a short window to receive this precious care. It is an act of community responsibility and an expression of the Jewish value of chesed (loving kindness) to care for the final generation of survivors who are still with us. As dollars diminish, our support for HSSF provides this very special population the opportunity to live their remaining years as fully as possible and with dignity.

Who does HSSF Support?
In Georgia, at least 218 of the 277 Holocaust survivors receive financial, social, reparations assistance, or support services. Of these 218, two-thirds receive some type of financial assistance. Beginning in Fall 2020, HSSF funds also supported survivors in remote locations in the southeast that are served through JF&CS-Atlanta.

Needs are growing
The needs of survivors are growing as they age. The average survivor age is 86. More than 25 percent of survivors receiving financial support have annual incomes that fall below the Federal Poverty Level.
HSSF allocated over $1.5 million for survivors through March 2021.

Supporting HSSF helps provide:

Home-delivered meals — this has a significant impact by providing peace of mind and the comfort of a reliable food source.
Grocery gift cards to improve survivors’ physical health by giving them access to more nutritious food options and easing concerns about having enough food, which can be a source of anxiety.
Prescription assistance, which takes a huge toll on survivors who may face large co-pays and often are on multiple expensive medications.
Homecare, which provides the greatest need to help survivors with activities of daily living, from bathing, assistance with food intake, and basic human needs.
And much more…

HSSF, convened by Federation, is a partnership of Jewish Federation of Greater Atlanta, Jewish Family & Career Services, Jewish HomeLife Communities, The Breman Museum, the Marcus Jewish Community Center of Atlanta, and Eternal Life-Hemshech to meet the increased needs of homecare, health care, social services, assisted living support, and financial assistance for Holocaust survivors in our community.

To support this important outreach, visit: https://jewishatlanta.org/give/donate/
To learn more about HSSF, visit: https://jewishatlanta.org/give/philanthropic-opportunities/hssf/

jewishatl In JumpSpark

AFFIRMATIVE CONSENT — THE WORD ‘YES’ IS KEY

Miriam Raggs and Phoebe Kaplan, Strong Women Fellows, co-authored this article originally published in VOXATL.

This image has an empty alt attribute; its file name is VOX_Jaclyn-Friedman-1024x576.png

The word “yes” is a crucial word that needs to be clearly stated before any sort of sexual act. “Yes” is what ties consent all together, and author Jaclyn Friedman uses her voice to spread awareness about affirmative consent. Consent has to be clear “yes” and no other version. Consent can’t be an “I don’t know” or “maybe.” Both people must be in agreement.

JumpSpark’s Strong Women Fellowship met with Jaclyn Friedman, a writer, speaker, and activist, in January to talk candidly about sexual consent. We’ve always thought that sexual freedom and consent were important, and when Jaclyn talked about affirmative consent, we realized that it is even more important than one might think. It’s much harder to say “no” than it is to say “yes.” If someone is not saying yes, then it’s a no. People need to make sure the other party is saying yes the whole way through.

Sadly, affirmative consent isn’t spoken about enough for it to be practiced. Consent needs to be taught. At the public schools, we attend, we were only taught to practice abstinence, and our sexual health class or sex ed was only for a few days each year. We learned all about the reproductive organs and mostly why not to have sex. Teaching teenagers only about abstinence is a poor choice. This abstinence-only education only makes us more reckless and unaware of sexual assault.

Jaclyn brought up the fact that schools only ever teach about male sexual pleasure and never about female pleasure. This is because they are so focused on not wanting teens to have sex. Schools should change their focus and teach teens to have safer sex.

As a closing for our meeting, we used a Padlet that contained reflection questions after Jaclyn finished speaking. One of the questions was “What are your overall thoughts about this topic,” and someone responded saying, “It needs to be normalized at a younger age.” Sex education needs to start younger, be offered every year, and be more extensive. Younger elementary school children should be learning about consent through asking before hugging or touching someone.

The image shows a screenshot of a Padlet board where individuals who participated in the workshop left their thoughts on their reflections of the content that was presented to them. These responses were gathered via a virtual tool and are on a dark pink background.

If affirmative consent was taught in sexual-education classes, sexual assaults could be reduced by a great amount by having both parties of the sexual situation knowing what they truly are doing. Affirmative consent is an extremely important topic that needs to be spoken about more.

Miriam Raggs is a 10th grader at The Weber School, and Phoebe Kaplan is a 10th grader at Riverwood International Charter School. Both are second-year Fellows and Peer Leaders for the JumpSpark Strong Women Fellowship.