Pull Up A Chair

"Pull Up a Chair" is a podcast by The Associated: Jewish Federation of Baltimore, which tells stories of building and being part of a strong Jewish community. In this episode, host Melissa Gerr talks to Inbal Neun, who was born in Ashkelon, Israel, but left as a toddler. Inbal is now the director of the Edward A. Myerberg Center and is making an impact on the lives of seniors. Recently, she has found her life come full circle as several of the programs she is involved in have direct ties to the city of Ashkelon.

Howard and Ann Cornblatt both have fond memories of growing up in Baltimore, where family bonds and cultivating community were always a priority. They share their stories from their childhood days on Bellevue Avenue and Laurel Avenue and how membership at the Edward A. Myerberg Center has provided a community they've grown to consider like a second family. 

After 30 years in the retail industry, Pam Solomon takes on a second career as a lead pre-K teacher at the Stoler Early Learning Center at the Rosenblum Owings Mills JCC.

In this episode, did you ever have a job that changed your life? Recently retired after working 23 years at the Weinberg Park Heights JCC print shop, Mark Newton remembers his first day of work. For this church-going African American man, working at the JCC all those years became a whole new world for him and a chance to learn from a different culture and build family and a sense of community.

In this episode, a cultural exchange that starts in the classroom. Benjamin Snyder, a high school history teacher in Baltimore county, spent his summer teaching English to middle and elementary school-age students in Baltimore's partner city - Ashkelon, Israel. "We focused a lot on what it's like to be a young person today. Middle school has changed quite a bit - even just the presence of technology in kids' lives." Benjamin says that what he learned in the Israeli classroom, he has brought back to his Baltimore students as well. Pull Up A Chair and learn more!  

In this episode of Pull Up A Chair, we sit down with Linda Miller and her daughter Karen Singer. Back in the seventies and eighties, Linda volunteered with HIAS - Hebrew Immigrant Aid Society - to help the Soviet refugees settle in Baltimore. She and her family helped them rent apartments and start a new life. And to get a break from the city, they invited them to their farm in Pikesville. Linda's volunteer work complimented her job as a social worker in Baltimore city schools where she was instrumental in launching the Project Fresh Start program, designed to provide assistance to eligible homeless families. Project FRESH Start still exists today in some form with Catholic Charities. Linda kept busy working and volunteering - all while raising her family, together with her husband Howard, on a sheep farm in Pikesville. Listen to learn more about life on the farm.      

In this episode, finding true love at the J! Yes, it's possible. Sam and Deborah are proof, but it took a few laps at the JCC pool to get there. Hear how these two met. Spoiler alert - Deborah's mom played a small role.

Is it possible to teach empathy? The Klein family believes so. The Ralph and Shirley Klein Foundation has been supporting a special Holocaust program at The John Carroll School in Bel Air, Maryland for nearly three decades. The Kleins were one of just a handful of Jewish families who made their home in Harford county in the 1960s. Michael Klein, the middle of three sons, shares stories of growing up there and his family’s commitment to closing the gap on holocaust education.

In this episode of Pull Up A Chair, we look at what connects us to community. For Baltimore transplant Jen Grossman, connection comes through service. Jen has been deeply involved in volunteering and served multiple years as chair of the Jewish Volunteer Connection, an agency of The Associated. But her arrival and Baltimore had a rocky start. “Volunteering really gave me a vehicle to meet people that were either in the same life stage as I was or had the same interests.” Learn more about The Associated: associated.org/   Learn more about JVC: jvcbaltimore.org/   Support our community: associated.org/give/

In this episode, we talk with Ira Malis and Abigail Malischostak, father and daughter. Ira is the current chairman of the investment management committee at The Associated. And Abigail is the partnerships manager at the Jewish Volunteer Connection. In 2003, Ira and his wife, Shelly, started a donor advised fund with The Associated. They felt this would be a great and meaningful way to involve their children and grandchildren in their family's tradition of charitable giving. For those who are unfamiliar with donor advised funds, they offer you a way to support your favorite causes while also taking advantage of certain tax benefits.

In this episode of Season 2 of Pull Up A Chair, we examine what it means to be a best friend. Baltimore native, Alyson Friedman and New Jersey transplant, Elise Rubenstein are dedicated to giving back to the community through many programs of The Associated. For nearly two decades, they've been dear friends, confidants and have shared adventures across the globe. But how did it all begin? Learn more about The Associated: associated.org/

For this episode of Pull Up A Chair, we meet, Batsheva. Batsheva grew up with a learning disability, but thanks to SHEMESH, an agency of The Associated, she earned a graduate degree and today teaches kindergarteners Hebrew and English at a Jewish day school. The extra care and attention, Batsheva received from her SHEMESH teachers set her on a path for success. The tools they taught her are tools she still uses to this day.

For this episode of Pull Up A Chair, we meet Paul Lurie, chief operating officer for the Jewish Community Centers in Park Heights and Owings Mills. Paul rose to that position by way of his work in the JCC Maccabi games.  This five day Olympic style sporting event held each summer in several north American cities promotes community involvement, teamwork and cultivates a deep connection with Jewish pride. Paul started out with Maccabi coaching, baseball and inline hockey. Then he oversaw the Maccabi program at the JCC for more than a decade, which included being at the helm when Baltimore hosted the games in 2007. But Paul was just a teenager when his trajectory into the world of Maccabi sports launched like a story that only Hollywood dreams are made of.   Learn more about The Associated: associated.org/   Learn more about Jewish Community Center of Greater Baltimore: jcc.org/   Support our community: associated.org/give/

In this episode of Pull Up A Chair, we talk with Baltimore born and bred, Linda Hurwitz, a very active member of The Associated family. Linda’s energy, passion and commitment to improving the lives of Jews everywhere is her trademark stamp and began when she was fifteen years old welcoming the Russian Jews in Israel making aliyah. Learn more about The Associated: associated.org/

In this episode of Pull Up A Chair, we meet Bean, Steve and Lauren — three generations of the Sibel family. They represent what is possible when we teach our children the importance of giving. Passing on the legacy of tzedakah to his children and grandchildren, all started with simply putting loose change in the Pushke for Bean. Learn more about The Associated: associated.org/

Rae Rossen was raised in East Baltimore, the youngest of five siblings. She graduated at the age of 16 in 1946 from Patterson Park Senior High School. In this episode of Pull Up A Chair, Rae shares her memories of growing up in Jewish Baltimore and life during the Depression.   Learn more about The Associated: associated.org/

For this episode, we commemorate Holocaust Remembrance Day through a unique lens. You'll hear stories from two students and a faculty member at The John Carroll High School, a Catholic preparatory school in Bel Air, Maryland. Decades ago, a program was started to immerse students in the study of the Holocaust that included a trip to the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington, DC. and later connected students with Holocaust survivors for a new program called "Lessons of the Shoah".  Learn more about The Associated: associated.org/   Learn more about The Baltimore Jewish Council: baltjc.org/    

The BDS Movement, first launched in 2005, has caused significant tensions at a number of colleges and universities over the years. In this episode of Pull Up A Chair, we talk with 2019 UMD graduate Jenn Miller and the Deputy Director of the Israel Action Network, Stephanie Hausner. As past president of Terps for Israel, Jenn shares her campus experience working to defeat resolutions calling for BDS activities. Learn more about The Associated: associated.org/

For this episode, we celebrate the power of reading ... and the magic that happens from delving into a book that expands your mind and your world. Bookworms, which is now run by The Associated's Jewish Volunteer Connection, brings volunteers together each month to read to elementary school students. We sit down with the first director of Bookworms and talk about the ABCs of impacting the community through books and reading. Learn more about The Associated: associated.org/   Learn more about JVC: jvcbaltimore.org/   Support our community: associated.org/give/

"You'd be amazed what kind of barriers you can overcome, without sacrificing any part of you, by just having a conversation."   In this episode of Pull Up A Chair, community members Tikvah Womack and Dee Evans share their experiences participating in CHAI's "Community Conversations: Creating a Diverse Mosaic"* program. As part of a larger cohort, the group, made up of African-American and Orthodox women living in Northwest Baltimore, meet regularly to break down barriers and build bridges. They talk about topics such as historic injustices, systemic racism, gender bias, interfaith relations, community violence and religious and cultural identities.    *This program is currently funded by the Kolker-Saxon-Hallock Family Foundation, a supporting foundation of The Associated.   Learn more about The Associated: associated.org/   Learn more about CHAI: chaibaltimore.org/   Support our community: associated.org/give/