5007 Providence Road
Charlotte, NC 28226
Address Correction Requested
Non-Profit Organization
U.S. Postage Paid
Charlotte, NC
Permit No. 1208
riie rtceiitly completed Demographic Study of the
Charlotte Jewish Community re>e;ded some surprisinjj
facts. \mon{» them:
The Jewish
population of
Charlotte has
almost doubled
in the past
twelve years.
11.000
10.M0
2 Bom Jews
44%
Population in Jewish Households
The intermarriage rate
in Charlotte is 47%,
the highest rate of
intermarriage in cities
surveyed since 1985.
Convvrsionary
10%
Intermarriage
Gorelick families to
sponsor Dennis
Prager lectures
Wbfld reaowiicd
schoIi^, tetevlski^ jukI
perspo^i^ Dennis imager will be
in d&irlottc on December 7 to
s|i«ak to Federation's Mjuar
Givers, the
E>eve!opment Qtoup and to the
cotnmunity.
Considered “one of Anwrica's
five best speakers” Dennis ftager
is one of America’s most respected
radio talk show hosts and
commentators. He has been
broadcasting on KABC Radio in
Los Angeles for 15 years and has
his own daily national television
show.
Prager is also a respected
scholar and author. His most
recent book. Think A Second
Hme, 44 Essays On 44 Subjct^,
was published by Harper Collins
Bill Bennett called it “csie of dK>se
rare books that can clunge an
intelligent mind,” and USA Today
columnist Mid Profcssw of Law
Susan Estrich called it “brilliant, a
tour d« force.”
His next book Happircss is a
Serious PnMem due in January
1998 fix>m Harp«- Collins, is his
long awaited bwk on ha{^iness,
about which he has lecturol
around the world for ten yeai».
For ten years Mr. Pi^er has
conduct^ a weekly interfaitb
dialogue on radio, with
representatives from virtually
every itligion ibi the world. SUk%
1985 he hfts been writing his own
newsletter, first the quarterly
journal Ultimate Issues and now,
twice monthly The Prager
Perspective.
This is the second tinw that Mr
Prager has lectured in Charlotte.
His last visit was also sponsored
by the Gorelick fanailies in
November of 1993. "The response
to Prager’s lectures here four years
^0 was so overwhelming that we
wanted to bring him back” said
Shelton Gorelick.
‘1 have been listening to his
lecuires on tape and rea^g his
monthly newsletter for years and
find him to be very persuasive in
his arguments fot why to lead a
Jewish life” continued Bill
Gorelick "We are very excited that
Iw will be back in Charlotte and I
encourage everyone to come hear
him.”
Mr. Prager will be in Charlotte
m December 7 and wilt speak to
Federation’s M^|or Civeis and
Bem^ein Leattorship Develop
ment partic^nats at the home or
Joel and Cmdi Osteow, This
presentation wifi be by a
cooununity lecture at 8:00 p.m. at
Temple Israel O
Inside this Issue...
A Primer on Pluralism
‘ pcii.il \fhlctes wil! lome tn ( h^irlottr
r,;r(, -:r V' ■ ■ ^
!*»uth Visums
il\ !l*t ”• I.'/--
The Charlotte
JE^SH
Vol. 19
No. 10
Cheshvan-Kislev 5758
November, 1997
And the Survey says ...
By Susan Kramer
Remember all the activity in the
Adult Lounge in the JCC last
March? The bank of phones, the
scores of volunteers patiently
sitting and dialing, the
unmistakable feel that “something
big” was going on?
Something big was indeed
happening: for the first time ever,
a comprehensive demographic
study was being done on the
Jewish community in Charlotte.
The results are now in. In a
community meeting at Shalom
Park on November 2, Dr. Ira
Sheskin, noted professor and
demographer from the University
of Miami, unveiled the results of
the study that was conducted over
a 10 day period in March of 1997.
Noting that complex decisions
must be made by the Jewish
Federation and its agencies, Dr.
Sheskin stated that this study will
be a valuable tool for the
Federation, synagogues, and
Jewish agencies and
organizations to use in planning
to build upon the community’s
strengths and to develop projects
and programs to address its
weaknesses. It will provide
information that will help the
community set priorities and will
guide decision-making into the
21st century.
Dr. Sheskin commented on the
three major driving forces that
helped defme the need for, and the
nature of, this study.
First, the 1990 National Jewish
Population Survey and its report
of significant rates of
intermarriage and problems of
Jewish continuity have seriously
impacted the agenda of the
American Jewish community.
Concern about Jewish continuity
is as great in Charlotte as in an
other community. This study was
designed, in part to provide
Federation, Federation agencies,
synagogues, and Jewish
organizations with the
information they need as they
endeavor to provide programs
that will contribute to the
development of a Jewish
community, that will provide
compelling reasons for young
Jews to maintain their Jewish
identity and to remain active
members of the community.
The report examined the
correlation of factors such as level
of Jewish education and travel
and emotional attachment to
Israel with the current level of
Jewishness of respondents and
their households. The findings
from these questions will not only
satisfy the need for this
information in Charlotte, but will
also contribute to a growing body
of knowledge that will prove
useful to the American Jewish
community as a whole. The
Jewish continuity focus of this
survey will provide essential
information to guide Federation’s
emerging role in assuring a
strong, vital Jewish community in
Charlotte and throughout the
United States.
Second, the Jewish community
in Charlotte faces a major
decision with respect to the future
of the Jewish Day School. The
need to assess the community, and
its likely support for a new day
school to replace or supplement
the current Orthodox Chabad
facility, was a major focus of this
survey. In households with Jewish
children, a significant battery of
questions was asked to both
directly and indirectly measure
the likelihood that these
households would choose to send
their children to a new Jewish day
school and would be willing to
support such a facility financially.
Finally, the study provides data
to assist in Federation’s
(Continued on page 4)
Nationally acclaimed ‘‘The Second
City” to perform at JCC Gala
Flans in full swing for the February 14
event to honor Leon Levine
Exciting plans are underway for
the Jewish Community Center’s
1998 Gala on February 14th. The
black-tie event, paying tribute to
Leon Levine, will be held at the
Westin Hotel. '‘It will be a
spectacular evening,” promise co
chairs Jill Newman and Lori
Sklut, “and one Uiat raises needed
funds to help insure the future of
the JCC.”
Other committee members
involved in planning the Gala are
Jeff Gorelick, Tammy Menaker,
Melissa Raphael, Marsha Scheer,
Pam Segal and Mary Wojnowich.
JCC President Eric Sklut is
spearheading the Gala’s
fiuidraising efforts.
The featured entertainment at
the Gala will be the national
touring company of “The Second
City.” Hailing from Chicago
(their name is taken from a
derisive profile of Chicago in The
New Yorker magazine), this
nationally known
improvisational group
has launched the
comedic careers of
household names such
as Gilda Radner, Dan
Aykroyd, Jim Belushi,
Mike Myers and Julia-
Louis-Dreyfus.
Along with providing
a first-rate. training
ground for some of this
country’s brightest
talents, “The Second
City” has been giving
audiences around the
world a unique
theatrical experience for
more than 40 years.
Using few props and
costumes, six actors
enliven an empty stage
with topical comedy
sketches to rave reviews. Our
lives, our politics, popular
culture, etc—everything is fair
page 3
in htatli
II
Also inside...
Jewish Family Services
... page
8
CAJE
9
Speizman Library
.. page
10
Lubavitch of North Carolina ...
.. . page
13
Temple Beth El
.. . page
14
Temple Israel
.. . page
15
Jewish Comn'“nit\ Center ....
16-17
The Jewish Traveler
. . . page
18
Dining Out ...
.. . page
22-2't
game for lampooning with “The
Second City.”
“A temple of satire,” raves
Time Magazine and Clive Barnes,
in The New York Tinges wrote,
“the entire recent tradition of
American theatrical satire can be
summed up in three words: “The
Second City.”
“Everyone attending the Gala is
in for a great treat,” says co-chair
Lori Sklut, “it’s sure to be an
event people talk about all year
long.” For more information on
ticket/sponsorship availability
please call Riuii l ishkin at
Jew!?ih Community Center at
5or»7 ^