SAN DIEGO — The Murray Galinson San Diego-Israel Initiative (MGSDII) announced it will bring eight professors to teach about Israel at SDSU, UCSD, USD, and California Western Law School.
The eight professors are Ambassador Ido Aharoni, Judge Rachel Barkai, Filmmaker Tom Shoval and Professors Giora Goodman, Nehama Lewis, Asa Maron, Maya Negev, and Dan Rabinowitz.
These courses are offered in the instructors’ fields of expertise and to afford students opportunities to learn about Israel from Israelis rather than from news reports. Click here to support MGSDII.
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With summer around the corner, San Diego Pride will celebrate 50 years of PRIDE. In 1975, San Diego held its first rally. The Spirit of Stonewall Rally will be held on July 19 at the Hillcrest Pride Flag on University Avenue. This rally is to honor those who paved the way for LGBTQ rights and to continue the fight for equality.
If the late San Francisco Supervisor Harvey Milk, the nation’s first openly gay public official, were still alive, he would be proud of the gains the younger generations have made in making gay marriage legal and allowing gay and lesbian couples to adopt children.
In a 1978 speech by Milk, he ended with a call to hope: “I know that you cannot live on hope alone, but without it, life is not worth living…You have got to give them hope.”
At the Spirit of Stonewall Rally, awards will be given to individuals who have contributed significantly through their leadership, activism, and fundraising efforts to the LGBTQ community. Click here to view the Stonewall Awardees.
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Did you ever wonder who brought ice cream to San Diego? According to the American Jewish Committee, which is celebrating Jewish Heritage Month, it was Prussian Jewish immigrant Isidor Louis, who was an important figure during San Diego’s Gaslamp Quarter era.
My first job in high school was at Baskin Robbins in La Mesa. I worked there for two years and to this day ice cream does not interest me. It’s too cold and makes a mess as it melts, but someone has to like it since it is so popular on hot days.
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Speaking of ice cream, Ner Tamid Synagogue in Poway reminds us Shavuot, when traditionally dairy foods are eaten, is on the horizon. This is the time to celebrate the gift of receiving the Torah, which introduced to the Israelites the laws of kashrut. Legend has it that as there was no time to kasher meat, the ancient Israelites ate only dairy during the holiday.
Ner Tamid Synagogue is seeking help to improve its playground equipment in time for summer programming. If you’d like to help, click here. The goal is to reach $10,000 before June 11.
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It’s not too late to sign up your child or grandchild for Camp Jaycee at the JCC. There are many camps to choose from when deciding what is best for your children between the ages of 18 months and 12th grade. Camps start June 3 and run until August 23. Click here to sign up for an amazing summer experience your family will not want to miss.
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The JCC is hosting a Jewish Community Conversation with Sheryl Sandberg: Screams Before Silence at 5:15 p.m., on Tuesday, May 28. Click here to register and click here to watch the film. This event is in co-sponsorship with the National Council of Jewish Women (NCJW). The community is invited to join Sandberg, who narrated the film, and Sheila Katz, CEO of the NCJW, as they discuss Israeli women screaming while being raped and sexually mutilated before being executed by Hamas terrorists on Oct.7.
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The Hive at Leichtag Commons is hosting “Shabbat at the Sea: Exploring Traditions from Around the World” at 6 p.m., Friday, May 31. Click here to reserve a $36 ticket. The menu: Appetizer: Greek Lemon Orzo Soup; Main: Vegan Stuffed Cabbage & Red Wine Braised Chickpea Meatball with Carrots and Baby Potatoes; Dessert: Apple Tahini Crumble with Handmade Halvah.
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Jewish Family Services helps many families in need and in a recent fundraising message it included a personal story from Roberto and his family. Roberto said: “In 2016, I had surgery on a brain tumor and was left permanently disabled with seizures. Because I can’t work anymore, I receive Social Security, but it’s not enough to survive on. When we were homeless and living out of our car, Jewish Family Service helped us with a place to live, furniture, and even diapers. Now, thanks to the support we receive through JFS’s Corner Market, I can provide healthy food for my family and save the limited income we have for bills.”
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The San Diego Foundation (SDF) announced grants totaling $629,000 to 20 local nonprofits, including $23,000 to the Jewish-themed Coastal Roots Farm for a science program for the Escondido Union School District.
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GOVERNMENT AND POLITICS
San Diego City Councilmember Sean Elo-Rivera has praised the San Diego Housing Commission Flood Recovery Program for Displaced Residents. “Nobody should end up homeless or displaced from their community as the result of a natural disaster,” he said. “We have a moral obligation as a City and as a community to do what we can to help those forced out of their homes by the January flood disaster.”
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San Diego County Supervisor Terra Lawson-Remer has accused State Farm Insurance of “jeopardizing people’s lives” by canceling homeowners insurance policies. “Severing ties with homeowners and renters in San Diego County is not very neighborly of State Farm, or any other insurance provider,” she commented while fellow supervisors unanimously adopted a resolution criticizing big insurance companies. “The state is working in good faith to address insurance provider concerns, but instead of being a good neighbor, they are jeopardizing people’s lives and belongings to prove a point,” Lawson-Remer said about the insurance industry’s opposition to new regulations in California.
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OBITUARY NOTICE
Chabad of Downtown reported that funeral services for Shaina Stacey Anistacia Miller, sister of Kris Miller, will be held at noon Tuesday, May 28, at Hillside Memorial Park, 6001 W Centinela Ave., Los Angeles.
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Cailin Acosta is the assistant editor of San Diego Jewish World.