Project Yitzhak

Irvin Moscowitz

Dayton Chair, Partnership With Israel

My wife Gayle and I were privileged to attend the Yitzhak International Arts Gathering in Acco, Israel last month. Project Yitzhak was developed by Professor Nurit Cedarbaum of the Western Galilee College as part of the Partnership With Israel program.

The Partnership links 13 cities in the central United States with an area in the Western Galilee including the city of Acco and the Moti Asher region. Groups from both sides of the ocean develop projects to build people-to-people relationships among Israelis and Americans.

Yitzhak linked artists from our consortium in the states and in Israel, to create works with Yitzhak as the theme. Interpretations could focus on Yitzhak (Isaac) our forefather, Itzhak Perlman, Yitzhak Rabin, Yitzhak meaning “laughter,” or any other variation.

The high level of creativity, artistic expression and performance was at all times world-class.

After a relaxing Shabbat, we toured the old city of Acco, one of the oldest cities in the world.

The 11th-century crusader castle in Acco was the home for many of our events. The artwork was displayed in one of the rooms of the castle.

The brilliance of some of the artist’s interpretations of Yitzhak was simply incredible. There were paintings, weavings, clothing, structures and sculptures done which showed an amazing array of viewpoints on a single theme.

That night, we were treated to a Chasidic concert by a group that used prayer shawls and a shofar as part of the performance. The group was received as enthusiastically as if Simon and Garfunkel were performing at the Fraze.

During the week we saw street theatre, dance performances, more art, music performances, lectures, humor and plays all centered around Yitzhak.

One of the many high points of the week was a presentation by artist David Moss, originally from Dayton. He spoke to us about his art and how it has evolved; the talented artists who were with us were amazed at his work.

The Dayton project, by artists Rebecca Tsaloff, Michael Bashaw and Muse Machine teachers, was beautiful in the setting of a building at the Western Galilee College. The translucent panels that composed the towers — which many saw on display at the Schuster Center and the Boonshoft CJCE — glowed brightly in the sunlight filled hall.

Rebecca was at the conference and represented us well by also bringing her own individual project. Another striking piece from Dayton was created by renowned artist Bing Davis, who planned to attend the conference but unfortunately had to cancel at the last minute. We also had three “Yitzhak Tent” projects created by children from Dayton. We were very proud to see our tents displayed near the beautiful Shirley and Harry Leventhal Building on the Western Galilee College campus.

The ability to take this one theme and have it interpreted in so many ways was an extremely strong point to me: that everything can be seen in many, many ways.

Our Israeli partners outdid themselves. There were billboards all around Acco welcoming us to the city. The Israel Defense Force Orchestra performed a special concert for us, centered on the music of Yitzhak Gratziani.

We went through a midnight exercise through a banana field (my favorite) to see how an operation to blow up bridges in 1948 took place.

We were greeted and welcomed and treated warmly and wondrously by hundreds of people whom we both knew and didn’t know.

The true spirit of partnership filled everything we did and made the two years of planning well worth it. Most people in the Western Galilee that we have come to know over the years attended the events with us.

These people have been with us since the beginning and have become true friends as well as partners in this Jewish Agency endeavor.

At Partnership steering committee meetings, we discussed problems and opportunities and felt that we were dealing with longtime friends, not just committee members. It has evolved into what it was meant to.

Our Partnership has a lot to be proud of. No other Partnership has done anything like this; it will provide a framework for many things to come.

Our area has many assets that we can use to help bring a spirit of Israel and Judaism to Dayton, and we will. The work done by Nurit Cedarbaum, Beth Zuriel, Damon Rose, Shlomit Dagan Deri, Heidi Benish, Avi Chelouche, Marcie Kinast and everyone else involved in the event was well appreciated by all for its depth, thoughtfulness and thoroughness.

Please consider getting involved with these projects. They take on a life of their own, and it’s a good one. In the beginning days of the Partnership, the goals of bringing benefits to cities in the United States was a little foreign to me. After all, we were used to giving money blindly to go to Israel.

I know now that we get back much more than I ever could have imagined. I learned before that Israel can fulfill dreams; now I have seen that it can also create them.

For information about becoming involved in Partnership With Israel, contact Jewish Federation Chief Operating Officer Steve Reitman at SReitman@jfgd.net