The Charlotte Jewish News - February 2007 - Page 27
Bob’s Flag
From a Funeral Home, to Flags Across The Nation and
to a Mortuary Affairs Military Unit in Iraq
By Eileen A. Schwartz,
Founder/President, Flags Across
The Nation
Bob’s Flag has brought a light
of caring and the mitzvah of giv
ing and receiving to three Jewish
strangers bound together by an
i American Flag.
' This is a story of three Temple
; Beth El members linked together
■ by Bob’s Flag, actually an
, American Flag. Rabbi Judy
helped by giving Eileen Schwartz
; the initial introduction to
deployed SPC Ronald J. Boyd and
, then the path of the mitzvah really
• began.
The mitzvah path all started in
j November, when a story about
Eileen Schwartz’s visit to the
White House appeared in the
Charlotte Observer. Elly Miller
' read the story and had a thought,
“Bob’s Flag.”
! Bob Miller passed away a few
i years ago and the funeral home
gave Elly Bob’s Flag. Bob had
I served in the Army as a PFC,
‘ deployed to Japan. When Bob
^ passed away, he did not have a
: military burial, however the
i funeral home had a flag .for Bob.
So, Elly took it.
! Elly didn’t know what to do
Bob s flag.
with the flag, so it stayed packed
away in her home, still respectful
ly folded in a triangle. Elly gave
the flag to Eileen to mail to SPC
Boyd.
Now the story takes on a little
twist ... Boyd works in Mortuary
Affairs. Bob’s Flag was sent to
Iraq and now the flag is displayed
there with great honor and enor
mous feeling for his entire unit at
Mortuary Affairs.
When SPC Boyd comes home
from his deployment the flag will
follow. It will be put on display at
Temple Beth El and rest there
awhile until we locate another
deployed soldier who would
honor us all with taking the flag.
This story is not complete with
out some words from Elly Miller
and SPC Boyd.
“Please tell Mrs. Miller thank
you for the flag. It is an honor to
display it here. It was a somber
moment when we placed the flag
into the mortuary, just the fact of
where it came from and what it
represents here. Many of the sol
diers that will come into its pres
ence will not be able to see it,
however, their memory and the
memory of Bob will always be
with all of us,” says Boyd.
Elly Miller said, “ I received
the flag in honor of Bob’s status as
a veteran. I wanted to find an
appropriate way to use it and
when I read about the Flags
Across the Nation Program I knew
I had found the answer. I also
knew Bob would have been
pleased to have his flag used this
way.”
We’re all sure Bob is smiling.
A thought from Rabbi Judy,
“Mystics teach that every Mitzvah
we do brings light into the world.
What a great Mitzvah to share
among three strangers.”
Contact Eileen Schwartz if you
have a flag that you would like to
send over to the troops, 704-654-
8529 or www.flagsacrossthen-
ation.org.
Jeff Katz Selected Best
Media Personality for 2006
City Political Magazine, ^he
monthly publication of North
Carolina politics, has released
their Best of Charlotte 2006
selections and WBT afternoon
host Jeff Katz was named Best
I Media Personality of the Year.
City Political editors describe Jeff
as “tough, but fair” with a knack
for knowing “what’s best for the
city.” They also advise local
politicians to have all of their
“ducks in a row, because he (Jeff)
does not miss anything.” 4*
February 9—11
In honor of Jewish teachers.
Temple Israel is proud to sponsor
‘ scholar-in-residence Joel Lurie
, Grishaver to speak at our
I Education Shabbat. Mr. Grishaver
i is a master teacher, serves on the
1 Consortium for Jewish Family
i Education, and was awarded the
I Covenant Award for outstanding
: contributions to Jewish Education.
; He is the publisher and co-owner
of Torah Aura Productions and
Alef Design Group, which pub
lishes numerous texts: including
all the Hebrew texts used by
. Temple Israel Religious School.
Grishaver is a prolific author and
has written more than one hundred
books including Shema is for Real
and Forty Things You Can Do to
Save the Jewish People. Mr.
Grishaver is a dynamic and inspir
ing speaker and teacher.
Joel Lurie Grishaver will be
speaking on: “The Mechanics of
. Jewish Values” (Saturday Shabbat
! Service).
Joel Grishaver has degrees from
• Boston University and the
University of Chicago. He has pur
sued graduate studies at the
Hebrew Union College and the
University of Southern California.
His real education comes from
working with Jewish day camps,
summer camps, children’s muse
ums and youth groups; and from
teaching in Hebrew schools, day
schools, Hebrew high schools, and
graduate schools. He is a founding
board member of the Coalition for
the Advancement of Jewish
Education, a consultant to the
Whizin Institute for Jewish Family
Life, and a faculty member of the
Department of Continuing
Education of the University of
Judaism. More than twenty week
ends a year, Joel teaches Jewish
learners of all ages as a Scholar-in-
Residence in communities all over
North America and Europe.
In addition, Mr. Grishaver will
also lead two Family Workshops.
Using Bar and Bat Mitzvah to
Change Family Dynamics will be
the topic for our Vav Family
Education session. You Be the
Judge will be the topic for our
Etgar (7th grade) students and
their parents.
Be a Shabbat Star: How to Lead
a Shabbat Morning Service
Temple Israel needs more peo
ple who know how to lead a
Shabbat morning service. There
are opportunities on Men’s Club
Shabbat, Sisterhood Shabbat, and
especially during the summer, or
when the Cantor is out of town.
Whether or not you attend services
regularly, you can master this skill
if you are a proficient Hebrew
reader and have a reasonably
pleasant voice. You will find it
very gratifying to lead people in
prayer.
Room-In-The-Inn
Room In The Inn will be on
February 24. We nedd volunteers
for drivers, kitchen prep, and espe
cially overnights. Donations are
welcomed. We still need donations
of books. Please contact Jeanne
Stein at Jeanne.Hopkins@cms.
kl2.nc.us, JKDSUM@aol.com or
704-651-4908.
(Continued on page 28)
Jeffrey Rosenfeld, Ph.D.,
M.D., Named CMC
Neurology Chair
Jeffrey Rosenfeld, Ph.D., M.D.
has been appointed Chairman of
the Department of Neurology at
Carolinas Medical Center (CMC).
Dr. Rosenfeld will maintain his
title as the Medical Director of the
Department of Neurology within
the Neuroscience Institute as he
takes on Chairmanship of the
Department of Neurology. Dr.
Rosenfeld has served as director
of the Carolinas Neuromuscular
Program since 1998. In addition to
his practice of neurology, he has
more than 18 years of experience
in neurological research.
Dr. Rosenfeld began his med
ical career at the University of
Connecticut, where he completed
graduate work in neuromorpholo
gy/neuroanatomy. He then served
as an instructor and research asso
ciate at the Johns Hopkins
University School of Medicine
prior to attending medical school
at the University of Maryland.
After completing his residency at
the Hospital of the University of
Jeff Rosenfeld
Pennsylvania in Philadelphia, Dr.
Rosenfeld joined the staff at
Emory University. He was co
director of its neuromuscular
pathology lab and served as
attending neurologist at the
Emory Clinic from 1994 to 1998
when he joined the Carolinas
Neuromuscular/ALS Clinic.
IS YNA GOGUEj^ONGREGA TIONS
Joel Lurie Grishaver, Scholar-in-Residence
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