News from Middle Tennessee's Jewish Community |
Wednesday, April 30, 2025
Gordon JCC Membership and Development Director, Dara Freiberg to step down, spend time with her family
Addressing high-ranking officials during his inaugural speech on May 19, 2019, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said, “I don’t want my portraits to hang in your offices, because the president is not an icon or an idol. Hang pictures of your children there and look them in the eyes before every decision.”
Local Businessman Launches Nonprofit to Send Humanitarian Drones to Ukraine
The 2022 Yom Hashoah Service Remembers the Children of the Shoah, Dedicates New Sculpture
In early May I had the honor of joining a small delegation from Nashville traveling to Poland to witness and assist in relief efforts for Ukrainian refugees. At that time, Poland was assisting over two million refugees fleeing violence and mayhem caused by the unprovoked Russian invasion of Ukraine. The refugees, primarily women, and children fled to Poland to seek safe shelter in a place as close as possible to home since all eligible men ages 18-65 are required to stay in Ukraine to fight. Immediately as the war began in late February, Polish citizens took it upon themselves to drive to the Poland/Ukraine border to take as many refugees as possible to safety. By the time we arrived, international and local Jewish organizations were fully engaged in the work and actively providing safe housing and other essential needs for these refugees, and we had the opportunity to see these efforts in action.
Leadership2Gether (L2G) is a six-month program that is part of the Jewish Agency for Israel’s Partnership2Gether (P2G) initiative designed to connect Jews around the world with counterparts in Israel. After a two-year hiatus, the L2G group of Israelis from the Hadera-Eiron Region and American Jews from communities in our US Southeast Consortium were finally able to experience an in-person retreat. During several fun-filled days in Music City, followed by a few intense days in Charleston, South Carolina, magic happens. The participants from Israel gathered with their counterparts from Nashville and other Federations to learn, explore, and build strong bonds between the two similar, but very different worlds. The local P2G Chair is Christie Wiemers. Shimrit Orgal is the Coordinator for the Hadera-Eiron Partnership, and Adam Bronstone is the Director of Planning and Israel Partnerships for The Jewish Federation and Jewish Foundation of Nashville and Middle Tennessee.
The 2021/22 state legislative cycle ended with some big wins for the Jewish community. The success is the result of ramped up efforts by the Jewish Federation and Jewish Foundation of Nashville and Middle Tennessee, in collaboration with the three other Jewish Federations in the state. Eric Stillman, CEO of The Jewish Federation, says, “Through a concerted collective effort by the Jewish Federations in Chattanooga, Knoxville, Memphis, and Nashville, together with our professional lobbyists, we were able to make the case to the Administration and State Legislature of the urgency of these issues, especially given the sharp rise in antisemitism and antisemitic acts which are occurring.” The various pieces of legislation saw broad support from both chambers of the State Legislature. And according to Senator Bo Watson (R-Hixson), involvement from the Jewish Federations was a key factor in gaining that support. “The engagement from the Jewish community was very important. The number one responsibility of our government is to provide a safe environment for our citizens,” he says. And on the House side, Rep. Ryan Williams (R-Cookeville), Chair of the House Appropriations Committee, credits the Jewish community’s leadership with making a direct impact. “The Jewish community has always had a voice, but this time they really led the effort. As soon as the bill was filed, my phone began to ring with other legislators offering support.”
Chabad of Nashville will present an evening with Kabbalah Coach Shimona Tzukernik, on Tuesday, May 31, 7:30 PM on Zoom. Shimona will present a talk on, “Forgiving for Good,” as participants will learn when and how to let go and move on.
