Learn to play this ancient game. Registration code: CG201, cost: $85. Member Cost: $72.
Jewish pioneers were among the earliest settlers in the Northwest. Free and open to the community. In partnership with OPB, Oregon Historical Society, OJMCHE, and MJCC.
“The Jewish Frontier” airs on OPB TV Jan. 25 at 9:00 pm
New OPB Oregon Experience Documentary Examines the History of Oregon’s Earliest Jewish Settlers
“The Jewish Frontier” airs January 25 on OPB TV and online; advance public screening event in Portland
PORTLAND, Ore.– January 12, 2015— This month, OPB will premiere a new Oregon Experiencedocumentary that examines the history of the Jewish people who helped build the American West and shape the state of Oregon. They were some of the earliest settlers, arriving with the Gold Rush and staying to create businesses, civic organizations and communities.
In advance of the TV premiere, OPB is hosting a free, public screening event on Jan. 19 at the Mittleman Jewish Community Center in Portland. Free and open to the public, the event begins at 7 p.m. (doors open at 6:30) and will feature the full-length documentary and a Q&A with producer Kami Horton.
The one-hour documentary “The Jewish Frontier” airs January 25 at 9 p.m. on OPB TV and online at watch.opb.org at the same time.
In Europe, Russia, and elsewhere, Jews faced a long history of persecution—but in the unsettled American frontier, they could create their own destinies. Arriving as merchants, they were welcomed for the much-needed goods and services they provided to growing towns.
They ranged from junk peddlers in Portland’s immigrant community to entrepreneurs who built multi-million dollar businesses. Some of these individuals include Aaron Meier of Meier & Frank, who opened his first Portland store in 1857 and went on to operate one of the nation’s largest department stores; Bernard Goldsmith, a mediator between the military and Native Americans, who became Portland’s first Jewish mayor; and Sigmund Heilner, who followed gold miners to Southern and Eastern Oregon and established one of the region’s longest-operating businesses.
“The Jewish Frontier” tells the story of pioneering Jews from across the state— from a Jewish farming commune near Roseburg that gave equal rights to men and women, to South Portland, home of Orthodox Jews from Eastern Europe and Russia along with Mel Blanc, Trail Blazers founder Harry Glickman, internationally-renowned painter Mark Rothko and more.
Through Urban Renewal that displaced homes and synagogues to the devastating aftermath of the Holocaust, Oregon’s Jews have continually found new ways to honor the past, and set the foundation for a future, while at the same time redefining what it means to be Jewish in the American West.
This new Oregon Experience documentary features rare historical photos, film, and more than two dozen interviews with people across the state, including:
- Pete Asch, archivist, Jewish Museum and Center for Holocaust Education
- David Zaslow, rabbi, Havurah Shir Hadash, Ashland
- Joshua Boettige, rabbi, Temple Emek Shalom, Ashland
- Ellen Eisenberg, professor of History, Willamette University
- Daniel Eliezer Froehlich, genealogist
- Gerry Frank, Meier & Frank
- Joshua Rose, rabbi, Congregation Shaarie Torah, Portland
- William Toll, historian
- Michael Kaplan, rabbi, Congregation Ahavath Achim
- Joshua Stampfer, rabbi emeritus, Congregation Neveh Shalom
- Steven Wasserstrom, professor of Jewish and Religious Studies, Reed College
- Harry Glickman, founder, Portland Trail Blazers
- Miriam Greenstein, Holocaust survivor
- Noel Blanc, Mel Blanc’s son
“The Jewish Frontier” is written and produced by Kami Horton and edited by Lisa Suinn Kallem. It airs Monday, January 25 at 9 p.m. on OPB TV and will be available to watch online at http://watch.opb.org/ at the same time. For more information, visit Oregon Experience online.
Davita’s World: The Power of Music Concert
January 18 & 19, 7:30 PM
Milagro Theatre, 525 SE Stark Street
As the harp in the novel’s title indicates, music is a central force in the story. Jewish Theatre Collaborative partners with Portland favorites. Congregation Beth Israel Cantor Ida Rae Cahana, Jack Falk, Andrew Ehrlich, Courtney Von Drehle and Ralph Huntley present a musical collage from the diverse soundscape of Davita’s world.
Learn to play this ancient game. Registration code: CG201, cost: $85. Member Cost: $72.
Meet with Jacqueline Regev from the Institute for Curricular Studies to learn about recognizing biases in the classroom and how to respond to them. This is geared towards 8th graders and above and their parents.
Free and open to the community. In partnership with PJA, PAJE.
Join us for a weekly story hour for young families with PJ Library stories, crafts and music!
Join PJ Library as we bring back Yad b’Yad with Kim Schneiderman! Inter generational singing and stories at Cedar Sinai Park.
A weekly story hour for young families with music & PJ Library books!
No story hour on April 29th.
Come add your voice to the chorus of voices at Shaarie Torah as we welcome Shabbat together. Spirited singing, prayers in Hebrew and English, raucous noise and peaceful silence – everything you need to open the gates of Shabbat
Every fourth Friday of the month. A wonderful oneg will follow!
FREE Childcare provided!!!