The power of conversation
Sonia Newell – Development Officer – Alumni & Community Relations
We hope you enjoy reading about events and people who have an Emanuel connection, and we sincerely thank those who contribute to this page, both for today’s issue as well as for past and future editions.
Extra special when both parents are alumni
Eliza Sevitt (Class of 2007) and Alan Harca (Class of 2003) are new parents here this year. Eliza says: “It has been a surreal and wonderful experience seeing our son Skyler start at Kornmehl this year. He knows that mummy and daddy went to Emanuel, and it’s just so special to return to the Emanuel community. From the moment we walked into Kornmehl we felt such warmth, and so did Skyler. Alan and I have such beautiful memories and experiences of our time at Emanuel, and to now witness Skyler so happy in his new environment, learning about his heritage, and meeting new children has been incredible.”
The Sevitt family also have another Emanuel connection – Eliza’s aunt Carol Sevitt was one of the first teachers here when the School opened in 1983!
The power of a casual conversation
Emanuel parent and member of our Emanuel School Foundation Lisa Pillemer was at a 40th birthday party recently and started a conversation with ‘a stranger’ she was sitting next to. She told me that after the usual introductions and “what do you do?” Lisa found herself chatting with a past Emanuel student, Adam Linder, (Class of 2001), who has lived overseas for the past 25 years or so. Adam was back in Sydney for just a short time to see his elderly parents and attend his cousin’s birthday party. Adam told Lisa he holds Emanuel School very close to his heart and I was eager to find out more about this past student, as there were no details on our alumni database.
Google is a wonderful tool to ‘find’ people and subsequently, Adam and I had an amazing WhatsApp chat for over an hour. He was a student here from 1988 in Year K – Year 6 in 1994 and has stayed in touch with a couple of people from his Emanuel School days. Already a passionate ballet dancer here in Primary School, he left Emanuel to attend Newtown Performing Arts High School for a few years before being home schooled and, at the age of 16, won a scholarship to dance in London. He is now based mainly in Paris and Berlin and gets to travel the world as a choreographer. He was fascinated to hear about all the changes here since he left Emanuel and we hope he will come for a tour of the School when he is next in Sydney.
You can follow him on @adamplinder. Here is an article about a show he did last year at the Museum of Contemporary Art.
Out and about
Emanuel parent Steven Durbach featured on Facebook recently, in a conversation with Rabbi Yossi who was interviewing passers by on the topic “How has October 7 changed you?”.
A Night of Jazz
This Sunday 25 February 2024
Past Emanuel student, Ben Adler, together with his Nomad String Quartet is beyond excited to be collaborating with one of Australia’s most significant Jewish artists, the extraordinary jazz saxophonist Mark Ginsburg, on Sunday 25 February 2024 at VJs, North Shore Temple Emanuel, Chatswood.
Ben shared: “My string quartet will be playing fresh string arrangements of this music, plus some of our beloved Danish Folk Songs. Have a listen to Mark and me talk about this show.”
This is a one-night only meeting of musical worlds, so it’s worth dusting off your passport if you’re schlepping across the Bridge from the eastern suburbs!
Get tickets for Sunday 25 February 2024 @ Chatswood
Queer Eye through a Jewish Lens
A panel discussion on Thursday 29 February 2024, 6.00 pm
Join SJM in conversation with a panel of LGBTQIA+ members of the Jewish community, in the lead up to the Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras. Host Julie McCrossin AM will examine how rising antisemitism is affecting the safety and well-being of the queer Jewish community in Australia.
To welcome #MardiGras2024, the SJM building facade is once again alive with the rainbow banner illustrations of artist, @Leo.Greenfield! Part of last year’s official WorldPride Rainbow City initiative, the artwork explores the intersections between Jewish and queer identities, inspired by the traditional Jewish art forms of paper cutting and wood printing. If you’re around Darlinghurst this Mardi Gras, why not come by and have a look?
Jewish Swimming Championships
Sunday 3 March 2024
Come and challenge yourself at the 74th Annual Jewish Swimming Championships. A great day of racing, prizes and socialising for young and old. Maccabi Swimming Club President and organiser of this event, Emanuel parent Elan Miller, says: “From as young as 7 to over 70’s we have a race for you. We hope our Emanuel students, parents and grandparents will come along and support this community event brought to you by Maccabi Swimming.” Entries and enquiries here.
![Jewish Champs flyer 2024[71]](https://manishma.emanuelschool.nsw.edu.au/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Jewish-Champs-flyer-202471-1.jpeg)
Jewish Food and more at the Entertainment Quarter
Sunday 10 March 2024, 10.00 am – 3.00 pm
The Jewish Food Festival celebrates the diversity of Jewish cuisine and culture and is set to delight – food stalls bursting with sweet and savoury delicacies, cooking competitions and demonstrations, food sustainability workshops and a dedicated children’s zone. Stations include a creative station, recycling station, sensory station, reading nook and more.
Sydney Jewish Museum (SJM)
Did you know entry to SJM on a Sunday is free? There are lectures and exhibitions at the Museum all the time. Here is a selection of what’s on now or coming up soon. You may see some familiar faces when you visit – parents, grandparents and even some great grandparents past and present work and/or volunteer at SJM. It is indeed a very special place for so many very special reasons and I encourage you to visit this iconic space if you have never been. You can take a walk down memory lane at their latest exhibit that explores memories from the fascinating history of their 100-year-old building, The Maccabean Hall. The front cover of the brochure promoting this exhibition, is of the Bar/Bat Mitzvah of Emanuel grandparent Max Freedman and his twin sister back in 1962. Here is also a recent photo of Max with his grandchildren Harry, Emily, Zoe and Lola.
On Valentine’s Day last week, SJM shared a very special story of the parents of Museum volunteer, Holocaust survivor and Emanuel great grandparent, Alice Loeb. The first thing her parents, Rosa and Sigi, did when they fled Vienna for safety in Switzerland was to get married, first in the Registry Office and then in the Synagogue on 15 July 1938. When they wrote to Rosa’s parents to say they were married, Rosa’s mother baked a chocolate torte and sent it to them. When Rosa and Sigi cut the cake, they found gold wedding rings inside to replace the wrappers of Swiss chocolates that they had been using as wedding bands. Alice is holding a photograph of herself with her parents, which was taken in December 1946. (SJM Collection. Photography by Katherine Griffiths).
Reverberations: A future for memory
Closing on Thursday 28 March 2024
Another fabulous exhibition at the Museum, not to be missed, is “Reverberations: A future for memory”. Through the power of AI and storytelling, you will meet a digital Holocaust survivor – perhaps one who is a member of our Emanuel School community.
We look forward to sharing our news and yours, so if you have photos and/or news you would like to share with us, please send to Sonia Newell.
Shabbat shalom, stay safe and have a great weekend, as we hope and pray for the safe return of all hostages still held in Gaza, and for peace to be restored in Israel soon.