The Charlotte Jewish News - February 2012 - Page 27
Open House for the Foundation for the Charlotte Jewish
Community at the Luski-Gorelick Center for Philanthropy
By Phil Warshauer
On January 29, the Foundation
for the Charlotte Jewish
Community (FCJC) hosted an
open house for the Jewish eommu-
nity to showease Foundation For
The Carolinas’ new headquarters,
The Luski - Goreliek Center for
Philanthropy. In addition to serv
ing as our region’s hub for philan
thropy and eivie serviee, the build
ing also tells the story of the many
generous philanthropists who
make our region a better plaee to
live. Established in 1997 as a sup
porting foundation of Foundation
For The Carolinas, FCJC is an
important part of that story, as are
the many Jewish philanthropists
honored throughout the building.
A gift from Bank of Ameriea,
the building beeame the offieial
home of Foundation For The
Carolinas in 2011. It was also
made possible by the generosity of
the Luski and Goreliek families.
The Luski family also eontributed
many works of art to graee the
faeility, ereating a free, aeeessible
plaee for the art to be enjoyed and
appreeiated by the entire eommu-
nity. Many other prominent area
philanthropists also eontributed
generously to the building’s upfit-
ting, allowing the building to serve
as a eommunity resouree, and
offering board and eonferenee
rooms for free to nonprofits during
weekday business hours. The
building has a strong Jewish pres-
enee, with many spaees within
named after families in our eom
munity.
* Luski - Goreliek Center for
Philanthropy is named to honor
Carol and Shelton Goreliek, Patty
and Bill Goreliek, Rose and Abe
Luski, and Sonia and Isaae Luski.
* Sonia and Isaae Luski Gallery
is the home to an ineredible eollee-
tion of art for all to be seen and
admired. Art was gifted and loaned
by various members of the Luski
family.
* Levine Conferenee Center is a
gift by Sandra and Leon Levine to
our entire eommunity providing
eonferenee rooms for use by non
profit organizations, as well as for
private rentals.
* Bernstein Conferenee Room
honors the philanthropie eontribu-
tions of Mark Bernstein.
* Silverman Pavilion honors the
philanthropie eontributions of
Mattye and Mark Silverman.
* Skint Classroom honors the
philanthropie eontributions of Lori
and Erie Skint.
The following are among those
honored in Legaey Flail for trans
forming the philanthropie land-
The 34th Charlotte Yiddish
Institute
Sponsored by the Sandra &
Leon Levine Jewish Community
Center of Charlotte, August
16-19, Wildacres Retreat at
Little Switzerland, NC
Farbming Mit Undz
Featuring An Outstanding
Faculty for 2012:
Ali & Gene Kavadlo: Leeture
and reeital. Outstanding Klezmer
duo.
Robert Paul Abelson, Cantor,
Composer, Performer, Yiddish
Entertainer
Joyee Rosenzweig, World
Renowned Pianist, Arranger,
Entertainer
Dr. Paul Nitseh, Pianist,
Professor of Musie and Artist in
residenee at Queens University in
Charlotte
Flazzan Moishe Friedler sings
and entertains in Yiddish, Flebrew,
Ladino, and Spanish
The Charlotte Yiddish Institute
is open to men, women and teens
who enjoy the Yiddish language,
and are dedieated to enhaneing the
understanding of Yiddishkeit, in a
eulturally stimulating“heymish
atmosphere”
Fees
*$360 per person(double oeeu-
paney only)
*$150 additional per person fee
for Private Room
Fees eover tuition, room,
kosher meals, and gratuities. Full
fee must aeeompany registration.
Guest Rooms:
All rooms w/private bath loeat-
ed in two modem mountain view
lodges
Cancellation Policy:
Full fee will be refunded if ean-
eellation is made prior to July 30.
An administration eharge of
$50 will be eharged to all late
eaneellations.
Email us:
eltyiddishinst @aol.eom.
Arrival and Registration:
Thursday, August 16 from 2-5
PM
Departure:
Sunday, August 19 at 11 AM
Transportation:
Direetions for travel to
Wildaeres by auto will be sent
upon reeeipt of reservations. Bus
transportation is available from
Charlotte Airport to Wildaeres
Retreat on August 16. Cost is
$80.00 round trip per person.
Please inelude this fee with the
registration. Bus departs Charlotte
Airport promptly at 1 PM on
August 16 and arrives baek to
Charlotte Airport around 2:30 PM
on Sunday, August 19 or a bit
later. Group will meet at Baggage
Claim, adjaeent to “Door D.” **In
the event of an emergeney, day
of arrival, please eontaet:
Berta/Batya at 704 287-6451.
Important - Important -
Important!
*Make your reservations for
early arrival at the airport on the
16 of August. If you arrive after
the bus has departed, you will
be responsible for your own
transportation to Wildaeres. For
additional information, please
eontaet: *Baila Pransky, 704-366-
5564 (Coordinator); *FIeshl and
Etta Spindel, 704-875-7324
(Reservations, Weleome, &
Flospitality); *Charlotte and Gerry
Miller, 704-896-1644 (Weleome
and Flospitality); *Don & Shevi
Herbstman, 704-752-1910
(Transportation, Weleome, and
Reservations)
Come eelebrate an unforget
table Yiddish experienee. ^
seape by establishing permanent
grant making endowments and
foundations:
* Flerman Blumenthal
* I.D. Blumenthal
* Leon Levine
Loeated at 220 North Tryon
Street, the building was previously
oeeupied by the Mint Museum of
Craft -I- Design from 1999 through
2010, and by Montaldo’s depart
ment store from 1929 through
1992. Prior to Montaldo’s, the 220
North Tryon Street housed the
Dowd braneh of the YMCA, J.M.
Flarry Funeral Flome and the
Wadsworth Livery Stable. The eur-
rent sfrueture on this site was eom-
pleted in 1950.
With multiple eonferenee and
board rooms, the building serves
not only as an offiee for
Foundation staff, but also as a
gathering plaee and eivie hub for
the philanthropie eommunity. An
art gallery on the first floor of the
building, made possible by eontri
butions from the Sonia and Isaae
Luski and Rose and Abraham
Luski families, opened in late
November. The gallery is open to
the publie Monday through Friday,
10 AM-5 PM. Spaees within the
building are available for rental for
weddings, reeeptions, eorporate
retreats and other events.
The Charlotte Jewish eommuni
ty eontinues to play a signifieant
role in the growth of our region.
This is refleeted in the unique rela
tionship between the Foundation
for the Charlotte Jewish
Community and Foundation For
The Carolinas. The Luski -
Goreliek Center for Philanthropy
illustrates this speeial bond while
providing a valuable eommunity
resouree. ^
For more information about the
Foundation for the Charlotte
Jewish Community please contact
Phil Warshauer, Executive
Director, at 704-973-4544 or
pwarshauer@charlottej ewish-
foundation.org.
Hebrew Cemetery
Association
By Lorrie Klemons, publicity
February 8, She vat 15, is the
eelebration of Tu B’Shevat - the
New Year of the Trees.
Why do we eelebrate trees?
What is the signifieanee of sueh
eelebration to us as a Jewish peo
ple? Are we eommanded to eele
brate the aetual tree? Perhaps it is
truly meant to be the eelebration
of the wonders of the natural envi
ronment that allow trees to grow
from simple tiny seeds into tall
and vast organie struetures that
reaeh towards heaven.
The faet is that the Torah teaeh-
es us that individual trees are
saered. Fruit trees are never to be
eut down even as a spoil of war.
Saplings are not to be touehed at
all during their first few years of
growth and development. Why
sueh referenee? What does God
know about trees that perhaps we
as humans have yet to learn? Is it
not enough that they give us shel
ter from the rain, proteetion from
the sun, strong foundations for our
homes and sustenanee for our bod
ies?
My husband and I owned a
baekyard eonstruetion eompany
for twenty years. We primarily
used loeally grown Southern
Yellow Pine for our deek and
poreh eonstruetion. We often felt
guilty when we thought about how
many trees needed to be eut down
in order to build one wooden proj-
eet, even though we knew that
pine forests were re-planted on a
eyelieal basis. Our young ehildren
would often question our environ
mentally “unfriendly” use of the
forest. Over the years we resolved
our guilt through Torah study. We
eame to realize that the true mira-
ele of the trees lies in the beauty
and wonder with whieh they feed
our souls. People floek to the
mountains annually to eateh a
glimpse of the magnifieenee of the
fall foliage. People love the first
signs of spring as plants turn green
tf.
Hebrew
Cemetery
Association
and flowers renew their blooms. It
is an entire eyele of life. That won
drous natural phenomenon is but
one of God’s gifts to humanity.
So, yes, while there is a time for
the eutting down of trees for nee-
essary human eonsumption, there
is also the time for the eelebrating
of trees and the beauty, eomfort,
outreaeh, proteetion, sheltering,
and sustenanee they offer us.
February is also Random Aets
of Loving Kindness month. Reaeh
out to a stranger in your eommuni
ty and do something kind for
them. It will make you feel so
great. Visit the Flebrew Cemetery
and see the beauty of the trees
planted there as they eontribute to
the sereneness and tranquility of
the site. Join the eemetery today
and beeome part of the family of
over 700 other Charlotte families
that support the work of the
Flebrew Cemetery Assoeiation.
What eould be more random and
loving than that?
For more information about the
Steinberger Funeral Assistanee
Fund whieh helps to fund burials
for the indigent in our eommunity,
membership benefits, graves, pre
paid funeral eosts, endowments,
and/or ineluding the eemetery in
your estate planning, eontaet
Cemetery Direetor, Sandra
Goldman at 704-576-1859 or 704-
944-6854 or direetor@hebrew-
eemetery.org. Visit the eemetery
website at www.hebreweeme-
tery.org or just eome visit the
eemetery for a personal tour. ^
Down Home: Jewish Life in North Carolina to Open at
Levine Museum of the New South February 25
Beginning February 25, Levine
Museum of the New South will
host Down Flome: Jewish Life in
North Carolina, an exhibit that
ehronieles Jewish life in the Tar
Fleel state from eolonial times to
the present. Down Flome is gener
ously underwritten by the Leon
Levine Foundation, Sandra and
Leon Levine, the North Carolina
Department of Cultural Resourees,
and the Tannenbaum-Stemberger
Foundation, with in-kind support
from Duke University.
The Charlotte exhibition has
been made possible thanks to sup
port from the Goreliek Family:
Patty & Bill Goreliek, Carol &
Shelton Goreliek, and their
ehildren and grandehildren.
Additional support eomes from
media sponsor Our State magazine
and a host eommittee of individu
als from the loeal Charlotte eom
munity.
Down Flome will be on display
at Levine Museum February 25
through September 9, and inelude
six months of related program
ming and additional eompanion
exhibits.
The entire eommunity is invited
to eelebrate the opening of the
exhibit and join Levine Museum
for a “Down Flome Evening” on
Sunday, February 26. Beginning at
5:30 PM, guests will enjoy an
exhibit open house and reeeption,
with musie by Viva Klezmer and
UNC Charlotte throughout the
evening. Remarks will take plaee
at 7 PM. Cost to attend is $25 for
museum members and $40 for
non-members. To RSVP, eontaet
Lindsay Fairbrother at 704-333-
1887 ext. 250 or lfairbrother@
museumofthenewsouth.org.
All That Remains
A new panel exhibit ereated to
aeeompany Down Flome, All That
Remains was inspired by an artiele
that originally appeared in
Charlotte magazine. Writer Ken
Garfield interviewed ten people
living in the Charlotte area who
survived the Floloeaust and under
stood the importanee of telling
their stories before it’s too late.
Photographer Chris Edwards took
beautiful, stirring portraits of eaeh.
Together, these stories are a voiee
from the past, a gift from ten
Charlotteans determined to have
the last word. On exhibit February
25-September 9.
Courage and Compassion
In 1941, the Nazis initiated
their murderous eampaign against
the Jews of Belarus. Three broth
ers, Tuvia, Asael, and Zus Bielski,
refused to beeome vietims, and
eourageously fought baek. They
eseaped to the forest, and began
reseuing relatives, friends, and
eomplete strangers, resulting in
the reseue of more than 1,200
men, women and ehildren.
Courage and Compassion, tells
this remarkable story, and is on
exhibit at Levine Museum in eon-
junetion with Violins of Flope, a
eultural and edueational eommu
nity initiative organized by the
College of Arts -i- Arehiteeture at
UNC Charlotte. On exhibit
February 25-June 3. ^