Cathy’s Whim Cathy’s Whim

I’m not really sure why running through the water sprinkler as a child demands peals of laughter and delight.

As a transplant from Florida, I have my own college rivalries. When I arrived in Dayton, I could not have imagined how strong the rivalry is between The Ohio State University and ~well, that school north of us. I learned very quickly that certain names are better left unspoken. However, there is one thing in Ann Arbor that is worth mentioning, and that is Zingerman’s. Probably most famous for their deli, Zingerman’s actually boasts nine Ann Arbor based companies including Zingerman’s Bakehouse, Zingerman’s Creamery, Zingerman’s Coffee Company, and ZingTrain. ZingTrain shares Zingerman’s unique approach to business by providing visioning and...

Last night, I attended a screening of the movie Newtown. The award-winning documentary tells the story of the horrific mass shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School in 2012 and its aftermath. The director and producer, Kim A. Snyder, joined us for a panel discussion after the screening. The event came together as part of a grassroots effort by several very concerned mothers in our Jewish community who were tired of talking about the problem of gun violence in our schools ~ they were ready to take action. The evening would not have been possible without the passion and leadership of Angela...

Last night, Judy Abromowitz and I traveled to Cincinnati for the American Jewish Committee’s Annual Meeting. AJC is the leading global Jewish advocacy organization. They work hard every day to fight anti-Semitism and support Israel as a sovereign nation. The meeting was wonderful. The highlight of the evening was when the guest speaker, Mohammad Al Samawi, shared his story. Born in Yemen in 1986 to a very successful family of doctors, Mohammed was a devout Muslim raised to think of Christians and Jews as his enemy. Early on, Mohammed knew he was different. He was born with a birth defect...

Earlier this week, I attended the JCC Association of North America’s Biennial in Memphis, Tennessee. The conference was amazing. I got to meet some incredible people, attend thought-provoking and inspiring plenaries, and enjoy the company of several JCC Board members. My favorite session featured Dr. David Bryfman, who is the Chief Innovation Officer for the Jewish Education Project. The Jewish Education Project’s mission is to spark and spread innovations that expand the reach and increase the impact of Jewish education. Dr. Bryfman posed a very interesting question to the group: If we were to start our JCCs today from scratch,...

If you have had a chance to attend any of this year’s Dayton Jewish Film Festival movies, I’m sure you could attest to what a fabulous season we are having. The festival, which kicked off with Bye Bye Germany on April 17th, has had several sellouts, wonderful reviews and a spirit of community that resonates throughout the theatre during each screening. I am a huge fan of Jewish film festivals. In fact, I ran the film festival in Tampa for five years. I thoroughly enjoyed screening films and helping to bring world class cinema to my local community. During my...

On Friday, April 13th, I traveled to Hillel at Miami University in Oxford for a very special Shabbat. Patty and Mike Caruso, Debbie and Bruce Feldman, Gayle and Irv Moscowitz, David and Lisa Pierce, and I joined students and other guests from all walks of life for Hillel’s annual diversity program. The guest speaker for the evening was Pastor Chris Edmonds, who is the son of WWII hero Master Sergeant Roddie Edmonds. Sergeant Edmonds was captured and taken to Stalag IXA, a camp near Ziegenhain, Germany. In January 1945, he refused a Commandant’s order to separate the Jewish POWs from...

“Your Yom Ha’Atzmaut celebration was so wonderful. It reminded me of the good old days!” This comment from a passionate and engaged community member keeps reverberating in my mind. For one, I am incredibly happy this person enjoyed our celebration this past Sunday. We had an amazing day. Over 210 people joined us for an afternoon of music, children’s activities, mosaics, dancing and delicious authentic Israeli cuisine. And to set a festive atmosphere, we decorated our room to look like Independence Hall in Tel Aviv. It was the perfect way to celebrate Israel’s 70th birthday. The second reason I keep...

This past Sunday, over 450 people came together for the Yom Hashoah remembrance program at Beth Jacob Synagogue, where we remembered the six million Jews who perished in the Holocaust and heard stories of inspiration from local survivors and their families. I have no doubt the event left an indelible impression on those who attended. As I sat in the sanctuary and listened to our keynote speaker Dr. Felix Garfunkel share his personal story of survival, I was struck by his kindness, gentleness and strength. What an inspiration to those of us who were lucky enough to hear him speak....