Letters to the Editor 6-26-09

Issue of June 26, 2009 / 4 tammuz 5769

That’s Life awards

To the Editor:

The Five Towns Auxiliary Police would like to express our real thanks

Only Simchas in The Jewish Star 6-26-09

Issue of June 26, 2009 / 4 Tammuz 5769

Engagements

• Engagement of Yaakov Walden (Monsey, NY) & Rochel Segal (Brooklyn, NY) — June 16, 2009

Parshat Korach: Me, or your own eyes?

By Rabbi Avi Billet
Issue of June 26, 2009 / 4 Tammuz 5769

There is a common theme in three verses at the beginning of the book of Bamidbar, which is echoed in our parsha:

Slice of Life: Red Onions

By Eileen Goltz
Issue of June 26. 2009 / 4 Tammuz 5769

First question I’m always asked about onions is why do they make you
cry and what can you do about it. It’s a chemical kind of answer. Onions contain

Editorial: The other crowds in Tehran

Issue of June 26, 2009 / 4 Tammuz 5769

Angry crowds in the streets of Tehran are nothing new.

Most of the time in recent decades those crowds have entertained themselves by

Seidemann: Wouldn’t it be great …

From the other side of the bench

By David Seidemann
Issue of June 26, 2009 / 4 Tammuz 5769

Two sisters each had issues that had hijacked their daily lives.

Thank you, Jeremiah Wright

I’m Thinking

By Micah D. Halpern
Issue of June 26, 2009 / 4 Tammuz 5769

Your comment about being prevented from talking to your friend Barack Obama by the Jews was nothing short of anti-Semitic blabber, but you opened up a Pandora’s Box

The Kosher Bookworm: “The Accidental Zionist” by Rabbi Ian Pear

Reviewed by Alan Jay Gerber
Issue of June 26, 2009 / 4 Tammuz 5769

Let me start by saying that this is a very informal, somewhat irreverent book –– zany at times about subjects that are dead serious. To put a smile on the face of an impending disaster takes some doing,

Where every day counts: A closer look at end-of-life care

Yaffi Spodek
Issue of June 26, 2009 / 4 Tammuz 5769

Rabbi Binyamin Mayefsky

Rabbi Binyamin Mayefsky of Far Rockaway could not have predicted where life would take him once he graduated from Yeshiva University,
but the father of two is happy to have found his calling as

Homeland security grant in Far Rockaway

By The Jewish Star
Issue of June 26, 2009 / 4 Tammuz 5769

Beis Medrash Heichal Dovid, the post-high school program affiliated

Beach 17th Street view of the Yeshiva Darchei Torah and Beis Medrash Heichal Dovid campus. (Photo courtesy of www.google.com)

with Yeshiva Darchei Torah, is one of five Jewish institutions in
Queens that will split grants worth more than $300,000 from

Supreme victory for special-ed students

By The Jewish Star
Issue of June 26, 2009 / 4 Tammuz 5769

The U.S. Supreme Court ruled Monday that school districts are
permitted to reimburse parents of special education students who place

Waddling home for Shabbos

Issue of June 26, 2009 4 Tammuz 5769

It was Friday afternoon, close to sundown; the drivers may have been
in a hurry but the Canada geese were not. This image was captured in
Woodmere as the gaggle made its leisurely way across Saddle Ridge Road
with what appeared to be an alert parent bringing up the rear.

(Photo by Miriam L. Wallach)

Buy one, bin one

Eliezer Project partners with JCC to help food pantry

By Yaffi Spodek
Issue of June 26, 2009 / 4Tammuz 5769

On your next grocery run, be on the lookout for the newest item now on display at local supermarkets — a bin to collect canned and boxed
non-perishable food items for donation

Summer camps set to combat swine flu

By Yaffi Spodek

Issue of June 26, 2009 / 4 Tammuz 5769

Forget bug bites and poison ivy — this season, it’s the spread of the H1N1 ‘swine flu’ virus that many camps are trying to tackle. More so than the classroom, camp conditions may be a prime breeding ground for the spread of swine flu, as campers often live in close, communal quarters, sharing bunk beds, bathrooms, food and, inevitably, germs. As schools let out and summer camps prepare for an influx of campers and staff, precautionary measures are being taken to keep everyone as healthy as possible.

At Camp Morasha in Lakewood, Pa — home to over 500 campers, including close to 300 from Long Island — the directors and nurses are taking no chances as they gear up for opening day, scheduled for

On the Calendar 6-26-09

Issue of June 26, 2009 / 4 Tammuz 5769

Five Towns – The Five Towns Shul Softball League for men is expanding

Brandeis: break laws to rescue Jews

In My View

By Rafael Medoff
Issue of June 26, 2009 / 4 Tammuz 5769

Seventy years ago last week, David Ben-Gurion sat down to write a long
letter to Louis D. Brandeis, the recently-retired Supreme Court

The new charity box: no coins, just tunes

By Mayer Fertig
Issue of June 26, 2009 / 4 Tammuz 5769

For as long as there has been modern Jewish music, there have been

Cover art of two-song disc professionally recorded as a fund-raising tool. (Image courtesy hatzalahofunioncounty.org)

Jewish music fundraising concerts. Then, in 1988, the ante was upped
when the first Lincoln Center benefit for

That’s Life: True Confessions

Issue of June 26, 2009 / 5769

Dear That’s Life,

I have a confession to make.

After printing a top 10 list of songs one should be embarrassed to

Streit’s Matzo to sport Kof-K in 2010

By Mayer Fertig
Issue of June 26, 2009 / 4 Tammuz 5769

Exclusive to The Jewish Star

The Kof-K logo will make an encore appearance on the Streit’s Matzo
box for Passover 2010, alongside the Soloveichik kashrus seal that has been on Streit’s products since the 1950s. The change is a result of
the ban on Streit’s matzo products enacted by the Vaad HaRabonim of
Queens and the Vaad HaKashrus of the Five Towns and Far Rockaway just
before last Pesach.

Although Rabbi Moshe Soloveichik had been the sole hashgacha on Streit’s matzo since 2007, the two community organizations claimed

See The Jewish Star as it appears in print 6-26-09

Click here for the print edition for 6-26-09

The Kosher Bookworm: Lessons learned from the religious left

How to make this summer a worthwhile reading experience (part two)

By Alan Jay Gerber
Issue of June 19, 2009 / 27 Sivan 5769

With Father’s Day on Sunday, I thought that it would be nice to note several books that are thematically linked to the day and might be of some intellectual, if not ideological interest

In My View: Iran is not a democracy

By Micah D. Halpern

Issue of June 19, 2009 / 27 Sivan 5769

Americans have been duped, hoodwinked by mainstream media, fed false hope and provided with erroneous information.

I need to set the record straight.

Seidemann: A Shas full of history

From the other side of the bench

By David Seidemann
Issue of June 19, 2009 / 27 Sivan 5769

One half hour earlier and the SS soldiers would have snatched him. But 30 minutes before the soldiers stormed through the back door, Rabbi Dr. Joseph Saffra z”tl ran out the front door. Some say he saw

Op-Ed: Looking back after the parade

By Elizabeth Berney
Special to the web on June 16, 2009 / 24 Sivan 5769

The annual Salute to Israel Parade up Fifth Avenue and Salute to Israel Concert in Central Park immediately following it are always

That’s Life: Miriam’s neighborhood awards

Issue of June 19, 2009 / 27 Sivan 5769

Dear That’s Life,

Ever think about giving out awards to people who live in the neighborhood for various things that they do?  Of course, there are community service awards given out by local organizations

On the Calendar 6-19-09

Issue of June 19, 2009 / 27 Sivan 5769

Five Towns – The Five Towns Shul Softball League for men is expanding from 8 teams to 12 teams. The games are played on Sunday mornings during the months of

Editorial: Happiness may be the last day of fourth grade

Issue of June 19, 2009 / 27 Sivan 5769

Whoever has never seen the Simchas Beis Hashoeva in Jerusalem has never in his life seen true joy, says the Gemara in Sukkah (51a). OK. Thanks for mentioning it. But,

Letters to the Editor 6-19-09

Issue of June 19, 2009 / 27 Sivan 5769

Disregard for women

To the Editor:

I recently attended a Shabbos simcha in a local shul. I found it to be a most humiliating experience.

Local shuls on high alert

Tightened security follows shooting at Holocaust museum

By Yaffi Spodek
Issue of June 19, 2009 / 27 Sivan 5769

Rabbi Anchelle Perl of Chabad of Mineola was not surprised to receive a phone call from the local police department last Wednesday afternoon,

The benefits of living ‘out of town’

OU fair offers view from afar of 22 up and coming Jewish communities

By Tova Ross

Issue of June 19, 2009 / 27 Sivan 5769

For those who reside in the Five Towns, Brooklyn, Queens, or any other bastion of

Photo by Judah S. Harris

Jewish life, the living is pretty easy. There’s an array of kosher groceries, bakeries, and restaurants, a choice of day schools and yeshivas, and if one decides his synagogue is just not for him anymore, he can walk up the street

Bnot Shulamith wins zoning for Inwood campus

Brooklyn school’s future threatened by board lawyer

By Mayer Fertig

Issue of June 19, 2009 /27 Sivan 5769

Bnot Shulamith of Long Island has won zoning approval to convert three buildings

By request, yeshiva for college students at DRS

By Yaffi Spodek
Issue of June 19, 2009 / 27 Sivan 5769

In September, HALB’s Davis Renov Stahler High School for Boys (DRS) will launch Yeshivat Lev HaTorah, a new learning program for post-high school students.

Parshat Shlach: An unfair responsibility?

By Rabbi Avi Billet
Issue of June 19, 2009 / 27 Sivan 5769

In the midst of the crisis of the spies, a seeming throwaway line is almost completely ignored by the commentaries. As Kalev and Yehoshua shout

HALB visits The Jewish Star

Issue of June 19, 2009 / 27 Sivan 5769

HALB’s SPICE Enrichment Program visited the offices and printing plant of The Jewish Star to learn how the newspaper is produced each week. The enthusiastic and well-mannered group was led by program coordinator Bina Krieger (back row, left) and several parent chaperones. (Photo by Andrew Vardakis)

For information about setting up a tour of The Jewish Star for your camp or school group email the publisher at mfertig [at] thejewishstar.com

Chazzan-fest in Lawrence, Election result & Only Simchas 6-19

Chazzan-fest in Lawrence

Only Simchas for issue of June 19, 2009

Result of the Village of Lawrence at-large election to the Board of Trustees:

Michael Fragin: 239

Joel Mael: 209

Chazzan-fest in Lawrence

Issue of June 19, 2009 / 27 Sivan 5769

The Beth Sholom Choir, led by Cantor Eric Freeman and accompanied by Mimi Levison

Cantor Yitzchok Meir Helfgot headlined the 7th annual cantorial concert at Congregation Beth Sholom in Lawrence last week. Cantor Chaim Adler,

Only Simchas in The Jewish Star 6-19-09

Issue of June 19, 2009 / 27 Sivan 5769

Weddings

Wedding of Jamie Klein (Lawrence, NY) & Shmully Ash (Monsey, NY) — June 14, 2009

Tuition by the nickel

Internet toolbar will help fund Jewish education

Rabbi Saul Zucker (Photo by Tova Ross)

By Yaffi Spodek
Issue of June 19, 2009 27 5769

An easy opportunity to help your school raise money may be only a mouse-click away thanks to a new fundraising venture from the Orthodox Union.

For every single click on the OU’s Education Fund Toolbar — scheduled to launch in the next few weeks — a corporate sponsor will donate five cents to the OU Education Fund, which will be distributed to yeshivot and day schools around the country.

“Our goal is to send the toolbar to every Jewish home in America,” said Rabbi Saul Zucker, director of the OU’s recently developed department of day school and educational services. “The toolbar gets

Surviving surviving

First Nazis, then poverty

Yetta, a Holocaust survivor briefly overcome with grief, during an interview in the documentary “Surviving Surviving,” prepared as a class assignment by HAFTR eighth grader Joe Klein. (Image courtesy Joe Klein)

By Malka Eisenberg
Issue of June 19, 2009 / 27 Sivan 5769

Helen G. survived Auschwitz and Mengele’s experiments on twins and grew up in an orphanage in the United States, but the agony of those years haunts her still. When poverty threatened to make her homeless and hungry, The Blue Card, a financial aid organization for Holocaust survivors, helped with her mortgage and food.

Helen’s case is not an isolated one. One fourth of all Holocaust survivors

See The Jewish Star as it appears in print for 6-19-09

Click here for The Jewish Star print edition for 6-19-09

On the Calendar 6-12-09

Issue of June 12, 2009 / 20 Sivan 5769

Five Towns – The Five Towns Shul Softball League for men is expanding from 8 teams to 12 teams. The games are played on Sunday mornings during the months of

Baco Boys award to Kulanu student

Issue of June 12, 2009 / 20 Sivan 5769

Kulanu senior Yigal Rosengarten was among 15 individuals given awards for Devotion and Commitment in Action at a ceremony at Temple Hillel on Thursday, May 14. What has been termed “The Baco Boys Award” was established by the Five Towns Jewish

Brightening up the boardwalk

Issue of June 12, 2009 / 20 Sivan 5769

Isaac Lichter proudly shows off his artwork on the Long Beach boardwalk on Sunday, at an “Art by the Sea” exhibit hosted by the Hebrew Academy of Long Beach. The display was created by HALB’s art enrichment program, using watercolors, pen and ink, and mixed media.

Letters to the Editor 6-12-09

Issue of June 12, 2009 / 20 Sivan 5769

The article was overrated too?

To the Editor:

According to an article in last week’s issue (Flipping out in Israel is overrated; June 5, 2009), “only” 25 percent of the 600 students in the

Hoops for Chayalim

By Rachel Blady
Issue of June 12, 2009 / 20 Sivan 5769

The Young Israel of North Woodmere (white shirts) played a basketball game again Beis Haknesses of North Woodmere (dark shirts) on Sunday to raise money for the Zahal Disabled Veterans Fund. (Photo by Rachel Blady)

More than bragging rights were at stake Sunday night when members of Young Israel of North Woodmere and Beis HaKnesses of North Woodmere competed on a basketball court in the Number Six School. Close to $1,000 was raised for

Books for Israel

Children from the AMIT High School in Rehovot, Israel enjoy their newest shipment of English books.

An opportunity to educate, long distance

By Yaffi Spodek
Issue of June 12, 2009 / 20 Sivan 5769

Missions to Israel to volunteer, visit or fund-raise are all worthy ways to support Israel, but there is another way to help the people there, particularly children,

See The Jewish Star as it appears in print 6-12-09

Click here for the print edition for June 12, 2009

Slice of Life: Marshmallows

By Eileen Goltz
Issue of June 12, 2009 / 20 Sivan 5769

There seems to be two kinds of marshmallow lovers: those that swear by the cute mini- or medium sized cylindrical spheres of sugar, or those that prefer the jar version of goo called Marshmallow Fluff. Now I’m not saying that one is better than the other, because obviously

That’s Life: In which Thursday night cholent is discovered

Issue of June 12, 2009 / 20 Sivan 5769

Dear That’s Life,

Sometimes life is just a series of vignettes that, when strung together, tell of the interesting and often colorful moments

Parshat Beha’alotcha: When it’s cloudy

By Rabbi Avi Billet

Issue of June 12, 2009 / 20 Sivan 5769

In a few instances, the Torah describes the very specific role clouds play within the Israelite encampment.

Seidemann featured on “JM in the AM”

Issue of June 12, 2009 / 20 Sivan 5769

Jewish Star columnist David Seidemann (left) was an articulate and entertaining guest for 40 funny minutes last Thursday, June 4 on Nachum Segal’s popular “Jewish Moments in the Morning” radio program (91.1 FM / jmintheam.org). Segal told his audience he reads Seidemann regularly and urged him to turn nearly three years of “From the other side of the bench” columns into a book. Hear the interview at www.wfmu.org/playlists/jm.

Photos by Mayer Fertig

Seidemann makes a point during his June 4 appearance on JM in the AM to be interviewed by host Nachum Segal (6-9a Monday-Friday on 91.1 FM or jmintheam.org)

Seidemann: Take note, President Obama

From the other side of the bench

By David Seidemann
Issue of June 12, 2009 / 20 Sivan 5769

I want them subpoenaed. All of them. I want to see every single one of Barack Obama’s report cards and yearbooks from first grade through the end of law school. On second thought, save the postage.

Rabbi Yakov Horowitz: Tough times don’t last; tough people do

Advice to a man in deep financial trouble

By Rabbi Yakov Horowitz
Issue of June 12, 2009 / 20 Sivan 5769

Dear Rabbi Horowitz:

In my wildest dreams, I never thought I would be writing a letter like this –– or that I would be in such a challenging position.

Editorial: New brand of entertainment in Albany

Issue of June 12, 2009 / 20 Sivan 5769

There’s really nothing nice to say about the prevailing method of governance in Albany, unpopularly known as “three men in a room.”

The Kosher Bookworm: Books and beach chairs

How to make this summer a worthwhile reading experience (part one)

By Alan Jay Gerber
Issue of June 12, 2009 / 20 Sivan 5769

With the advent of summer, I am once again presenting a list of recommended books that deserve your reading attention.

Given the events of the past few weeks and the behavior of Mr. Obama in Cairo,

Bake sales prosper while economy falters

By Michael Orbach
Issue of June 12, 2009 / 20 Sivan 5769

At first glance, Dr. Deborah Dienstag, a local pediatrician, proud mother of

In this 2008 file photo, Camp Morasha held a bake sale for the Zev Wolff Fund last summer.

four and grandmother of two, may be the worst businesswoman in the entire world.

Two weeks ago she bought the necessary ingredients for challah. Her two daughters,

Creative fundraising digs deep so donors will too

North Shore Hebrew Academy embarks on unique campaign to raise scholarship funds

By Yaffi Spodek
Issue of June 12, 2009 / 20 Sivan 5769

The economic recession has taken a toll on yeshiva day schools, more so

North Shore is raising scholarship funds through a Torah dedication campaign.

perhaps than any other Jewish entities. Terms like ‘tuition crisis’ and ‘charter schools’ are being uttered more frequently as parents are being forced to reevaluate their educational priorities in the face of rising costs and diminished

Misaskim organization plans local expansion

Flood of post-Shavuot shiva homes leaves warehouses empty

By Yaffi Spodek
Issue of June 12, 2009 / 20 Sivan 5769

Friday, June 6, marked the first time since Misaskim’s founding nearly five years ago that its warehouses were empty –– a result of an unusually high number of aveilim (mourners) in the Jewish community beginning shiva at the same time.

“Unfortunately, we got hit very hard this week,” explained Rabbi Yankie Meyer, one of the founders of Misaskim. “There were over 300 aveilim in 42 places, and we are working on replenishing… We just did pick-ups on Sunday so our supplies are automatically replenished.”

Some of these supplies — provided free of charge — include chairs, coat racks, air conditioners, siddurim (prayer books), Tylenol, water coolers and other amenities

Letters to the Editor 6-5-09

Issue of June 5, 2009 / 13 Sivan 5769

Respect our differences

To the Editor:

I was most happy that you published the two articles by Dr. Michael Salamon (Kosher Values, April 24, 2009; and Romantic Sparks,

On the Calendar 6-5-09

Issue of June 5, 2009 / 13 Sivan 5769

Five Towns – The Five Towns Shul Softball League for men is expanding

Slice of Life: Smoothies

By Eileen Goltz
Issue of June 5, 2009 / 13 Sivan 5769

So what exactly is a smoothie?

A smoothie is the alias given to a delicious fruit drink that’s been created by combining fruit, fruit juice and a milk or

Parshat Naso: Drinks for everybody!

PARSHAT NASO
By Rabbi Avi Billet
Issue of June 5, 2009 / 13 Sivan 5769

As the aftershocks of Shavuot slowly wear off, I find myself thinking about

The Kosher Bookworm on Pirkei Avot: The Wisdom of our ancestors

Issue of June 5, 2009 / 13 Sivan 5769
Reviewed by Alan Jay Gerber

With the Shavuot holiday past, we now come to the second cycle in the weekly study of

Seidemann: Live and let live

From the other side of the bench

By David Seidemann
Issue of June 5, 2009 / 13 Sivan 5769

Listen to David’s interview on “JM in the AM” with host Nachum Segal

uld a person go in accommodating the needs of another? What shall be sacrificed to guarantee that another human being has what he or she needs? To what degree do we sublimate our own wish list to ensure that another person’s honor is left intact?

From a legal standpoint, as long as one does not infringe upon another’s constitutional rights, great leeway and deference is accorded. Live and let live has worked, albeit not perfectly, for generations. In fact entire sects within a given religion live by that credo. Entire political parties live by that mantra and those are the good groups and subgroups. All too often, however, groups within groups form, whose mission is to raise their own profile, their own agenda, through the degradation of the opposition.

Sometimes, there is no other way. Sometimes the misguided principles of

That’s Life: Plunging for pencils; are they all yours?; more 6-05-09

Issue of June 5, 2009 / 13 Sivan 5769

Dear That’s Life,

Every Friday night, my husband and I have the custom to bless our two children with the traditional

Editorial: Good friends are intellectually honest, too

Issue of June 5, 2009 / 13 Sivan 5769

President Obama is off to the Middle East

Local students recognized for scholastic achievements

By Yaffi Spodek
Issue of June 5, 2009 / 13 Sivan 5769

Meir Schein, Ilan Portnoy, DRS principal Harvey Feldman, Shalom Willner, and Shalom Rosenbaum at Intel's awards ceremony

DRS sophomores  win science awards

Four boys from HALB’s DRS Yeshiva High School for Boys won awards from Intel’s NYSSEF (New York State Science and Engineering Fair) Nebula Division at a ceremony held May 20 at Deer Park High School.

Shalom Rosenbaum of Woodmere and Shalom Willner of West Hempstead received an award in the Medicine & Health Sciences category for their project entitled “The Effect of Varying Magnetic Flux Intensities on the Cardiac Cycle of Daphnia Magna.” Ilan Portnoy of Lawrence and Meir Schein of Woodmere received an award in the Animal Sciences category for their project involving the effect of gravity on the embryos of brine shrimp.

All of the boys, who are tenth graders, are also participants in the Science Honors Program at DRS. The students’ research was performed under the direction of DRS faculty members, Dr. Robert Winston and Dr. Rosalie Peck.

Haftr students take high honors

Six HAFTR students were awarded at the Long Island Math Fair on May 1

HAFTR's Rabbi Yotav Eliach, Mr. Stanley Blumenstein, Benjamin Parnes, Yael Schein, Jessica Lovett, Alana Warhit, Rachel Bandler, Jennifer Graber, Mr. Neil Bernstein, Ms. Naomi Lippman

at Hofstra University.

Jessica Lovett and Alana Warhit both won gold medals, Jessica for her research on the cardinality of infinite sets and Alana for her work on Euclidean and hyperbolic tessellations in two and three dimensional space. Jennifer Graber won a silver medal for her PowerPoint presentation on the enigmatic nature of prime numbers.

Rachel Bandler, Benjamin Parnes, and Yael Schein were all awarded bronze medals for their projects. Rachel did research on the use of stochastic matrices, Benjamin on the cardinality of numbers, and Yael in algorithms in game theory.

All six students worked with their mentor, Mr. Neil Bernstein, chairman of the math department at HAFTR.

Central senior recognized for research

Shane Fischman of Woodmere has garnered national attention for her innovative research on body image in the Jewish community.

A senior at Yeshiva University High School for Girls (Central), Fischman

Shane Fischman of Woodmere, with Head of School Rochelle Brand, and Ruth Fried, science department chairperson at YUHSG.

spent over a year studying the topic and wrote a research paper entitled “The effects of Parental Pressure and Community Pressure on the Body Image of Adolescent Girls in the Typical Orthodox Jewish Community.”

The comprehensive work earned her an award from the American Psychological Association and led to her being named a finalist in the behavioral and health science category of the New York City Science and Engineering Fair. Fischman also received $1,000 for being named a Young Epidemiologist Scholars finalist.

“Shane is an exceptionally creative student and I applaud her initiative in researching such an important issue affecting young women in the Orthodox Jewish community,” said Ruth Fried of Woodmere, chair of the science department at YUHSG and creator of the YUHSG Science Institute.

“I believe that her research will be used as a springboard to help our girls and their parents deal better with the pressures of the world.”

National honor for Lawrence senior

Yaakov Sebrow of Lawrence has been selected for membership by the National Society of High School Scholars (NSHSS), a group which recognizes top students throughout the country.

Sebrow is graduating from Yeshiva University High School for Boys (MTA) and plans to begin a year of study in Israel at Yeshivat Kerem B’Yavneh in the fall.

“On behalf of NSHSS, I am honored to recognize the hard work, sacrifice and commitment that Yaakov Sebrow has demonstrated to achieve this exceptional level of academic excellence,” said NSHSS Founder and Chairman Claes Nobel. “Yaakov Sebrow is now a member of the unique community of scholars –– a community that represents our very best hope for the future.”

Membership in NSHSS allows students to enjoy a wide variety of benefits, including scholarship opportunities, academic competitions and educational forums.

Budding scientists at North Shore

A pair of ninth graders from the North Shore Hebrew Academy in Great Neck was recently announced National Winners in the 2009 Toshiba/NSTA ExploraVision Awards Program.

Bradley Garczynski and Mackenzie Berman, guided by their science coach, Phyllis Serfaty, created “Nanobiosensors: A Lab on a Chip,” a discreet non-invasive, tamper-proof drug detection system designed to curtail the growing problem of the use of performance-enhancing drugs in sports.

The students were one of eight teams, chosen from 4,388 student teams across the U.S. and Canada, to have been named as National Winners in this year’s Toshiba/NSTA ExploraVision Program. They are now heading to Washington, DC where they will meet Congressional representatives, present their ideas in a special Science Showcase and each receive a savings bond for $5,000.

The case for Israel: documentary viewed in North Woodmere

Issue of June 5, 2009 / 13 Sivan 5769

Over 75 people came to Temple Hillel in North Woodmere Wednesday to view “The Case for Israel,” a documentary with Alan Dershowitz presenting a defense of Israel, her basic right to exist,

Flipping out in Israel is overrated

Study finds religious changes to be minimal

By Michael Orbach
Issue of June 5, 2009 / 13 Sivan 5769

The year in Israel may not be as pivotal to religious development as was previously thought, according to a new study

Red Cross comes under fire

Protestors rally for Gilad Shalit

By Malka Eisenberg
Issue of June 5, 2009 / 13 Sivan 5769

Groups of yeshiva students joined close to 1,000 protesters on 42nd St. and Second Ave in Manhattan

Great-great-great grandfather

Rabbi Yosef Shalom Elyashiv sees a sixth-generation descendant

By Mattis Goldberg
Issue of June 5, 2009 / 13 Sivan 5769

Great-great-great grandfather: HaRav Yosef Shalom Elyashiv, shlita

Immediately after Shabbos ended on May 23, Rabbi Yosef Shalom Elyashiv, the world’s leading halachic authority, was informed that he has become a great-great-great grandfather.

He is 99 years old and has lived to see a sixth-generation descendant. The birth has been widely discussed in Israel, including secular news outlets.

Rav Elyashiv’s great-great grandchildren Rabbi Yonoson and Mrs. Devora Honigsberg, announced the birth

The key to a happy camper

How to handle homesickness

By Yaffi Spodek
Issue of June 5, 2009 / 13 Sivan 5769

After weathering an expensive year of yeshiva tuition, many parents are now shelling out thousands of additional dollars to send their kids to sleep-away camp this summer. While this may seem like money well spent –– what could be better than getting rid of your children for a month or two? –– cost alone does not guarantee that your child will be a happy camper, literally.

Sports, swimming, trips and other fun-filled activities aside, many children will experience homesickness while they are away, even at the best of camps.

“The first thing to remember is that some kids don’t get homesick,” said Adam Weinstein, the executive director of ACA (American Camp Association) – NY, in a phone interview. “A lot of parents don’t have to worry about it all.”

But those parents who do, can be assured that

Great day on Fifth – pictures from the 2009 Salute to Israel Parade

Jewish pride on parade on Manhattan’s Fifth Ave; at concert for Israel in Central Park

Issue of June 5, 2009 / 13 Sivan 5769

Rambam Mesivta

Boys and girls from the Five Towns, West Hempstead and around Nassau County were among tens of thousands who marched in the Salute to Israel parade Sunday. Most walked up Manhattan’s Fifth Ave. with their schools — here is a sampling of photos from the parade and the concert in Central Park:

See The Jewish Star as it appears in print 6-5-09

Click here for the print edition for June 5, 2009