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FOR WILENSKYS, ISRAEL'S A FAMILY AFFAIR |
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When you wear a crimson t-shirt that says Alabama in Hebrew while visiting Israel be prepared for exciting things to happen.
This was the case when
the Wilensky family wore their shirts in Israel recently. Eighteen members of the family traveled together this summer to celebrate
the Bar Mitzvah of
Kyle Nadler (son of Todd and Kim Wilensky Nadler of Atlanta) at the Western Wall.
Birmingham's
Eva Wilensky, Kyle's great aunt, contacted the
Birmingham Jewish Federation
prior to their trip to secure shirts for everyone. Eva wrote that on the day they wore their shirts they were stopped more than once by other tourists who knew
the shirts said Alabama in Hebrew.
One of those was Alabama native Alan Lubel, who now lives in Atlanta. (Alan's mother Helena and late father Bill volunteered at the BJF for years.)
They were also stopped by Mike Nichols of Houston, who grew up in Birmingham. As Eva wrote, "Our shirts themselves were an attraction."
DESIRE FOR PEACE
The trip was
the first visit to Israel for
Dena Wilensky Gaynor and her husband Rick.
They were struck by the strong sense of pride and desire for peace among the Israeli people. They were impressed with the balance between the historic and modern aspects of Israel as well as the security techniques commonplace throughout the country, from Ben Gurion airport to even a Burger King restaurant.
Eva expressed her personal joy upon seeing Israel through the eyes of her two young grandsons, Ryan and Daniel. Of the picture she sent us
of some of the family at Masada,
she wrote, "We are standing atop Masada; it was at this time we realized the importance of continuing to support Israel, our homeland."
It is a great time to visit Israel.
The BJF will give you a free t-shirt if you send us a picture of you wearing it in Israel and some written impressions about your trip. To obtain a shirt, contact Donna Berry at the BJF at donnab@bjf.org or 205-879-0416. Everyday in so many ways, the BJF connects people with Israel and with one another through sharing highlights of their trip in Update.
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TALK ABOUT NICE EMAILS |
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As Update readers know, Birmingham Jewish Federation summer intern Daniel Odrezin has been asked to do 50 fundraising solicitations before he concludes his internship and returns to law school at the University of Alabama.
BJF Executive Director Richard Friedman gave him the assignment as a way for Daniel to learn about Federation fundraising.
In response to coverage of this in a previous Update (see below link), Daniel received a wonderful email from one of our readers, a good friend of the Jewish community who is Catholic. This person already has pledged $200 to the 2010 BJF Campaign.
"Daniel...I've kept up with your fine writing in Update and now your
fund-raising work in recent weeks. You're a
gifted and highly-motivated young man,"
this friend wrote.
"The BJF knows earlier this year
I pledged $200 which I promised to pay
by the end of 2010. In support of your
solicitation efforts (fundraising is a chore
unless one believes in the cause as
you do!), I would like to pledge an extra
$100 to increase my pledge to $300.
Continued Blessings in your work and life!"
Talk about great emails! We thank this person for their
support, friendship and interest in our community.
If you'd like to be one of Daniel's 50 solicitations, please email him at DanielO@bjf.org.
You can add to your 2010 pledge, as this person did, or make an early pledge to the 2011 campaign as others have done.
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