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Fall 98

MEET
Hedy Brasch

Shelah Fried

Ellen Gerstle

Gerald Gurland

Arlene Kesselhaut

Barbara LeFebvre

Hildred & Jerome Nozick

Joyce Reilly

Richard J. Tisch

Jewish mystics tell the story of how the world was formed: God voluntarily contracted to provide space for all things created, including human beings. At the moment of this divine contraction (called shevirat hakelim in Hebrew), some divine sparks fell to the earth, mixing with klipot (vicious elements). Since that moment, humanity's task has been to gather these holy sparks and to return them to their divine source. This is accomplished through acts of tikkun olam (literally, repair of the world): by bringing goodness to the world, by fighting against injustice, by helping those in need of healing.

Arlene Kesselhaut, Chair of our Board of Associates, and her husband, Martin, embody this spirit of tikkun olam. Together they have traveled to Russia, the Ukraine, Romania, Hungary, and other European countries where, in Arlene's words, they gained "greater understanding of the lost but not forgotten world that existed prior to the 1930's and the horrors that transpired thereafter. The impact was so enormous that we knew we would never be the same again and that each in our own way would strive to help those whose lives and histories were forever impaired. It was imperative for us that both the Jewish and non-Jewish world should know what the Shoahmeans."

It is this sense of urgency, dedication, and devotion which Arlene brings to her work at the Center, whether she is chairing one of our Special Sundays, preparing for a Board of Associates meeting, or spreading the word about Center activities. In addition, Arlene brings years of involvement in Jewish and non-Jewish communal life: Chair of Adult Education at her synagogue as well as synagogue trustee; officer of the Women's Division of Metro-West Federation; board member of United Way, overseeing the operation of a non-profit preschool for low income children. And, as if that were not enough, Arlene also brings to our center an academic background in history (B.A. from Barnard College), Jewish Studies (M.A. from N.Y.U.) and education (former high school history teacher). Indeed, it was the Center's academic orientation which first attracted her to our work and was one of the reasons she became more involved recruiting others to become involved, by championing the Center's mission and activities, describing to others how emotionally and intellectually satisfying it was to "join in" to support our causes. Her enthusiasm has been contagious, as we see in our growing membership list.

Clearly, having Arlene as our champion is a major plus,especially since she has brought Martin (her husband of 44 years) into the fold as well. Martin Kesselhaut, an attorney at Fox and Fox Attorneys at Law in Livingston, N.J., has also devoted his life to tikkun olam. He has served as a New Jersey State Assemblyman, as an officer of the Jewish Community Center, as synagogue trustee and school board chair, and as national president of H.I.A.S. (The Hebrew Immigrant Aid Society), an organization founded one hundred years ago and dedicated to rescuing and saving Jewish lives all over the world. We are proud to have his input and wise counsel.

The work of tikkun olamis not a solitary enterprise. It requires many people working together long hours to gather those divine sparks and to return them to their source. As Arlene has said of her time at the Center, "meeting on an almost daily basis with survivors and listening to their incredibly moving stories is part of our work."

For all your work, so wonderfully well done, we thank you Arlene. We thank you for sharing with us your passion for justice, your special talents, your expertise, your loyalty, and devotion. Our admiration for you and our gratitude are beyond measure.

Arlene Kesselhaut celebrates the success of the April 1996 Special Sunday which she co-chaired. Left to right: Hildred Nozick, Arlene, Co-Directors Ann Saltzman and Jackie Berke, Luna Kaufman