Community champions
Rosalind Franklin, president of the S.F.-based Jewish Community Relations Council, welcomed a sellout crowd of 450 who gathered to honor and celebrate three “community champions” on Feb. 11 at the group’s Behind the Scenes 2015. Marc Dollinger, the Richard and Rhoda Goldman Chair in Jewish Studies and Social Responsibility at San Francisco State University, and the Rev. Paul Watermulder, senior pastor of First Presbyterian Church of Burlingame, received JCRC Courageous Leadership Awards, and Roselyne “Cissie” Swig was recognized with the JCRC Jewish–Civic Leadership Award.
Barry Cohn, who presented with his wife, Debbie Cohn, noted that as a professor and social justice activist, his good friend Dollinger — whom he met at Camp Swig in the 1970s — “always tries to find a teachable moment.” Dollinger recalled being hired at SFSU not only as a professor but as a “public intellectual in Jewish studies.”
Marc and Gilah Abelson presented the award to Watermulder for his advocacy against boycotting Israel. An important part of his ministry, Watermulder remarked, is his church’s relationship with Burlingame’s Peninsula Temple Sholom. The late Rabbi Gerald Raiskin was his mentor, he said, and current Rabbi Dan Feder “functions as my pastor.”
Michael Krasny, who presented Swig’s award with his wife Leslie Krasny, said he spoke from his heart, not notes, when he said “Cissie is more deserving of the Hebrew word kavod (honor and respect) than anyone I know.” In a video, Swig’s longtime friend Rep. Nancy Pelosi noted that Cissie “takes tikkun olam seriously.” Said Swig: “I love to connect people, to build bridges between people who I think should know each other. It’s fun.” The event was co-chaired by Drs. Garry Rayant and Kathy Fields-Rayant.
Kehillah boys win in a nail-biter
About 75 enthusiastic fans showed up at the Oshman Family JCC early on Super Bowl Sunday to see San Francisco’s Jewish Community High School of the Bay and Palo Alto’s Kehillah Jewish High School each take home a Golden Tallis — the iconic trophy awarded to the winning boys and girls basketball teams — in the schools’ annual showdown.
In a nail-biting 50-49 finish, almost as exciting as the Super Bowl’s, the Kehillah High boys took home the trophy for the fourth consecutive year. Leading Kehillah scorers, with 17 points each, were Tyler Brook and Gabe Wulfson. JCHS’ Jordan Kimel scored 18 points and Ben Michelson and Noam Marcus 12 and 11 points, respectively. JCHS took the girls’ trophy. With 16 points and 12 rebounds, Mya Elkins led her team to a 38-17 victory over Kehillah. Mika Aloni, with 10 points, and Abby Kostukovsky, with nine, were other top scorers.
“Both teams played their hearts out,” said Kehillah’s communications coordinator Lisa Strauss. “It was a great game.”
Short shorts
Congregations Sherith Israel and Emanu-El of San Francisco will honor Steve Weiner at Shabbat services at Sherith Israel on Friday, Feb. 20 as he retires after 18 years as director of sales at Hills of Eternity and Home of Peace cemeteries. Weiner’s brother and the congregation’s emeritus rabbi, Rabbi Martin Weiner, will speak … At the Feb. 5 farewell party for Mervyn Danker, who is stepping down after seven years as Northern California regional director of AJC, former national president Richard Sideman waxed eloquent about the man he helped hire. He noted the warm relationships the South African–born Danker has forged with consuls general from many nations, 10 of whom were represented at his going-away. Next on tap for Danker? A well-deserved vacation.
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