THE NEXT SCOTT NADELSON, A LIFE IN PROGRESS by Scott Nadelson, © 2013, Hawthorne Books & Literary Arts, Portland, $16.95, original paperback (by Paul Haist.) After the 2004 publication of his first collection of short stories, Oregon writer Scott Nadelson, a New Jersey native, still questioned whether he would ever do something worthwhile. No matter…
Come one, come all. The Portland Mitzvah Network’s website is up, running and waiting for you to join. Sponsored by the Jewish Federation of Greater Portland and developed by representatives throughout the Jewish community, this online, easy-to-use, automated matchmaker provides one-stop shopping for hands- on volunteer opportunities. Visit portlandmitzvah.org and check out the setup. Volunteers…
By the time an Israeli military pilot saluted Jeff Silver on the kibbutz where he spent his 17th summer in 1978, Jeff was already pre-disposed toward a career in aviation and the military. But Jeff couldn’t know that now, 34 years later, he would be poised to ascend to heights few others reach in that…
If you asked 100 Jewish Portlanders what it means to be a Jewish Portlander, how many different answers would you get? The optimist might say 100, the cynic, 150. Videographer Ken Klein made no assumptions when he started his quest. Motivated at first by anger, then by curiosity, he roamed the community speaking to Jews…
I am often asked by friends, colleagues or others who detect my American accent (one doesn’t have to be too discerning to do so) why I chose to leave the U.S. and make aliyah. The question is generally a bit on the cynical side and goes something like, “What was so bad in America that…
“There’s nothing you can read about the Portland Youth Philharmonic that will prepare you for an experience when you come to a concert,” declares David Hattner, music director of the PYP, which is the oldest and one of the best youth orchestras in the United States. “You have to experience them because they’re that good.”…
Thanks to the TV show “Portlandia,” Oregonians west of the Cascades are now famous for their highly developed food sensibilities, militant bike activism, flowing long gray hair and ever-intensifying addictions to locally produced artisan coffees, oh-so-perfect pinots and craft beers. What “Portlandia hasn’t touched on – yet (hint) – is the amount of buzz generated…
Local anesthesiologist Dr. Sam Metz has long supported the concept of universal health care. But when a relative lost his home about three years ago as the result of large medical bills, Metz became very active in the push to put Oregon on the front lines of health care reform. Metz says he awakened to…
As education director of Havurah Shalom, Deborah Eisenbach-Budner knows about developing strong Jewish identity. When it comes to internationally adopted children, she also knows “what’s in a name.” Parents’ hopes for their child’s faith and sense of belonging, she says, are often revealed by the names they choose. RozaBess Aizhan, 4, the daughter she adopted…
He’s a klezmer violin virtuoso, a composer, an arranger, a filmmaker, the author of 13 books, a playwright and a photographer, and he has conducted original ethno-graphic and musical research in Eastern Europe. In short, Yale Strom is a one-man walking Jewish cultural storehouse. Strom started his multifaceted love affair with Jewish culture in the…
