October 2016 – Jewish Life Magazine

Chesed Around the World – Second chances

November 8, 2016November 8, 2016 Jewish Life

By Ilan Preskovsky “Giving people and clothes a second chance” might sound like a slightly incongruous motto for a charitable organisation, but in the case of Haboydem (“The Attic” in Yiddish), a second-hand, not-for-profit clothing store that employs people dealing with mental illness, it could hardly be more appropriate. Set up to be a largely self-sufficient organisation that uses all of the profits from the sales of the clothes they sell (all of which are donated) to pay for the store’s rent and for the salaries of their employees and…

Mazel tov! A magazine is born – Behind the scenes of a Jewish South African fixture

October 29, 2016November 3, 2016 Jewish Life

By: Eliana Cline It’s hard to remember a time when Jewish Life magazine wasn’t a commonplace item on every Jewish coffee table. But just nine years ago, it didn’t exist, and may never have existed if not for an innocent question. The seeds were sown when Martyn and Liz Samuels were beginning their journey back to Torah Judaism and they found themselves in West Street Shul. They looked around and were surprised that there was not a high-quality, monthly Jewish magazine to be found. “I asked Rabbi Kacev why there wasn’t…

Unsung Heroes – Helping when you can’t be thanked

October 29, 2016 Jewish Life

By Chandrea Serebro David Weber is lucky enough to be one of those guys who can boast one hundred percent job satisfaction. You might be surprised when I tell you that David is the General Manager and Funeral Director at the Johannesburg Chevrah Kadisha Burial Services. But, says David, “I am not sure what inspires me, other than that I am one of the lucky few people who get to say truthfully that I love my work.” The misaskim, or undertakers, who David describes as dealing in the work…

To life! – Giving a gift beyond measure

October 29, 2016 Jewish Life

By Chandrea Serebro Lori Palatnik, founding director of the Jewish Women’s Renaissance Project, relates how she was sitting in a taxi in New York when her taxi driver asked her, “If we only need one kidney, why did G-d create us with two?” Lori replied, “So that we could give one away.” She told this story a year ago at the launch of Life2Life, a donor network programme which is a project of Hatzolah, to an audience where no one was left dry-eyed. “Life2Life was born out of a…

Allergy attack – Severe reactions are on the rise around the globe

October 29, 2016 Jewish Life

By Chandrea Serebro Allergy rates are increasing dramatically around the world, and the severity of the cases and the numbers are scary. The last 10 to 15 years have seen a steep rise in food allergies across westernised countries. Hayley Katz, director of Allergy Alive (facebook.com/allergyalive), says that severe allergic reactions, which include anaphylaxis, a severe and sudden allergic reaction which is life-threatening, have emerged as a “global epidemic”, with 20-30% of the world’s population suffering from some form of allergy. “Allergic conditions, which include food allergies and asthma, have…

Thinking things through

October 29, 2016 Jewish Life

“I don’t need the world to remember my son. It’s very important for me that he stays alive within family and friends who knew him. I would like us, as a people, to remember who we were at that time, to remember what we are capable of and what we can strive for; if that comes with the names of the boys attached, then there’s a special sense to it.” By: Robert Sussman Racheli Fraenkel shares her unique perspective on the very personal events that touched and united us…

Kosher Gourmet: Tradition!

October 29, 2016 Jewish Life

From my mother, to my children, to their children – and now to you – a traditional, home-cooked Shabbos meal from start to finish By: Rebbetzin Winnie Gourarie Rabbi Soleveitchik z”l once wrote, “Even in those neighbourhoods made up predominantly of religious Jews, onc can no longer talk of the sanctity of Shabbos. True there are Jews in America who observe Shabbos. But it is not for Shabbos that my heart aches, it is for the forgotten ‘erev Shabbos’,” referring to those hours just prior to the commencement of Shabbos.…

Shabbos 2.0 – Taking Shabbos to the next level

October 25, 2016October 29, 2016 Jewish Life

By: Robert Sussman I had been in law school for about a month when a panicked classmate who hailed from, of all places, Alaska approached me with a look of grave concern on his face. “Do you mean to tell me that you don’t do any – ANY – work for law school on Saturdays!?” He had obviously been speaking with other students about the fact that I was a Sabbath observant Jew, the implications of which had clearly dawned on him. A smile spread over my face, as I…