Advertiser Index
Reunions Continued from Page 11
and the North American contingent enjoying a
daytime Zoom.

Th ough Izenman admitted that any Zoom
call with more than eight or so participants
gets dicey for conversation, she saw the reunion
itself as a special time for her family.

“It is the one silver lining to the pandemic,”
she said, “that people are getting so much more
comfortable with technology, and remem-
bering and thinking about getting together
with faraway family.”
Cheryl Friedenberg and her mother,
Naomi Block Rafaeli, don’t live too far from
one another; Friedenberg is in Blue Bell, and
Block Rafaeli is at Rydal Park, a senior living
community in Jenkintown. But Friedenberg’s
three other siblings, Toby, Gary and Deena, are
spread across the country, and the onset of the
pandemic made it clear that they wouldn’t be
seeing each other any time soon, to say nothing
of their mother.

Th at fi rst week, Friedenberg and her siblings
organized a Zoom call with their mother and
her husband Peter Rafaeli.

“We thought it was a great way to connect
with one another, and obviously, give something
for my mom to do every day,” Friedenberg said.

Th at fi rst night was a simple chat. Since then,
the family has hopped on nightly Zoom calls
fi ve times per week. Each of the siblings bring
in surprise guests from childhood or other
long-lost social circles as frequently as they
can. One guest, the daughter of Block Rafaeli’s
deceased friend, was a special treat.

Th ey’ve played trivia games based on their
lives together, talked about politics and then
decided to no longer talk about politics — "it
got a little out of hand,” Block Rafaeli said.

Th ey’ve brought their children onto the call,
some of them college students who tell the rest
of their family about their unique pandemic
experiences. It’s been the site of holidays and
birthdays. Friedenberg and Block Rafaeli both said that
they would have never gotten to know the rest
of their family as well as they do now if not for
their nightly Zoom calls.

“You get to know a little bit more about the
people that you grew up with, which is really
special to me,” Friedenberg said. ❤
jbernstein@jewishexponent.com; 215-832-0740
Congregation Tiferet Bet Israel . . 11
Chain-Mar Furniture . . . . . . . . . . . 10
Gladwyne Pharmacy . . . . . . . . . . . 12
Hot Foot . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. . . . . . . . . . 9
Philadelphia Protestant Home . . . . 7
Salon Amar . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
Springfi eld Country Club . . . . . . . . 3
TerraVida Holistic Centers . . . . . . 11
West Laurel Hill . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
S e le
Mitzvah ct your
in with us! vitations
C appointm all for
ent. Invitation and Card Shoppes
Th e Gift Shoppe
• Weddings
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352 Righters Mill Road, Gladwyne, PA 19035
Phone 610-649-1100 610-649-4850
Fax www.gladwynepharmacy.com
12 MARCH 25, 2021
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