Heritage Florida Jewish News - Central Florida's Independent Jewish Voice

Movies bring back torturous memories...

While trolling for a station on TV, I stumbled upon an old movie, "Cast A Giant Shadow," that I had seen before, based on the true story of Colonel Mickey Marcus. David Daniel (Mickey) Marcus was a U.S. Army Colonel who assisted

Israel during the 1948 Arab-Israeli war, and who became Israel's first modern general (Aluf). He was killed by friendly fire, when he was mistaken for an enemy

infiltrator while returning to his position in Israel one night. He was only 47 years old. (That movie got me thinking about Israel's independence and before that, the Holocaust.) And still watching TV, I turned to the History channel a few nights later and saw two documentaries that shook me to the core. The first was "The Third Reich: The Rise."

How sickening to see the love for and the need to obey the despicable Adolf Hitler by most of the German people of all ages. How joyous they seemed in spite of the fact that their neighbors were being turned against in such disturbing ways.

The second documentary was titled "The Third Reich: The Fall." It covered Hitler's invasion of neighboring countries and the horrors of the Holocaust.

(I found myself not caring when the people of Germany suffered the bombing of Berlin... not like me at all... I usually have compassion for all beings, human and otherwise. I guess box cars filled with dead Jews, piles of human bones and other nightmares were just too much for me to handle. I did feel a little better when German townspeople were made to enter the concentration camps to witness the unthinkable.

Hitler, like the coward he was, committed suicide.)

And still on the subject of movies...

"No Place On Earth," a 2012 documentary about Ukrainian Jews hiding from Nazis, was shown on another evening. That brought to mind a tragedy just last week: On Monday, April 28th, the Mayor of Kharkov, Ukraine, GENNADY KERNES, was shot in the back while jogging, by an unknown assailant using a sniper rifle. He is Jewish. Though the wound was life-threatening, doctors performed emergency surgery and were able to stabilize him. Then he was flown to Israel for further treatment. (Is the nightmare starting all over again?)

Speaking of nightmares and survival...

We have Holocaust survivors in our Jewish community... wonderful people who were recently honored during Yom HaShoah.

The Holocaust Memorial Resource and Education Center here in town held a special Yom HaShoah program that featured keynote speaker, JOANIE HOLZER SCHIRM, the author of the book "Adventurers Against Their Will" billed as "Extraordinary World War II Stories of Survival, Escape, and Connection... Unlike Any Others." (I understand the book is based largely upon her father's letters.)

During the special ceremony at the Holocaust Center, survivors lit candles to commemorate the occasion.

They are (from left to right) HENRI GOODHEIM, HELEN GREENSPUN, INGE KOELE, HENRI LANDWIRTH, MARGOT GLAZER, HARRY LOWENSTEIN and TESS WISE.

This deserving praise was showered on them: "We are honoring our local Holocaust Survivors. Each one has enriched our community through their hard work, their moral example, and their determination to create a better, more hopeful world. They are the powerful force that reminds us of the terrible price paid for bigotry and the tragic consequences of indifference and silence."

(Beautifully said!)

And life goes on...

Would you believe, I own a set of golf clubs and used to play? (I can hardly believe it.) It's been many years for me but here is some very exciting news for those (most of you) who are more fit than I these days: Reserve your space now for the Jewish Pavilion Golf Tournament, taking place on Sunday, June 1 at Alaqua Country Club, 2091 Alaqua Drive, Longwood.

Breakfast will be served from 7:30-8:15 a.m. that day. Shotgun start is at 8:30 a.m. The cost of $150 includes breakfast and lunch with the tournament. A $1,000 Hole Sponsorship includes a golf foursome, breakfast, lunch and hole signage. Donations are also welcome.

For further information, contact KEN DAVIS, 727-798-5354 or LLOYD GREEN, 407-590-1717. All proceeds will benefit the Orlando Senior Help Desk, a division of the Jewish Pavilion.

Shades of a ghost...

"Ghost, the musical" is arriving at the Bob Carr Performing Arts Centre on Tuesday evening, May 13 at 8 p.m, and running through

Survivors lit candles at Holocaust Memorial Research and Education Center.

Sunday, May 18. It is being brought to us by the Florida Theatrical Association. The extremely successful movie is now a musical and promises to be every bit as entertaining. For further information, contact Donna Fiegel, public relations director at True Marketing, 407-704-6185, 407-462-4961 or donna@teamTRUE.com

One for the road...

What could happen if a person recently learned English:

Rivka went to her doctor for a check up. After the completion of the exam,  the doctor said to her "I must inform you that you have a fissure in your uterus, and if you ever have a baby it would be a miracle."

As soon as she got home, Rivka said to her husband, "You vouldn't belief it. I vent to the doctah and he told me that I haf a fish in my uterus and if I haf a baby it vill be a mackerel!"