Galas galore
There are a lot of opportunities to celebrate — and support — our Jewish community in the next month. The S.F.-based Jewish Community Relations Council gets things going with its “Behind the Scenes Gala & Auction” at the JCC of San Francisco on Oct. 28. The event is chaired by Howard and Wendy Kleckner.
You can bid online for behind-the-scenes tours of KGO-Channel 7 with Dan Ashley, KPIX-Channel 5 with Mike Sugerman, or San Francisco City Hall with Assemblyman Mark Leno. There will also be goodies that include Peet’s coffee for a year, a New York City getaway, and diamond and citrine earrings. (How’s that for variety?)
Visit the new JCRC Web site, www.jcrc.org, to bid on items or purchase tickets to the gala. By the way, Jewish community activists Gayle Donsky, Martina Knee, Gerri Miller and Dr. Natalie Berg will be honored at the event.
Stuart Pollak is featured in a top hat and cane on the invitation to the Hebrew Free Loan Association’s Nov. 9 “Come to the Cabaret” event, also at the JCCSF. Pollak, who has volunteered with the agency for an amazing 40 years, will be toasted — and maybe roasted a tad — with a musical tribute by Morrie Bobrow. Up for raffle is a 2009 Toyota Prius (or $25,000 cash), a plasma TV, laptop computer and more. Visit www.hflasf.org for info on the raffle and event.
And on Nov. 20, American Jewish Committee will honor longtime — and recently retired — Executive Director Ernie Weiner with its Distinguished Lifetime Service Award at the Rincon Center Atrium in San Francisco. Chairs of the event are Joseph Durra, Milton Jacobs, Jack Pearlstein, Arthur Roth and Daniel Weiner. For information, contact AJC’s Director of Development Jon Feldman at [email protected].
Short shorts …
JCRC East Bay Director Myrna David and volunteer Jay Espovich received the Building Bridges Award from Islamic Networks Group for their work in connecting the two communities. Herman Rosenbaum was a past winner … Roberta Steiner of San Rafael writes that after a summer internship at AIPAC in Los Angeles, her son, Aaron Farovitch, participated in the Saban National Leadership Political Training Seminar on conflict and resolution. He then wrote a position paper on U.S.-Israel relations for a House of Representatives candidate from Syracuse, where Farovitch goes to college … Andrew Shapiro Katz, assistant head of school at San Francisco’s Jewish Community High School of the Bay, was among 15 Jewish day school administrators to complete the Day School Leadership Training Institute … Sandra Eliaser of Concord will be installed as vice president of the Women’s League for Conservative Judaism at its 2008 biennial Nov. 9 in Dearborn, Mich. … Cindy Rogoway of Santa Clara walked 60 miles in the Susan G. Komen three-day walk to cure breast cancer. She and her San Diego teammate raised $6,000 for breast cancer research and patient support programs … Sheba Solomon of Congregation Beth Am in Los Altos Hills reports that the Mitzvah Milers, a team of cyclists from two dozen-plus congregations, rode 90 miles — and raised $27,000 — for the National Multiple Sclerosis Society’s Waves to Wine Ride 2008 in September. East Bay resident Dan Siegel is the team captain.
Mea culpa: Apologies to Aaron Keyak‘s grandmother for misspelling her grandson’s last name in a recent column. Wrote Keyak: “When I talked to my grandmother to exchange Rosh Hashanah greetings, she was upset that Suzan misspelled my name in ‘Faces’ on Sept. 18 — I’m just happy I was mentioned.” Happy to mention you again, Aaron.
This columnist can be reached at [email protected].