Articles By Sharon 

Find all of my articles in one place. Here is a sampling in no specific order.

How Precious life is

There were some extremely urgent messages on my home phone the other day. Texts appeared on my cell phone emphasizing the emergency. My cousin had been to our house for Shabbat dinner and when I received the calls and messages from her grown children, one in Israel for a bar/bat mitzvah and another on his way to vacation on the Cape, I grew concerned that she never made it home.

My Shul Mate Else z”l

“Hubby here?” The familiar, friendly question came from good-natured Else (pronounced El-sa) Roth each Saturday as she peeked through the lace curtain on the mechitza.

As she turned to me after affirming my answer, “French nails this week,” she would comment, as she nodded approvingly when checking my manicure. Simultaneously, she would show me her own neatly polished fingernails. That began our Shabbos routine, sitting together in the women’s section at the Charles Kimmel Building of the Maplewood Jewish Center.

Sam's Gardens

Sitting on his open front porch facing Grove Park, in South Orange, “Sam,” – born Sebastino Boccongelli, – pinpoints his
birthplace on the map: San Salvo, a small agricultural town bordering the Adriatic Sea, 278 kilometers east of Rome, a city he has never seen.

Kindertransport Child Reconnects With European “Family” in South Orange

Erika Weinmann always wanted to come to New York to be a fashion designer. The year after she became a Bat Mitzvah, she watched her synagogue with its golden dome go up in flames in Bielefeld, Germany, during Kristallnacht. One month later, in December 1938, she was on one of the first Kindertransport trains leaving Germany.

A Picture Paints A thousand Words

Hearing that familiar click, without thinking, I picked up the pink iPhone. Pressing it on had me puzzled. Why did the image on the screen show my father and mother embracing in the field at the bungalow colony in Livingston Manor? When did that photograph from the kitchen counter make it onto my iPhone? 

From the Spirit of Tottoo

It’s that Tottoo Grandma. Distinguishing between his two grandmothers, that was how my eldest son Judd announced that it was my mother on the phone when he answered as a young toddler. He named her Tottoo because she called him Tatella…Yiddish for “little man.” My children were privileged to develop a special bond with my mother of blessed memory. She lived 97 years, closer to 98. She would have been 100 today and we all remember her in our own way.

Home Movies

Pinch me. I must be dreaming: I just saw my grandparents.

They passed away before I was born: my paternal grandfather, Nathan Mark, in 1941, my grandmother Sarah in 1949. One reason I delved into my family tree research was my desire to learn about these people. I suppose I have always been trying to “feel them.” There was a feeling of incompleteness in never having known them. I have video tape upon video tape of my children’s grandparents, but none of my own.

Until now.

Giving Back with Bags Full of Mitzvot

Since they met during their gap year in Israel, Deena Buechler and Henry Bernstein have done lots of fun dating things. This past September, their thoughts turned to ways they could augment their relationship by doing chesed together. Along came the Emmy Award-winning Rachael Ray show. Buechler, a West Orange resident, graduate of Joseph Kushner Hebrew Academy/Rae Kushner Yeshiva High School and Binghamton University, and Bernstein were part of the live studio audience in September, when Ray donated $100 bills to the audience members, suggesting that they go out and pay it forward.

Who Says You Can't Look Back?  Memories of a summer gone but never forgotten

Go ahead, go back. Relive those happy times.  Don't just think about the past; touch your memories.

A Labor of Love Leads to a Very Interesting family discovery

My son Judd's fast approaching college graduation last May and my very lucid mother's 95th birthday last March, were two major family milestones which prompted me to stop stalling and write a book after researching my children's ancestry for over 20 years.  After writing an introduction to a radio appearance, and speaking about my work, I realized I had the outline I needed for the book. 

Another Pleasant Valley...Shabbos

Have you heard the joke: Two Jews are stranded on a desert island…they build three synagogues—one for the Orthodox Jew, one for the Reform Jew, and one that neither one of them will ever set foot in!

Not so in West Orange, New Jersey.

Move over Carole King, it’s 2015 and West Orange is no longer just “status symbol land*.” In close proximity to New York City, this mid-sized suburban township in Essex County has morphed into a destination spot for young families and retirees alike.

NCJW’s ‘Back 2 School Store’ Helps Empower Young Students

The National Council of Jewish Women—Essex County Division,“NCJW/Essex,” brought the spirit of tikkun olam to new heights on Sunday, July 31. Together with Congregation B’nai Shalom in West Orange, the organization created a “Back 2 School Store” and resource center for economically disadvantaged children and their families. This was the program’s eighth year and, as in past years, NCJW/Essex brought volunteers to set up a makeshift store inside the synagogue.

Maplewood Jewish Center Welcomes New Sefer Torah

“This is historic!” The three-word proclamation flowed joyously from the lips of Maplewood resident Yehudis Bogomilsky as she marched in a Torah parade. On October 18, South Orange residents Dr. Avi and Rebecca Weisfogel presented the new Sefer Torah to their Maplewood synagogue, Congregation Beth Ephraim—Maplewood Jewish Center (MJC).

Join the Harmony at Congregation Ohr Torah

For those considering a move to Middlesex County, visiting Congregation Ohr Torah and the surrounding Edison/Highland Park community is a great place to begin. Esteemed Rabbi Yaakov Luban works day and night to make Ohr Torah (OT) a premier Modern Orthodox synagogue. Luban notes that the term “modern” implies engagement with the greater community instead of being somewhat insular and isolated.

Congregation Etz Ahaim: A Hidden Gem in Middlesex County

Nestled within the full-service Jewish community of Highland Park stands the only Sephardic synagogue in Middlesex county, Synagogue of the Sephardic Congregation Etz Ahaim. Its unassuming building sits parallel to the main thoroughfare running through the small town, which is somewhat reminiscent of a shtetl, complete with neighborhood kosher eateries and amenities.

It’s the Thought That Counts and Keeps on Giving

L’Dor V’Dor. When my son married recently in Cleveland, incorporated into the ceremony were the usual memories and keepsakes of the family now departed. Our son Judd carries his name in memory of my father’s youngest brother Jerome. My Uncle Jerome, in turn, had been named for my grandmother’s father Yehudah Hersh. After three decades of researching my family history and finding all the living descendants of Yehuda Hersh’s bountiful family, I may never know much more about him. The little I know about my great-grandfather is that he was a tool sharpener in the Ukraine. To this genealogist’s delight, I have letters his son penned for him to send to my grandmother living in America. They were delivered between 1912, when my grandmother emigrated, and her father’s yahrzeit, disclosed in a letter from her brother, in 1916.

Rejuvenating a Family Bond

My father-in-law, Is, short for Isadore, would often muse that he was the fifth child born on the fifth day of the fifth month. That was in Elizabeth, New Jersey, in 1911. His parents, from Pinsk, married in Elizabeth, where his mother bore and, with the help of her eldest child, her daughter, Ann, raised 14 children.

City of Orange Votes to Allow Maplewood Eruv to Expand Through Its Borders

At a hearing on June 6, city of Orange council members voted unanimously to join more than 20 New Jersey municipalities in favor of an ordinance permitting the construction of an eruv within its borders. Orange is home to Roni Kotel, an attorney and member of the Maplewood Jewish Center-Congregation Beth Ephraim (MJC), who spearheaded the drive to expand the Maplewood eruv through Orange.

Write on, Juliet!

The Torah specifi cally instructs us to “honor the elderly” (Leviticus 19:32): “…every old person is regarded as having a special wisdom that comes with life experience” (Aish.com).

My cousin Juliet celebrated her 105th birthday last month with friends and personal assistants in the dining room of her house in Chatham, Massachusetts. I had emailed her the day before the festivities, to see how she was managing in the heat wave and to let her know my husband and I would be away for a few days. We were heading to the Sullivan County Catskills, where she was born and raised and I spent my childhood summers. On the way back, I wrote to find out how she had enjoyed her special day

Parenting and Learning to Grandparent in 2019

As I flew through the air reading parenting advice from articles in a recent issue of The Jewish Link of New Jersey, my thoughts were consumed with my next trip across the country with my husband. Our son and “daughter-by-marriage” are preparing for the birth of their first child, our first grandchild, making the Link’s pieces so timely that my mind went adrift.

What will the baby call me? How will I cradle and not smother, adore and not spoil? How will I pass on traditions, while all the time giving unconditional love? 

MetroWest’s JSDD WAE Center Is Moving to Livingston

Artists come in all shapes, sizes and abilities. If anyone can tap the hidden artistic talents of adults with disabilities, it is the staff and volunteers at the Jewish Service for the Developmentally Disabled (JSDD) of MetroWest, Inc., and their signature Wellness Arts Enrichment (WAE) Center. Through alternative learning, with an interesting and wide variety of self-initiated programming, members are encouraged to realize their full potential.

From Hobby to Business, ‘Sara’s Gifts’ Is Growing

Did you hear the news? Sara’s Gifts, the delectable, artistically designed baskets full of specialty kosher goodies, is now offering free hand delivery in northern New Jersey and New York City.

What have satisfied customers and gift recipients been saying about Sara’s Gifts? The Jewish Link sought out some testimonials.

A Kosher Mikvah Comes to Maplewood

When the shomeret raises her voice to declare “kosher,” a new day will dawn in Maplewood. As the Maplewood Jewish Center’s (MJC) administrator, and wife of the MJC’s spiritual leader, Rabbi Sholom Bogomilsky, Frumie Bogomilsky, director of their renowned KinderGan Preschool, now entering its 17th year, spoke candidly about the first kosher mikvah coming to Maplewood.

Greater MetroWest Day School Quest Conference Means the World

The fourth bi-annual Quest Conference for Day School Teachers, attended by 450 local day school educators, was hosted last week at Joseph Kushner Hebrew Academy/Rae Kushner Yeshiva High School (JKHA/RKYHS) in Livingston. This year’s theme was “The World in Our Jewish Day Schools: How the Social, Cultural and Political Climates Impact Our Work.”

Funded through the Jewish Federation of Greater MetroWest NJ and Day School Council, the Quest Conference was spearheaded by Jerry Gottesman, z”l, and his wife, Paula, who was honored in celebration of her 85th birthday.

Bring Your Family and ‘Discover West Orange’

According to Essex Ed, Turtle Back Zoo’s groundhog, everyone should gear up for an early spring. There’s no better place to start than the warm West Orange Jewish community at its annual Discover West Orange shabbaton. Discover West Orange, including the shabbaton, is a partnership between two of the community’s Modern Orthodox shuls: Congregation Ahavas Achim B’nai Jacob and David (AABJ&D) and Congregation Ohr Torah. This year, members of the community will be on hand to welcome visitors during Shabbat Zachor, March 6-7.

Halting Anti-Semitism on College Campuses in 2020

Before the outbreak of the coronavirus and the resulting lockdown, Larry Prince and Robert Berger, members of B’nai Shalom in West Orange, came up with the idea to run an interactive seminar to educate students before they embark on their college experiences.

Maplewood Jewish Center Dedicates Ner Tamid in Memory of Isaac Ostrovsky, z”l

The newly renovated Maplewood Jewish Center (MJC) added a spectacular final touch to its 125- seat, high ceilinged sanctuary. Commissioned as a memorial to Isaac Ostrovsky, z”l, a stalwart of the MJC, a Ner Tamid shaped like a rose was hung above the Aron Kodesh on August 6.

‘The Greatest Heroes’

Dr. Gerald (Jerry) Berkowitz, raised in Philadelphia, married Rifka Klein, the daughter of a prominent Buffalo rabbi, in 1965. Her condition? That he would be willing to make aliyah. Sadly, their dream was not to be.

Essex County Shows Up for Israel

A theme across America on Sunday was “I Stand For Israel.” Threatened by anti-Zionism and antisemitism after 4,000 rockets from Hamas landed across Israel in under two weeks, a cease-fire on Thursday, May 20, propelled Jews to mobilize.

Thousands marched in more than a dozen U.S. cities. They showed solidarity for Israel and condemned the recent upsurge of antisemitic attacks around the world.

Holocaust Survivor’s Legacy Is Much More Than a ‘Remnant’

“I know of Hitler’s hatred of the Jews. But what good will it do for him to kill innocent civilians? How many Jews can Hitler kill, after all? A thousand, two thousand?” Those chilling words by their mother gave Meesha (aka Mekhel or Michael) Kesler and his sister Luba an unsettling send-off in June 1941. Their mother stayed back and was killed along with their father and other family members. “The Remnant: On Burning Wings,” the latest work by Michael G. Kesler, tells the story of the teenage siblings who left their family and fled their homeland of Dubno, Poland as war raged.

‘Am I Jewish?’

When I began my genealogy research in 1988, I never expected to find a cousin living in Sochi, Russia in 2021, asking, “Am I Jewish?”

The memorable scents of summer

Here we are on the cusp of winter, and I’m thinking about the smells of summer. Growing up, spending time in the Sullivan County Catskills in summer included the familiar strong odor of cow manure. There was also the salty burnt-rubber scent from the intensity of defensive sprays from skunks, the refreshing smell of freshly cut grass, and… the pleasing aroma of freshly ground coffee.

Amen

My grandmother talked to God a lot. It’s evident from the letter she sent to my grandfather in 1911. Or was it 1912? Read on.

Oy, Gut in Himmel

With angst, my mother would spout, “Oy, Gut in himmel.” Then, she would sometimes emphasize it in English—“Oh, God in heaven.” Either way, we knew she was flustered about something we had done.

When a cousin in Florida invited me to join a Facebook group, Yiddish Word of the Day (A Light, Fun Group of Yiddish Lovers), I immediately clicked on it. I knew that revisiting those words and expressions in 2021 would be cathartic.

STIRRING MEMORIES IN YAHRZEIT GLASSES

When was the last time you took a drink out of a used yahrzeit glass? The thought came to me as I read a post on the Yiddish Word of the Day (A light, fun group of lovers of Yiddish) Facebook Group page. The person posting, Rayna Harris, stated, “I’m old enough to remember that my grandmother’s measuring cup was a yahrzeit candle glass. She was the queen of shiterayn!”

Marking 10 Years Of The Jewish Link!

One Motzei Shabbat in the dead of winter 2015, after picking up a copy of a “new” publication at Dunkin’ in Elizabeth, my brother Al suggested that I submit one of my articles to The Jewish Link. “The Guggle Muggle” fit the bill. The Link immediately recruited me to write more. Soon after I submitted a second article, The Link approached me to become a reporter, and it wasn’t long before my name appeared on the masthead.

While I refuse to play favorites, here’s a shout-out to any centenarians I interviewed. To my readers, whose comments are always welcome; making new friends is exhilarating. I appreciate The Link allowing me to gain experience as a journalist. Jill Kirsch contacted me early on, suggesting that a story was not ready for publication. She apologized, saying it would be too close to the deadline for me to get it in on time. Ready for the challenge, with determination, my response to Jill with a smile was, “Watch me.” Working like rapid-fire to cut the article down to the required word count and substance was a success.

While the readers may be unaware of the process of getting a piece to publication, anyone following my writing knows that my mantra is, “Everyone deserves a legacy.” There will be no finer legacy than that of The Jewish Link. May the newspaper and its dedicated staff members continue to go from strength to strength.

Sharon Mark Cohen
Staff Writer

MetroWest Cools Off at Second Annual Hatzalah Family Fun Day

The large open lot outside LifeTown; The Jerry Gottesman Center off Route 10 in Livingston was the place to be on Labor Day, September 4.

The late summer holiday, often celebrated with family picnics and barbecues, is meant to be a day of rest and relaxation for workers. With a low admission fee per family, seeing siblings and cousins walking hand in hand, the excitement of many inflatable slides and rides, giveaways, face painting, bubble wands, cotton candy, snacks for grabs, and Glatt kosher food for sale made it a perfect way for families to celebrate Labor Day at the second annual MetroWest Hatzalah Family Fun Day.

Thousands Participate in Annual Friendship Circle Walk and Run

The beautiful sight of the leaves changing colors added the perfect background for a successful 5K attended by 175 runners on Sunday morning. At noon, Rabbi Zalman Grossbaum, CEO of Friendship Circle at LifeTown of Livingston, addressed the multigenerational, pet-friendly crowd as they gathered at the Jerry Gottesman Center off Route 10 in Livingston ahead of the walk attended by thousands. Rabbi Grossbaum spoke about coming together with “mitzvot, song and prayer for Israel.”

Remembering Passovers past

Pesach is coming. It’s time to prepare the kitchen and clean all the pullets to get them ready to make plentiful pots of chicken soup. Out comes the well-worn, inexpensive red tea kettle with the blue cap and yellow spout, the primary colors that matched our kitchen wall covering 29 years ago when our first child was a newborn. I can’t help keeping the old relic. With the children out on their own and living in all parts of the country, it beckons them as they return for the Seders. It’s the first thing they look for even before asking, “What’s to eat?”

REMEMBERING THE PAST: The Perfect Match

Seeing the green and beige shoes displayed next to the mannequin the store window,with the blue and beige pair behind, instantly threw me back to the first day of 8th grade.

The year was 1966.  Lyndon Johnson was president.  Rock and Roll was here to stay.  Marie and I stood giggling outside Lafayette Junior High School on Monroe Avenue in Elizabeth, New Jersey. Deep in discussion, without doubt, while sizing up the boys, we were wondering which teachers we would have and if we were scheduled to be in any classes together.

Daydreaming While Dusting

The simple act of dusting can conjure up such intense thoughts. As I gently rubbed a cloth around the frame of a colorful drawing depicting a telling scene of our downtown, I was filled with thoughts of Siggy. The piece was hand-done and gifted to me by my multi-talented plumber. He was in his 80s when we met outside the local bakery shop. You couldn’t help being drawn to him sitting at the table and sketching…with a smile.

An apple — and a yearbook — for a favorite teacher

You never know whom you’ll meet at synagogue. An older woman was coming in just as we approached the Charles Kimmel building of the Maplewood Jewish Center. She said she was a friend of the family of the bat mitzva.

Thoughts That Grip Us: Remembering My Mother-in-Law

Waiting for the yizkor service to begin is a perfect time to reflect. This year, sitting behind a fellow congregant at the Charles Kimmel building of the Maplewood Jewish Center, I was entranced by the bare goldtone zipper on the classy black outfit worn by the woman in front of me. The style is finally starting to win me over, but it was my mother-in-law Hilda Cohen’s hobbyhorse.

Sweet Memories

We started Passover preparations with a panic at my mother’s house last year. We couldn’t find my grandfather’s sugar bowl, which graced the table on Passover for all those years. It finally turned up when my brother scoured the cellar and found it in a box with the crystal candy dish.

The Family House

My friend Sara died. That was five years ago. Upon returning from vacation and discovering her obituary in the newspaper, I cried. I still miss Sara; but, you may say, she was 92. That doesn’t make it any easier; she was my friend. Although I was a quarter of a century younger than she, we would sit in her kitchen and speak about politics, fashion, family, current events and local happenings.

Mothers of Lone Soldiers Meet in Teaneck

On a midweek July night, nine women met in person for the first time. Though they came from varying backgrounds, these women shared a common bond; they all currently have a child or children serving in the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) as a lone soldier. Prior to this Teaneck meeting, the women had only met virtually in one of many private Facebook groups for mothers of lone soldiers.

Reunion helpers deserve praise

I have been researching my family history for 20 years, and knew that my mother-in-law had a first cousin in Pittsfield with a large family. But no one knew of their whereabouts.

Roe, Anyone? P'tcha? Eggplant Relish?

Walking into my rabbi’s house in Maplewood, N.J., I saw a bowl sitting on the kitchen counter filled with a mysterious concoction. Not knowing what it was, but always curious when it comes to food and recipes, I questioned the rabbi’s wife. Frumi answered, “That’s roe, fresh from the fish market in New York.”

It’s a Great Time for a Kosher Vacation in the Poconos

There was a time when the Poconos were not Jewish friendly. Today, there are camps and cabins, hotels and conference centers frequented by Jewish families. While the Poconos resorts are famous for their heart-shaped tubs, some now even offer the extra treat of a kosher meal.

Student Shoah Documentary Debuts at Joseph Kushner Hebrew Academy

The June 3, 2015 premiere screening at the Joseph Kushner Hebrew Academy (JKHA) of Names, Not Numbers: A Movie in the Making, presented a step-by-step account of the 8th-grade students preparing their own documentary. The project helped to assure that the last generation to have firsthand interaction with Holocaust survivors had the necessary tools to do the interviews, record them and preserve the legacy.

YACHAD OF CENTRAL NJ PROVIDES CULTURAL JEWISH CONNECTION

Help get the word out: Nothing defines “together” more than “Yachad.” While Yachad, an organization “dedicated to enhancing the life opportunities of individuals with disabilities ensuring their participation in the full spectrum of Jewish life,” has been in existence for 30 years through the Orthodox Union nationally and internationally, Federation of Central NJ (Federation) brought it to Middlesex County after being approached by a group of parents with children of special needs.

Kushner Academy Hosts AIPAC Gathering

By Thursday afternoon, September 3, the list of U.S. Senators in favor of the Iran nuclear deal had grown to 37—by adding one from New Jersey. The airwaves blared that Sen. Cory Booker (D-NJ) endorsed the deal just before The American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC)-hosted community gathering was getting underway at the Joseph Kushner Hebrew Academy in Livingston, New Jersey.

Hudson County Young Jewish Professionals Choose Chabad

There are many social options available to young adults in Hoboken and Jersey City at the end of a long and stressful work week, but many of these individuals are choosing Chabad. Sixteen years ago, Rabbi Moshe Schapiro and his wife, Shaindel, started a Chabad congregation to service families in the two neighboring towns. They built a thriving preschool and Hebrew school, but also recognized the need for a community organization for young Jewish professionals.

Maplewood Rabbi Receives Semicha Via Skype

Twenty-two year old Yosef (Yossi) Bogomilsky always knew he would be a rabbi. Yet, even coming from a long line of Chasidic rabbis, he never could have guessed where and how he would attain that goal. Nor could he have imagined how well the years and depths of his yeshiva studies would prepare him for this role.

When Rabbi Yossi received semicha, he was across the globe in South Africa. In order to join the ranks of his ancestors, the exam he took was completed via Skype, with Rabbi Dovid Shochet, president of the Rabbinical Council of Toronto, Ontario, Canada, stationed by his computer in Toronto.

New Chabad at Short Hills Building Nears Completion

“It’s been a 20-plus-year journey and we are almost there,” noted Rabbi Mendel Solomon, executive director and spiritual leader of Ahavat Torah—Chabad at Short Hills, as he discussed the near completion of the new Chabad building. Solomon spoke enthusiastically about its great location on South Orange Avenue, at the corner of White Oak Ridge Road. The location is so convenient that residents of the Poets, Deerfield and Hartshorn sections of Short Hills can walk down the street to the new location from the local side streets.

Essex County Celebrates Israel

Yom Hazikaron and Yom Ha’atzmaut were celebrated last week in Essex County and lauded as making a concrete link in the Jewish connection to the Land of Israel.

For the fifth year, the Orthodox shuls in Livingston, Springfield and West Orange congregated for a Yom Hazikaron observance. This year it was hosted at Congregation Ahawas Achim B’nai Jacob & David (AABJ&D) in West Orange, to a packed sanctuary.

Mishpocheh Newsletter Binds Family

The month of June evokes family time. With weddings, graduations and parties galore, there is so much to celebrate and share with extended family. It’s also the season preceded by the parsha where Moshe Rabbeinu was commanded to take a census of our people. That strikes a very special chord with me. In 1989 I started to research and record my family history; in essence, I was keeping a census of the extended family.

Chabad at Short Hills Opens New Building

“Phenomenal” was the first word uttered by congregant Jack Tarica of Westfield to describe the Murray and Lucy Pantirer Family Building at the new Chabad at Short Hills-Center for Jewish Life. Multiple rabbis and dignitaries joined the community for the ribbon-cutting ceremony last Thursday, which marked the grand opening of the long-awaited new home for the growing suburban congregation located at 650 South Orange Avenue in Essex County.

Who Will Say Kaddish for Leon?

Throughout the decades of my genealogy research, there have been a few cousins with exceptionally common names (think Cohen, Friedman…), making them more of a challenge to find. With the family name Schneider, Leon was one of them. What turned out to be both fortunate and fruitful was finding Leon when I did. By the time I located Leon, he was the one living descendant from the brood of my mother-in-law’s aunt, Esther Schneider from Plainfield.

Green Chicpea Brings Middle Eastern Flavors to Newark

Billing itself as offering “Middle Eastern cuisine with a gourmet twist,” the Green Chicpea, at 59 Halsey Street in Newark, which opened in 2013, also happens to be strictly kosher. According to the owner/operator, Martin Weber, he, a Southern California native, and his wife, Ronit, from Israel, are partners in everything, even the restaurant.

Jewish Law Symposium Held in Whippany

At the 13th annual Jewish Law Symposium, close to 800 legal professionals were serenaded by a violinist playing “Fiddler on the Roof” tunes. After a plentiful and delicious cocktail hour, Chabad-style, Rabbi Shalom D. Lubin, founder of the prestigious event, a project of the Rabbinical College of America, sounded the shofar signifying the month of Elul.

What Are the Chances?

My father’s 22nd yahrzeit fell on the weekend of a bar mitzvah we attended in Charlotte, North Carolina. While out of town on the occasion, it meant a lot to me to be at services celebrating another religious event.

The stained-glass windows of Temple Israel in Charlotte would have appealed to my father.  While not shomer Shabbos, religion was important to him, and he was interested in mechanics, particularly in how things were made.

MJC’s Rabbi Bogomilsky Goes Above And Beyond for His Congregants

Rabbi Sholom Bogomilsky, spiritual leader of the Maplewood Jewish Center, deserves kavod, according to longtime congregant Jeffrey Kingsley. Kingsley, diagnosed with a slowly progressing ALS six years ago this month, just became the owner of a van enabled with assistive technology for those with disabilities. Over a six-week to two-month period, Bogomilsky quietly went about raising the funds to get Kingsley into a van equipped with an electronic ramp.

What Makes Us Jewish?

When I hold my baby granddaughter, I quite naturally break into a round of the Yiddish nursery rhyme Patshe, Patshe Kikelekh. Seeing her delight in the tune, I cannot help but wonder, “When did I become my mother?”

LABEL WHAT YOU’RE LEAVING

This cleaning marathon I’ve been on has me reacquainting myself with a wide variety of once hidden family treasures. It all started during the lockdown to combat the world coronavirus pandemic, which coincided with the time for an extensive spring/Passover cleaning.

Remember the Helzel?

Since joining Facebook, I’ve signed into a few of its many groups. One of the most rewarding is People Who Went to Catskill Bungalow Colonies, started by Trudy Gewirtzman Malmut, now 10,000 members strong and growing fast. On April 28, another member of the group, Jan Shapiro-Shandler posted, “I have been holding onto this cookbook which belonged to my mother for many years… I just took it out to look at the recipes and realized that it was to benefit Monticello Hospital… Thought I would share some pages and see if anyone recognizes any names. Also if anybody needs a recipe for blintzes or knaidlach it’s all in here. Just let me know.”

Hebrew Free Loan Recipients Get An Assist From ‘The Change Reaction’

The Hebrew Free Loan of New Jersey (HFLNJ), a member of the International Association of Jewish Free Loans (IAJFL), offers interest-free loans to members of the Jewish community. For the past seven years, it has been helmed by Malkie Ratzker, director of loan services.

Who Remembers Mae Schnoll Federbusch?

My memory of a family friend, Mae Federbusch, goes back generations to a foreign land, many years ago. Yet, my thoughts of Mae seem current and remain as a fixture in my mind.

The chat of the century

Can you remember what you did 100 years ago?

Juliet Relis Bernstein, 107, my cousin, clearly recalls being with her mother at the polls the first time after women won the right to vote. Within the foothills of the Catskill Mountains, they traveled as a family in a horse-drawn carriage.

Adler Aphasia Center Is Ready to Help in West Orange

Forty percent of stroke survivors are affected with aphasia, “a language disorder that impairs the expression and understanding of spoken language, reading and writing,” according to literature provided by The Adler Aphasia Center (AAC). Based in Maywood, New Jersey, the AAC has been working to help those suffering from aphasia since 2003. Mike Adler, plagued with aphasia after bypass surgery, and his wife Elaine, founded AAC after unsuccessfully seeking help from around the world. The couple wanted to give others faced with their situation the help they needed to regain communication skills and lead fuller lives.

Maplewood Jewish center dedicates new building on chanukah

The Maplewood Jewish Center (MJC) opened the doors of the Charles Kimmel Building on Parker Avenue to capacity on Chanukah. Rabbi Sholom Bogomilsky, MJC spiritual leader, spoke of the rededication of the Holy Temple and the purposeful dedication of the newly renovated state-of-the-art building on Sunday, December 5. The long-awaited, COVID-19 postponed opening was celebrated with fanfare and smiling eyes peeking out above MJC insignia facemasks. https://jewishlink.news/community-news/bergen/47745-maplewood-jewish-center-dedicates-new-building-on-chanukah

While I Never Knew My Grandparents, I’ve Got the Picture

My friend Kevin sent me the link to a review of a new movie. A while ago, Kevin told me about the book upon which the movie is based. Written by his friend’s cousin, the story is now a documentary, which expands upon a three-minute family film shot in Poland just before WWII. That gave me pause.

No, I don’t have movie footage showing Eastern Europe before the outbreak of WWII, but I do have DVDs of movies taken in Newark during that era. Plus, some stills are floating around from family and friends, which depict our ancestral shtetl of Chudnov, Ukraine before WWII.

Seek and Ye Shall Find: Uncovering Jewish Marriage Records From the Old Country

After decades of research, there’s still news to report. Soon after giving birth to our first child in 1988, I began recording his family history. That was with paper and pen. For years, I collected information by word of mouth, interviewing and recording relatives on videotape, corresponding by mail or speaking on the telephone. The research included all sides of our ancestry.

Never in my wildest dreams did I expect 34 years later to find Jewish marriage records of my great-grandparents in the old country. That’s the beauty of the internet.

BOYS WILL BE BOYS IN THE CATSKILLS

Our dear friend Louie Weber expired peacefully at home on the early morning of February 10, 2023. He was 101. We celebrated his birthday with him in October 2022 at his house in Brooklyn.

Louie and my father met at the bungalow colony owned by our cousins on DeBruce Road in Livingston Manor. The weary remnants of the barn our family of six lived in during those summers of the “roaring ‘40s, ‘50s, and ‘60s” of Borscht Belt fame still stand.

The World Isn’t So Big After All, Is It?

Leonid was my second cousin, but we never met. His father, Avrum, born in 1909 in Chudnov, Ukraine, was my father’s first cousin. While our fathers may have met, and even played together as babies, sadly, they never had an opportunity to bond as a family. My father, born in 1911, left Chudnov with his family and came to live in the United States in 1912.

The only one of four brothers from his branch of our large family who survived military service in WWII, Cousin Avrum, according to his granddaughter, never spoke of his Jewish ancestry. Notably, Avrum’s eldest son, Leonid, 82, passed away at his home in Russia on October 5, 2022, on the holiest day on the Jewish calendar, Yom Kippur.

Ireland Through Jewish Eyes

The Irish Jewish Museum, founded in 1985, is located on Walworth Road in Dublin. The museum’s opening was attended by Chaim Herzog, then-president of Israel. Yitzhak HaLevi Herzog, Chaim’s father, was a prominent figure in both the Jewish and Irish communities, having served as the chief rabbi of Ireland, a position that no longer exists. Chaim, born in Belfast, was educated in Dublin.

BARRY ALBIN LOOKS BACK ON TENURE ON NJ’S HIGHEST COURT

Justice Barry T. Albin, highly esteemed for his brilliant legal acumen, retired from his position on the highest court of New Jersey on July 7, 2022. The trailblazing jurist, hard-working and heimish, reached the mandatory retirement age of 70, what he has referred to as the “constitutional age of senility.” During his tenure as an associate justice on the New Jersey Supreme Court, he authored more than 400 opinions, including over 230 majority opinions, more than 130 dissents, and dozens of concurrences.

Communication is key

Placing a stone on cousin Tillie’s tombstone at the Chudnover section of the Talmud Torah Cemetery in Newark, I said, It’s Sharon, Benny’s daughter…Surah (my namesake) and Nachman’s granddaughter. I just made my yearly trek and visited their graves in the row behind you. You cousins certainly stayed close, even in death.

An anniversary story

The Sullivan County Catskills was a summer haven in the 1950s, where I and many others in the New York City/northern New Jersey area spent our childhoods. Living within a reasonable driving distance from the Catskills, we drove our tightly packed jalopies over the bumpy old roads. Feeling nostalgic as our 40th wedding anniversary approached, it made perfect sense for my husband and me to travel today’s highways two short hours to arrive back at the old summertime homestead.

The Guggle Muggle

A Guggle muggle is so soothing and comforting. Nothing beats the taste of this old favorite wrought with memories of childhood. But the name of this tasty concoction was a new one on me.

Fifty years ago, I had pneumonia. My father, may he rest in peace, suggested a warm drink of milk and honey, with a dab of melted butter—a time-tested remedy to calm the irritation from a pesky cough. His own mother made it for him whenever he had a cold. However, either he never mentioned the name of the drink, or if he did, I brushed it off as a silly, made-up title.

Letter to the Editor: On a sparkling summer day

On a sparkling early summer day, I stood in the beating sun on the grounds of a cemetery. A few days before, my brother Stu read in the New Jersey Star-Ledger that there would be graveside services that upcoming Sunday for our childhood family doctor. I could have been so many other places, but I felt a pull; after all, I thought, his family deserves to know about the lives this small-framed, larger than life man had touched. My husband and I scrapped our plans to see an exhibit at the Met with our friends that morning, because a parade route closed off 5th Avenue in New York City. Hearing about the bottleneck on the radio early that morning, I felt relieved to have a legitimate excuse to cancel the outing.

The Family Gene Chronicles a Medical Mystery

With varices in her digestive track that are so delicate they can burst at any time, author Joselin Linder spoke candidly and comfortably with The Moth senior producer, Kate Tellers, about her memoir/medical thriller, “The Family Gene,” at her book launch last month. A crowd filled the Greenlight Books bookstore in Fort Greene, Brooklyn, to hear Linder speak, and have her sign their copies of her book, published by Ecco, which she subtitled, “A Mission to Turn My Deadly Inheritance Into a Hopeful Future.”

The Things We Keep

What could be in this old, dented Famous Ginger Wafers tin? The papers rolled up inside were priceless. They made it to the United States in 1912 on a ship from Europe. My grandmother traveled with her two young sons — my uncle and my father — on the Potsdam to be reunited with my grandfather who had come to Newark the previous year. She brought her passport, birth certificate, and ketuba.

Maplewood Jewish Center Prepares to Expand

The Charles Kimmel building of the Maplewood Jewish Center (MJC) is getting a much-needed facelift. On November 28, the Maplewood Township Zoning Board of Adjustment unanimously voted to grant MJC a building permit for major renovations.

Joseph's Odyssey

Drawing lively scenes of everyday life was therapy for Siegmund Joseph.  "Siggy" could often be found doing just that at Cait and Abby's, the busy cafe nestled under the train trestle in the heart of South Orange Village.  Sketching images of those passing by, as residents rushed for a train, strolled, or sipped a cup of coffee, was his passion.

In Memory of Yair Shapiro z"l

The name Yair means “he will illuminate.” Yair Shapiro, 40, who tragically fell to his death on a hiking trip in Israel, on Chol HaMoed Pesach, April 7, 2015, embodied this spirit. The montage of pictures on Shapiro’s Facebook page shows him sporting a genuine, wide-beaming smile in every photograph; a smile that would light up any room. That’s the same way his “friends” remember him on their own Facebook pages.

Stop Texting:  Read On

Who isn’t too busy these days? The Internet was supposed to make life easier. But, listening to Elyssa Friedland talk about the journey to write and publish her first novel, Love and Miss Communication,at the Sisterhood of Etz Chaim book party in her native Livingston on June 9, highlighted the downside of social media.

Walk-a-thon strengthens legacy

Rabbi Mordechai “Pinchas” Teitz had a vision. In Learn Torah, Love Torah, Live Torah, the author of his biography, his daughter Rivka Blau, underscores her father’s question, “What can be done to secure the future of Jewish life in our community?”

Highland Park 2nd Graders Learn Science as a Community

What are children learning in school these days? For some lucky students in Highland Park, the answer is more than everyday science. Bill Schultz, the Raritan Riverkeeper, spoke to 2nd-grade classes in the small borough, which borders the Raritan River, encouraging them to think about what happens when trash gets into the riverway and ends up downstream. The May 6 assembly combined about 150 students from six 2nd-grade classes at Bartle Elementary School and two at Rabbi Pesach Raymon Yeshiva (RPRY). The program was created to foster more of a community feeling between public and private schools in the Middlesex County school system, and it certainly succeeded. Councilman Josh Fine initiated the program, with the help of the Environmental Commission and dedicated teachers and administrators.

How Write Made Right a Holocaust-Era Torah

“Hope” is what Gitty Kotlar took from the rescue and repair of the Holocaust-era Torah by survivors and philanthropists Cecile and Edward Mosberg, in memory of Harry, Judith, Sidney and Biana Wilf.

Kushner’s Evening With Rabbi Lord Jonathan Sacks

On the Thursday between Shabbat Selichot and Rosh Hashanah, the Joseph Kushner Hebrew Academy (JKHA)/Rae Kushner Yeshiva High School (RKYHS) hosted An Evening With Yeshiva University (YU), featuring Rabbi Lord Jonathan Sacks, who spoke on “Accepting Responsibility: The Power of the Yamim Noraim.” A distinguished Professor of Judaic Thought at YU and New York University, Sacks was introduced by Rabbi Kenneth Brander, after a welcome by JKHA/RKYHS Head of School Rabbi Eliezer E. Rubin. The event was livestreamed so that people at home could watch and also learn about the power of the High Holidays.

Warmed by Family Captured on Tape

In this frigid Northeast winter I had the warmth of family. Yes, I am an empty-nester times three, and my husband was off at work, but I spent the days inside rewinding, playing and burning old family VHS tapes onto DVDs. Finding myself right back in the moment, as I watched, I was clapping, smiling and enjoying special times of days past. Whether it was a party, vacation, special event or just a plain day watching our children learning to speak, walk, read or simply at play, it enveloped my thoughts.

Students Rally for Gun Control in Livingston

A capacity crowd filled the sanctuary pews at Temple B’nai Abraham in Livingston to hear the urgent pleas of the student leaders from Marjory Stoneman Douglas School (MSD) in Parkland, Florida, on Sunday. After being moved to this larger venue due to the anticipated attendance, more doors were opened and more seats set up to accommodate the over 1,200 people who attended the Rally for Common Sense Gun Reform. Twenty at a time were allowed to enter the room, under tight security.

A Familial Love Affair

Speaking with my cousin Lois gives me that warm-all-over feeling. After many years, I reached out and found my long-lost older female cousin. Our mothers were each the firstborn of our grandfather’s fruitful marriages. To make a long story short, I always knew that she existed, yet we were living in parallel universes.

When the Community Becomes Extended Family

Before Hadassa Bogomilsky headed off to camp in Montreal, we spent a fun-filled afternoon together. The 13-year-old daughter of my rabbi from the Maplewood Jewish Center-Congregation Beth Ephraim had just finished her school year and I had just sent off one of my family newsletters. We were both in the mood to celebrate.

NESTING GOES BEYOND PREGNANCY

During a casual Sunday conversation with our son—on an east coast evening by us, which was only midday out on the west coast by him—I inquired about what he and his seven-months-pregnant wife were doing that day. “Hold on,” he requested as he asked, “What’s that word again?” “Nesting,” he soon replied.

THE LURE OF THE MOUNTAINS

While out in Portland, Oregon, to meet his grandniece—my precious granddaughter—my brother Al seized the opportunity to ride with me on a short day trip to Multnomah Falls, along the Columbia River. Of my three older brothers, it is Al, 10 years my senior, who still speaks the most with me of our love of the mountains, which has continued since our childhood summers in the Catskills.

L’Dor V’Dor

After capturing a candid photo of me kneeling on his living room rug, eye level with his newborn baby, Solly, situated in her car seat, my eldest son, Judd, said, “Remember Alvie always used to say to me that Tottoo went on her hands and knees to play with me? Well I guess it runs in the family.” Based closely on his given name, “Alvie” was the moniker Judd came up with for my second eldest brother. The unique name “Tottoo,” however, calls for more of the story behind its creation.

Centenarian Shares Fascinating Life Story

Mortimer Jonah Cohen was born on the last day of Pesach, 22 Nisan, 5676, (April 25, 1916), in the Bronx. Aside from being what his nephew Shael from West Orange calls “adorable,” what is this 103-year-old’s biggest claim to fame? Maybe it’s helping famous people and rabbonim in his dental practice or achieving two holes-in-one at the golf course. Or is it simply having Jennie Grossinger as a guest at his wedding?

Give Me the Good Old Days

One of my mother’s favorite declarations was, “Give me the good old days.” I never really took it to heart. Not, that is, until I was “stuck” sitting between two men on a domestic flight. Even with the “convenience” of computers, my husband was seated between two strangers about four rows behind me.

World Jewish Relief Shares Kindertransport Records

More than 70 years after fleeing Nazi-occupied Germany on the Kindertransport, the survivors who are still living are entitled to benefits. Their families are now able to retrieve records of their ancestors who were part of the famed rescue effort.

Polish Holocaust-Era Survivor Shares Her Story in Livingston

On January 27, the 75th anniversary of the Holocaust, survivor Melania Hoffman, 90, spoke at the Livingston Historical Society meeting in honor of International Holocaust Remembrance Day. In America 71 years, Hoffman spoke of her childhood in war-torn Poland for the first time.

Hoffman compellingly recounted the merciless killings that she witnessed. While many of the gory details remain trapped in her memory, she was able to share some of the important firsthand facts with the audience.

Maxwell House Haggadahs and LatkEs Mi'Dor L'Dor

Last week we celebrated Passover in a new way. For the first time, we sat alone at the Seders due to social distancing policies imposed by the government. We shared the rest of the eight day holiday with only those living in our home. As usual, however, our Seders were conducted using the highly recognizable Maxwell House Haggadahs.

Teaneck Entrepreneurs Start ‘Jewish Small Businesses’ Facebook Group

Local entrepreneurs Deena Buechler Bernstein and her husband Henry Bernstein are at it again. The Teaneck residents, who started their own business of making custom challah boards quite accidently…literally, are now Facebook group admins.

Maplewood Jewish Center Completes Renovations

Maplewood Jewish Center (MJC) put Maplewood on the map—the Jewish map. After 12 years, a dream has finally come true for the members of the MJC community.

Bruce Buechler of West Orange Appointed Superior Court Judge

Bruce D. Buechler of West Orange was one of 12 superior court judges confirmed by the New Jersey State Senate in March. Buechler, a partner at the Roseland law firm Lowenstein Sandler LLP, served as vice chair, Bankruptcy and Restructuring Department. He left his long-held position to join the New Jersey Superior Court Bench on April 6, where his assignment is to the Civil Division in Essex County.

Parsippany Stands Up and Rallies for Israel

On Sunday afternoon, June 6, a pro-Israel rally was held at Smith Field in Parsippany, sponsored by the Jewish Federation of Greater MetroWest (Federation) in partnership with various local synagogues and Amir Hadar. Event organizers Rabbi Inna Serebro-Litvak of Temple Shalom in Succasunna, and Ron Brandt, president of Mt. Freedom Jewish Center in Randolph, led the estimated 350 attendees in song and support for Israel.

A Dream Becomes a Mission

Talia Rapps, LMSW, of Cedarhurst, is on a mission to change the world. The founder and president of The Spiritual Escape (TSE) aims to celebrate diversity, unity and love, as a kiddush Hashem.

The idea of how to crystalize her concept of gathering the Jewish people came to the health care professional in a dream in November 2019. Her two grandfathers of blessed memory, Rabbi Eliyahu Fishman, an Auschwitz survivor who shared time in New Jersey and Israel, and Eliyahu Chai Magzimoff, who lived in Jerusalem, both spoke of her need to gather the Jewish women for Mashiach. 

Miracle of Miracles

I feel so legitimate. Growing up, I falsely believed there were no records from Eastern Europe to verify any Jewish existence. For 33 years, I’ve been tracking our family history.

Clifton Genealogist Aims for More Than Names and Dates

Imagine being adopted, raised by a Jewish family in Pittsburgh, and reaching a roadblock trying to find your birth family in Nova Scotia. It would help if you had the family name in Halifax correct, but it’s not always that simple. That’s the point at which Eric Feinstein of Clifton, a professional genealogist, can help.

NEXT YEAR IN JERUSALEM

Military records indicate that Wolf (aka Velvel) Alterovich Temnogorod was born in 1899 in Starokonstantinov, Ukraine. Velvel, my granduncle, married in 1927 in Vinnitsa, Ukraine. He was the father of two daughters.

His descendants informed me that one of the martyrs of Babi Yar may have been Velvel. That massacre took place near Kyiv, Ukraine, in 1941 when Velvel was in the prime of his life. Whether it was at Babi Yar or elsewhere in Kyiv, nobody knows. His descendants told me that “it is said that the neighbors betrayed him to the Nazis. Where he was killed is not known.”

L’Dor V’Dor: 100 Years of Doing Business At Schneider Hardware in West Orange

Born in Austria in 1890, Yiddish-speaking Isadore Schneider came to the United States as a young man. Settling in Newark, New Jersey, he worked in a company that offered a sharpening service before purchasing an existing hardware store with his brother in the Tory section of West Orange.

MIKVAH CHANA WOMEN’S ANNUAL GALA INSPIRES OVER 500 WOMEN

Mikvah Chana Women’s Annual Gala 2023 at the Westminster Hotel in Livingston on February 28 was a rousing success. More than 500 women were in attendance. The theme of the evening, Empowering Yourself, Believe You Could, was a rallying call to the women and high school girls who filled the room.

After an array of appetizers and camaraderie, Tehillim by Chevy and Shiri Kaplitt, attendees heard from co-chairs Dara Orbach and Toba Grossbaum. Orbach began by wishing her daughter a happy birthday, noting that there were four generations at the event and that Mikvah Chana was named for her great-grandmother.

FILM DEPICTING STORY OF WWII JEWISH PARTISANS IS A MUST-SEE

With the number of Holocaust survivors dwindling rapidly, the all-important documentary “Four Winters: A Story of Jewish Partisan Resistance and Bravery in WW2” is now screening at select locations across the country, and soon will travel the globe. The riveting 90-minute film, which took 10-plus years to come to fruition, is a must-see.

The first-person stories of brave Jewish partisans give voice to the over 25,000 men and women who fought back against the Nazi slaughterers, shattering the myth of Jewish passivity. With the glow of wolves’ eyes staring at them in the forests, they took refuge and gathered equipment to fight and film the unfathomable existence they endured for four winters in Eastern Europe. One survivor scoffed, “Better than the Nazis being there,” adding with a laugh, “The wolves kept the Nazis away.”

Newark Historic Jewish Cemeteries Are in Grave Condition

The annual visitation day at the historic Jewish cemeteries in Newark, organized by the Jewish Federation of Greater MetroWest (Federation), has been impacted over the last few years by extreme weather and pandemic-related restrictions. According to Ira Epstein, who manages the Newark and Elizabeth Jewish cemeteries with his brother Bennett, “many factors, including the weather, vandalism, and toppled tombstones impacting other stones” are also accountable for multiple overturned tombstones.

The Michael Levin Base Offers Lone Soldiers Physical and Emotional Support

Michael Levin was an American-Israeli lone soldier in the Paratroopers Brigade of the IDF who was killed in action in the Second Lebanon War, on Aug. 1, 2006, in Lebanon. A symbolic boot is a logo for The Michael Levin Base (The Base), a nonprofit organization in Jerusalem named in memory of 22-year-old Levin who wanted to create a base with an extended community for lone soldiers.

For more information visit https://youtu.be/OXNDnrBdws0. To contribute to The Michael Levin Base and help thousands of lone soldiers and sheirut leumi, go to https://causematch.com/Israel-at-War.