Chagall’s ‘Purim’ Journey to Philadelphia

February 24, 2021

It takes planning and a little willpower to visit Marc Chagall’s painting “Purim” during the pandemic.

You have to reserve a time slot at the Philadelphia Museum of Art in advance, get your temperature taken when you get there, and navigate the museum’s warrens of galleries. But it was a similarly circuitous route — from pre-revolutionary Russia to Nazi Germany, from Brooklyn to Philadelphia — that brought “Purim” to Gallery 267a.

Chagall was in high demand when he painted “Purim” in 1916. Back in his hometown of Vitebsk in present-day Belarus after nearly a decade in St. Petersburg and Paris, Chagall was fresh off of successful exhibitions in Berlin and Moscow and snared a commission from the Petrograd Jewish Society for the Promotion of the Arts.

The society tasked him with creating large-scale murals of religious festivals for a Jewish secondary school attached to the city’s main synagogue. “Purim,” a study Chagall painted in preparation, depicts a man and a woman as they prepare to exchange gifts for the holiday; the word “Purim” is written in Hebrew in the corner of the study.

Front cover of the guide for the Degenerate Art Exhibition, which featured Chagall’s paintings along with those of other artists | Tel Aviv Stamps Ltd. auction photo licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0

“He had gotten connected with these artists who were really very interested in exploring Jewish visual traditions, among others, in order to create a kind of authentically Jewish modern art in Russia,” said Matthew Affron, the Muriel and Philip Berman Curator of Modern Art at the museum.

The era of “Purim” was a fruitful one for Chagall; the following year, the revolutionary Soviet government asked him to serve as commissar for the arts, but Chagall declined, establishing a school in Vitebsk instead.

The commissioned murals were never completed, but Chagall took “Purim” with him when he moved to France a few years later, and sold it to Dr. Herbert Tannenbaum, a German-Jewish art dealer. Tannenbaum lent “Purim” to a Chagall exhibition in Cologne in 1925, and in 1928, sold it to a museum in Essen, Germany. But as Chagall’s star rose higher in Europe, so too did other forces.

A day after Chagall’s 50th birthday in 1937, “Purim” was confiscated by Nazi authorities for The Degenerate Art Exhibition, conceived by Joseph Goebbels, Affron said. The exhibit in Munich, intended to denigrate the work on display, featured more than 5,000 confiscated paintings and sculptures deemed insufficiently patriotic, exceedingly modern in style or generally inimical to the
Aryan ideal.

Several paintings from Chagall were displayed in a room designated for the disparagement of Jewish art, Affron said. More than 2 million people attended the exhibition as it traveled around Germany.

In 1941, Chagall and his wife just barely escaped Vichy France for the U.S. without “Purim,” which had been given to Ferdinand Möller, an art dealer appointed by the Nazis to sell “degenerate art” on the international market. According to the PMA, Möller failed, as the painting was sold to a German, Dr. Kurt Feldhäusser, who was killed in an Allied bombing raid. His mother brought “Purim” to Brooklyn in 1948; the following year, it was sold to lawyer Louis E. Stern.

Stern, born in Balta, Russia, in 1886, was raised in Vineland, New Jersey, and went to law school at the University of Pennsylvania. He practiced international law in Atlantic City, Newark, New Jersey, and New York, and amassed a considerable art collection, including many works by Chagall, who became a personal friend.

Marc Chagall in 1941 |
Carl Van Vetchen/Library of Congress/Wikimedia Commons

When Stern died in 1962, some of his art collection went to the Brooklyn Museum and the Museum of Modern Art, while his art library went to Rutgers University. But the bulk of the collection, including “Purim,” was left to the PMA, where it hangs today in Gallery 267a.

[email protected]; 215-832-0740

Evie Dresner Heinz

- -

February 24, 2021

Aliza Richman and Paul Heinz of West Chester announce the birth of their daughter Evie Dresner Heinz on Nov. 24, 2020.

Sharing in their happiness are grandparents Wendy and Jeffrey Richman of Elkins Park, and Dorothy and Sam Heinz of West Chester, along with great-grandparents Tobe Dresner and Pearl and Edward Richman.

Joining in the celebration are aunt Jamie and uncle Jesse Richman, aunt Ellen and uncle Roger Carman, and uncle John Heinz.

Evie Dresner is named in loving memory of her maternal great-grandfather Arnold Dresner.

Home Design Trends: Functional Spaces

Jesse Bernstein

February 24, 2021

The pandemic’s been a busy time for interior designers, as clients restricted to their living rooms, kitchens and desks are finding that the new normal might call for a new couch.

Interior designers Amy Cuker (Down2Earth Interior Design), Candice Adler (Candice Adler Design) and Michelle Erdosi (Aeternum Design Studio) spoke to the Exponent about the choices they and their clients have made in the past year.

Amy Cuker,
Down2Earth Interior Design

A kitchen designed by Amy Cuker of Down2Earth Interior Design | Photo by Rebecca McAlpin

Since the pandemic began, Cuker and her team at Elkins Park-based Down2Earth Interior Design have worked exclusively on residential projects. With lockdowns and shelter-in-place orders, Cuker anticipated that clients would come to see the home office as newly essential. They’d not only need a comfortable, productive space to work in, Cuker theorized, but one that served as a cocoon in a home with children.

But it didn’t turn out that way. Instead of home offices, Cuker said, it’s been mostly about basements, whether unfinished or in need of an update. When one party needs noise and the other needs quiet, it seems that the squeaky wheel is getting the grease. And extra time at home has afforded more attention to worn surfaces, nicked corners and scuffed paint. Projects that might’ve been put off in the past in favor of travel, summer camp or leisure activities are finally getting completed.

“Counterintuitively, these aren’t necessarily projects that address a specific pandemic need,” Cuker said. “It’s more just, you’re finally prioritizing them.”

Kitchens are a priority, as always. Storage space is valued in a way that it wasn’t before, Cuker said, as families are finding that they want more food in the house. And Cuker’s seen formal dining spaces reclaimed as an extension of the kitchen, as the pandemic has allowed some families to admit the truth: They weren’t entertaining all that much before, and they don’t plan to start when it becomes a possibility again.

Candice Adler,
Candice Adler Design

Families now want more kitchen space, according to Candice Adler, who designed the rooms above | Photo by Candice Adler

Like Cuker, Cherry Hill-based Candice Adler has found the extra time at home has turned “maybe next year” changes into “why not now?” projects for her clients.

But Adler’s guidance for the people she works with hasn’t changed: When it comes to couches, chairs and sitting areas, she says, “if it’s comfortable enough for a seder, then it’s going to work.”

Non-functional seating that serves purely aesthetic purposes is waning in popularity, while functional space is the name of the game. Spare bedrooms increasingly double as gyms and offices, and basements that needed work have gotten it. Unlike Cuker, Adler has seen a slight increase in the demand for home offices, but she’s noticed a greater emphasis on the kitchen as a place to congregate, which has led to more attention to space and storage — larger fridges, especially.

And whereas silver was the trend in kitchens for a long time, brass is coming back, Adler said, so everyone who got rid of their brass in favor of silver is switching it back, and everyone who dragged their feet on making the switch is delighted to find that they have no switch to make.

“They’re like, ‘Oh my God, it’s come back!’” Adler said.

Lastly, Adler sees that her years of stressing the importance of lighting are finally paying off, as clients now realize how transformative new lighting choices can be.

“If you really want to give your room a face lift without spending a ton, a little bit of paint and a fabulous light will go a very long way,” Adler said. “It can change everything.”

Michelle Erdosi,
Aeternum Design Studio

Aeternum, based in Fishtown, typically splits time between private residence jobs and commercial design. Erdosi’s specialty is hospitality, so as the world of her clients contracted, her expertise in figuring out what makes a warm and inviting public space has been brought to bear on private homes.

“It all kind of comes down to having that people-centric sense of hospitality and experience, to be the focus of how we design,” Erdosi said.

This year, being people-centric has meant designing for interiors where working hours often bleed into after-work. Creating home offices, living rooms and kitchens that are “a little bit more multifunctional and a little more flexible,” Erdosi said, is her way of meeting client needs.

Erdosi is seeing the same trends as Cuker and Adler: Goodbye, beautiful, inhospitable chairs; hello, function and performance in every room — but especially the kitchen.

“I see that as a performance space, where we ask of that space and we need it to deliver and not just look cute,” she said.

[email protected]; 215-832-0740

Pandemic Fashion: Going Beyond the Mask

Sophie Panzer

February 24, 2021

In 2020, comfort was key.

Elissa Bloom, executive director of the Philadelphia Fashion Incubator, saw the popularity of items like sweatpants, sneakers and leggings skyrocket throughout the fashion world. Those fortunate enough to work from home started taking business calls in sweatsuits instead of pantsuits and attended conferences in dress shirts over pajama bottoms.

Even as business casual outfits hang abandoned in closets, Bloom, who is Jewish, said local designers elevated the humble sweatshirt to a stylish wardrobe staple without sacrificing comfort.

“I know that a lot of different designers have been manipulating the sweatshirts or putting an applique or painting or doing embroidery,” she said.

Danielle Tobin, founder of the apparel and accessories brand Elle Tobin, has embraced what she describes as the “COVID cozy” trend and designed several brightly colored sweatshirts from sustainable materials and reflective fabric that glows in the dark.

Elle Tobin sweatshirt Photo by Danielle Tobin

“It was most inspired by comfort first, and the second thing I was inspired by was just being bright and bold. Things were dark, and there was a lot of uncertainty, and I really just wanted to bring some sunshine to people’s faces,” she said.

Galit Carmely, owner of the boutique My Little Redemption in Old City, said the emphasis on comfort and bright colors combined with another trend: the return of the ’80s. Shoulder pads and oversized sneakers were already creeping back into closets before the pandemic hit, but the necessity of working from home combined with a desire for bright visuals has accelerated the popularity of loose fits and colorful prints.

Carmely prefers the oversized sweatsuit trend to leggings, which she thinks are clingy and unflattering. She gravitates more toward classic and timeless pieces in her own wardrobe and inventory, but embraced the emphasis on comfort and some of the subtler aesthetic trends of 2020.

“I’m going toward the colorful pieces, a lot of matching,” said Carmely, who is Israeli. “Pieces like a jacket that’s not very fitted, that’s more loose and comfortable, but has some shape to it. And I’m all about the same color for the top and the bottom.”

She expects high-waisted pants and more bright prints will be popular this summer. Much like last year, comfort will dictate outfit preferences; think fewer dresses and more jumpsuits.

Bloom said eye-catching accessories have become popular due to the ubiquity of Zoom meetings.

“Statement earrings and necklaces have been making a comeback because people are only visible from the chest up on Zoom calls,” she explained. “I’ve seen a lot of really interesting, more chunky, kind of bold types of necklaces and earrings.”

She added that Incubator designers have also embraced face masks, which are literally the must-have accessory of the pandemic since you won’t be allowed in the grocery store without one. Tobin has created several using reflective fabric, and Annina King, owner of Granaté Prêt, created a line of masks embellished with Swarovski crystals and hand-painted by local artists.

Granaté Prêt face masks
Photo by Annina King

“Who would have thought, a year ago, that masks would be our fashion accessory of the year? That we’d be finding one to match every outfit or match our winter scarf?” she said.

King also started an initiative to hire local workers to sew masks for hospitals that needed them in the early days of the pandemic. She is now working on a line of masks that will minimize acne for wearers and consulting dermatologists to find the best materials.

Bloom said the supply chain issues and economic upheaval created by the pandemic accelerated a trend of upcycling and sustainability that has built over the past few years. Rather than shopping for new clothes, people are more likely to spend carefully, alter or tailor items they already own or embrace do-it-yourself projects like tie-dye.

Namita Penugonda Reddy, founder of Samsara Sari, repurposes old saris into dresses, skirts, scrunchies and other items. Samsara, which means “rebirth” in Sanskrit, refers to the process of giving new life to used garments. During the pandemic, she has focused on making tutu skirts for young girls.

Samsara Sari skirt
Courtesy of Namita Penugonda Reddy

“Even if they aren’t going anywhere, people still want their kids to look cute,” she said.

Bloom said the recession has led to a surge of interest in shopping locally, fueled by an awareness that struggling small businesses might not make it through the pandemic without shoppers’ support. Rather than ordering from fast fashion retail giants like H&M, people are thinking strategically about preserving businesses that contribute to their local economy and communities.

“People are really being more discerning and thinking, ‘What is important to me? What are the essentials that I really need in my wardrobe?’” she said.

Former Pa. Budget Secretary Michael Masch Dies

Sophie Panzer

February 24, 2021

Michael Masch Courtesy of Rachel Falkove

Michael Masch, financial and operations manager for Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, and several colleges and universities, died Feb. 7 in Washington, D.C. He was 70.

Masch served as Pennsylvania’s secretary of budget and administration under former Gov. Ed Rendell from 2003 to 2008. Prior to that, he was Philadelphia’s budget director when Rendell was mayor. He also served as the chief financial officer of the School District of Philadelphia from 2008 to 2012, and as a senior policy analyst for the Pennsylvania Budget and Policy Center.

Speaking at Masch’s virtual memorial service, Rendell said Masch helped cut operating costs and increase efficiency at a time when Philadelphia was facing a devastating deficit, shedding jobs and losing businesses. He described his colleague as a brilliant public servant, not only because of his financial wizardry or public speaking skills, but because he understood what was at stake.

“Michael never forgot that we weren’t playing a game with numbers, or playing a game with statistics. We were playing in a battle that made people’s lives better, that actually mattered,” he said.

Masch also worked as vice president for budget and management at the University of Pennsylvania and vice president for finance and as chief financial officer at Manhattan College. He had been the senior vice president, chief financial officer and treasurer at Howard University since 2015.

“Mike Masch ran towards fires with a heart full of love,” Howard President Wayne A. I. Frederick said at the memorial. “He saw the most difficult things that needed to be fixed, and attempted to fix them. And he attempted to do that in a selfless manner for the good of others.”

Born Oct. 14, 1950, Masch was adopted as a child and raised in a tight-knit Jewish community in Southwest Philadelphia. Social life revolved around Beth Am Israel synagogue, whose leaders shaped Masch’s love for Judaism.

He graduated from Central High School in 1968 and attended Temple University, where he met his future wife, Rachel Falkove. They both realized they wanted to pursue a Jewish life that was more focused on social justice than the postwar synagogues of their childhoods had been. Masch was inspired by the Black Panthers and left-wing politics, and Falkove was involved with the environmental movement.

“By the time he got to college, he was very taken with the civil rights movement and the antiwar movement,” she said. “He was trying to synthesize Jewish life with what was going on in our political world.”

He studied at Temple for four years as an urban studies major and dropped out just before graduation. He later earned a master’s degree in government and public administration from the Fels Institute of Government at Penn thanks to significant professional experience.

He entered public life with a job on the technical staff of Philadelphia City Council before working for Rendell. Later, he helped create the Philly Phlash transit line — named after the Flash, one of his favorite DC Comics characters.

As CFO of the city’s school district, he helped restore it to balanced and surplus budgets from 2003 to 2007, although he was criticized for failing to overcome state budget cuts during the recession in 2010.

He eliminated state deficits, produced surpluses and increased state funding for Pennsylvania’s 500 school districts as secretary of budget and administration. He created the Pennsylvania Office of Performance Improvement to measure and improve performance of state agencies in
this role.

He was passionate about creating new forms of Jewish community and worship, writing for the Jewish Exponent and becoming one of the founders of the Germantown Minyan. The group’s two offshoots, Dorshei Derekh and Minyan Masorti, are still active at the Germantown Jewish Centre.

Friends and family knew he was a big fan of comic books and superheroes, loved a good party and approached everything with exuberance.

“He danced the hardest, he sang the loudest and watched the junkiest movies,” Falkove said. “He had a good time. He solved really big problems, and he enjoyed it.”

Pandemic Makes Moving a Bigger Hassle

Sophie Panzer

February 24, 2021

Betsy Morgan wants to move to Israel in late February or early March, but has had trouble finding someone to sublet her Center City apartment.

She’s posted ads in Facebook housing groups but there’s been little interest. Her landlord said she would get about 20 inquiries a week on Zillow when renting the place before the pandemic, but now she’s lucky to hear from even one person.

Moving is stressful during the best of times. And a global pandemic throws a whole new set of challenges at those aiming to put down roots somewhere else. An international move like Morgan’s is a complicated process, but even local moves are fraught due to lack of in-person tours and the need to manage social distancing with movers.

Sisters Victoria and Sarah Alfred-Levow returned to their mother’s house on the Main Line when their college classes went virtual. After a few months, they knew it was time to find a place of their own.

“We decided to move to East Falls because it kind of fits that bill of being close enough to visit, but far enough away that it actually felt like a new start,” Victoria Alfred-Levow said.

Much of the apartment search took place online, but they were able to arrange an in-person tour of their favorite place before signing a lease.

After settling on a September move-in date, the siblings hired movers. Having strangers in their house was surreal after many months of isolation, even though everyone wore masks. They were also concerned that their landlord wanted to send a handyman to fix some maintenance issues in the new apartment.

“It felt so stressful just knowing, ‘Oh my gosh, am I going to have to worry about a stranger breathing in my house?’” Victoria Alfred-Levow said.

Rebecca Rendsburg and her husband David eyed a move to Philadelphia from New York for years before the pandemic, but new restrictions threw their plans into question.

David Rendsburg’s mother lives in Lower Merion, and he attended Akiba Hebrew Academy (now Jack M. Barrack Hebrew Academy) and the University of Pennsylvania. The couple visited Philadelphia often. Rebecca Rendsburg was struck by the city’s history and manageable pace.

“I really fell in love with the smallness of this city. There was an intimacy to it. There were neighborhoods that felt like little communities,” she said.

The Rendsburg family
Courtesy of Rebecca Rendsburg

She and her husband loved New York, but needed a larger space to raise their two children and a more cost-effective lifestyle in order to send them to Jewish day school while saving for retirement.

“We can do that in Philadelphia. We did not feel like we could do that in New York City,” she said.

Their housing search was complicated by their inability to view places in person.

“We spent March and April into early May looking at houses and virtually never getting a chance to actually go in to see the house, so the house we bought, we did not step foot in until the last week of July, until we moved, basically,”
she said.

The Rendsburgs moved to the Hawthorne neighborhood in August and joined the South Philadelphia Shtiebel. Rebecca Rendsburg spent the summer doing outdoor activities like hikes and gardening with her new community.

“It was a really lovely experience,” she said. “But then things had to shut down in November with the uptick of infection around Thanksgiving, and so that was a loss for us. Trying to connect and meet new people and be a part of a new community while you can’t actually see people in person has been a challenge.”

Victoria Alfred-Levow continues to attend virtual services, but misses getting to know her new neighbors.

“It’s so weird to walk around the neighborhood, get that exercise and see the amazing architecture, and know I’m still very much on the outside of this community,” she said.

Aside from the sublet struggle, Morgan is excited to join her partner in Haifa. Her two siblings live in Jerusalem, and her mother plans to move to Israel in the near future.

Morgan, who grew up in Yardley and attended Drexel University, said she would miss the city’s walkability and community feel. She spent the past few weeks saying goodbye to her friends and loved ones from a distance and enjoying the snow.

“It’s been a bit of a hassle to drive in, but it is very beautiful, and I have been trying to take it in since I won’t see this much snow for a very long time,” she said. l

Knitting Nonprofit Promotes Healing, One Stitch at a Time

Sophie Panzer

February 24, 2021

Ellen Rubin knows knitting is often thought of as a hobby for the elderly, but she believes the craft has something to offer everyone.

“I like to think of myself as the Pied Piper of the therapeutic benefits of knitting and crochet,” she said. “It helps with stress, anxiety, depression, PTSD, drug addiction, alcohol addiction and more.”

Her passion for the fiber arts led her to open her store, Luv2Knit & More, in Jenkintown in 2017. Last July, the 52-year-old started her nonprofit, Therapeutic Crafters on Call, to educate volunteers to lead their own knitting and crochet classes.

Rubin’s fascination with knitting’s therapeutic benefits stems from her career as a scientist; she worked as an immunologist for pharmaceutical firms. When a difficult pregnancy put her on bed rest 21 years ago, she taught herself to knit.

She kept her needles moving through the illness of a close friend and during a grueling divorce, finding solace in the meditative activity. She began teaching others and saw how it helped them work through their struggles with anxiety, stress and pain.

She taught a friend who had major surgery and said it helped her through the recovery process when reading and even watching TV were difficult. She volunteered to lead an enrichment program for second-graders and saw how it soothed children coping with emotional issues. She led workshops in her store and at community centers for fatigued health care workers, foster children, children with autism, deaf and blind learners, maternity patients and others, while collecting journal articles and studies about knitting’s ability to help people manage pain and stress.

So what is it about knitting that makes such a difference? Rubin claims it helps the brain produce dopamine and serotonin, hormones that create a sense of pleasure and relaxation.

“It’s not exclusive to knitting, certainly. You get into this meditative state with other things that could be drawing or gardening, but what’s great about knitting and crochet is they’re portable, and most importantly, you make things you can donate and use to help other people,” she said.

Before the pandemic, Rubin taught classes at her store. Now, she holds them over Zoom and offers one-on-one or two-on-one lessons with masks and distancing.

Deborah Glanzberg-Krainin started taking classes with Rubin while dealing with health issues and looking for a creative outlet to make her feel grounded. She said Rubin was a natural educator, which was helpful when she felt confused and out of her element.

“She just made it very inviting and very easy and made me feel like mistakes were a part of the growth,”
she said.

Glanzberg-Krainin enjoys the intense focus knitting requires.

“It just calls for absolute attention in the moment, which is a very healing place to be,” she said.

Toni Taterka took up Rubin’s knitting lessons in December. She was looking for something that would help her relax while caring for her elderly mother during the pandemic. She already knew how to knit, but wanted to learn how to use different patterns to make clothing. Now, she’s working on a neck warmer using the knit and purl stitch.

Feeling productive has helped her cope with the monotony of so many hours spent at home.

“The nice thing about knitting is you look at it, you do admire the work you’ve done and you have something to show for it,” she said.

Rubin has taught workshops at Beth Sholom Congregation in Elkins Park as well as for Jewish Family and Children’s Service of Greater Philadelphia.

“They were learning over Zoom, which isn’t necessarily easy, so sometimes if someone wasn’t picking up a certain thing, I actually drove out to that person’s house and sat with them outside before it got too cold and showed them,” she said.

She said meditation and mindfulness play an important role in her Jewish spirituality, and that knitting’s meditative aspects complement prayer and her desire to make the world a better place.

Glanzberg-Krainin and Taterka praised Rubin’s accessible teaching style and her emphasis on embracing mistakes as part of the learning process. Rubin tells her students her teaching abilities stem from 21 years of her own errors.

“I always say to them, ‘You know why I’m really good at fixing mistakes?’ Because I’ve made a lot of them,’” she said.

Elkins Park Trio Helps Seniors Get Vaccines

February 24, 2021

Cheryl Shmilovich receives a vaccine. Danielle Otero helped her to secure an elusive appointment | Courtesy of Dan Shmilovich

For weeks, Danielle Otero clicked on COVID-19 vaccine appointment websites, refreshing pages, to get her relatives lined up for a shot.

Even though she was successful — some had to go to Allentown, but a shot’s a shot — she couldn’t help but think about the many older members of her Elkins Park Jewish community who didn’t have her computer savvy.

So she decided to do something about it.

Teaming up with friends Sarah Levin and Rebecca Klinger from Beth Sholom Congregation, Otero started connecting older members of their community with appointments. Otero taught Levin and Klinger the tricks of the trade — which websites to check for appointments and when to check them, which Facebook pages to follow.

With cases funneled to them through Beth Sholom and the Kehillah of Old York Road, Otero, Levin and Klinger have made appointments for about 65 people and have at least that many on their waiting list.

Otero, a mother of three, formerly provided her expertise in international pandemic preparedness to the Department of Defense. Though she’s not employed now, she’s bringing that strategic thinking to this community vaccine project.

“Not a lot of sleep is happening, but we’re getting a lot of appointments for people,” she said. “People are very, very thankful, and I’m happy to help.”

She stressed that the work they do is intended for members of their community only.

Otero, Levin and Klinger have been inundated with stories from immunocompromised cancer survivors, transplant survivors and others with complex medical histories “who really should be the first in line for the vaccine,” Otero said. Helping them out is not just pointing and clicking: The choices inherent in the process can be overwhelming, and Pennsylvania is far behind other states in terms of vaccine distribution, making appointments hard to get.

“It feels like a ‘Hunger Games’ situation,” said Klinger.

Neil Klinger, Rebecca Klinger’s father-in-law, receives his sought-after shot | Courtesy of Rebecca Klinger

Dan Shmilovich, who has known Otero for years through their synagogue, praised her efforts in pursuing appointments for his older parents and immunocompromised brother.

“She’s kind of like a hawk,” Shmilovich said. “She’s checking the websites early morning, at night, around the clock, as far as I know.” She ended up finding appointments for them — but two hours away.

Such stories are common on social media, where groups offering emotional support alongside blink-and-you’ll-miss-it appointment leads have cropped up nationwide. Some groups focus on cities and counties, while others tackle whole regions.

“PA CoVID Vaccine Match Maker,” a Facebook group covering the southeastern part of the state, has more than 27,000 members. Posters are either “#Finders” or “#Seekers.” There’s a sidebar with PDFs, Word documents and a spreadsheet with names like “DELCO_VACCINE_LINKS.xlsx” and “weis_pharmacies_with_vaccine_by_city_0.pdf.”

Members post frequently; some express frustration with their lack of success, and others their gratitude for the help they’ve received. Notifications that appointments are available come with the tone of a breathless courier: “Lake Ariel, PA RITE AID!!!!!”

Lafayette Hill’s Ilene Schafer and her husband Marshall have medical conditions that qualify them for the vaccine, but getting an appointment has been like trying to get Springsteen tickets in the old days of Ticketmaster, Ilene Schafer said. They’ve had no luck using “PA CoVID Vaccine Match Maker.”

“It feels totally patchwork,” she said. “Everybody’s doing their own thing. There’s no coordination. There’s no central database. There’s no central anything. It’s like the Wild West trying to get an appointment.”

About 44 million Americans are at least partially vaccinated, according to the New York Times. At the current pace, 90% of the population will have received at least one dose of the vaccine by Christmas. Some of those people will have a trio of friends in Elkins Park to thank — and they’re not stopping their work anytime soon.

“Until we stop getting names from the community, I’m not really putting a limit on it,” Otero said.

[email protected]; 215-832-0740

In Light We Are Seen

- -

February 24, 2021

a hand hovers over a Torah scroll — photovs / iStock / Getty Images Plus

By Rabbi Robert Leib

Parshat Tetzaveh

Step into the Molish Sanctuary at Old York Road Temple-Beth Am in Abington and you’re immediately enveloped by a breathtaking room with a soaring ceiling, continuous red brick walls and warm gold carpeting reminiscent of Sinai’s desert sand.

Designed by noted architect Vincent G. Kling and completed in 1972, this spiritual oasis includes, ipso facto, our award-winning aron kodesh, holy ark, and Ner Tamid, eternal light, both designed by the late Hungarian architect Mark Zubar.

Our Ner Tamid consists of glass cut into flamelike shapes that irregularly jut out of its brass fixture. Above the flames, an expansive Magen David, Star of David, is etched in black into the white-painted concrete ceiling, creating a powerful image of the symbols of the Jewish faith.

Exodus 27:20, the opening verse of this Shabbat’s sedrah, Tetzaveh, is the well-known biblical source for the Ner Tamid, the so-called eternal light, found in each and every synagogue.

I’m intrigued by the thought that the commandment of the Ner Tamid is suspended (literally and figuratively!) between the very exhaustive description of the mishkan, the desert tabernacle, found in last Shabbat’s portion, Terumah, and the detailed description of the elegant, ceremonial clothing worn by Aaron, the High Priest, and his sons — the tabernacle’s officiants — which immediately follows the opening verses in this Shabbat’s portion.

One can thus infer from the biblical narrative spanning chapters 25-28, that the Ner Tamid bridges the celestial world of holy space with the temporal world of consecrated individuals who, in turn, minister to the people. At the very intersection of the sacred and the profane; at today’s nexus of rabbinic-led ritual obligation and lay-congregational practice, it is the Ner Tamid – more than any other symbol reminiscent of the ancient tabernacle — that continues to symbolize the eternal presence of God in our midst.

Occasionally, I’ve had congregants walk through a pitch-black sanctuary — invariably a sight few, if any, have ever witnessed — lit only by the incandescent glow of the Ner Tamid: Judaism’s answer to a dependable, comforting, reassuring night light that illuminates the meeting place where heaven and earth reside; the abode where the spiritual and temporal dwell; the assembly where pulpit and pew embrace.

Such a nighttime scenario also elicits the subsequent question of the sages: “Mei’ei’matai …?” when could the ritual sacrifices resume in the morning? The Talmud in Berachot 9b offers a few illustrative suggestions but the most compelling explanation is more of a sociological one: “mi’she’yireh et chaveiro rachok arba amot, va’yakirenu.”

Dawn is defined as when one can see other people from a distance and recognize them as friends! That, essentially, is when the darkness begins to lift and when we can acknowledge the dignity, the humanity of the “other” in our midst. Such an interpretation also suggests that, for us, the once communal act of in-person worship (may such a scenario return bimheirah v’yameinu!) must necessarily be preceded by the basic, fundamental act of human interaction and mutual recognition. To greet one another in the flesh, panim el panim, face-to-face, is certainly the ideal, of course, even if that’s had to be severely if not completely curtailed this past year.

This Shabbat also happens to mark the annual celebration of Shushan Purim in both the Old City and the adjacent neighborhoods of Jerusalem. Maseichot, the ubiquitous wearing of masks, highlights for us — as it does each and every year — the stark and sobering realization that the real world of true spirituality, of authentic collaboration, of unpretentious partnership lies underneath the surface and the superficiality of mask wearing.

So, permit me to remove my own mask of shame and contend that we Americans are still suspended between the darkness of yesterday and the light of tomorrow. Will we still be entrapped by the sinister darkness of systemic racism and inequality; of white supremacy and ethnic bigotry; of cultural prejudice and gender bias; of wild conspiracy theories and blatant anti-Semitism?

Or, rather, will we — slowly but surely — move into the broad daylight of mutual tolerance, respect, acceptance and compromise?

The Talmud actually compares the long night of exile to the dawn of Purim. For when dawn breaks, all that was previously hidden will finally be revealed. Whatever appeared dark is now bathed in the gleaming light of day when we can, if we will it, stand quietly and confidently on the border of light.

Like our biblical ancestors of old, we too live in the warm shadow of the Ner Tamid, which offers comfort and consolation, healing and hope, respite and renewal. The oldest surviving symbol in all of Judaism reminds us that a new day has dawned. Let us attempt, with all our might, to be chaverim, friends one to the other, so that the better angels of our nature might yet vouchsafe for us all the blessings of a better and brighter tomorrow. l

Rabbi Robert Leib is the senior rabbi of Old York Road Temple-Beth Am in Abington. The Board of Rabbis is proud to provide diverse perspectives on Torah commentary for the Jewish Exponent. The opinions expressed in this column are the author’s own and do not reflect the view of the Board of Rabbis.

Triple Coconut Cake

Keri White

February 24, 2021

This cake was born out of a surplus of coconut cream. My daughter used a portion of a can for quinoa porridge, and I wanted to use the rest before it went bad.

I am always on the lookout for tasty pareve desserts, and this one fit the bill. The cake itself is a riff on a traditional vanilla batter cake that is topped with caramel.

The caramel glaze, which normally uses heavy cream and butter, came together with coconut cream and coconut oil instead. I used unsweetened coconut for the topping — toasted then mixed with confectioner’s sugar — but sweetened, flaked coconut would do the job, too, toasted or not. Hence the “triple coconut cake” moniker.

Because it is pareve, the cake can follow any dinner. And it can go in many different directions.

There is definitely a Southern vibe: Coconut layer cake is an iconic and traditional dessert down South.

But I also feel this pulling to South Asia — Thai, Indian, Malaysian and other cuisines in that part of the world use a lot of coconut in both savory and sweet dishes. You could certainly highlight that culinary geography by adding chopped fresh mango as a garnish at the table or mixing ginger or cardamom into the cake batter.

And there’s an association with Mexican and Central American cuisines, which frequently use coconut as an indigenous ingredient. Consider adding lime zest and juice to the various components, or serve it with sliced pineapple to enhance the Mexican angle.

Finally, if you and yours despise coconut, you can tweak the cake by substituting equal amounts of butter, margarine or shortening for the coconut oil, and buttermilk, regular milk or non-dairy milk for the coconut cream. In the caramel, swap heavy cream and butter (or non-dairy substitutes) for the coconut ingredients.

If you want a crunchy topping that doesn’t involve coconut, you can toast chopped almonds, pecans or walnuts — or skip that step entirely and let the caramel glaze stand on its own.

Triple Coconut Cake
Makes a 9-inch round cake, or about 8 servings, depending upon how you slice it

A note on the ingredients: To achieve maximum coconut flavor, use unrefined virgin coconut oil; it has a much stronger coconut flavor. Most refined coconut oil has little or no coconut flavor. As for the coconut cream, this is a thicker, higher-fat version of coconut milk. If you can’t find it, full-fat coconut milk will work, but the caramel will be a bit thinner.

The cake:
½ cup coconut oil
1 cup sugar
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 cup coconut cream
2 cups flour, sifted
1 teaspoon baking powder
½ teaspoon salt

Heat your oven to 350 F, spray a round cake pan with oil, line it with parchment, then spray the parchment. Set it aside.

In a mixing bowl, blend the coconut oil and sugar on medium until fluffy. Add the eggs, one at a time, mixing well after each. Add the coconut cream and blend again. Sift the dry ingredients into the bowl and mix until fully blended. The batter will be thick.

Scrape the mixture into the prepared pan and bake for 35 minutes until done and lightly brown. The cake is done when the center springs back when lightly pressed with your finger or a toothpick comes out clean.

Cool the cake for a few minutes and, when it is cool enough to handle, invert it, removed the parchment and place it back in the pan or on a cake plate to glaze. Using a skewer or chopstick, poke holes in the cake so that the caramel can permeate when poured over.

The caramel glaze:
¾ cup sugar
¼ cup water
½ cup coconut cream
½ cup coconut oil

In a medium saucepan, melt the sugar and water over medium heat and let boil until caramelized; this will take about 10 minutes. It must be watched carefully, as once it begins to caramelize it will go from liquid gold to scorched black tar quickly.

When the sugar and water mixture has reached a golden color and a syrup-like texture, add the coconut cream. Stir and allow it to blend to a smooth texture. If the sugar crystallizes, don’t worry, just keep stirring over a low heat until it melts again. Add the coconut oil, and stir again until the caramel is golden and thick.

Pour the hot caramel slowly over the cake, allowing it to drip into the holes. Let the cake cool a bit before topping it with toasted coconut.

The toasted coconut topping:
¾ cup unsweetened shredded coconut
⅓ cup powdered sugar

In a medium-sized skillet, heat the coconut over medium, stirring and turning occasionally with a spatula, while watching carefully. After about 8-10 minutes, the coconut will begin to turn golden — once it starts to brown, the toasting happens quickly. Stir until all of the coconut is toasted, and pour it into a small bowl. Add the sugar and stir.

Pour the toasted coconut over the caramel glaze on top of the cake.

1...669670671...675 Page 670 of 675