Yom Ha Shoah - SUNDAY 11 APRIL 2021 - 2.00PM MT GRAVATT JEWISH CEMETERY - APRIL 2021
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APRIL 2021
NISSAN – IYAR 5781
Yom Ha Shoah
YEARS O
57 F
E B R AT I N G
PU
BLISHIN
GEORGE FREY OAM
FOUNDING EDITOR 1964
EL
G
C
SUNDAY 11 APRIL 2021 - 2.00PM
MT GRAVATT JEWISH CEMETERY
1 SHALOM MAGAZINE | MARCH 2021
2 SHALOM MAGAZINE | MARCH 2021
3 SHALOM MAGAZINE | MARCH 2021
Diplomats who saved Jews
honoured at exhibition
During March Queensland “It is because of the compassion of this one man,
Mr Chiuni Sugihara, that I survived with my parents
Parliament hosted a unique to have a wonderful life in New Zealand and now
the spectacular Gold Coast.”
photographic exhibition that
honours the 34 diplomats Vice-President of the Queensland Jewish
Board of Deputies, Jason Steinberg, said Peter
from 21 countries, who Baruch’s story was all too rare because during
the Holocaust most countries, and most world
collectively saved 200,000 leaders, turned their backs on the evil that was
Jews from Nazi extermination happening in Nazi Germany.
during the Holocaust. “This photographic exhibition is unique because it
celebrates and recognises a group of 34 diplomats
Titled Beyond Duty, the exhibition who refused to condone the genocide happening
in front of their eyes,” Jason said.
comprises a collection of photographs
of the diplomats, whose courage “Thankfully, there were some
in saving Jews from the Holocaust individuals who were serving their
has earned them the recognition of countries in Europe that saved
being declared “Righteous Among 200,000 innocent Jewish lives - they
The Nations” by Israel’s Holocaust stood-up to confront the evil of the
authority, Yad Vashem. Nazi regime.”
Among the diplomats being recognised are President of the Japan Community of Queensland,
Sempo Sugihara, who served as vice-consul for Mr Nao Hirano, said Chiuni Sugihara had been
the Japanese Empire in Kovno (Lithuania), and dubbed the “Japanese Schindler” after Oskar
defied his government to issue life-saving visas to Schindler, the German factory owner who Jews
6,000 Jews before most of them were murdered. and was immortalised in Steven Speilberg’s movie
One of those Jews saved by Sugihara was 83-year- “Schindler’s list”.
old Peter Baruch who now lives on the Gold
Coast. “We are proud of Mr Sugihara’s decision to take
a humanitarian stand rather than following the
“I was an only child in Poland in 1939 and had command in this life and death situation,” Nao
a large extended family - all of whom were said.
murdered in the Holocaust,” Peter said.
“He risked his job to save the lives of
“My parents were introduced to vice-consul
Sugihara who was prepared to issue us with transit thousands of people - this is the kind
visas to Japan, far from the turmoil of Europe. of fundamental Japanese philosophy
that we like to maintain.”
4 SHALOM MAGAZINE | ADAR – NISSAN 5781
Diplomats who saved Jews
honoured at exhibition
Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk with 99 year old
survivor Dr Bert Klug and his son, Michael Klug AM . Photo by
Michael Arenson Photography
In addition to Japan’s Sugihara, the exhibition
also profiles Raoul Wallenberg, a secretary
in the Swedish Embassy in Budapest, who
saved thousands of Jews by placing them in
buildings under the protection of a Swedish
flag.
Wallenberg was posthumously recognised in
2013 by former Australian Prime Minister Julia
Gillard as an honorary Australian citizen. This
was the first time that Australia has bestowed
such an honour.
The exhibition was hosted by the Queensland
Parliament and supported by the Queensland
Parliamentary Friends of Israel, the
Queensland Jewish Board of Deputies and the
Embassy of Israel.
See video of exhibition at
Australian Online News
Media contacts:
Jason Steinberg, Queensland Jewish
Board of Deputies, 0411 239 396
Nao Hirano, Japan Community of Sugihara survivor Peter Baruch with Nao Hirano representing
Japanese Community of Queensland. Photo by Michael
Queensland, 0418 732 009
Arenson Photography
5 SHALOM MAGAZINE | MARCH 2021
Beyond Duty Exhibition
On the night of 10 March 2021 Queensland Premier
Annastacia Palaszczuk MP, MPs from both sides of the aisle, Honorary
Consuls from 8 countries and members and friends of the Jewish
community attended the special opening of the Beyond Duty
exhibition at Queensland Parliament.
Hon Curtiss Pitt MP and Steve Minnikin MP being presented
Peter Baruch with his JNF QLD Certificate. with their JNF QLD Certificates by Paul Myers President QJBD
Photo by Michael Arenson Photography Photo by Michael Arenson Photography
This unique photographic exhibition honours At the opening Jewish National
34 diplomats from 21 countries, who
collectively saved 200,000 Jews from Nazi Fund (JNF) QLD Certificates were
extermination during the Holocaust. presented to distinguished guests
One of those saved was Peter Baruch who is to commemorate their support of
82 and now lives on the Gold Coast. the Exhibition
The exhibition was made available through
the Embassy of Israel.
6 SHALOM MAGAZINE | MARCH 2021
FEATURE
Remembering Manfred Gerstenfeld:
Truth against myth
By Ben Cohen J-Wire
There is an acerbic joke that you visited the apartment where he lived with his
late wife, and where—sitting in his book-lined
sometimes hear in the Netherlands
living room with a tumbler of scotch in hand—I
to the effect that most Dutch people would listen to his insights into the bursts of
were part of the anti-Nazi resistance, anti-Semitism that were appearing with greater
but that they joined “after the war.” frequency in and beyond Europe, invariably
admiring Gerstenfeld’s ability to identify the ideas
Like all the best jokes, it cuts into the myths we and themes that linked seemingly disconnected
human beings create about ourselves in order events.
to ward off the guilt and shame that our actions
sometimes produce. When what some observers called the “new
anti-Semitism” began to gather pace at the turn
Yet the basic truths—in the Dutch wartime case of this century, there were a handful of scholars,
that collaboration with the occupying Germans Gerstenfeld among them, who were equipped
was widespread, that many people turned a blind to explain that while the wine was new, the
eye to what was happening around them, that the bottles were old. “The widespread resurgence
overwhelming majority of the country’s Jews were of European anti-Semitism after the Holocaust
deported and exterminated—can’t be hidden suggests it is inherent in European culture and
forever, no matter how much we try to deceive values,” he stated plainly in a 2005 article. Like the
ourselves and others. ballet, he went on, European anti-Semitism had
In that regard, plenty of critics and detractors and yet—again like
the ballet—its importance in the development of
Manfred Europe’s culture was undeniable, and it retained
Gerstenfeld, who a hefty number of admirers. “The statistics would
passed away in probably reveal that the number of European
anti-Semites far exceeds those who like ballet,” he
Jerusalem on remarked.
Feb. 25 at the
age of 84, was Gerstenfeld’s influence was present on nearly
Manfred Gerstenfeld.
Source: YouTube an unrivalled every battleground involving anti-Semitism over
the last two decades: the academic boycott of
master in the Israel and the wider “boycott, divestment and
art of deconstructing myths in order sanctions” (BDS) movement that sprouted in
to reveal bald truths. He did so through earnest after 2003; the tropes about Jewish money
his myriad books and articles examining the and power and dual loyalty that dominated the
persistence of anti-Semitism after the Holocaust, re-energized hostility to Israel on both the far-
most of all in the various countries of Europe, the left and among mainstream liberals and social
continent where he was born and lived for much democrats; the international controversy sparked
of his life. by the publication in 2006 of the book The Israel
Lobby by the American political scientists John
I knew Gerstenfeld personally for nearly 20 Mearsheimer and Stephen Walt; the growing trend
years as both a friend and an intellectual mentor. of mocking and distorting the Holocaust as a
Outwardly, he was the very model of a European means of attacking Israel and Jews more generally;
gentleman, always impeccably dressed and the global campaigns to demonize Israel as a
speaking with an accent that gave away his rogue state that accompanied the 2008-09 and
Viennese roots. On several trips to Jerusalem, I 2014 wars against the Hamas regime in Gaza;
7 SHALOM MAGAZINE | ADAR – NISSAN 5781
FEATURE
Remembering Manfred Gerstenfeld: Truth against myth
By Ben Cohen J-Wire
and the impact of mass immigration from Muslim The second error, according to Gerstenfeld, was
countries on the character of anti-Semitism in that Europe’s dependency on Arab and Iranian oil
Europe. shattered what remaining moral spine its political
It was on this last point that Gerstenfeld’s leaders had. A long-forgotten example of this was
work generated opposition, particularly on the French President Valéry Giscard d’Estaing’s 1977
left. His plain-speaking style clashed with the decision to grant political asylum to Ayatollah
reluctance for them to acknowledge that Muslim Ruhollah Khomeini, who went on to lead the
communities that were undoubtedly victimized Islamist takeover in Iran two years later. In looking
by racism could themselves incubate an anti- out for its energy interests, said Gerstenfeld,
Semitism that—as we have seen in France on France played a key role in legitimizing a regime
several occasions in recent years—can take on a that continues to be an existential threat more
murderous quality. than 40 years on.
At an academic conference in London a few years Europe’s third error, according to Gerstenfeld,
ago, Gerstenfeld’s stress on the disproportionate was its “excessive dependence” on immigration
number of Muslim assailants in reported attacks to advance its economic well-being. Foreign
on Jews led one British professor to storm out of immigrants, largely from the Muslim countries
the room, screaming the words “You’re a racist!” neighbouring Europe as well as former colonies,
and demonstratively refusing to have the private “were needed to provide labour, make up for
conversation to lower tensions that the ever-polite the shortfall in Europe’s birthrates and also to
Gerstenfeld offered him. guarantee the future pensions of those working
today.”
But anyone who encountered Gerstenfeld knew
that he was never the sort of person to make Taken together, these three “errors” had
concessions to the political dogma of any stripe. profoundly negative consequences for Jewish
Many nationalists and Christian Democrats would communities in Europe, as well as European
likely have been pushed out of their comfort zones relations with the State of Israel. They also played
upon reading Gerstenfeld’s 2005 analysis of the a critical role in helping Europeans to rebrand
three main strategic errors committed by Europe themselves as the conscience of the world—
after World War II. fighting racism, standing up to American and
Israeli intimidation in the Middle East, and so
The first error, he said—anticipating forth—after four centuries of imperial expansion.
a similar complaint among American The Jewish people were fortunate to have an
conservatives more than a decade individual with Gerstenfeld’s intellect to highlight
later—was Europe’s “reluctance to these enduring hypocrisies. As is always the case
take responsibility for its own defence with the best and most distinctive minds, he is not
someone who can be easily replaced, though his
against totalitarian communism.” influence will certainly endure. May his memory be
This had resulted in a “low-resistance for a blessing.
mindset” that held that the protection
Ben Cohen is a New York City-based journalist
of the continent from threats like
and author who writes a weekly column on Jewish
communism, and later on, Islamist and international affairs for JNS.
terrorism, was the responsibility of
others, primarily the United States.
8 SHALOM MAGAZINE | MARCH 2021
FEATURE
The heroic librarians who stood against
Nazi rules during World War II
By Janet Skeslien Charles The Age
Reading is my passion. I can’t imagine “correctly”, to a gutsy wife who followed her
husband to the army base where he was drafted.
not having access to books, yet this
is exactly what happened to Jewish When you research World War II, every detail feels
readers in France during World War important. The letters, news clippings and journal
II. During the Nazi Occupation, Jewish entries are so fascinating that you wish you could
include every single person, every single moment
people were stripped of their rights. in your book. Today, I’m thrilled to be able to share
They could no longer work in many some behind-the-scenes photos and stories of the
professions. They did not have the staff who kept the Library open during World War
right to enter parks or libraries. II.
They were in tremendous danger: a quarter of My favourite is Dorothy Reeder. She began her
France’s Jewish population was killed. Yet librarians career at Washington’s Library of Congress and
at the time reached out to Jewish readers to came to Paris alone in 1929. At the ALP, she started
ensure they remained part of the community. My in the periodicals section and worked her way up
novel, The Paris Library, tells the true tale of the to the role of directress. In the northern summer of
international team of librarians who defied the 1939, when the US embassy advised Americans to
Nazis in order to hand-deliver books to Jewish leave Paris, she remained at her post. Three days
readers. after war was declared, she began the Soldiers
Service in order to deliver books to French and
English soldiers. She wanted the men to know
they had friends at the Library. “No other thing
possesses that mystical faculty to make people
see with other people’s eyes,” she explained.
“The Library is a bridge of books between
cultures.”
Cataloguer Evangeline Turnbull and her daughter
Olivia both worked at the Library. When war broke
out, the Turnbulls remained in Paris and wrapped
care packages for soldiers. From September 1939
to June 1940, when the Nazis arrived in Paris, the
Soldiers Service donated 100,000 books.
American Library in Paris director Dorothy Reeder
in her office in 1937.
As the Nazis approached, Reeder urged the
Turnbulls to return home. Canadian and thus
I first learnt about the story when I worked at the
British subjects, they risked being imprisoned as
American Library in Paris (ALP). I wanted to write
enemy aliens. Back in Canada, Evangeline wrote:
about the courage of the Parisian librarians during
“My life has been bound up with our Library for
the war. I read letters from staff who worked
the 10 years I have been in Paris … through many
during the Occupation and interviewed those who
lean days and times more hopeful and cheering
lived through it. At the Bibliothèque Nationale
that I cannot give up hope of returning to my work
de France, I devoured memoirs by women,
there some day.”
from foreign journalists, to a Parisienne madam
who claimed that her Nazi clientele behaved
9 SHALOM MAGAZINE | ADAR – NISSAN 5781
FEATURE
The heroic librarians who stood against Nazi rules during World War II
By Janet Skeslien Charles The Age
In a report marked “Confidential”, she described
the first days of the occupation. “Was it really Paris
whose streets I walked through the 11th, 12th and
13th of June 1940? I do not think so. It was a dead
city. Everything was closed, locked and deserted.
Even the fall of a pin could be heard.” This 15-page
document, which underlines the dangers of daily
life under the German boot, convinced me to
write The Paris Library.
“I am ready and willing to carry
books to those subscribers who are
cut off from them.”
Unfortunately, the Germans’ reach soon extended
to the west, so the Library staff returned to Paris.
They learnt that Nazis had pillaged the Polish
Library, which sits in the shadow of Notre Dame,
and sent its archives to Germany. Reeder worried
that the Nazis would soon arrive at the American
Library in Paris. And when Hermann Fuchs, the
Nazi “Library Protector”, did inspect the Library, he
informed her that “Certain people may not enter”
– meaning Jews.
American Library in Paris director Dorothy Reeder in her office Reeder conferred with the countess. They decided
in 1937. that if readers could not visit the library, the
librarians would visit them. “I possess a pair of
The Library trustees returned to the US, leaving feet,” Clara de Chambrun said, “so do Boris and
only one, Ohio’s Countess Clara de Chambrun Peter. I am ready and willing to carry books to
who was married to a French count. In 1920, she’d those subscribers who are cut off from them by
been one of the original Library trustees, along any such ruling, and feel sure that every member
with the writer Edith Wharton. The countess of the staff would feel the same.”
received her doctorate from the Sorbonne when
she was 48. She translated Shakespeare into The Boris she referred to was the
French. She was also a novelist. In fact, she and
Hemingway shared the same publisher. head librarian. Like Dorothy Reeder
Boris Netchaeff worked his way
In the northern spring of 1940, Dorothy Reeder up the ladder at the Library. As a
devised an evacuation plan. When German
soldiers drew closer, she sent her staff to a city young man, he fought in the Russian
west of Paris for their safety. Reeder remained at Revolution.
the library.
10 SHALOM MAGAZINE | ADAR – NISSAN 5781FEATURE
The heroic librarians who stood against Nazi rules during World War II
By Janet Skeslien Charles The Age
recovered and lived a long life,
manning the circulation desk until
he retired and continuing to smoke
his beloved Gitanes cigarettes.
Though the librarians lived through dark days,
there were rays of light, including a love story.
Reference librarian Helen Fickweiler, a New
Englander who arrived in Paris three weeks before
war broke out, fell in love with a shelver named
Peter Oustinoff.
The couple worked at the Library until Reeder
insisted they return to the safety of the US. Helen
had lost weight because there was very little to
eat. Once home, she was interviewed for the
Evening Bulletin below a headline that read:
“Back from Paris, She Hopes Never to See Turnips
Again.” She and Peter married. I had the pleasure
of corresponding with their daughter, Elizabeth
Oustinoff, who helped identify people in archive
photos.
Paris often gets trapped in the
past. Perhaps that’s part of the
allure of the City of Light: the
unchanging architecture makes
The ALP as it looked in 1936.
it feel like a museum. But now, as
Parisians face another lockdown,
it’s important to know that
Afterwards, he and his brother librarians today are doing all they
came to Paris, hoping to find peace can to ensure books are accessible.
but instead found themselves in the
middle of another war. His brother The American Library in Paris celebrated its
centenary in 2020. During the city’s COVID-19
joined the French Foreign Legion confinements, patrons had access to books,
and was killed just days before thanks to click-and-collect, and readings in which
the end of the war. Boris was shot writers such as Alan Cumming gave it their all
on Zoom. Then and now, I’m heartened by the
by the Gestapo. I interviewed his librarians’ courage and their dedication to readers.
daughter, who told me that he
11 SHALOM MAGAZINE | ADAR – NISSAN 578112 SHALOM MAGAZINE | MARCH 2021
NEWS
‘A selfless act’: Strangers help honour
Holocaust survivor, 75 years after his death
By Carolyn Webb The Age
He lives 15,000 kilometres away in the Shepparton in
central Victoria.
United States, but David Nelson was so
moved by the tragic story of a young In the letter,
Jewish man’s 1946 death in Melbourne addressed
that he organised a gravestone for to New York
woman Sally
him. Faktor, a frantic
Mr Kriszhaber,
In soft rain on Sunday at Fawkner cemetery,
aged 20, asks
in Melbourne’s north, 11 people attended the
Ms Faktor –
consecration of the monument to Kurt Kriszhaber,
believed to be a
which is engraved with the Star of David.
Kurt Kriszhaber, aged about 20. relative or friend
– if she knows
what has become of his relatives in his native
Vienna, Austria.
Mr Nelson, a former journalist, “started digging
around on the internet” and found Mr Kriszhaber’s
father was murdered in Auschwitz concentration
camp in Poland.
His aunt and uncle were taken to the Minsk ghetto,
where they were killed. His grandparents died in
Theresienstadt concentration camp. His mother
had died when he was a boy.
Dunera Association president Ron Reichwald places a stone on
Kurt Kriszhaber’s new tombstone in Fawkner cemetery, after Mr Nelson discovered that Mr Kriszhaber was a
Michael Cohen (left) said prayers.CREDIT:PENNY STEPHENS “Dunera boy” — one of more than 2500 men,
mostly Jewish refugees, who fled to England
only to be arrested as enemy aliens and sent to
Teacher and lay cantor Michael Cohen recited
Australia in poor conditions in 1940 on the ship
psalms, then said in English and sang in Hebrew
HMT Dunera.
the Memorial Prayer, asking God to grant Mr
Kriszhaber “proper repose under the sheltering
They were imprisoned for over a year, first at
wings of your presence”.
Hay in NSW, then at Tatura, Victoria. While many
returned to the UK, some such as Mr Kriszhaber
Mr Nelson, who watched by live stream from
stayed and joined the Australian Army’s 8th
Florida, has spent three years pursuing the
Employment Company, which did logistics work.
recognition Mr Kriszhaber did not receive upon his
death.
Mr Kriszhaber was discharged from the army,
and in September 7, 1946, days after he obtained
In 2018 Mr Nelson – an education assistant at the
Australian citizenship, he died due to a gas leak
Holocaust Museum and Cohen Education Centre
while taking a bath in his Alma Road, St Kilda,
in the city of Naples, Florida – read a 1941 letter
lodging house. He was 25 years old.
in his museum’s collection that Mr Kriszhaber
wrote from an internment camp at Tatura, near
13 SHALOM MAGAZINE | ADAR – NISSAN 5781NEWS
‘A selfless act’: Strangers help honour Holocaust survivor,
75 years after his death
By Carolyn Webb The Age
Mr Nelson, who is originally British and who is not
Jewish, feels he has righted a wrong in giving Mr
Kriszhaber’s grave a name.
“I thought it was terribly sad that he died without
anybody knowing about him, who he was or
anything, and his family had been destroyed in
Europe,” Mr Nelson said.
Ron Reichwald, president of the Dunera
Association, one of the donors and the son of
a Dunera Boy, said Mr Kriszhaber’s story was
“horribly tragic” after Mr Kriszhaber had “escaped
the ravages of war”.
An article on Kurt Kriszhaber’s death in The Argus on Sep 9, 1946.
CREDIT:NATIONAL LIBRARY OF AUSTRALIA - TROVE He said Mr Nelson’s actions were “magnificent. He
went beyond the call of duty. He stumbled on to
Mr Nelson found that Mr Kriszhaber’s sister, this by accident and he followed it right through.
Martha, had survived in New York. She lived until It’s a selfless act.”
1986 and did not have children.
Mr Nelson was shocked when his niece, who lives
in Melbourne, discovered Mr Kriszhaber’s burial
site, in Fawkner cemetery’s Jewish section, was
unmarked.
State Trustees gave Mr Nelson permission to
install a gravestone, and he raised $5000 through
crowdfunding.
About 100 people donated from across the
world, including $500 from a Jewish organisation,
Mosaica, in Jerusalem and a Florida woman who The blank grave site before the tombstone was added.
gave $500 after hearing a talk by Mr Nelson.
CALLING RELATIVES
As we move towards the establishment of the
OF SURVIVORS Queensland Holocaust Museum and Education
Centre in Brisbane, the voice of survivors and
their descendants will be important to carry the
If you are a relative of a survivor and feel message of courage and hope for the future.
comfortable sharing their story, a group called
‘Generations’ welcomes your involvement. For further information about Generations,
contact Eddy Berkovits E: 1mitziah1@gmail.com
Many communities throughout the world build a or Rochy Miller E: rochy@millerism.net.
better understanding of the horrendous impact
of the Holocaust, and its ongoing impact on all, For more information about the Queensland
through collective sharing of their specific situation. Holocaust Museum and Education Centre,
contact
The real history of life and events of the Shoah and
its aftermath is held by the victims of the Holocaust QJBD President Paul Myers
and their descendants.
M: 0403 062 007 E: paul.myers@qjbd.org
14 SHALOM MAGAZINE | ADAR – NISSAN 5781Gan Gani
is nestled in the leafy
suburb of Fig Tree Pocket.
The large open spaces allow children to
learn and discover through a play-based,
hands-on curriculum.
Our unique location offers
integrated ecosystems in our Life
Garden which includes vegetable
LIMITED VACANCIES for 2021
patches, chicken coop, worm
under our NEW programme farms, composting and native
structure. bee hives.
*Monday / Tuesday Group GAN GANI KINDY
8:15am-3:45pm 691 FIG TREE POCKET RD
FIG TREE POCKET
*Wed / Thurs / Fri Group
9:00am-2:45pm
Colleen Goldblatt Director
Be quick and contact Teacher M/T Group, Jewish Studies Coordinator
admin@gangani.net.au to enquire Office Day: Wednesday 8:30am-3:30pm
for 2021 or to join the wait list for (07) 3378 9233 colleen@gangani.net.au
future years. www.gangani.net.au
15 SHALOM MAGAZINE | ADAR – NISSAN 5781PLEASE HELP US LOCATE THOSE IN NEED
HELPLINE: 1300 133 660
75 years
have passed since the Holocaust,
an act of unimaginable evil and a
IN THIS SPECIAL YEAR WE
WISH TO RAISE OUR PROFILE
TO EXTEND OUR HELP AND
SUPPORT TO THOSE WHO
NEED IT MOST AMONGST US,
PARTICULARLY HOLOCAUST
SURVIVORS IN QUEENSLAND.
continued stain on human history.
Although we can never forget and
should constantly revisit this memory If you
we can be proud that Judaism
and Yiddishkeit has survived and
continues to flourish today.
know of any survivor who
is struggling in their old age, who needs
support and care and who may not be
We remember all the survivors aware of the existence and purpose of
and although many have passed our organisation we would like to hear
the few remaining provide us from you.
with an inspiration TO NEVER
We can
ALLOW THE SHOAH TO
OCCUR AGAIN.
JCareQld is a charitable
assist
with visits, transport, social contact,
association that provides care
arranging medical help, liaison with
to the Queensland Jewish
Claims Conference, and some limited
Community financial assistance.
Brisbane and Queensland
Particularly the elderly but JCareQld:
also the young who need Howard Posner
assistance. Tel: 0424335969 • Email: Jcareqld@gmail.com
NCJWA Gold Coast / Gold Coast Jewish
Community Services Inc.
PLEASE CONTACT
Barbara Stewart-Kann
Tel: 0412 377 488 • Email: bkann@bigpond.net.au
16 SHALOM MAGAZINE | MARCH 2021HISTORY
Nazi-looted Gustav Klimt painting to go to
rightful Jewish heirs
The Age
French Culture Roselyne Bachelot speaks next to a oil painting by Gustav Klimt painted between in 1905 called
“Rosebushes under the Trees”
Paris: The French government says it by the Nazis, and its provenance only recently
came to light after French government-led
will return a Nazi-looted Gustav Klimt landscape investigations.
painting to its rightful owners more than 80 years
after it was stolen from a Jewish family in Austria in
1938.
“It is in recent years that the true
origin of the painting has been
The colourful 1905 oil work by the Austrian established,” she said, adding that it
symbolist painter titled Rosebushes under the was “the only Gustav Klimt painting
Trees has been hanging in Paris’ Musee d’Orsay
for decades. French Culture Minister Roselyne
owned by France”.
Bachelot-Narquin told a Paris news conference on
Monday (Tuesday AEDT) ”the decision to return a Rosebushes under the Trees is a testament to the
major work from the public collections illustrates lives that a criminal will has stubbornly sought to
our commitment to the duty of justice and eliminate.”
reparation vis-a-vis plundered families.”
Thousands of artworks looted by the Nazis across
The painting will be returned to the family of Nora Europe wound up in French museums after the
Stiasny, a Holocaust victim who was dispossessed Allies defeated Nazi Germany in 1945. Though
during a forced sale in August 1938. many have been returned, French authorities have
stepped up efforts in recent years to find homes
Bachelot-Narquin said French authorities hadn’t for the scores of hanging heirlooms that remain
initially identified the painting as being stolen unclaimed.
17 SHALOM MAGAZINE | ADAR – NISSAN 5781JNF BLUE BOX
PESACH CAMPAIGN
Building Israel Since 1901
From the first ‘Eretz Israel Box’ in Galicia to
thousands of homes around the world today,
the humble Blue Box has assisted Zionist pioneers
in their efforts to build the infrastructure of a
modern, thriving state.
Now, 120 years later, the Blue Box remains a
powerful symbol of Jewish unity and a
reminder of the part every Jew can play in
strengthening Eretz Israel.
DONATE NOW
www.jnf.org.au/blue-box or
1300 563 563
THIS BLUE BOX PESACH CAMPAIGN isolated Ma’abara of Yerucham and endured the
CONTINUES THE DEDICATION OF harsh conditions of the Negev desert.
JNF AUSTRALIA TO THE ONGOING
SUSTAINABILITY AND SECURITY OF Australia has a long-standing connection to
the Negev – especially with the liberation of
ISRAEL’S SOUTH WITH ITS LATEST
Beersheva in WWI by the Australian Mounted
PROJECT Division’s Light Horse Brigades.
JNF Australia Yerucham Heritage Park
Let us celebrate 120 years of JNF and 70 years of
Situated in the Negev Yerucham Heritage Park Yerucham, by partnering with JNF Australia in this
is perched on 2-acre plot with a breathtaking, game-changing project for Yerucham and the
panoramic view, a jewel at the entrance to the Negev!
town of Yerucham.
This barren plot of desert will become a green Together we will build Yerucham’s exciting future,
campus. The Yerucham Heritage Park will have while honouring its heroic past and strengthening
tree-lined, lighted paths; shaded sitting corners its present!
with benches and tables;
This is a pioneering story that never ends, and you
An amphitheater with seating for 150 people can be part of it!
facing the beautiful view. Outdoor sculptures and
installations; 3 open-sided pergolas for group
activities;
With tree-shaded spaces for group activities;
THIS PESACH IS YOUR
and a grove of trees to be planted in honour of CHANCE TO REAFFIRM YOUR
Yerucham’s 70th anniversary.
The Heritage Park is the site of the original CONNECTION TO ISRAEL
“Ma’abara” (Transit Camp for immigrants) from
January 1951.
AND ITS PEOPLE THROUGH
It will become a premier national centre for JNF AUSTRALIA AND THE
celebrating and documenting the little known
story of the heroic pioneers who settled in the TRADITION OF BLUE BOX.
18 SHALOM MAGAZINE | MARCH 2021Queensland Association
of Jewish Ex Servicemen
& Women (Qajex)
Anzac Commemoration
Shabbat Service 2021
Qajex Together With The Brisbane Hebrew
Congregation And The Jewish National
Fund Of Qld (JNF)
Will Host The 2021 Anzac Commemoration
Shabbat rervice on Saturday 24 April 2021
All Jewish Ex-Servicemen & Women, their
Families & Members of the Jewish community
are invited to attend this special service
JNF Qld will sponsor a special
Anzac Day Kiddish to follow the
service to commemorate the
charge of the Anzac Light Horse at
Beersheva on 31 October 1917
The Service will be held at the
Brisbane Synagogue
98 Margaret Street
service commences
9.00am
19 SHALOM MAGAZINE | MARCH 2021QUEENSLAND ASSOCIATION OF
JEWISH EX SERVICEMEN & WOMEN (QAJEX)
ANZAC
COMMEMORATION
2021
All Jewish Ex-servicemen & Women,
their families & members of the Jewish
Community are invited to attend;
THE SHRINE OF REMEMBERANCE
ANZAC SQUARE BRISBANE
On ANZAC Day,
Sunday 25 April 2021
(Assemble 8.45am sharp followed by
Wreath Laying & Kaddish 9.00am sharp)
PLEASE OBSERVE COVID ETIQUETTE
PLEASE NOTE:
The Queensland Association
of Jewish Ex-servicemen & Women (QAJEX)
encourages all Jewish Ex-servicemen & Women
&/or their family members to forward their name
& contact details to
QAJEX President Loris Roubin –
loris_r@hotmail.com
The purpose is for QAJEX to create a register
of Ex-Service personnel & their family members
living in Queensland from both Australian &
Overseas Defence Forces.
20 SHALOM MAGAZINE | MARCH 202121 SHALOM MAGAZINE | MARCH 2021
22 SHALOM MAGAZINE | ADAR – NISSAN 5781
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23 SHALOM MAGAZINE | MARCH 2021Communal News
The Jewish National Fund of Queensland (JNF) wishes to express
its sincere condolences on the recent passing of Zelig Berkhut.
Zelig was a staunch supporter of JNF over many years and his efforts for JNF will never be
forgotten. We wish all of Zelig’s family Long Life and may his memory always be a blessing.
JNF Queensland wishes to express its sincere condolences on the passing
of Harold Garfield. Harold’s cheerful personality and positive nature was evident to all who
knew him and his presence in the community will be missed. We wish all of Harold’s family both in
Brisbane and overseas Long Life and may his memory be a blessing.
We were sorry to hear of the recent passing of respected community member
Lillian Cameron. On behalf of the Brisbane Jewish Community JNF QLD sends Its sincere
condolences to Lillian’s family and we wish them Long Life. May Lillian’s memory always be a
blessing.
THANK YOU
We would like to sincerely thank everyone who attended the funeral and minyanim for our adored
and adorable late father Zelig Berkhut of blessed memory.
Your presence and kind and wise words provided us with such comfort. We remain so grateful to you
all for according him that honour.
We also thank Rabbi Gurevitch, Rabbi Jaffe, Phillip Zavelsky and the Chevra Kadisha in Brisbane and
the Gold Coast for their highly valued assistance.
Peta, Susie, Andrew & families
Save Yom ha shoah - Sunday 11 April 2.00pm
Yom ha zikaron - Tuesday 13 April 7.00pm
the date Yom ha atzmaut – Sunday 18 April 12.00 Noon - 4.00pm
PLEASE SEE COMMUNAL ANNOUNCEMENTS FOR MORE DETAILS
24 SHALOM MAGAZINE | ADAR – NISSAN 5781EULOGY
Eulogy for Zelig Berkhut
27 December 1927 – 1 March 2021
Delivered by his daughters Peta and Susie at his funeral in Brisbane on 2 March 2021
Peta Ashkenazi food developed right then. Two years
later, his brother Yaakov was born and three years
When the children were growing up, if you after that, his dark eyed sister Channah whom he
asked them what was Zayde’s favourite saying, remembered as beautiful.
they’d tell you it was in Yiddish “die nehm zwei”
or in English “you take two”. They remembered He eventually attended secular school in the
this fondly of course because it was the reliable morning, and cheder each afternoon. He declared
answer to questions that sounded something like himself not a very good student in either
“Zayde may I have a biscuit or an iceblock or a classroom, but really enjoyed playing poker for
slice of homemade honey cake or a chocolate?”. buttons which he cheerfully pulled off the fly
The answer was always the same. Die nehm zwei. of his trousers. He claims to have been utterly
Even if some or all of those things were requests in bewildered by his mother’s wrath when he won
rapid succession…. same response. and gleefully brought home very large buttons,
unperturbed that they didn’t fit the buttonholes.
Their association of Zayde, Yiddish and for that
matter, Yiddishkeit was firmly established: sweet, He grew up shomer shabbat where the rhythm
affectionate, playful and loving. of Jewish life was a constant. At first glance, the
arrival of smartly dressed German soldiers in 1939
But upon reflection, ‘die nehm zwei’ is in fact a seemed a novelty. By the time of his bar mitzvah
profound theme for Dad’s life. He did in fact do a in December 1940, he could feel the mood had
‘take two’ on life. ‘Take one’ began in Cracow in darkened, as the celebration in the shtiebel shul
Poland and for 12 years, life seemed pretty good, was hurried and harried.
and then in 1939, life changed dramatically.
A mere 3 months later, the Krakow ghetto was
After the horrific, tragic years of the war, he, like established and life as he knew it vanished. In one
so many other survivors of the Shoah, did a ‘take of the final terrifying Aktions in 1942, his mother
two’ – life in Australia. hid him and told him to wait for his father to return
from work outside the ghetto. She kissed him with
Susie
an urgency he didn’t want to understand and he
never saw her or his siblings again. Like so many
Dad was born on the last day of Chanukah, others, he spoke rarely of his experiences which
December 27 in 1927 to Pepi and Eliahu. Here we would now clearly describe as traumas, but
began another tradition of duality. Dad reliably we all knew from as long as we can remember
celebrated his birthday twice, happily reminding that they were murdered in the gas chambers in
us that a single birthday was meshuga and wrong. Majdanek.
He loved to tell the story that his parents named
him Simcha Zelig, but soon realised the error of
their ways, and he became plain Zelig…no simcha.
Peta
Dad remained with his father in a succession of
His parents worked hard in their kosher restaurant concentration camps, which speak to us from
with his Mum the chef and business woman, and torturous images in Holocaust museums & films.
his father, the waiter, in the thriving Jewish district
of Kazimiez, which about 80,000 Jewish people Seared into his mind was the experience of 2
had called home since the 13th century. We can’t young boys being hung in Plaszow for stealing
help but conclude that his lifelong delight in bread. He told us in a frighteningly matter of fact
25 SHALOM MAGAZINE | ADAR – NISSAN 5781EULOGY
Eulogy for Zelig Berkhut
27 December 1927 – 1 March 2021
Delivered by his daughters Peta and Susie at his funeral in Brisbane on 2 March 2021
way, that it was then that he first learned that Brisbane, without a single word of English. And so
you say the shema right before you die. In the begins take two.
way families of survivors of torture and trauma
do, we learned to decode that being one of the
Buchenwalder Boys held a significance you didn’t
Susie
Within a few weeks of arriving, Dad was doing
question. In a similarly jarring way, Dad told us the migrant thing. That never has, and never will
the nazis, sensing loss was imminent, shot 50,000 be easy. He immersed himself as best he could in
people a day in the forest outside Buchenwald the Jewish community, seizing opportunities to
in the week the Russians hesitated to free work as a shoemaker, and at night, attend English
Buchenwald because of a political argument over classes. And although it sounds strange, he had
territory, killing his father one day before he was to learn to socialise. Not too long ago, he smiled
liberated on 11 April 1945. when I found a dapper photo of him with French
brothers Jaques and Henri Lentchinski dressed for
Dad taught us to know the facts - never forget- a night out dancing at Cloudland. He told us he
but that people can and do prevail. owned a motor bike to get there cheaper, but fell
After the war, he was cared for by a Jewish French off every time he turned a corner, so he gave it
aid organisation called OSE, where in Lyons, he up. He tried soccer and horse riding at Eagle Farm
learned a trade. But Dad preferred to treat us with I gather, a lot more enthusiasm than skill.
to the tale of what happened when a wealthy He applied himself to establishing a flock
benefactor visited. Practising his French, at lunch manufacturing business, and remained undeterred
with the female guest in attendance, he sang a after it burnt down and he rebuilt it. He later
song he had learned: Elle est laid, laid, laid, elle added pillows, cushions and sleeping bags to
est laid comme un choux. When summonsed after his inventory. But the jewel in his crown by his
by the principal, he was asked if he knew what the own measure of success, came from meeting
song meant, he answered “non”. An unimpressed our mum Rebecca. Dad would tell us that having
principal told him it translated to “she is ugly, excitedly discovered living relatives, Aunty Rivcha
ugly,ugly, she is ugly as a cabbage.” We’d cringe, and cousin Gusta in America, it was on a rare
but Dad was unmoved then as he was at the time expensive booked overseas phone call to his aunt
of recounting it. Dad would promptly say on cue that he moaned to Mum that he wished he had
,”well the problem was it was true!” He loved some news. Bemused, Mum allegedly said “alright
jokes and stories, often the same jokes and stories, then, tell her” and that was how they announced
but his infectious delight in them made them their engagement.
funny every time.
Dad made no secret of how he adored Mum, but
In France, strong friendships heavy with unspoken thought he struck a bonus jackpot with his new in-
pain were forged with other survivors like Jean law family. He was arguably the biggest fan of his
Last, Booby Lowy and Joe Szabason and these mother-in-law’s cooking and revelled in the new
lasted a lifetime. By 1948, Dad had exhausted Red adult experience of family life. He felt so lucky and
Cross attempts to locate any surviving members grateful to Broncha and Szyja, his second parents.
of his family, and sought to be as far away from They married in 1958 and Peta was born just 1 year
Europe as possible. later. I came 3 years after and then Andrew 2 years
later again.
He found himself aboard the SS Derna, an
overcrowded, poorly maintained vessel With Peta and Andrew bearing the names of the
amongst 545 passengers most of whom shared family he lost, and me representing the Goldman
similar stories of suffering. Forever thankful to side, Dad found his life interconnected and
Henry Huppert’s parents Kurt and Ena for their somewhat restored. When Mum contracted MS
sponsorship, about 3 months later, Dad arrived in when Andrew was just a baby, Dad again showed
26 SHALOM MAGAZINE | ADAR – NISSAN 5781EULOGY
Eulogy for Zelig Berkhut
27 December 1927 – 1 March 2021
Delivered by his daughters Peta and Susie at his funeral in Brisbane on 2 March 2021
his capacity for enduring, unconditional love, We calculated that after Mum died 26 years ago,
assuming responsibilities for her care earnestly he went to shul every day for 20 years. When
and without much if any complaint. his good friend Avon Cook proposed that they
establish a break away shul in 2002, literally
He was a hands on father long before it was around the corner from the existing one, Dad was
fashionable, taking us to his work, making us a staunch ally. The same year, Dad was voted Vice
cooked breakfasts every school day and allowing President of the Gold Coast Hebrew Congregation
us to free wheel in the back of his green comma and in a particularly hopeful interpretation of “die
van. On only one occasion did the doors fly open, nehm zwei”, he thought he could do both! While it
almost hurling me on to the road. Dad’s response conjures up the spectre of THAT Jewish joke, Dad
was to pull over, close the doors and continue. figured that if you had double as many people
He had a strong, albeit intermittent capacity to going to shul, surely that was a good thing!
accept, not over think things and move on.
Dad didn’t really do hobbies in retirement. He
Even though he never admitted it, he adored was always on top of the news, especially the
his son and we can see, it healed something news about Israel. The closest he came to a leisure
and created a deep mutual bond. Despite his activity was playing cards. Polish rummy was his
travails and deprivation, we all felt thoroughly and go to, and the banter was always the same. We
consistently treasured. How remarkable! would agree: if we lost, it was 1 cent per card, if
he lost, it was $100 per card. I know it’s hard to
understand how the same old lines entertained us
Peta over and over, but they did.
Moving from New farm to Tarragindi with the
Susie
purchase of our first home, Dad then lived out the
real Australian dream building a new home for us
just up the street. But above all else, he showed Shabbat and yom tov brought us reliably together
us a Jewish life up close and personal. He loved with tradition aplenty and if it was up to him,
all his children, teaching us not only the shema, the very same menu….gefilte fish, lokshen and
but every single night time prayer with such soup, chicken and potatoes and compote. He
contagious devotion, we all excelled. never tired of it and firmly accorded with Uncle
His taste in music and songs remained firmly Leon that the only spices required were salt and
unpretentious. He taught us ditties in a number of pepper.
languages and knowing all the words to the Italian
socialist anthem Avanti Popolo, was a must. But While sadly Mum saw only Cheyene and Gabrielle
his all-time favourites were Broadway show tunes make a very brief appearance in the world, since
and Yiddish songs: Tumbalalaika, Chirri Bim, My then, Dad enthusiastically welcomed Adam, Jesse
Yiddishe Mama, Bei mir bist du schein. These were and Sharni. He took an active interest in all their
our top 40 hits. pursuits and took great pride in watching them
mature. His patience with them was legendary.
Over his lifetime with Mum, their union centred on
their pride in Israel and Zionism. They were closely When he was staying with Peta soon after Sharni
involved with a slew of organisations including was born, he found Adam one morning smashing
JNF, Jewish Help In Need, UIA, WIZO, Jewish the stained glass window in their entry with a
Communal Centre and not one, not two, but four tennis raquet. He politely asked what he was
shuls. His twin loves were unashamedly Yiddishkeit doing, and Adam replied he wasn’t finished yet.
and family. With extraordinary calm, Dad took the raquet and
simply said “Yes you are.” A real mensch and a
super Zayde.
27 SHALOM MAGAZINE | ADAR – NISSAN 5781EULOGY
Eulogy for Zelig Berkhut
27 December 1927 – 1 March 2021
Delivered by his daughters Peta and Susie at his funeral in Brisbane on 2 March 2021
As the grandchildren grew up, he also enjoyed
meeting their partners and was super excited at Peta
the prospect of Gabrielle’s marriage to her fiancé In his understated modest way, when I asked him
whom he fondly referred to as Daniyel. just the shabbos before last, how he wanted to
be remembered, he said he was lucky…lucky to
We can’t over-state Dad’s sheer delight in food. survive a war, lucky to have a family. And he said
Whether it was the restaurant beginning, his he wanted everyone to know he’d tried his best.
pastry chef grandfather or awful hunger, Dad
loved certain foods. And in our family, he found As we approached the end of this eulogy, we
a support system par excellence. We seriously grew nervous. We don’t want to say goodbye.
have lost count of the number of times he was
rewarded with Nana’s strudel via Aunty Sharryn & We don’t want to sever the connection he
Uncle Johnny, or brisket, liver or his very favourite, provided us to survival, to a life well lived. So
cholent, courtesy of Aunty Sonia and Uncle Leon. let’s not end. Let’s allow his ordinary life through
unimaginable horror to illuminate a path we
Not to mention challot, cherry stonikers and emulate. And in keeping with his spirit of die nehm
ponchkas from Gary and even modest success on zwei, may we respectfully propose 2 take home
the challenging front of much more tasty Sephardi messages.
treats from Myriam and Rodney’s international
kitchen creativity. More recently, he was cheeky The first concerns the thing people say most often
enough to believe that Uncle Leon offered a to us about Dad. It is summed up most eloquently
takeaway service and he would shamelessly place in Pirkei Avot, the Ethics of the Father1:15. It reads
orders and offer comments like “Kreplach, that’s “Greet everybody with a warm , cheerful, and
nice, but where’s the soup?” Now that’s family! pleasant countenance.” Dad’s smile lit up rooms,
conversations, shuls and simchas. I will never
He adored the simchas and felt special that forget him looking positively radiant beneath the
Sara, Leah and Bettina’s families kept him closely 10 commandments in the Vice President’s seat in
connected. Surfers Central shul.
In his latter years, as health issues took their toll, The second is to stand up for what you think,
Dad was deeply appreciative of the tenderness even if it seems trivial and even if you’re in the
offered by carers Hadar and Bonnie. In Hadar he minority. The trick I observed from Dad was to
found an Israeli adoptive grand-daughter who relish the discussion, embrace the disparate views
allowed his love of chagim to prosper as ever. and listen to them respectfully. Whether he was
championing Trump and Bibi to Gary, or arguing
And in Bonnie, he received profoundly sensitive, with Uncle Leon and Uncle Johnny that Papa was
professional support with wisdom beyond her born in Sosnowisc not Tarnow, or debating why
years. We are eternally grateful to them for Friday night zemirot could absolutely never be
their kindness and support and thank them sung at Shabbat lunch, he seemed to properly get
wholeheartedly. that unity does not mean uniformity and optimism
should always require effort and activism.
May his memory be a blessing for us all.
28 SHALOM MAGAZINE | ADAR – NISSAN 5781ASK THE RABBI
Suing your parents
Q . May a child sue his/her parents With rare exceptions, parents do their very best to
nurture their children according to the standards
for bringing them up wrongly?
of their time and place.
A. Just as children have duties to their parents,
Jewish teaching has its ethic of child-rearing – an
so parents have duties to their children.
important criterion against which to measure what
they do. This ethic speaks about material things
“Do not sin against the child” such as food, clothing and security, and about
(Gen. 42:22) is a pillar of Jewish teaching. qualitative aspects such as helping a child to grow
in faith, knowledge and wisdom.
Some sins against children are obvious, such as
paedophilia. There is an old supplication, “You who give
nourishment to all that live, forget not my
We also know cases of violent parents causing
children in the scattering of Your bounty…
physical and/or mental injury to their children,
an unjustified application of the parental right Inspire me that I may know how to guide
to exercise discipline in the home: Proverbs them wisely, to cultivate in them goodness
13:24 says, “He who loves his son seeks to and piety, and to dispose their hearts toward
discipline him”, but Maimonides warns against noble and honest pursuits.”
harshness and abuse (Hil’chot Talmud Torah 2:2; cf.
Shulchan Aruch, Yoreh De’ah 334:43). There are different kinds of children, and the Book
of Proverbs says, “Train a child in its own way”
Your question is presumably concerned with (Prov. 22:6).
another aspect of the problem.
I doubt whether a child has a right to sue a parent
Firstly let me ask whether children can complain for not doing their job properly, but I would like
that no-one asked them whether they wanted to to see every nation endorse the world declaration
be born, and the answer is No. on the survival, protection and development of
children, formulated in 1990 company.
Parents are fulfilling a Divine command to “be
fruitful and multiply and replenish the earth” Rabbi Raymond Apple was for many years
(Gen. 1:28). They are expressing their love for each
Australia’s highest profile rabbi and the
other. They are also conferring a benefit on the
child, since every child brings a blessing to the leading spokesman on Jewish religious issues.
world. After serving congregations in London,
Rabbi Apple was chief minister of the Great
Synagogue, Sydney, for 32 years. He also
held many public roles, particularly in the
fields of chaplaincy, interfaith dialogue and
Freemasonry, and is the recipient of several
national and civic
honours. Now retired,
he lives in Jerusalem and
blogs at
www.oztorah.com
29 SHALOM MAGAZINE | MARCH 202130 SHALOM MAGAZINE | ADAR – NISSAN 5781
HISTORY
Queensland Courage to Care
In the Classroom Term 1 2021
Just prior to the commencement of On Tuesday we returned to Murrumba, a very
large, multi-ethnic secondary school, where our
our visits to schools for the term, last visit was in term 4, 2019.
Halina Robinson, one of our Sydney Thursday and Friday saw the team at Sandgate,
holocaust Survivors, passed away. one of the last schools we visited in term 1 of 2020
before they closed with Covid. This visit, because
Although most of the Queensland of the large class numbers, we had 2 Survivors,
team have never met Halina in Mimi Wise and Suzi Smeed.
person, her story is so intricately
• Week 2 began at All Hallows, a large
woven through our presentation, it Catholic girls’ school in the Brisbane CBD.
was with real sadness that we spent We have always been very welcome on
previous visits to the school. This time
an evening together, watching we took a visitor with us, Pam Huppert,
Halina tell us her own story on President of Qld WIZO, an old girl of All
video. Vale Halina. Hallows, having been a boarding student
there in the early 1940s. Catherine O’Kane,
• Week 1 for 2021 term 1 was our first time the Principal, and was delighted to meet
back to school visits since March 2020. Pam and talk about the history of the
Our first day was at Stretton, a very well school. Suzi Smeed was our Survivor and
prepared co-ed school, whose motto is, she had many interesting and insightful
‘Caring hearts, curious minds, flourishing questions to answer after telling her story.
futures.’ We were last there in term 3 of
2019. Mimi Wise was our Survivor for the
week.
31 SHALOM MAGAZINE | ADAR – NISSAN 5781HISTORY
Queensland Courage to Care
In the Classroom Term 1 2021
On Tuesday we returned to Somerville House, also On Thursday, with Peter Baruch as our Survivor,
in the Brisbane CBD, which is a Presbyterian and we returned to a favourite primary school, Our
Uniting Church girls’ school. Kayla Szumer told Lady of Angels Catholic School on the north side
her husband Adam’s story about his childhood of Brisbane. Previously we always had years 5 & 6
in Poland. This is another school where there is together, but this time the program was for year
much interest in the program. We were last there 6 alone, so the class numbers were a little more
in March 2020. manageable. We were last there in February 2019.
Wednesday was our first visit to Redbank Plains On Friday the program was at Kelvin Grove, an
High School, 40 minutes west of Brisbane. Peter inner city co-educational high school, where Peter
Gyenes was our Survivor. Gyenes and Peter Baruch were our Survivors.
The Courage to Care program was given to 438
students during the two weeks.
32 SHALOM MAGAZINE | ADAR – NISSAN 5781בריזבן חברה קדישא
BRISBANE CHEVRA KADISHA I nc
Established 1922 https://bck.net.au ABN: 82 519 437 431
For 24 Hour Emergency Support Phone 0406 169 511
Annual Membership 2021/2022
(March 2021 to February 2022)
PLEASE JOIN OR RENEW TO MAINTAIN THE CHEVRA’S VITAL COMMUNITY SERVICES
PLEASE PRINT YOUR DETAILS: HEBREW NAME for each person (please note if a Cohen):
Name: (Please complete if these details have not previously been provided)
__________________________________________ ______________________________
Family members included:
__________________________________________ _________________________________________
_______________________________________ __________________________________________
__________________________________________ __________________________________________
New members / members with changes: please complete or update: New members / members with changes: please complete or update:
Address :
Email:_____________________________________
Phone:________________ Mobile: ______________
New members, please advise Synagogue with which you have a current or past connection:
Membership $_________________ Donation $_________________ Total $_________________
Family (includes non working children living at home) $50 Family concession (Full Centrelink or DVA pension) $30
Single $30 Single concession (Full Centrelink or DVA pension) $20
Payment Options:
1. Direct deposit or bank transfer to Brisbane Chevra Kadisha BSB 064-002 Account 00270838.
Existing members: If there are no changes to your details, just fill out what the payment is for
(eg Membership ‘family name’) and the name of the person paying.
New members and existing members with changes: Make payment as above and complete and
email this form to treasurer@bck.net.au or just email the new or changed details
2. If you do not wish to pay by direct deposit or bank transfer:
Please complete this form and mail with your cheque payable to Brisbane Chevra Kadisha to:
Treasurer BCK, PO Box 1296 Toowong DC Qld 4066.
Please support the Brisbane Chevra Kadisha by:
Annual membership, donations & bequests, planning for the future, making your wishes known, ensuring details
of your Jewish name and heritage are known.
Funeral and monument costs are substantial (refer https://bck.net.au). We suggest community members:
• Meet with trusted advisers to organise finances and insurances
• Join the Chevra: We perform many duties when a Jewish person passes away and BCK (Tahara/Chapel) fees
are part of overall funeral / burial costs. The BCK fee component is reduced for members (5 years continuous)
• Work through the Chevra to pre-purchase a burial plot at Mt Gravatt Cemetery’s Jewish Section
• Consider the ‘Guardian Plan’ (https://www.guardianplan.com.au), accessible through George Hartnett
Metropolitan Funerals, as a way to pre-pay future funeral fees at today’s prices.
The Chevra is run by volunteers who meet with family, coordinate with George Hartnett Metropolitan Funerals and
Brisbane City Council cemetery management, conduct Tahara, supervise the funeral and burial, assist with
arrangements for a monument. We work with cemetery management to manage the Jewish section at Mt Gravatt.
We operate the Jewish Chapel, maintain the Anzac Memorial Garden and Martyrs’ Memorial and retain a watching
brief over the Jewish section at the historic Toowong cemetery.
33 SHALOM MAGAZINE | ADAR – NISSAN 5781You can also read
