Published Articles

The Original Article Published On The Jerusalem Post

Jewish filmmaker Amir Bar-Lev’s epic documentary is required viewing for Dead Heads

In 1978, Deadheads secretly prayed that the Grateful Dead would cross the border from Egypt into Israel and perform in the Sinai Desert after their three-day gig at the Great Pyramid of Giza. Their wish for a miracle never panned out and the Dead never played a concert in Israel – though Jewish Grateful Dead drummer Mickey Hart performed in Jerusalem in 2013.

Thanks to director Amir Bar-Lev and his new film Long Strange Trip: The Untold Story of the Grateful Dead, Deadheads worldwide and those who have long been curious about Dead shows and Grateful Dead culture can now experience this world – if they are willing to devote four hours to this important new film, presented in six acts.

The film covers a lot of ground and features interviews with the Core Four (Bob Weir, Phil Lesh, Bill Kreutzmann and Mickey Hart – who are all credited as executive producers); Dennis McNally, the band’s publicist and biographer; daughter Trixie Garcia; Donna Jean Godchaux (band member from 1972 to 1979); Sam Cutler, the tour manager from 1970 to 1974; girlfriend and later wife Barbara Meier; and such celebrity Deadheads as Senator Al Franken.

Viewers are treated to rare clips and archival images of Jerry Garcia’s teenage years, the band forming and living together in the Haight Ashbury neighborhood of San Francisco, meetings with members of the Rolling Stones, performances in the US and around the world (including the famous Europe ’72 Tour) and even underwater video of Jerry scuba diving in Hawaii.

There are many sweet, poignant and historically significant moments throughout the film, including black and white footage of Garcia patiently teaching Lesh and Weir the harmony to the song “Candyman.”  The audience learns all about the Dead’s famous sound system, known as the Wall of Sound, meets Deadheads outside concert venues on Shakedown Street, experiences the rampant LSD culture of band members and fans, and watches Jerry battle lapse into a diabetic coma, battle drug addiction and ultimately die of a heart attack at age 53 in 1995.

A particularly interesting theme of the movie was Garcia’s fascination with the 1948 film Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein. Garcia notes that the movie both delighted and terrified him; he first saw it as a child at age 5, just after his father died.

The film premiered at the Sundance Film Festival and has been screened this past week at select cities across the United States. The film arrives to Amazon Prime Video on June 2.  Footage of camels, Jerry Garcia and band, and Deadheads at the pyramids can be seen approximately 2-1/2 hours into the film.

Bar-Lev, son of Israeli parents, got into the Grateful Dead growing up in the 1980s in Northern California. He playfully notes that it took 14 years to create the film. “Getting the Core Four on board was a process of do, die, do again, die again – for eleven years! I always wanted to make the film. It was pure persistence.” He continues, “We set out to make a 90 minute film – but at two hours, we were only at 1974, so we went back to our financiers!”

Bar-Lev’s other films include The Tillman Story about the NFL star-turned-US Army ranger Pat Tillman, My Kid Could Paint That, and Happy Valley, a film about the Penn State Jerry Sandusky scandal.

Read more

Welcome to Tikvah Connects, a new publication of the National Ramah Commission, connecting you several times a year with news about members of the Tikvah community and exciting Tikvah events.

Nearly every Rosh Hashanah and Passover since 1984, I have received beautiful handwritten cards from Matthew, a former Tikvah camper. Several Friday afternoons and erev chags a year, I receive lovely phone calls from Jeremy, another former camper from Camp Ramah in New England. Matthew, Jeremy, and hundreds of other former Tikvah campers from across the United States and Canada have grown in so many ways since their camp years.

Members of the larger Tikvah community are quite diverse. They work part time, full time, and volunteer. They live in apartments, group residences, and houses. They participate in various social and recreational activities. Yet, they all have one thing in common: They cherish precious memories of summers in various Tikvah programs. They feel deeply connected to Tikvah and Ramah, and many are looking for ways to stay connected.

Tikvah is truly special! There has been so much growth in the world of inclusive camping since Herb and Barbara Greenberg started the first Tikvah program (with 8 campers!) in Glen Spey, NY, in 1970. The Tikvah program soon moved to Ramah New England. Now, all of our Ramah camps include campers with disabilities. Each time I travel to Israel, I am fortunate to visit with the Greenbergs in their home in Ra’anana. They are delighted when I share stories of Tikvah’s ongoing development. So much has happened in 47 years!

Our Tikvah programs offer camping, vocational training, employment opportunities, family camps, Israel trips and more!

Our National Ramah Tikvah Network, founded in 2011, connects Ramah staff, families, and alumni from across camps and from across the decades. Our alumni staff, campers, and families live in many parts of the US, Canada, Israel, and even other countries around the world. We have had successful local reunions in such places as Washington, DC, Chicago, Los Angeles, and at Camp Ramah in Ojai, California. Some of our camps hold weekly or regular video chats with such names as “Shabbos Is Calling” and “Shavua Tov.”

We are particularly excited to share our inaugural issue of Tikvah Connects at this time. Just this week, Tikvah staff members for summer 2017 met for training at the National Ramah Spring Leadership Training Conference (“Winer”) at Ramah New England. And earlier this month, 101 representatives of our Ramah camps participated in our 4th Ramah Israel Bike Ride and Hiking Trip and have thus far raised almost $470,000 to support our Ramah Tikvah programs.Three of our Tikvah Directors (Ralph Schwartz, Wisconsin; Orlee Krass, Poconos; and Howard Blas, Northern California/NRC) were riders! There’s still time to support this important cause.

Enjoy this inaugural issue of Tikvah Connects. In each issue, we will share news of staff, alumni, and programs. Feel free to send ideas, feedback, and updates to me at howard@campramah.org or (413) 374-7210.


Read more

Original Article Published On The Yale Alumni Magazine

Two players’ journeys from Yale to the Red Sox to Team Israel

Like many Yale baseball fans, head Bulldogs coach John Stuper recalls watching in August 2012 as one of his former stars, Craig Breslow ’02, pitched to another, catcher Ryan Lavarnway ’09. This wasn’t some Yale baseball reunion; they were in the Bronx, on national TV. The pair were the only two Yale alumni in the major league at the time, and it was the first time a Yalie pitcher had worked with a Yalie catcher in a big-league game since 1883. Breslow got the third out in the eighth inning for the Boston Red Sox, who beat the Yankees.

This past September, the duo worked together again at MCU Park in Coney Island, New York. This time, instead of Boston B’s, they were wearing bright blue caps embroidered with a Star of David, part of the uniform of the Israeli national baseball team. They played against Great Britain in two of their three qualifying games for the 2017 World Baseball Classic.

“I am extremely proud of my guys,” says Stuper. “It is quite an honor for them and for Yale baseball.”

The World Baseball Classic is a 16-team international tournament played every four years—baseball’s nascent version of soccer’s World Cup. Although neither Breslow nor Lavarnway are Israeli citizens, they are eligible for the team because they are Jewish. Eight other current and former major leaguers from the United States (among them New Haven native Josh Zeid) are also playing for Israel this year, part of the first Israeli team to qualify for the 16-team tournament since it was established in 2006.

Breslow, who is competing for a spot on the Minnesota Twins during spring training this year, is a journeyman left-hander who has pitched for eight major league teams. (A molecular biophysics and biochemistry major at Yale, he was also once declared the smartest man in baseball by the Sporting News.) The father of 22-month-old twins says he was thrilled to play for Israel in the qualifiers; he appeared twice as a relief pitcher. “I am proud of my Jewish heritage,” he says. “I enjoyed playing alongside the most notable Jewish players of my generation. This tournament impacts two things very near to me.”

Margo Sugarman, secretary general of the Israel Association of Baseball, calls Breslow “a highly intelligent player and a real asset to Team Israel,” adding that Lavarnway, for his part, cemented Israel’s lead in the final game with a home run.

Lavarnway, who is interrupting spring training with the Oakland A’s to play in the Classic, started all three qualifying games as catcher for Team Israel. He says he is looking for “any way we can grow the game in Israel and show Israel in a positive light. I just want to spread positivity as much as possible.”

After sweeping Great Britain and Brazil in the qualifiers, the team is off to Seoul in early March for the first round against Korea, Chinese Taipei, and the Netherlands. They hope to advance to the second round in Japan and to the championship in
Los Angeles.

Read more

Original Article Published On The Chabad.ORG

NEW ORLEANS—Ask Malkie Rivkin and the volunteers who are preparing hundreds of mishloach manot food baskets at the Btesh Family Chabad House in New Orleans three days before Purim what makes the holiday unique in New Orleans, and they almost don’t understand the question.

“It’s like any other Chabad House around the world!” exclaims Rivkin, co-director of programs for Chabad-Lubavitch of Louisiana with her husband, Rabbi Mendel Rivkin. “I’m sure people right now are doing the same thing we are,” she tells Chabad.org.

One thing that makes Purim special in New Orleans is that “people here are good at getting dressed up in costumes,” says Rabbi Mendel Rivkin. “New Orleans is a costume town. People don’t shy away from them.”

Volunteer Jill Halpern, looks up for a moment from rolling hundreds of little paper scrolls with the mitzvahs of Purimwritten on them, and agrees: “The Rivkins always have the best costumes,” chimes in Halpern. “When the theme was France, the whole family came dressed up as French’s mustard.”

The scrolls that Halperin are rolling will accompany each food gift bag and box. She and other volunteers will help deliver more than 275 packages all over New Orleans.

“The mishloach manot program is a win for Chabad, a win for the person who receives it and a win for the person who does the mitzvah of giving,” says Malkie Rivkin. “And people who get one this year are more likely to give to others next year.”

Halpern, whose father settled in New Orleans from the Brighton Beach neighborhood of Brooklyn, N.Y., in the 1950s, proudly says: “I love Chabad. Wherever they need me, I am here.”

Rabbi Yochanan Rivkin, director of the Rohr Chabad Jewish Student Center at Tulane University, is looking forward to the Megillah reading and sharing the other mitzvahs of Purim with his students. He points out that some fraternity and sorority members are in the habit of baking hamantaschen as well.

One place where the Jewish community comes together on Purim is at the yearly themed party. “Chabad Uptown and Metairie join together,” notes Malkie Rivkin. This year, it’s one big city to another: “Purim in the Big Apple.” Past themes included “Purim in Outer Space” and “Purim in France.”

Katrina ‘Part of Our Consciousness’

When Hurricane Katrina raked through New Orleans in August 2005, Chabad helped the community cope by adding a little comic relief to the Jewish community the following Purim.

“Everyone remembers the images of people being rescued from the rooftops of their homes,” says the rabbi. “We actually chose a hurricane theme—‘Purim on the Blue Roof’—a little satire for the times. Katrina is part of our consciousness, but it is not something to be brought up every year. We may be recovered, but there are still pockets in the city not rebuilt.”

Guests hear the Megillah and enjoy the festivities at a past Purim party sponsored by Chabad-Lubavitch of Louisiana.
Guests hear the Megillah and enjoy the festivities at a past Purim party sponsored by Chabad-Lubavitch of Louisiana.

Malkie Rivkin notes that the party themes are well-chosen to make the holiday entertaining and inclusive for everyone. “One nice thing about Purim is that even the adults get involved; it’s not just for kids.”

One unique aspect of the Purim party is the entertainment, which is provided by a special member of the Jewish community. New Orleans is home to Ochsner Medical Center, a world-renown facility for liver transplants. The piano player for the Purim celebration is in town from Israel as he awaits a transplant. “Many Israelis come to our community for months at a time as they await liver transplants,” she explains. “We have a strong relationship with the Israeli families. There are four Israeli families here now; one just received a transplant.”

Rabbi Zelig Rivkin, head Chabad-Lubavitch emissary of Louisiana, could be seen this week “making the rounds” as volunteers assembled the mishloach manot. He was a little reluctant to comment much since he feels that the other emissaries, many of them his own family members, are now doing the day-to-day work of serving the needs of Jewish residents throughout the state. He and his wife, Bluma, were sent there on shlichus in November 1975 by the Rebbe—Rabbi Menachem M. Schneerson, of righteous memory.

Rivkin and Chabad of New Orleans have especially strong connections this time of the year. “We opened this Chabad House on Purim of 1976. We made some renovations to the building and were ready to open for the holiday. We started with college students—and have been making Purim here every year since!”

Chabad in New Orleans has also expanded ever since.

A section of the French Quarter. Rabbi Zelig and Bluma Rivkin opened a Chabad House in the city in 1976, just in time for Purim. (Photo: Wikimedia Commons)
A section of the French Quarter. Rabbi Zelig and Bluma Rivkin opened a Chabad House in the city in 1976, just in time for Purim. (Photo: Wikimedia Commons)

The Rohr Chabad Jewish Student Center next door, directed by Rabbi Leibel and Mushka Lipskier, serves students from Tulane University, Loyola University and the University of New Orleans. Rabbi Yochanan and Sarah Rivkin oversee a special division for graduate students. Rabbi Mendel and Malkie Rivkin direct programs for Chabad-Lubavitch of Louisiana. There are also Chabad centers in the nearby suburb of Metairie and in Baton Rouge, and Chabad Lubavitch of Southern Mississippi in Biloxi falls under their auspices.

As for community member Jill Halpern, she just loves Purim in the Big Easy: “Here, Jews are such a minority. Purim gives the Jewish community a chance to be together. You are with Jews en masse. I can’t tell you how much it makes me kvell!”

Read more