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This week we begin the fourth book of the Torah, Sefer Bamidbar. The parsha starts off with the words, "And the Lord spoke to Moshe in the wilderness of Sinai, in the Tent of Meeting..." The Midrash points out that we are certainly aware of the fact that the Jewish people were in the wilderness of Sinai at this time. Why, then, did the Torah highlight this point? The Midrash answers somewhat cryptically that the Torah is attempting to teach us that we can only truly appreciate the words of Hashem when we make ourselves like a wilderness. What does this mean? Rabbi Yaacov Haber explains that a wilderness is undeveloped property. It lacks the comforts and amenities of civilized society. So, too, an individual who wishes to truly understand and absorb authentic Torah values must first eliminate his or her emphasis on materialism and luxurious living. These things have their place, but they must be made secondary to the desire to lead a righteous, constructive and ethical life.
Shabbat Shalom!
Rabbi Zvi Kahn
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A FEATHER IN OUR "BASEBALL CAP"
THE COLUMBUS BASEBALL INVITATIONAL
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 The Columbus Baseball Invitational (CBI) will kick off on Sunday, May 19 through Tuesday, May 21. This event, now in its 4th year, attracts high school athletes from Jewish day schools around the country. Games will be played in a round robin format on the fields at the Jewish Community Center on College Avenue.
This year, six teams will do battle until the field is down to a semifinal and championship game. The teams who have been invited to this year's tournament are: Fuchs Mizrachi Mayhem (Cleveland, Ohio), Kushner Academy Cobras (Livingston, NJ), SAR High School Sting (Riverdale, NY), Yeshiva Atlanta Lions (Atlanta, GA), Ida Crown Academy Aces (Chicago, IL) and of course, the Columbus Torah Academy Lions (Columbus, Ohio).
 The event is as much about baseball as it is about community. Bringing together these 90 boys who have a passion for baseball and a shared heritage as Jewish day school students and athletes is a feat of amazing proportions. Appreciation in advance goes to co-commissioners Jonathan Hartstein and Bob Lane (and their families).
CBI is an event for the Whole Family! The Opening Night game on Sunday at 6:10 pm promises to be a nail-biter with Cleveland vs. Columbus in the "Battle of Ohio". The concession stand will be open and will feature Romanian Hotdogs from Chicago (delish!).
Prior to the game, from 4-6 pm on Sunday, youth ages 8-13 can participate in a Baseball Clinic from the Ron Golden Baseball School. Participants will receive a t-shirt and have the opportunity to be a part of the opening ceremony. The cost is $5.00 and pre-registration is required. Please contact the school office to register.
The CBI Raffle is selling tickets for the drawing to be held on Tuesday, May 21 at 12 noon. Raffle tickets cost $10 each or 6 for $50.00. First Prize is a $500 gift card to American Eagle. Second Prize is a $250.00 gift card to American Eagle. To purchase tickets, contact any CTA athlete, Bob Goldstein or the school office.
A complete schedule of games and score updates, can be seen at www.columbusinvitational.com
There are many volunteer opportunities for this event. Please respond heartily to the emails and requests for assistance. And, come out and support our team, our school and our community. See you at the fields!
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PREVIEW OF THE WEEK OF MAY 12-17
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Monday, May 13: Ravioli
Tuesday, May 14: Chicken Nuggets
Erev Shavuot - 2:00pm Dismissal
Wednesday, May 15: Shavuot - NO SCHOOL
Thursday, May 16: Shavuot - NO SCHOOL
Friday, May 17: Tuna- Volunteer: R. Berger
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PREVIEW OF THE WEEK OF MAY 19-24
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Sunday, May 19: CBI at JCC
Monday, May 20: Pizza Bagels-Volunteer: W. Almasanu
CBI at JCC
Tuesday, May 21: Tacos-Volunteer: D. Koppes
CBI at JCC
Wednesday, May 22: Pizza-Volunteer: P. Wolf
Senior Exams
Thursday, May 23: Meatball Subs-Volunteer: A. Rosen
Senior Exams
Friday, May 24: PTO Sponsored Lunch
K-8 Field Day - 2:00 p.m. Dismissal
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Monday, May 27: Memorial Day - NO SCHOOL
Thursday, May 30: Spring Show, Grades 1-4, 9:30am
Friday, May 31: 12th Grade Graduation Rehearsal, 10am-4pm
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Monday, May 13
HOME Softball Game vs. OSD
5:30 p.m.
AWAY
Baseball
Game vs. Patriot Prep
5:00 p.m.
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SCRIP UPDATE - PLACES TO PURCHASE SCRIP
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CTA Scrip Office, 864-0299 ext. 112
Monday-Thursday- 7:30am-4pm; Friday- 7:30am-4pm
The Scrip Office keeps a variety of available scrip on hand. Special order scrip from hundreds of stores is available by sending your request to [email protected]. To see a complete selection of all of the Scrip choices, go to www.glscrip.com. To benefit CTA with online purchases, register at www.iGive.com.
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Thank you to the following families for their purchase of scrip: Shari & Dotan Herszage, Suzanne Schneiderman, Aliza Finegold, Tonia Levison, Sara Beth Kahn, Joni Schottenstein, Agi Hartstein, Minna Shifman, Deena Tanenbaum, Bernie Schubach, and Shelly Aframian. And, thank you to the anonymous purchaser of several thousand dollars for their house renovation. Remember scrip for those large purchases!
Remember: Target Take Charge of Education Program; Box Tops for Education; Giant Eagle Apples for Students, Kroger card, and empty inkjet cartridges into the box at the front office. To view the vendors participating in the Scrip Program go to www.glscrip.com.
Call & Deliver Program for Scrip: email [email protected] or call 864-0299 to order scrip and have it delivered to your home!
The $2,000 per family Give & Get commitment for 2012-2013 is fulfilled through donations, Scrip purchases, solicitations and volunteering. Send a record of all G&G volunteer hours to [email protected]. If you would like to volunteer, contact Volunteer Coordinator, Kim Abelman, at 855-5195 or [email protected]. Volunteer time is worth $25 per hour towards Give & Get.
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NEWS FROM THE LOWER SCHOOL JUDAIC STUDIES DEPARTMENT
By Dror Karavani, Lower School Judaic Studies Coordinator
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CTA continues to have a very busy and enriched schedule. The events last week included the Achievement Fair, which was very well attended and showcased our students' work and talents. Thank you to all of our Judaic teachers, who continue to put in so much effort to give a taste of what they do everyday. Chag HaSiddur was a special opportunity to show the love for learning which happens in our First Grade. Yasher Koach and Mazel Tov to our "stars" and their teacher, Morah Irit!
 Torah Factory with Rabbi Levi Andrusier, Director of Camp Gan Israel: In addition to the learning which is taking place in the classroom about the upcoming holiday of Shavuot, the students from Second and Sixth grade participated in a unique opportunity to learn the process of making a Sefer Torah. For a period of time, they became young "sofer stams" (someone who writes a Torah). How the parchment was made, the feather and ink used to write, and learning facts about the Torah letters and the process, were just some of the things experienced in this workshop. The excited students were able to take home their very own parchment with their Hebrew name which they wrote. Our hope is that now when they look at a Sefer Torah, they'll have a deeper understanding and stronger connection to our heritage. Much thanks and appreciation goes out to Rabbi Andrusier for once again, giving of his time, knowledge and experience.
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SAY IT IN HEBREW
By Galit Golan, Hebrew Language Coordinator |
 This weekend we will celebrate Mother' Day, and give special attention to moms. In Jerusalem, 1947, Rebezen Sarah Herzog brought up the idea to celebrate Mother's Day in Israel. During the following years, other Israeli cities adopted the Idea and started to celebrate Mother's Day as well. In 1951, the official day of Mother's Day in Israel, was changed to the 30th of Shevat, the passing day of Henrietta Sold, the founder of the Hadassah Women's Organization. Although Henrietta Sold didn't have children of her own, many of the Jewish  children who immigrated to Israel without a family, saw Henrietta Sold as a mother figure. In the nineties, Mother's Day יום האם was renamed as יום המשפחה to highlight the connection and commitment between the family members. In their Hebrew classes, CTA Lower School students
were excited to integrate their Hebrew vocabulary with their artistic talents, and create something special for mom, in honor of Mother's Day. Morah Minna and Morah Kelly's 4th grade wrote a special letter to mom, and the 5th grade students created an adjective flower for mom.
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ON THE UP & UP:
NEWS FROM THE UPPER SCHOOL JUDAIC STUDIES DEPARTMENT
By Rabbi Zecharia Weitz, Upper School Judaic Studies Coordinator |
 WHAT A WEEK!
At CTA, things wind-up not down. Here are some highlights of our past week: The week started with a bang with our much anticipated IronMench2 Tournament. The H.S. displayed their mastery of cumulative knowledge from this year and years past.  After a fierce and exciting battle, the maroon team emerged victorious. They will enjoy Grill-Master Eddie Karmia's world famous steaks! We will end with a bang as well with the debut of J.H. IronMench this Friday!
On Tuesday, the H.S. enjoyed an interactive presentation by Yosef (Calvin) Murray. His unique life story of being a college football star at OSU to becoming an observant Jew in our community grabbed the students' attention. His sincere message of appreciating how special it is to be Jewish and the power of talking to G-d resonated with all of us.
 Putting to use some of the new technology recently acquired for CTA enhanced our Chumash class. Google Chromebooks were utilized to incorporate 3 mini-lessons into one class through web-based directives.
FOOD FOR THOUGHT: The famous axiom of the Sages אוילרשעאוילשכינו - "choose your neighbors wisely" (loosely translated) is derived from this parsha; Reuvain's closeness to Korach in the encampment produced a disaster. On the other hand, Moshe and Aharon's proximity to Yehuda elevated that encampment. Sometimes we are expected to avoid the "spiritually challenged" while other times we need to be there to inspire. How can we determine the correct approach?
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| CHAG HASIDDUR - 1ST GRADERS CELEBRATE |
 Last Thursday's Chag Ha Siddur ceremony for the 1st graders was a significant milestone in their Jewish learning. The students received their first prayer book which they will continue to use throughout elementary school. The first graders have achieved a proficiency in knowing and understanding their prayers and the ceremony was a wonderful celebration to share their achievements with their parents and community rabbis. Each student was presented their new siddur (prayer book) by their congregational rabbi and Moreh Dror. The performance was filled with songs, poems and dance, mostly in Hebrew. Special kudos to Morah Irit for her dedication in preparing the students and producing the program. Pictures can be seen of this event at by clicking on http://www.torahacademy.smugmug.com/
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IMPORTANT - COLUMBUS BUS RIDERS - IMPORTANT
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ALL (current and new) Columbus bus riders must fill out an Application for Pupil Transportation for the 2013-2014 school year. The form can be found on the Torah Academy website under "Downloadable Documents." Please fill it out and return it to Norma Whitmyre no later than the last day of school, Friday, June 7. Transportation cannot be guaranteed without a form.
Friday, May 31, 2013 will be First Student's last day to transport CTA students. Columbus City Schools will take over the routes on Monday, June 3. Please note that the route numbers will stay the same.
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Mina Weisz Stieglitz (Class of '06) on the birth of a daughter
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| THANK YOU TO: |
Benjamin and Wendy Almasanu, David and Esther Bernzweig, Michael and Sarah Blumenfeld, Ed and Cigarette Parks and Robert and Patti Wolf for sponsoring this month's delicious Rosh Chodesh Faculty and Staff Appreciation Lunch!
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7th GRADE FUNDRAISER FOR 8TH GRADE WASHINGTON TRIP
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 The 7th graders are well into their annual Magazine Subscription Drive. Please help them raise money for the 2013 8th grade Washington Trip! If you bought a magazine from a current 8th grader this year, all you have to do is renew the magazine and it will continue for another year. If you did not buy from a current 8th grader, here's your chance! The subscription drive will run through the end of the year. Please see any 7th grader OR go on-line to www.gaschoolstore.com. In the upper right hand corner, enter CTA's code, #2522449. Thanks for your support!
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TZEDAKAH BOX TURN IN THIS MONDAY, MAY 13
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With spring cleaning and the end of the year upon us, please send in your Tzedaka Box contents this Monday, May 13. Remember, donations count dollar for dollar towards your Give and Get statement and help our school. Please write a check for the amount or put the coins and dollars in an envelope or baggie clearly marked with your name on it. If you have any questions, contact Shari.
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5th GRADERS PERFORM UNDERGROUND RR PLAYS
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Freedom was the theme when the fifth grade performed the Underground RR Plays to both the students in grades 1-6 grade and then a reprisal performance for parents in the evening last Tuesday. In 5th grade, the students learn American History and their curricular focus on the Civil War can be understood by the experience of the Underground RR Plays. Putting themselves in the shoes of slaves, Union soldiers and others from that era help the students to sense what it was like during that time in American History. In addition, the play is the first time the students are learning the fundamentals of theatrical and dramatic presentation. Thank you to all the 5th grade teachers, Mrs. Willis, Mrs. Alexander and Mrs. Kahn for their dedication to this program.
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COMMUNITY NEWS
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JCC MEMBERSHIP: Get 13 months for the price of 12 - Join the JCC in May or June for an annual membership and get 13 months for the price of 12. Coming this June: New equipment. More space. Different ways to stay in shape. 3-month membership options also available. Call 559-6227or 559-6229 for more information.
JCC SUMMER CAMPS - June 10 - August 2: Circus Camp, Specialty Camps include: Mosaic, LEGO, Flag Football, Cooking, Crew Soccer, Basketball, All Sports, and Dance; swim lessons, and Israeli dodge ball. For more information, go to the JCC website at www.columbusjcc.org.
BLOOD DRIVE AT THE JCC - Wednesday, May 29: The need for blood donors is never completely satisfied. New donors must be found when long time donors can no longer give. Please come Wednesday May 29, to the JCC between 12:00 pm and 6:30 pm to give the "Gift of Life". You can arrange an appointment by calling the Red Cross at 1-800-Give Life or go to the Red Cross website at www.redcrossblood.org sponsor code: tolifecolumbus.
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TZEDAKAH
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It has been a time-honored Jewish tradition to give tzedakah in recognition of important events. Todah Rabah to the following for their donation to the Scholarship Fund:
To Scholarship Fund by:
Gary Liebesman and Stacy Leeman in honor of Patty Sapp and in
memory of Artie Isaac's mother
Bruce Gartner in honor of Gary Liebesman
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PENCILS FOR AFRICA
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 "Here are the pencils collected thus far from CTA!! We are excited to pick up CJDS' loot next!! We are STILL collecting until year-end SO DON'T TOSS OUT those half-used pencils. AND PLEASE SHARE this with siblings/friends in other schools!! Kim Abelman will get them on their way to Ugandan & Mozambican children, excited & eager to learn. The POINT of PFA is to connect America to Africa, and especially to children who have lived through, and witnessed, conflict in Africa.
"Sharing pencils, surplus from the privileged (it is a privilege to own more than one pencil), to people who do not have them, sharing the creativity is an act of international sedition that can change the world to a more responsible place."
Allan Schwarz, co-founder, Pencils for Africa; founder Mezimbite Forest Center, Mozambique. From the website:
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1. Why were the Jewish People counted so frequently?
a. They are very dear to G-d.
2. What documents did the people bring when they were counted?
a. They brought birth records proving their tribal lineage.
3. What determined the color of the tribal flags?
a. Each tribes flag was the color of that tribe's stone in the breastplate of the kohen gadol.
4. What is the difference between an "ot" and a "degel"?
a. An "ot" is a flag, i.e., a colored cloth that hangs from a flagpole. A degel is a flagpole.
5. How do we see that the Jews in the time of Moshe observed "techum Shabbat" - the prohibition against traveling more than 2,000 amot on Shabbat?
a. G-d commanded them to camp no more than 2,000 amot from the Ohel Moed. Had they camped farther, it would have been forbidden for them to go to the Ohel Moed on Shabbat.
6. What was the signal for the camp to travel?
a. The cloud over the Ohel Moed departed and the kohanim sounded the trumpets.
7. What was the sum total of the counting of the 12 tribes?
a. 603,550.
8. Why are Aharon's sons called "sons of Aharon and Moshe"?
a. Since Moshe taught them Torah, it's as if he gave birth to them.
(Parsha Bamidbar Quiz originally appeared on the
Ohr Somayach website, www.ohr.edu)
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As part of our partnership with the Shiloh school in Israel, we will be receiving riddles each week relating to the Parasha. You will notice this each week on this back page. The goal is to have the parents and children discuss the parasha, while trying to figure out the connection between the picture and the parasha. All answered riddles should be given to the Judaic teacher on Monday. The names of the winners will be announced and sent to our friends in Israel.
 What is the connection between the picture and our Parsha?
The winner of last week's riddle is Ephraim Szatmary.
Moreh Dror Karavani will collect all of the submitted answers, put them into a box, and save them for the big raffle! You will hear more about this very soon. Keep your answers coming.
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