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The Weekly Newsletter of the Weinbaum Yeshiva High SchoolParshat Vayeitzei
Friday, December 1, 2006
Shabbat begins in Boca at 5:10
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From the desk of
Rabbi Perry
Tirschwell
Feedback. We can't grow without it. WYHS
is
a great school, but we are constantly striving to be
even better. We can only do so with your
help.
High school parents rarely enter the school building,
so we want to make it as easy as possible for you to
give us input. Amongst the ways you can share input
with us are;
Town Meetings. Among the issues raised
at meetings this week in Hollywood and Miami Beach
were transportation after after-school activities,
training for turnitin.com, Edline grade posting, and
the make up exam policy. Shimmie and I look forward
to meeting parents in Boca (at the Schechters this
coming Monday, December 4) and in North Miami
Beach (at the Tokayers the following Monday,
December 11).
E-mail- You may either hit “reply” to
these weekly e-mail newsletters or just drop me a
line any day of the week at any time. I’m online early
mornings, late afternoons, and much of the evening,
and some times steal a few moments between
meetings during the day. You’ll get a prompt
response.
Come see us. Just call (561.417.9726) or
e-mail my assistant (Melissa Pereira)
and set up an appointment. She will direct you to the
person who can aid you best. We will try to work
with your busy schedule.
Shabbat Shalom,
Rabbi Perry Tirschwell
Click
on the images below
to
link to these
five websites
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Upcoming Events
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Open House for Prospective Students &
Parents
Sunday, Dec. 3, 9:30am
Town Hall Meeting for Boca /
North
Broward /
Palm
Beach
@ the Schechters
Monday, Dec.
4 @
8:00pm
Girls Drama Production:
"The
Fantasticks"
Wednesday, Dec. 6 @
7:30pm
Habitat for Humanity
Sunday, Dec. 10 @ 1:00-5:00pm
Senior Night Out
Monday, Dec. 11 @
5:00pm
Town Hall Meeting for NMB / Aventura @ the
Tokayers
Monday, Dec. 11 @
8:00pm
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Good and Welfare
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Mazel Tov to
Dr. & Mrs. Ora Lee Kanner on the birth of
a
grandson.
Mr. & Mrs. Mark Greenberger on their
son’s
wedding
Condolences to
Dr. Jaimy Bensimon on the loss of his
mother.
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CLICK
ON THE PICTURE
FOR A GREAT
SLIDESHOW
Kaftans,
Shakshuka,
and One Long Shacharit
WYHS Gets Wild 'N Sephardy
By Danielle Wolkowicz ('09)
This Rosh Chodesh Kislev, WYHS
celebrated a little more differently than usual. This
month’s chagiga was the school’s annual
“Sephardy Gras,” a celebration of Sephardy
culture and a chance for all students to become
familiar with the Sephardic traditions. The school’s
significant Sephardic population came to school in
colorful Sephardic garb, and even some teachers
joined in the fun by dressing up!
Under the direction of Boca Raton
Synogague’s Sephardic Rabbinic intern, Rabbi
Ovadiah
Jacob, all of the students davened a Sephardic
shacharit, including a spirited
Hallel. Rabbi Tirschwell explained the
importance of learning to daven in the Sephardic
tradition, so “that any student can feel comfortable
in any minyan.”
The students enjoyed the davening almost as
much as the delicious (and spicy!) breakfast,
featuring traditional Sephardic food like
shakshuka, hummus, and bourekas. Following the
meal, the students heard a powerful speech by Rabbi
Jacob about the importance of Sifrei Torah in
a Sephardic community. Rabbi Jacob left the
students
with the inspiring message that although
Sephardic
Sifrei Torah look very different from
Asheknazic ones, on the inside they, like all Jews, are
all the same.
The festivities continued with “Wild ‘N
Sephardy,” the WYHS version of the popular MTV
show “Wild ‘N Out.” An Ashkenazic team competed
against a team of Sephardic students in a battle
of wits, acting out hilarious improvisations and poking
fun at various students and staff members as
well as cultural differences between the two teams.
After side-splitting performances from each team,
the
audience named the Sephardic team the winner.
Yasher Koach to Ethan Wasserman
(’07)
and all of the Rosh Chodesh committee for planning
this event. As always, a special thank you to Rabbi
Spodek for putting together a fun and educational
program!
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Inspiration Is In The Air
Torah Affairs Commitee
Gets Their Learn
On
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By Rachey Berkowitz (’07)
The Torah Affairs Committee is an
exciting new addition to WYHS—an entire committee
dedicated to maintaining a spiritual environment in
the school. We aren’t just focusing on in-school
programs; we seek to encourage learning and
growth “beyond
the classroom.” The T.A.C. has students from
each grade so that it can serve any student at any
stage of his or her high school career.
The committee is off to a fantastic start,
having already organized several successful
programs. At the beginning of the year, we
arranged the powerful Saturday night Selichot
program and the intense week-long teshuva
campaign.
Additionally, we have invited amazing speakers,
such as Rabbi Gamzede, an African prince turned
rabbi, and most recently, was Rav Kook, a prominent
Rabbi from Israel. He spoke movingly about how
he and
friends said the entire book of Tehillim for the
soldiers
during the war with Lebanon this summer, and the
power that tefillah has to unify Bnei
Yisrael.
An important goal for any Jew is to learn
lishma, simply for the sake of learning. Our
hope is for the students to leave WYHS each day
with the desire and inspiration to learn lishma
and integrate Torah into their everyday lives.
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SWISH!!!
Boys Varsity Basketball
Powers Up For New
Season
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By Elie Baratz ('08)
Although the boys varsity team endured
a rocky start to their season, the road to victory is
now fully paved for the Storm as they celebrated a
fantastic victory over Donna Klein Thursday night,
beating the Eagles by a whopping 33 points!
Captain Anosh Zaghi (’08) helped lead the team to
score an impressive 70 points, while Zach Baratz
(’10) shot off the bench to make 8 points in less
than three minutes!
While the Storm lost their game on Tuesday
against Trinity, it was a great learning
experience for
the boys. Daniel Shimansky (’08) made a formidable
effort
and has been playing consistently well the entire
season.
Make sure to come out and watch the boys
varsity basketball take on Hollywood Christian this
Saturday night—earn some Storm Chaser points,
cheer on the team, and be prepared for what is
sure to a thrilling game!
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Kiryat Bialik Hee Habayit
Sheli
Students
Plant New Roots In Israel
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By Shira Poliak ('08)
This past week, five WYHS students,
accompanied by Rabbi Horowitz, traveled to Kiryat
Bialik, Israel, as part of the Jewish Roots, Partnership
2000 program. Under the auspices of the South Palm
Beach County Jewish Federation and Kiryat Bialik’s
ORT high school, Jewish Roots, now in its third year,
brings American and Israeli teenagers together in
a melting pot of high school students from
different cultures and religious affiliations, and is
a springboard for discussion, learning and growth.
On the Jewish Roots Israel trip, the WYHS
representatives, along with the other participants
from Donna Klein Jewish Academy and various local
public schools, spent an activity-packed, meaningful
week traveling throughout Israel with the Israeli
participants, staying in their homes, attending
their high school, and having tons of fun. The WYHS
students forged close relationships with the other
Boca Raton participants as well as their Israeli
hosts.
In their short time in Israel, each student had the
once in a lifetime opportunity to meet and befriend
peers from all across the Jewish spectrum, as well as
being exposed to a different side of Israel rarely
experienced.
Thanks to the South Palm Beach County Jewish
Federation for helping fund this unforgettable trip.
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Up Close and Personal
with...
Dr. Lori Ben-Ezra, Parent and
Host
Alexa Bryn (’08)
On Monday night, Marc and Lori Ben-Ezra,
parents of freshman Ilana Ben-Ezra, hosted the first
of the town hall meeting of the year for Hollywood
parents. Rabbi Tirschwell and Shimmie Kaminetsky
attended the event in order to hear what’s on the
mind of
Hollywood parents. Below, Dr. Lori Ben-Ezra gives us
feedback about the meeting and her daughter’s first
few months at WYHS.
What drew you to WYHS in the first place?
Dr. Ben-Ezra: WYHS is
known for its strong academics and its religious
philosophy is in line with our family’s.
What do you think is the most difficult part of
transitioning from middle school to high school, and
how has WYHS tried to make the transition
smoother?
Dr. Ben-Ezra:
Truthfully, there haven’t been any real transition
problems. Ilana is very happy in the school. WYHS
has definitely called Ilana and called us, to check and
make sure that she is comfortable and doing okay.
She is very comfortable and a lot of the parents that
showed up at the meeting felt the same way about
their own children.
What was your impression of the town hall meeting?
Dr. Ben-Ezra: I
thought it was very nice that Rabbi Tirschwell and
Mr. Kaminetsky would come from Boca in order to
meet with parents from different communities and
get
feedback on the parents’ concerns. I definitely
thought it was an effective forum for discussion. The
parents were certainly comfortable speaking about
any issue.
What issues came up at the meeting?
Dr. Ben-Ezra: We
spoke
about transportation for students participating in
athletics and having more of the Rebbeim come to
support the teams and watch the boys play. Another
thing that came up was plans for the future—the
possibility of moving and school growth.
What aspects of the school—academic, extra-
curricular, or spiritual—does your daughter Ilana
particularly enjoy?
Dr. Ben-Ezra: Ilana is happiest with the
challenging academics and meeting new friends. In
middle school, there weren’t that many girls in her
class and she has met so many girls who have been
so nice to her. Another thing she enjoys is being a
part of the JV basketball team. In terms of religious
growth, I know she particularly likes Tushba with
Mrs.
Grossman. There is lots of discussion, lots of
practical
learning.
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40
Number of
Sephardim
in the school
92 Number of times Rabbi Spodek
said "shakshuka" during
Wild 'N
Sephardy
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12 Number of players on the
Boys
Varisty Basketball team
0
Number of seniors on
the team
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10 Number of Chesed hours
a
student is
required
to do per trimester
220 Number of extra hours completed by
one
student
this trimester
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"I never knew
being Jewish could be so much fun!"
--David Spektor ('10),
after the Shabbaton
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here
Yeshiva Highlites
Staff |
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| Shira Borzak (’07) |
Editor-in-Chief |
Alexa Bryn (’08) |
Assistant Editor |
Mrs. Claudia Cohen |
Director of Technology |
| Alana Dweck ('09) |
Assistant Photo Editor |
Jordana Kaminetsky (’07) |
Senior Editor |
Benjamin Shai (’07) |
Photo Editor |
| Rabbi Josh Spodek |
Staff Advisor |
Danielle Wolkowicz ('09) |
Chief of Correspondents |
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