obituaries
BENDER ANDREA K., on May 5, 2023. Loving
wife of the late Joel Bender. Adoring
mother of Noah (Anita), Ellyn (Russell)
and Benjamin (Judy); grandmother of
Ethan, Deborah, Sammy, Aaron, Leah,
Joel and Jordyn. Contributions in her
memory may be made to Abramson
Cancer Center, https://giving.apps.

upenn.edu/fund?program=MC&- fund=600499
GOLDSTEINS’ ROSENBERG’S
RAPHAEL-SACKS www.goldsteinsfuneral.com
BRAHIN JUDITH (nee Freeman)-Passed away
on May 11, 2023. Mother of Jeffrey
(Carol) Brahin and Lee (Silver) Brahin.

Grandmother of Roman and Jordan.

Contributions in her memory may be
made to The Hebrew University of
Jerusalem, https://en.huji.ac.il.

GOLDSTEINS’ ROSENBERG’S
RAPHAEL-SACKS www.goldsteinsfuneral.com
Community Greater Phila. – Adriana
Halper Fund, cancersupportphiladel-
phia.org/Adriana-Halper-Fund/ GOLDSTEINS’ ROSENBERG’S
RAPHAEL-SACKS www.goldsteinsfuneral.com
GOLD SANDRA (nee Lepow)-May 3, 2023,
of Wyncote, PA; beloved wife of
Burton; loving mother of Irisa Gold
(Stephen Tow), Larry Gold (Stefanie)
and Ken Gold (Kerri); devoted sister
of Libbi J. Lepow (David Dunning);
cherished grandmother of Halle,
Ethan, Samantha, Ari, Justin, Josh
and Allie; adored Mom-Mom of Pax.

In lieu of flowers, contributions in
Sandra’s memory may be made to
the Alzheimer’s Disease Assoc. (alz.

org), the Montgomery County S.P.C.A.

(montgomerycountyspca.org), or the
Anti-Defamation League (adl.org).

JOSEPH LEVINE & SONS
www.levinefuneral.com HOROWITZ
RABBI HERMAN (CHAIM) -Passed
away on May 9, 2023. Husband of the
late Simone Horowitz. Father of Sara
(Michoel) Shepard, Mimi Horowitz
(Marc Gaines) and Adeena Horowitz
(Aaron Newman). Grandfather of
10 and Great Grandfather of 29.

Contributions in his memory may
be made to Cong. B’nai Israel-Ohev
Zedek, 8201 Castor Ave., Phila., PA
19152, www.biozshul.org.

GOLDSTEINS’ ROSENBERG’S
RAPHAEL-SACKS www.goldsteinsfuneral.com
DRESNIN, DDS
DR. STANFORD on May 5, 2023.

Beloved Fiancé of Ellen Pesin; Loving
father of Nicole Dresnin Schaeffer
(James) and
Michael Dresnin
(Sherrill); Dear brother of Caryn Weiss
(Edward) and Mark Dresnin; Loving
stepfather of Staci Harpell (Jared)
and Ashley Pesin (Marc Peyton);
Adoring grandfather of Julia, Stephen,
Lily, Nathan, Eli, Chase, and Ella;
Devoted uncle of Jason Weiss and
Jonathan Weiss. Also survived by
lifelong “Brothers”. In lieu of flowers,
contributions in his memory may be
made to Penn Medicine Development,
ATT: Penn Memory Ctr., giving.aws.

cloud.upenn.edu Search for Penn
Memory Ctr Caring Difference Fund,
or ALS Assoc. Greater Phila. Chpt.,
alsphiladelphia.org or Cancer Support
KAUFMAN BARRY I., 83, passed away on May
8th, 2023. Beloved husband of Sylvia
(nee Rose). Loving father of Michael
and his wife Stephanie, and Steven
and the late Kymme. Adoring grand-
father of David (Shoshana), Rachel
(Dovidchai), Ilana, Naomi, Eli and Ari;
great-grandfather of Yonatan. Brother
of Audrey Norris. Contributions in
his memory may be made to the to
American Friends Of Magen David
Adom (AFMDA) or a charity of the do-
nor’s choice.

GOLDSTEINS’ ROSENBERG’S
RAPHAEL-SACKS www.goldsteinsfuneral.com
KITAIN SANDRA FERN passed away peace-
fully at her home in Washington
Crossing on Sunday, May 7, 2023,
with Howard, her husband of 46 years,
at her side. A mother and grand-
mother, educator, and published au-
thor, Sandy left us far too soon, at
only 70 years old, after fighting chronic
kidney disease for many years. Sandy
was born in Queens, New York on April
8, 1953. After attending public schools
in Queens, Sandy was the first in
her family to go to college, graduat-
ing with Bachelor’s and master’s de-
grees in early education from Queens
College of the City University of New
York, before returning to school years
later to earn a Master’s in Library
Science from Clarion University of
Pennsylvania. Sandy taught elementa-
ry school in New York and Connecticut
before leaving the workforce for a
time to apply her professional focus
in early childhood education to raising
her children, Marshall and Lara, her
pride and joy. Sandy later worked as
a literacy/ESL coach at Walt Disney
Elementary in Levittown, worked in the
Bucks County Free Library System,
wrote reviews of new children’s
books for School Library Journal, and
served as a peer reviewer for the U.S.

Department of Education. A longtime
resident of the Yardley Hunt neighbor-
hood in Lower Makefield Township,
Sandy was known by her family and
friends as a force of nature. She was
an avid reader, always having her nose
in a book and reading multiple news-
papers a day (as proven by the many
articles she cut out and saved for fam-
ily members and friends). She enjoyed
her frequent visits to New York to see
Broadway shows and many trips with
her husband to Long Beach Island,
Maui other locations around the coun-
try and world. One of Sandy’s greatest
accomplishments is her book “Shelf-
Esteem,” published by Neal-Schuman
Publishers in 2008. Sandy wrote Shelf
Esteem as a resource to teachers, li-
brarians, parents, and caregivers to
help children deal with difficult topics
such as moving, bullies, and divorce
by featuring children’s books on these
topics. When Sandy passed, her
daughter Lara was grateful to be able
to pick up her copy of Shelf-Esteem
and turn to the chapter on illness and
death, in order to purchase the books
listed for her seven-year-old son to
help him through this difficult process.

Sandy continues to help, teach, and
guide her family even after she has left
us. An only child, Sandy was preceded
in death by her father Sol Speckman
and her mother, Selma Speckman, a
force of nature in her own right. Sandy
is survived by her husband Howard;
her daughter Lara Flynn, son-in-law
Brendan, and grandson Jackson of
Lower Makefield Township; her son
Marshall, daughter-in-law Lauren, and
granddaughters Evelyn and Sydney of
Scarsdale, New York. In lieu of flow-
ers, the family asks that donations be
made to Hadassah, a national organi-
zation in which Sandy, her mother, and
her daughter have all been life mem-
bers. LEVIN
ROBERT - May 6, 2023, of Henrico,
VA; beloved husband of the late
Sandra (nee Weiner); loving father
of Alison Levin and J. Jared Levin
(Stephanie); devoted brother of
Arlene Raab. Graveside services were
held on May 8, 2023, at Roosevelt
Memorial Park, Trevose PA. In lieu
of flowers, contributions in Robert’s
memory may be made to the American
Cancer Society (cancer.org).

JOSEPH LEVINE & SONS
www.levinefuneral.com MELLER
ELAINE, of Voorhees, NJ (born in
Yonkers, NY) died May 6, 2023. She
was the adored wife of Stephen M.

Meller for 53 years; loving mother
of Eric Meller and Wendy (Samuel)
Hutkin; sister of Susan Auerbach and
Mom Mom of Jonah, Jacob, Albert and
Sienna. Elaine had spent many years
in Sales on Jewelers Row. She loved
going to Elaine’s Beach in Atlantic
City every summer and was an award
winning gardener. Contributions in her
memory can be made to the American
Cancer Society, www.cancer.org.

PLATT MEMORIAL CHAPELS
www.plattmemorial.com Family owned and Operated since 1883
26 MAY 18, 2023 | JEWISH EXPONENT
SHAPIRO YAIRA A., nee Ackerman, 86.-Beloved
wife of the late Jack H. Loving mother
of Elizabeth (Benjamin Kopin) Shapiro
Kopin, Yossi (Sara Kahn) Shapiro and
Jonathan (Carly Figliulo) Shapiro.

Proud grandmother of Joshua (Emily
Higgs) Kopin, Zachary (Kellie Lounds)
Kopin, Shira Kahn Shapiro, Isaac Kahn
Shapiro, Jacob (Erin Wallin) Shapiro,
and Ma’or Shapiro. Cherished great
grandmother of Ya’ara Kahn Shapiro.

Dear sister of Dotty (Dr. Jerome) Starr.

Will be missed by many nieces, neph-
ews, cousins and friends. In lieu of
flowers, memorial contributions may be
made in Yaira’s memory to The Cantor
Irving Ackerman and Amalia Isaksohn
Ackerman Cantorial Scholarship Fund
at the Jewish Theological Seminary,
3080 Broadway, New York, NY 10027,
donate at jtsa.edu, Jewish Woman’s
Foundation of Metropolitan Chicago,
jwfchicago.org, Meals on Wheels,
cje.net, or The Masorti Foundation
for Conservative Judaism in Israel,
for Minian Shivioni Mazkeret Batya,
masorti.org, Masorti Foundation, 3080
Broadway, New York, NY 10027.

CHICAGO JEWISH FUNERALS
chicagojewishfunerals.com May Their
Memory Be
For a Blessing
The Philadelphia Jewish Exponent
extends condolences to the families of
those who have passed.

To receive our weekly obituary eletter visit
www.jewishexponent.com/enewsletter jewishexponent.com
215-832-0700



d’var torah
Enter the Wilderness
Rabbi Linda Holtzman
B Parshat Bamidbar
amidbar is a fascinating book.

Starting with the word bamid-
bar, in the wilderness, we
learn just how wild the wilderness can
be. The English name of the book,
Numbers, describes the counting of
the people that takes place as we
enter the text, but that doesn’t do the
book justice.

Imagine a book that tells tales of
rebellion and fiery Divine punishment,
of leprosy and struggle, of spies and
uncertainty, of battles and killing, of
women’s rights and of women’s punish-
ment by magical potion if they are
accused of adultery, and, of course, a
in the surprises that are in store for us.

Going to the midbar means looking
below the surface of our lives: our
personal lives and the life of our
community. Being in the midbar is
being honest with ourselves; nothing
is there to limit our vision.

Is there something we have been
wanting to do that we keep putting off
because of worry or fear? Are we satis-
fied with our work or our relationships,
and are we afraid to face the possibil-
ity that we are not getting all that we
could out of either? If we let ourselves
fully enter the midbar, there is nothing
that stops us from seeing the truth,
from acting with courage.

This is true in our community as well.

Can we see the ways that the Jewish
community, either here or in Israel, is
not living up to all that it could be? If
been working and see who has a plan
that has vision and creativity. If we are
open to facing the truth about this city,
our votes can change the future.

And if we pay attention to what the
hundreds of thousands of protesters in
Israel are saying, we can stand with them
to demand change. What does it take for
us, the American Jewish community, to
look at what is happening beneath the
surface and to face it honestly? It’s time
for us to take the risks to see the truth
and to stand in solidarity with our Israeli
siblings who are determined to live in a
country they can be proud of.

It does take counting and studying
the numbers, both here and in Israel,
knowing the hard facts and taking
them in. And then, it takes our willing-
ness to enter the wilderness that can
open us to new possibilities and to
new opportunities for growth, in our
personal lives and in our communities.

May we be deeply inspired as we
dive into the wilderness of Bamidbar. ■
Rabbi Linda Holtzman is the director
of student life at the Reconstructionist
Rabbinical College and the rabbi of
the Tikkun Olam Chavurah. The Board
of Rabbis of Greater Philadelphia is
proud to provide diverse perspectives
on Torah commentary for the Jewish
Exponent. The opinions expressed in
this column are the author’s own and
do not necessarily reflect the view of
the Board of Rabbis.

Is there something we have been
wanting to do that we keep putting
off because of worry or fear?
talking donkey who is willing to go out
of his way to save a man’s life.

Entering the wilderness opens the
people to a wide array of magic and
violence and terror; and there are
always numbers, the counting of the
people more than once. I have always
loved Bamidbar for these startling and
provocative tales and have loved how
it takes me into a fantastical realm that
fires my imagination.

Yet Bamidbar is not just a grand
fantasy. As we read this extraordinary
book, we are inspired to allow ourselves
to move into whatever wilderness we
need to inhabit. Entering a wilderness
means that we are willing to take a
risk, to relinquish the safety of a clearly
boundaried life. Entering a wilderness
is opening ourselves to whatever may
happen and finding ways to live fully
we let ourselves see the truth, then it
is our responsibility to act, to stand up
and “speak truth to power,” letting our
governments and our leadership hear
what we are seeing.

On May 16, there was an important
election in Philadelphia. There were
many candidates for mayor and for
council representatives. Even though
this was just a primary election, the
results will matter. It is up to us to do
what Bamidbar teaches us.

Look beneath the surface. Don’t be
swayed by the glitzy advertisements.

Don’t let our hopelessness about this
city and its high levels of violence and
its challenging public school system
stop us from believing that we can
make a difference. Listen to all that
the candidates were saying beneath
the slogans. Focus on what has not
JEWISHEXPONENT.COM 27