Meredith Moss Levinson surprised her brother, Israeli Judaica artist David Moss, when she attended the National Library of Israel’s ceremony in Jerusalem Aug. 6 announcing it had received the original Moss Haggadah illuminated manuscript from donors Trudy Elbaum Gottesman and Robert Gottesman. In June, the Gottesmans purchased the Moss Haggadah for $480,000 via a Sotheby’s auction. David, who was born and raised in Dayton, worked on the Haggadah from 1980 to 1984.

“The Moss Haggadah represents a high point for contemporary Judaic artwork and the 20th-century revival of Hebrew calligraphic arts, in which David Moss played – and continues to play – a pivotal role,” said the library’s head of collections, Raquel Ukeles, according to ejewishphilanthropy.com. Meredith said David sent her an invitation but didn’t expect her to show up. “It was such an unbelievable thrill to sit in the rare book room of this magnificent new library and hear my brother and his work receive this wonderful lifetime recognition,” she said. “I loved that he credited our parents and growing up in Dayton! I am so proud of him!”

Connie Blum, who for 26 years has served as a Montgomery County coordinator and volunteer with the Ohio Senior Health Insurance Information Program (OSHIIP), was honored in July by the National Senior Health Insurance Information Program at the U.S. Administration for Community Living Office of Healthcare Information and Counseling national conference. She’s the 2024 Outstanding SHIP Volunteer.

CBS/Nickelodeon Graphics Operator Alex Katz, son of Marc Katz and Julie Liss-Katz, won a 2023-24 Sports Emmy Award for Outstanding Technical Team Event, Super Bowl LVII. And back here in Dayton, Julie has joined the board of Learn to Earn Dayton.

Scott Halasz, managing editor of the Xenia Daily Gazette and the Fairborn Daily Herald, has been named Best Sports Writer in Division I by the Ohio Associated Press Media Editors. He also received second place in the Best Feature Writer category.

The Department of Defense has honored Rachel Kinard, a research mathematician with the Air Force Research Laboratory, with its SMART Mentor of the Year Award, for her work mentoring intern Nathan Jones, SMART Scholar of the Year. SMART stands for Science, Mathematics, and Research for Transformation.

Beth Abraham Synagogue has named Elyssa Wortzman the new director of its Religious School, with Jese Shell serving as assistant teacher. Elyssa holds a doctorate in ministry in Jewish spiritual education from the Graduate Theological Foundation and has served as director of Jewish education and as an educator in congregational religious schools in Montreal, San Francisco, and White Plains, N.Y. Elyssa has also served as artist-educator at Camp Ramah in Ontario and the Berkshires. She joins her husband, Rabbi Aubrey Glazer, on the staff of Beth Abraham. For several seasons, Jese served as a summer camp counselor with JCC’s Camp Shalom and as its assistant camp director. A member of the board of Hillel Academy Jewish day school, he is a middle school agriscience and career-technical educator at Global Impact STEM Academy in Springfield.

After more than eight years with the Dayton Better Business Bureau, Sarah Caplan has joined the team at the Entrepreneurs’ Center as its community outreach manager.

Elliot A. Ratzman, previously Jewish studies visiting assistant professor at Earlham College, is now a research fellow at the University of Michigan’s new Raoul Wallenberg Institute.

Steven Solomon has joined the board of Temple Israel, where he is a member of the Adult Education Committee. He also recently joined the executive board of the Miami Council of Scouting America. A former federal emergency response official, Steven is also on the boards of Preservation Dayton, Miami Valley Crime Stoppers, and the Lincoln Society of Dayton. He also proofreads for this publication.

Send your Mazel Tov announcements to mweiss@jfgd.net.

To read the complete September 2024 Dayton Jewish Observer, click here.