Published Articles

Original Article Published On The JNS

“The unique thing about Darkaynu is that there is no pomp and circumstance,” said Avi Ganz, director of the Darkaynu program for men in Efrat.

Thanks to Darkaynu, young men and women with disabilities can spend a gap year in Israel. Darkaynu programs in Jerusalem for women and in Efrat for men provide an opportunity to learn, work and grow in Israel in the year or years following high school—much like the experience afforded their nondisabled peers. Twenty-eight students from Jewish communities in the United States, Canada, England and Australia recently arrived in Israel to take part in the program.

The Elaine and Norm Brodsky Darkaynu Program, part of the extensive Ohr Torah Stone network of programs, was founded in 2003. “I started the program because a girl (with disabilities) who had been in a regular mainstream program wondered why she couldn’t go to Israel for a year like her siblings,” recounts Elana Goldscheider, Darkaynu’s director. “How do I tell a person they can’t go? It is a terrible thing. We stopped and said, ‘Wait, you are like everyone else. You can!’”

Spending a year in Israel is very common in the Orthodox world, where the majority of high school graduates spend a year learning in yeshivas and seminaries. While some in the non-Orthodox world opt to spend a post-high school year learning and volunteering in Israel, it is much less common.

According to Rabbi Dr. Kenneth Brander, President and Rosh HaYeshiva of Ohr Torah Stone, “Torah study, personal growth, independence and a relationship to Israel are integral parts of our Jewish human identity, and they must be made accessible to everyone. Ohr Torah Stone is deeply proud to have developed the Darkaynu program, which is preparing young men and women with special needs with the ability to embrace and pursue meaningful futures as active and committed members of the Jewish community.”

Ohr Stone was founded in 1983 and currently consists of 30 educational institutions, social projects, outreach programs and leadership development initiatives for men and women.

Goldscheider offers her students with disabilities an experience similar to her students without disabilities. “I created a word—“sidestreaming” or parallel streaming. The students with disabilities are not with their typical peers for everything, but they are alongside—we have parallel streams.” She offers an example from a recent outing: “We went hiking, but it was a little different. We did what works for us, and that is okay. Our students have to recognize what they can and can’t do—one who walks with two crutches would not enjoy a hike in the same way as another person, but she may enjoy a walking tour instead.”

The students in Goldscheider’s program learn in Jewish studies classes, participate in volunteer jobs in the community and work in ganim (child care centers), where they serve as teaching assistants, data entry, catering, book and clothing stores and the offices of the Orthodox Union. Participants also enjoy tiyulim—short trips around Israel—cooking classes and time with their adopted families.

The students comprise a wide range of cognitive functioning and independence skills. “Some take the bus alone to work, some walk, some take a van and some take the bus with staff,” reports Goldscheider. Of the 16 young women in this year’s Darkaynu cohort, nine have returned for a second year. “In their first year in Israel, they figure it out by February or March—so they want to come back. This is home!” Their learning, jobs and time and distance away from families helps students develop life, interpersonal and independence skills.

Avi Ganz, director of the Darkaynu program for men in Efrat, reports that most of his 12 young men learn in a self-contained environment and work throughout Efrat. “Two work in a pizza store, one in a winery, one on an army base, one in an industrial kitchen, one in a makolet (small grocery store) and one in a bakery,” he says.

Another student, Isaac Anderson, 23, of Rochester, New York, works in Anak Stock, a store that sells housewares, kitchenware and games. “I price items, put them on the shelves, and do price checks,” he says. He is proud of the strides he is making in Hebrew, saying, “I am working on my Hebrew as much as I can and am trying to communicate as much as possible in Hebrew.” Anderson has returned for a third year in Darkaynu. “I didn’t know about it when I graduated high school,” he says. “I was in community college at the time and was doing very well. But I wanted to do something Jewish and expand my Jewish knowledge, to explore the Land of Israel and learn about Israel’s people and culture.”

Anderson reports that he learned of Darkaynu from Marc Fein, a NCSY regional director. “He put out my request on Facebook and friends responded and mentioned Darkaynu,” he recounts. “He contacted Avi Ganz and I enrolled in the Darkaynu program.”

For Anderson, the experience has been mostly positive: “I value the opportunity to make new friends in Darkaynu and in the host yeshiva, Har Etzion—the experience will last a lifetime!” He firmly believes that “Every Jewish adult should have the opportunity to travel to Israel—regardless of challenges or strengths or hurdles—and have the opportunity to experience the land of Israel because it is the Jewish homeland. It is where we walk in history and connect with our heritage.”

Anderson is considering his options for when he completes his third year at Darkaynu. He may return to the States or make aliyah. Ganz reports that some students return to the States to participate in Yeshiva University’s Makor College Program, a three-year non-degree program for young men with intellectual disabilities.

Ganz continues to attend “Israel nights” to spread news about Darkaynu. Like Goldscheider, Ganz does not want any member of the Jewish community to miss out on the experience of learning and living in Israel.

While Darkaynu offers a unique opportunity for young adults with disabilities, Ganz stresses the normalcy of the program: “The unique thing about Darkaynu is that there is no pomp and circumstance.”

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Original Article Published On The Jerusalem Post

Frankie McLean, who for decades has been known as Sarit Edri, recently shared her incredible and impressive journey to Judaism and Israel. Now she’s returned to soccer.

When Sarah Frances (“Franki”) McLean left Washington State in 1991 for a year of study at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, the Catholic-born, evangelical, Baptist-raised, blonde-haired college soccer player had one goal – to master the Hebrew language. 

“I was Bible-believing but examining the differences between how I was raised and what I believed,” recounts McLean. 

“The best way to know God’s message was to read the Bible in the original.” 

“I was Bible-believing but examining the differences between how I was raised and what I believed. The best way to know God’s message was to read the Bible in the original.”Sarit Edri

During her year in Israel, McLean learned Hebrew. She also met Shimon Edri, an Israeli man from Bat Yam, who would eventually become her husband.

Frankie McLean, who for decades has been known as Sarit Edri, recently shared her incredible and impressive journey to Judaism and Israel. Now 52, she is a religious Jewish mother of six (children range in age from 5 to 26), a licensed tour guide, and a longtime resident of Efrat. 

Premier League soccer ball, illustrative (credit: PIXABAY/KEVINSTUTTARD)

In recent years, Edri has returned to her soccer roots. She is a soccer coach and pioneer in creating soccer playing opportunities for girls ages 5-13, as well as women. Edri founded the Matnas of Efrat in 2010, and last year she established Efrat Kadoorregel Moadon. 

Programs range from non-competitive classes to teams, which participate in the IFA, the Israel Football Association. 

Edri’s 19-year-old daughter, Kerenor, has been playing soccer since age eight and is a professional soccer player on the Israel National Women’s Team.

The start of an Israel journey

Edri’s Israel journey started when she came on a Hebrew University one year program at age 21. “I was a senior in college, and most were juniors. I stood out a bit, as I was one of the only non-Jews.” Edri notes that the program started just after the Gulf War. “It had disrupted everyone’s plans.” 

Fortunately for Edri, the Gulf War played a part in her meeting her future husband. “The war disrupted Shimon’s plans. He was post-army and four years older than me. He was working and was quite mature. He came to summer school at Hebrew U and was there when we arrived.” 

The two quickly began to take an interest in each other. One day he remarked, “If you were Jewish, I would marry you!” Edri adds, “He didn’t give up. After I finished Hebrew U and graduated college and got a job in Washington State, he wrote me snail mail constantly and came to visit. He was clear about his intentions – but only if I was Jewish.” 

Sarit and Shimon came from very different backgrounds. Sarit grew up in a small town on Fidalgo Island in Washington State, on the US West Coast. “My family was Catholic, and they became evangelicals.” Edri notes that there were no Jews in her town and that the “only way to relate to the People of the Book was from ‘the Book.’ She reiterates, “I figured the best way to know God’s message was to read the Bible in its original.” 

When Edri arrived at the all-women’s Wellesley College in Massachusetts to play soccer, she continued her Bible studies. “It was not the Bible classes I expected. It was critical thinking! It challenged my beliefs.” Edri’s freshman year friends viewed her as wholesome. She recounts, “I think my friends expected me to grow up to be a pastor’s wife or a missionary in the Midwest.”

Wellesley was also Edri’s introduction to Jewish people. “My introduction to ‘real Jews’ started in the college dorms. 

There were three or four Jews or halfJews in the dorms, and it was fascinating for me. They were not the Jews I had pictured from my Bible reading days. ” 

She began befriending Jews on campus, taking Jewish studies classes (she was one of the first graduates of the Jewish Studies program) and visiting the recently opened kosher cafeteria on campus.

She also began to face her own crisis of faith. “It led me to critically examine the basis of Christianity. I had to examine my own faith. The foundations of Christianity for me were shaken. And I had to examine Judaism. I was looking for something that made sense to me.” 

“It led me to critically examine the basis of Christianity. I had to examine my own faith. The foundations of Christianity for me were shaken. And I had to examine Judaism. I was looking for something that made sense to me.”Sarit Edri

Ultimately, Edri decided she wanted to convert to Judaism. And she is very clear about her motivation: “I didn’t do it for Shimon,” she says, clear that becoming Jewish was not for the sake of marriage alone.

EDRI RETURNED to Israel in 1993, worked as a secretary in a law firm, and began studying for conversion with an Orthodox rabbi. “I was the day secretary, and it just so happened that the night secretary was a convert from England!” Edri instantly felt a connection. “For me, it was a package – Israel, Judaism and the people.” 

Edri wisely decided to hold off sharing her questions and uncertainties with her parents. “I didn’t want to speak to them about Judaism until I was really sure.” 

Edri converted in November 1993 in front of a beit din (rabbinical court) in Kiryat Shmona. The beit din wanted to add a new first name and have her become Chaya Sarah. “I asked him to give Chaya as a second name so I could become Sarah Chaya,” Edri recounts. She soon after became Sarit, as there were many Sarahs already in Shimon’s family. Every year when the Torah portion of Chayei Sarah (“the life of Sarah, the 5th portion in the book of Genesis) is read in synagogues worldwide, the Edris spend that Shabbat in Hebron, the burial place of Sarah and most of the patriarchs and matriarchs. 

“It is like a birthday for me,” she says. 

Sarit and Shimon got married in the US in January 1994 and had a “big fat wedding” in Israel eight months later. 

“I wore my wedding dress three times,” she laughs.

The Edris lived in Seattle, among the Turkish Sephardi Jewish community after they got married. Shimon had difficulties finding work in his field of banking, and the two decided to return to Israel. Sarit officially made aliyah on August 8, 1994. 

One week later, on August 17, we had a 350-person wedding in Bat Yam – all done by Shimon’s family!” 

Edri praises her parents for their love, support and kindness. “I can’t express enough how they raised me. They chose shalom bayit [peace in the home], which is more important than anything else. I know it was heartbreaking for my mother and father, and I told them after I converted. My father said, ‘If I know you are searching and always seeking God’s will, I can’t ask for more than that. If you are searching and becoming close to God, I am happy.’” She adds, “They also loved my husband!” 

The Edris and McLeans have visited and gotten to know each other well over the years – despite religious, cultural and language differences.

As Edri looks back on the conversion and aliyah process, she concedes, perhaps a bit reluctantly, “I was naïve then. I was in the clouds.” But her love for Judaism and Israel and her exceptionally positive outlook remain until today. “I always want to see the beautiful, the exotic, the hopes, the rosy future, the nisim (miracles) –that’s what I’ve always seen and continue to see, even when there is traffic and rude people. Those things don’t penetrate me.” She adds, “The best time to come on aliyah is when you have nothing. At 21, I had nothing.”

The Edris’ married Israel journey started in Jerusalem. Shimon worked in banking, and Sarit completed the tour guide course. “After four years, we needed a cheaper place to live.” They joined a community in Tekoa, which consisted of 30 trailers. “Living there changes you. When you live close to the land in a more communal way, it makes you feel more connected to Israel and community,” she says. 

This experience also helped Edri’s Hebrew. “My klita [absorption] was atypical of most Americas. I married an Israeli whose family spoke no English, so I had to speak Hebrew to survive.” 

She adds, “I knew I had arrived when people spoke to me in Hebrew and I answered in Hebrew.” Since 2001, the Edris have lived in Efrat.

Sarit and Shimon are proud of their six children, who range from professional soccer player to Bratislaver Chasid. The ever-positive Edri encourages olim to “find your passion and follow it.” She is pleased that at age 52 and after almost 30 years in Israel, she has not had to give up her two passions – Israel and soccer. 

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Original Article Published On the JNS

Allen Klein will never forget Thanksgiving 2013. For many years, the scene designer had to work on Thanksgiving as a production team member for the children’s television program “Captain Kangaroo.” But in 2013, he had the opportunity to march in Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade in New York City.

“Marching in the parade was one of the highlights of my life,” he recounts.

Klein started his professional career designing sets for “Captain Kangaroo,” Merv Griffin and Jackie Gleason. He then learned silk screening and started a silk screening company. Klein, an author of 30 books and an award-winning speaker, refers to himself as a “jollytologist” and humor educator, teaching readers and audiences to deal with everyday trials and tribulations as well as triumph over tragedy.

In both his books and presentations, Klein uses examples from Jewish folklore and comedians, all showing how Jews have used humor to deal with adversity. He is quick to point out, “I’m bar mitzvahed, and I once swam in [actress] Molly Picon’s pool!”

Klein regularly incorporates one of his favorite Talmudic quotes into his writing: “When a child is born, all rejoice; when someone dies, all weep. But it makes just as much sense, if not more, to rejoice at the end of a life as at the beginning. For no one can tell what events await a newborn child, but when a mortal dies he has successfully completed a journey.”

He knows a thing or two about dealing with misfortune. Klein, 84, tells JNS, “This unusual career began shortly after my wife died as a result of a rare liver disease at age 34. They had no liver transplants back then.”

Klein notes that her good sense of humor had a positive effect on their young daughter. He adds, “I started to explore the value of humor because of the important role it played before, during and after her death. Look what came out of it! My wife’s death impacted me and through me, so many around the world.”

He has presented humor programs for organizations such as hospice and hospital associations as well as banking, financial and food industry organizations in 48 U.S. states, Australia and Israel. Klein is proud of his connection to Israel; his in-laws lived there and he has visited the Jewish state himself four times. He especially enjoyed presenting at the International Society for Humor Studies in Tel Aviv in 1984—despite difficulties both entering and departing Israel.

“Three times I had trouble getting in,” he says. “They questioned me and once took me to an office to interrogate me further. Then, I thought I’d miss my return flight because several people kept questioning me. After going through this for the third time, I asked why this was happening. They said they were looking for someone with a very similar name to mine.”

In further describing his travels to Israel, Klein reports, “The Old City in Jerusalem. It didn’t seem real. I felt like I was in some Hollywood movie set….The food, oh yes, the food…the Syrian takeout in Jaffa. The falafel stands with a wall of condiments to add to the pita bread.”

Klein’s diverse audiences around the world appreciate his inspiring talks. An audience member at a Florida hospice symposium says, “It was fantastic to watch 400 people who work with dying patients on a daily basis leave their stresses under their chairs and walk out with smiles on their faces.” The president of the Maryland School Food Service Association notes, “It was evident that the whole assembly was enjoying your presentation by the frequent and sometimes continuous roars of laughter.” 

Klein has received numerous awards for his work, including the Association for Applied and Therapeutic Humor’s highest honor, the Doug Fletcher Lifetime Achievement Award.

Klein’s 2016 TEDx talk, “Our Thoughts & Intentions Create Our Reality,” has been viewed by 130,000 people. He recently submitted a book proposal based on that talk. His other books include “The Healing Power of Humor,” “The Courage to Laugh,” “Up Words for Down Days,” and the “Change Your Life” quote book.” Klein’s most recent tome, “The Awe Factor,” was published in December 2020.

He says he writes one story a week “about some incredible thing in my life.” He currently has a folder with 40 or 50 stories, including one about the time he shared a restroom with Robert Redford. He hopes to share these stories in a future book.

Allen Klein. Credit: allenklein.com.

Summarizing the take-home message he has strived to convey in all of his books, Klein says, “Bottom line—lighten up folks! Or you won’t enjoy life.” He shares that his father “was so negative” while his mother “was so playful.” He also tells his audiences that he and his wife used to laugh a lot.

As Klein considers the jobs he has held in his career, he feels that his 10 years working for the iconic kids’ show were especially impactful. “Looking back, my work at ‘Captain Kangaroo’ helped change my mindset. I learned to see the world in a more playful way—through the eyes of a child.”

“Captain Kangaroo” ran from 1955 to 1984. It involved puppets including non-speaking Bunny Rabbit and Mr. Moose, who played tricks on the Captain. “I was the designer who created the stuff that Bunny Rabbit invented,” Klein says proudly.

In the 1960s, American children spent Thanksgiving morning watching that year’s “Captain Kangaroo” Thanksgiving episode, which came on before the parade lined up. The episodes kept Klein in the studio every Thanksgiving for 10 years. “Each Thanksgiving, I had to design a set and be in the studio at 6 a.m.,” he recalls.

As Thanksgiving 2022 approaches, Klein still smiles when he thinks back to that Thanksgiving Day nine years ago when he got his chance to march in the parade. “I was instructed to shake hands along the route. I was like a star. I was floating!”

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Original Article Published on The JNS

For Deni Avdija and the Washington Wizards, there is no place like home. The Israeli forward and his team recently completed their longest homestand of the season with a 5-1 record. Avdija’s performance has been on the upswing, and his coach and the media are noticing.

On Nov. 10, when the then 6-6 Wizards defeated the 6-5 Dallas Mavericks, Avdija had 12 points, four assists and six rebounds in 32 minutes of action. Two nights later, when the Wizards defeated the 10-4 Utah Jazz, he notched a season-high 13 points along with seven rebounds, three assists, three steals and one block in 34 minutes of action.

The following evening, with the Wizards defeating the 9-5 Memphis Grizzlies, Avdija tied a career-high with 21 points, including 15 in the first half—the second time in his career with 15 or more points in a single half.

Avdija’s hot streak continued in a Nov. 16 loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder. He grabbed seven rebounds, blocked two shots and notched 12 points, scoring in double figures for his fourth consecutive game. His scoring slowed down a bit in the Wizards’ Nov. 18 overtime win against the Miami Heat, when he hit one three-pointer and had one rebound and three assists in only 14 minutes of play.

In the Wizards’ Nov. 20 victory over the Charlotte Hornets, Avdija registered his sixth career double-double with 12 points and season-high 13 rebounds.

Following the game against the Hornets, reporters asked Coach Wes Unseld about Avdija’s impressive rebounding in recent weeks. “I love the fact that he is cleaning up the boards and we need more of it.  He’s got positional size.” Unseld is pleased that Avdija can help his teammates pull down rebounds. “It can’t be just be on KP (Kristaps Porzingas) and Gaff (Daniel Gafford). It has to be by committee and he did that tonight.”

Avdija echoed, “I always like rebounding the ball, as part of my game. I was extra aggressive tonight on the rebounds. We had an emphasis on the rebounds pregame because they are a good offensive rebounding team. I was just on the glass, trying to grab them.”

Other reporters noted that Avdija had more opportunities to bring the ball up the court, with guard Monte Morris out with a sore right ankle. “I get comfortable every time I get those assignments—even being a point guard sometimes, crossing the court and making plays for others.  I love doing that, if that’s what coach needed me to do on the court. I am capable of doing that.”

Avdija has always prided himself on his hard work and fighting spirit. He feels motivated to continue to work hard to enter the starting lineup, and does not get frustrated if he needs to serve time in the second unit.  “I feel like if I have challenges throughout the season and have to go to the second unit and battle my way back, that is fine. In the end of the day, I am going to play my role and try to master my role. Whatever I’m doing, whatever unit I’m on, second unit or first unit, I’m just going to go out there and play hard.”

On the other hand, Avdija has been frustrated with questionable fouls called against him. “I don’t know why sometimes I get this treatment. I’m just frustrated because I’m guarding the best guys on the opposite team and if I get really easy fouls and it gets me out of the game, in general, it is frustrating. I will try to get better and foul less…as I get older and [earn] more respect in this league, hopefully it will get better. Sometimes it is frustrating. I’m not going to lie.”

Yet Avdija keeps perspective and remains positive. “I am glad I am having those challenges. The grind makes me tougher mentally and makes me believe in myself more. So I’m taking it in a good way.”

Avdija continues working to improve his game. “I am trying to dunk more and trying to be more aggressive…I set a goal for number of dunks in a season so I think I’m at a pretty good spot with it. And it makes me miss fewer layups.” When asked how many dunks he planned for the season, he admits, “I don’t remember what number but I wrote it down at the start of season as a goal.”

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