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Radio Chavura Snapshots
Radio Chavura Collage

Left: Denver high-school students, Ben Weil and Georgie Seserman, showcase their musical talents on an upcoming edition of our program.  Ben and Georgie, who attend the Denver School of the Arts, are members of Jewish Student Connection (JSC). They were joined by Rabbi Michael Sunshine, JSC's dynamic regional director. 

 

Center:  Make this year's Seders especially fun for the whole family by playing Passover Bingo as you read along in the Haggadah.  Passover Bingo is the creation of Denver's own Tamara Pester, who by day is a respected business law attorney.  Tamara will be a guest on our March 24th edition of Radio Chavura.  But don't wait another minute.  Order your Passover Bingo today from her website.  The game - which is also sold at the East Side Kosher Deli, BMH-BJ Congregation gift shop, and other retail outlets - makes a great Pesach present. 

 

Right:  The Denver Academy of Torah's recent annual dinner, celebrating the school's 20th anniversary, was a wonderful tribute to the power of a dream to blossom into a reality. Honorees were Dr. Peggy Kasloff, Jeff Wilson, and Cantor & Mrs. Zachary Kutner. Pictured here (l-r): Radio Chavura staff photographer Avital Rotbart, a Denver Academy of Torah sophomore; Dr. Rachel Rabinovitch, a past president of the board; Naomi Lev, assistant principal at DAT High School and Dr. Juli Kramer, principal of the high school.

 

Every Sunday @ 6:30 p.m. on 990 KRKS AM in Denver  

24/7 @ www.chavura.com

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This Week on Radio Chavura

The Vital Role of Jewish Day Schools:
A Conversation with Rabbi Israel Rosenfeld 
The Rosenfelds
(l-r): David, Tova and Rabbi Israel Rosenfeld

This week on Radio Chavura, we induct Rabbi Israel Rosenfeld, who headed Hillel Academy of Denver for 25 years, into our Pillars of the Colorado Jewish Community honor society. Rabbi Rosenfeld - a Holocaust survivor - has dedicated his life to providing a quality education to Jewish children and mentoring day school faculty members. 

 

PCJC_LogoThe author of numerous books on education, Rabbi Rosenfeld tells us about how he entered the profession (with the help of Rabbi Samuel Adelman z"l) and what brought him to Denver, so many decades ago.  

 

Rabbi Rosenfeld also makes a passionate argument for Jewish day school education, which is the one community institution that can preserve the integrity of our people for generations to come.

 

Radio Chavura encourages all of our listeners to support Denver's five Jewish day schools -
Beth Jacob High School of Denver (bjhs.org); Denver Academy of Torah (datcampus.org); Denver Jewish Day School (denverjds.org); Hillel Academy of Denver (hillelacademyofdenver.com); and Yeshiva Toras Chaim (denveralumni.com) - as well as educational organizations such as the Jewish Student Connection (myjsc.org) and CAJE's Hebrew High (caje-co.org/hebrewhigh), which serve Jewish students enrolled in secular schools.

 

Joining Rabbi Rosenfeld on Radio Chavura is his wife,Tova, who tells us about her children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren. Also in studio is their eldest son - David - who serves unofficially as our community ambassador (Thank You, David!). 

Rabbi Rosenfeld is one of our state's great Jewish educators. We are proud to recognize him as one of the Pillars of the Colorado Jewish Community.
 
Hear our interview with Rabbi Rosenfeld now.
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Recently on Radio Chavura
Special Salute to Boutique Judaica
A legacy that will live on 
Boutique Judaica Collage

Editor's Note:
 This episode of Radio Chavura was originally recorded on January 3, 2013.  On that day, it was business as usual for longtime partners Roslyn Weiss and Carolyn Auerbach.

Carolyn taped the broadcast by phone from home, while her husband, Ralph, listened on.  Ralph had been ill and Carolyn was caring for him.  Roz, pictured above - top row, left - joined us at the radio station. 
 
The very next day, Ralph, a businessman, community leader and lifelong supporter of Israel and other worthy Jewish causes, passed away.  During the shiva period, Carolyn slipped and was injured. 
 
In the weeks since, Roz and Carolyn reached the difficult decision to close their gift shop, which the two friends originally opened in 1977 and which has served generations of grateful customers - both Jewish and gentile.
 
This show, although unintended, serves as a snapshot of the final "normal" day in the long and distinguished march of the two dynamic, determined, and dedicated women who shared in the simchas and sorrows of the greater Denver Jewish community for nearly 36 years.  We broadcast it as a tribute to all they have accomplished and given, and in tribute to the Weiss and Auerbach families who poured their collective souls into Boutique Judaica.
 
 
Read Examiner.com's Salute to Boutique Judaica Here
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This Week:

 

Jewish-Owned Businesses Featured On The Radio:

Have you heard the 710 KNUS AM - Small Business Drives Colorado™ radio commercials featuring Bonnie Brae Ice Cream and East Side Kosher Deli?  

 

Ken Simon - Bonnie Brae The 60-second spots are produced and narrated by Radio Chavura's Dean Rotbart, who also hosts Business Unconventional, a one-hour business news magazine broadcast every Sunday from 8 am to 9 am.  Dean is the founder and chairman of the yearlong Small Business Drives Colorado™ campaign, which honors the contributions of area businesses to the Colorado economy and lifestyle.

 

Photo: Ken Simon, co-owner, Bonnie Brae Ice Cream, a guest on Business Unconventional last May. Ken brought along ice cream for students from Denver Academy of Torah High School, who participated in the broadcast. 


Click on photo to view larger version.  Hear the Bonnie Brae Ice Cream commercial.  Hear the East Side Kosher Deli commercial.

Chavura Community Calendar 

Calendar

March 20 (Wednesday)

Jewish Republicans of Colorado monthly meeting, featuring Jon Caldera, president, Independence Institute. 6:30 pm.  East Side Kosher Deli, 499 S. Elm Street, Denver, 80247. $5 minimum food order. www.j-gop.com 

March 25 & March 26 (Monday and Tuesday)

Passover Seders. Judaism in the Foothills. Conducted by Rabbi Levi Brackman. Reservations requested.  303-837-2224.  Special kids program available. Fee.

April 3 (Wednesday)
 
Discussion of the Oscar-nominated documentary, The Gate Keepers. Middle East Study Group. Hosted by Herzl Melmed and Robert Hazan.  7-9 pm.  6192 S. Galena Way, Englewood, 80111. Phone: 303-773-3891.  No fee.

April 7 (Sunday)

 

Colorado Holocaust Survivors Memorial Service. Theme: "Growing Up as Children and Grandchildren of Holocaust Survivors." Scheduled speakers include 

Rabbi Raphael LebanRabbi Zev Pomeranz, and Adam Leventhal. Chairwoman: Tana Rosenberg (JCC - @ 4:00 pm) Free.

 

April 9 (Tuesday)

Governor's Holocaust Remembrance Program coordinated by the Mountain States Region of the Anti-Defamation League. 6 pm to 7 pm.  Phone: 303-830-7177.

April 10 (Wednesday)

A Comedy Evening with A.J. Jacobs presented by Colorado Agency for Jewish Education (CAJE). Location: Casselman's, 2620 Walnut Street, Denver, 80205.  General Admission: $100.  Phone: 303-321-3191 or www.caje-co.org.

April 11  (Thursday)
 

 

BMH-BJ Congregation Annual Event honoring Cantor Emeritus Zachary & Trude Kutner; Dr. Ivor & Tracey Douglas (Young Leadership Award); and David Engleberg (Community Service Award). 6 pm Cocktails and Silent Auction.  7 pm Dinner.  $360 couple.  

April 16 (Tuesday)
 
Rocky Mountain Jewish Historical Society Annual Heritage Award Dinner.  Honoring Colorado Jewish sports figures: Irv Brown, Steve Hess and Gerald Mellman.  Premiere screening of "Play Ball! Early Colorado Jews in Sports."  BMH-BJ Congregation.  6:30 pm.
 
April 21 (Sunday)

* Hillel of Colorado * Spring Fling 2013: Dedication to the Next Generation * Featuring actress Mayim Bialik * RedLine (2350 Arapahoe Street * 80205) @11:00 am * More Info @ 303-777-2773 x 224 * Fee

 

* Holocaust survivor Osi Sladek to speak as part of Bnai B'rith's "Light: The Holocaust & Humanity Project."  11 am to 1 pm.  Loup JCC.  Details:  www.bnaibrithdenver.org 

 

April 28 (Sunday): 

 

Colorado Hebrew Chorale * Lag B'Omer Celebration * Enjoy music, food, fun, and a bonfire, with special guests from the Denver Zoo! * Denver's Four Mile Historic Park (715 South Forest Street * 80246) @2:00 pm * More Info @ 303-355-0232 * Advanced RSVP Encouraged * Fee. Phone: 303-355-0232.

 

May 4 (Thursday):

 

4th Annual Youth Directions Fundraiser and Auction.  Rabbi Levi Brackman, executive director. 6:30 pm to 9:00 pm.  Artwork Network, 878 Santa Fe Drive, Denver 80204.  Former Denver School Board President, Nate Easley, is this year's recipient of the annual Youth Dedication award. Tickets $50.

 

May 30 (Thursday): 

 

History of the Jewish Community of Leadville * Presented by Bill Korn * JCC South (9625 East Arapahoe Road * 80112) @7:30 pm * More Info @ 303-799-6975

 

  

Send calendar notices for your organization's upcoming events to us at: [email protected]


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DID YOU SPOT THESE NEWS and FEATURE ITEMS? 
Articles
Talya Rotbart

Edited by Talya Rotbart*

"Land for Peace" is dead. It's time to try 'Peace for Peace'. A genuine, sincere peace agreement shouldn't require the surrender of Israel's heartland to a band of armed terrorists.

 

Israeli, US Universities Team Up for Energy Research (Jerusalem Post)

 

VIDEO:  Students 'FlashWaltz' at Hadassah Hospital in Jerusalem

 

Flash Waltz
Click on photo to view video

 

Israeli Windsurfers Win Gold, Bronze in Brazil (Ynetnews.com)

Proving the old adage that "good things come in threes," Israeli windsurfer Lee Korzits took home her third consecutive first place prize at the RS-X World Championships in Buzios, Brazil.

 

Double-Standard for Anti-Semitism on Campus by Ronn Torossian (Arutz Sheva)

College campuses throughout the United States are bastions of racism and anti-Semitism, and for many years that fact has largely been ignored by the mainstream media.


Marijuana: Another Gift of the Left to America's Youth by Dennis Prager
(Townhall)  

What the left has done to America's youth in the last 40 or so years is so damaging as to be unforgiveable. They have ruined public school education; left them with so much debt that they will likely be the first American generation to live materially inferior to the their parents; and robbed their innocence with sex education classes, now beginning in kindergarten in Chicago and elsewhere. Now they are making marijuana available to more kids and in greater potency than ever before.

 

IDF Most 'Female Friendly' Army in the World (Arutz Sheva)

More than one third of the army's "enlisted men" are women.


An American in Israel by Naomi Ragen (Jerusalem Post)

The American consulate seems to be exclusively aimed at benefiting West Bank and east Jerusalem Palestinians.

Naomi Ragen
Naomi Ragen

The Holocaust Just Got More Shocking (New York Times Sunday Review) 

Thirteen years ago, researchers at the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum began the grim task of documenting all the ghettos, slave labor sites, concentration camps and killing factories that the Nazis set up throughout Europe. What they have found so far has shocked even scholars steeped in the history of the Holocaust.

 

 

Ukraine - Town To Stop Using Jewish Headstones As Pavement (Vos Iz Neias?)

 

 

Fitch Ratings downgrades National Jewish Health's bonds  (Denver Business Journal)

 

 

Seeking Kin: From Denver to Brooklyn, a family reconnects  (JTA)


(CBS - Denver) 
Joshua Fine
Josh Fine

By Rabbi Levi Brackman (Ynetnews.com)

 

 

Facebook Logo
Follow Talya on Facebook

* For additional articles, videos and photos of interest throughout the week, follow Talya on Facebook.






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OTHER PREVIOUS RADIO CHAVURA PROGRAMS
Seth Ward
Seth Ward
On this week's edition of Radio Chavura, we hear from Dr. Seth Ward, a professor in the religious studies department at the University of Wyoming. In July 2012, Dr. Ward was in Albuquerque, NM, where he served as the program chair at the 22nd Annual Conference of the Society for Crypto Judaic Studies. Dr. Ward phoned us from that conference to talk to us about Crypto-Judaism and issues affecting the descendants of Jews who were forced to hide their religion during the Inquisition.
 
We also speak with Elizabeth Naidu, a native of India, who frequently lectures at the Robert E. Loup Jewish Community Center about the indigenous Jewish population of India. She shares with us a little bit of her own background, as well as a little bit of Indian-Jewish history and culture
.

November 11, 2012:

Alan Veingrad
Shlomo Veingrad

Former Dallas Cowboys Linebacker, Alan "Shlomo" Veingard, discusses his journey from the gridiron to the world of Orthodox Judaism. Shlomo was the featured speaker at the Yeshiva Toras Chaim annual dinner.
As he returns to Australia, Rabbi Selwyn Franklin, the departing BMH-BJ Congregation senior rabbi, shares some highlights of his time in Colorado and a recommendation for his successor.

 

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15th Anniversary Celebration
Denver Community Kollel
Denver Kollel Collage - 600

 

We are blessed to count the Denver Community Kollel among our most precious and cherished local Jewish institutions.

 

With a mission to spread love and understanding of Torah, the Kollel is here to serve every Jew who seeks a greater knowledge, regardless of which synagogue you belong to - or if you belong at all.

 

In addition to its convenient regular classes and learning groups, the Kollel strives to reach out to each individual who expresses an interest in learning, regardless of where he or she may be located.

 

The 15th Annual Celebration dinner, with a fitting tribute to Rabbi and Mrs. Yehuda Amsel, showcased another aspect of the Denver Community Kollel - it's warmth.  The Kollel, led by Rabbi Aron Yehuda Schwab and Rabbi Shachne Sommers, Roshei Kollel, personifies the Yiddish word "heymish."  When you are at the Denver Kollel, one of its study groups, or at a Kollel event, you are "at home" - comfortable among loving family.

 

Mazel Tov to all the Kollel leaders and scholars - past and present - on the occasion of your 15th anniversary.  And a special thank you to Rabbi Yehuda and Tirtza Amsel, for the knowledge and warmth you always shared so generously. 

- Radio Chavura


To view the celebration's special video presentation,

In the Air: The Torah Revolution, click here

 

Kollel 15th Anniversary Tribute Journal
Click on Image to 
See Inside

To view the video tribute to Rabbi Yehuda Amsel, click here.

 

To view the Kollel Dinner Tribute Journal, click here.

 

To view recipes of the dishes from Wine & Dine: An Artistic Arrangement of Creative Cuisine, click here.  

 

To donate to the Denver Community Kollel, click here.  
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Recently on Radio Chavura: Purim 5773 Edition

The Radio Chavura Players Present the Exclusive World Debut of


Some Shtik and a Kleine Shpiel by Maxwell Rotbart, a.k.a. "Dr. History"
Radio Chavura Players
[L-R] Dr. History, Adam, Julia, Shmuel and Dean
Click on photo to view photo essay  

Every Sunday @ 6:30 p.m. on 990 KRKS AM in Denver 
24/7 at www.Chavura.com
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Featuring (in alphabetical disorder):

JULIA GREENWALD as Golda Meir
ADAM SCHNEIDERMAN as Taylor Singer
SHMUEL MICHAELS as Mike Samuels
JERRY SEINFELD as Himself
"DR. HISTORY" a.k.a. Maxwell Rotbart as Himself
TEVYE the MILKMAN as Himself
DEAN ROTBART as Himself
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View Photos of the Radio Chavura Players Recording the Purim skit.
The Legend of Dr. History

A prescription for knowledge
When he's not hosting Radio Chavura or taking education courses as a graduating senior at Metropolitan State University of Denver, Maxwell Rotbart, 20, assumes the persona of "Dr. History," a self-created character who loves nothing more than prescribing to K-12 students the wonderments and enlightenment that come with acquiring the knowledge and lessons of history.

Dr. History is especially well versed in U.S. Presidential History, Jewish-American History, and Colorado History.  The Doctor is always available to speak to school groups and clubs on his favorite topics.  Just ask!

While Maxwell is a long-time evangelist for the study of history, he selected Purim 5773 to publicly debut both his skills as a playwright - When Paul Newman Met Golda Meir - and his double life as Dr. History.

Photo by Avital Rotbart 
 
People around the country and as far away as Mongolia - no kidding - are listening to this special edition of Radio Chavura and writing us to say how much they enjoyed the episode.  If you haven't heard the show yet, what are you waiting for?

STUDIO J at RADIO CHAVURA
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StudioJHomegrown Colorado Jewish Music
Host: Julie Geller
StudioJ_Episode1

Maybe it's the crisp mountain air. Maybe it's the snowmelt. Maybe it's the spiritual influence of our great Jewish day schools and educational programs. 

 

Regardless, it is undisputed that Colorado's Jewish musical artists generate a unique vibe - a special feel that distinguishes them from the sounds of other Hebrew and Jewish groups.

Julie Geller

 

Last month, we launched Studio J at Radio Chavura, an all-music edition of our program that will be hosted several times a year by our multi-talented musical director, Julie Geller.

 

Each edition of Studio J at Radio Chavura will highlight bands that are channeling the Rocky Mountain energy and producing awesome, original Jewish music.  

 

In fact, the first band that Julie featured on last month's show was Sababa: Cool. Jewish. Music. 

 

Sababa features Temple Emanuel's artist-in-residence, Steve Brodsky; Scott Leader of Arizona and Robbi Sherwin of Texas. 

 

Julie also showcased two of the beloved songs of Or Zimrah, the house band of Congregation Har HaShem in Boulder, and the fun, rockin' tunes of Rocky Mountain Jewgrass: High Octane Jewish Bluegrass

 

WARNING: Studio J at Radio Chavura has been known to cause listeners to leave their seats and start dancing. if you find yourself enjoying the show, please subscribe at Chavura.com.


Pampered Passions - Radio Chavura  
Thank You!


We are proud to enjoy the friendship and sponsorship of these fine businesses. Please visit them and let them know you are part of the Radio Chavura community.

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It's Time to Address Jewish Day School Tuition 

 

TuitionDenver has five top-tier Jewish schools - Beth JacobDenver Academy of TorahDenver Jewish Day SchoolHillel Academy, and Yeshiva Toras Chaim
We Support Jewish Day SchoolsSadly, these schools are often under-funded, and parents increasingly must struggle to afford Jewish day school tuition.


As 2012 drew to a close, hosts Maxwell and Dean Rotbart shared two of their ideas for solving the day school tuition crisis without raising rates, refusing students, or turning to government funding. How is this possible? 

 

Hear the full show online now by clicking here

  

Listen to the full show - without music - by clicking here.

 

We invite you to share your thoughts on how to best fund Jewish day schools.  Email: [email protected] or phone 1-855-JEWISH-4.

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Can't listen live to Radio Chavura? You can hear this week's full show right now, here. All previous broadcasts are available at: www.chavura.com)
 
Dean and Maxwell Rotbart
Radio Chavura Co-Hosts
Radio Chavura Is An Official Sponsor

We Support Jewish Day Schools