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A day to celebrate, reflect on Israel’s
60th birthday
IAN DEMSKY; ian.demsky@thenewstribune.com
Last updated: May 5th, 2008 06:22
AM (PDT)
The congregation of Tacoma’s
Temple Beth El, visiting dignitaries and community members couldn’t have asked
for better weather Sunday for the celebration of Israel’s 60th birthday.
Kids gamboled across the lawn, hips swayed to
Asaf Erez and the Od Yishama Orchestra, and visitors browsed among the
particolored tents. Not surprisingly, the longest line was for the falafel
stand.
“We’re recognizing Israel has reached 60 years
old when it still faces a lot of challenges,” said Rabbi Bruce Kadden. “I’m
delighted with the turnout from the general community.”
For the tots with snow cone-stained lips, six
decades is an incomprehensible span. For others in the crowd, it required a mere
glance over the shoulder at childhood.
Pierce County Executive John Ladenburg, who
spoke at the event along with Gov. Chris Gregoire and Reps. Adam Smith and Dave
Reichert, said he had been born in 1949, just one year after the nation’s
founding.
A couple of generations have now grown up in a
world that recognizes Israel as a state and a homeland for the Jewish people, he
said.
“Let all coming generations know of an Israel
on this Earth,” Ladenburg said. “We should do everything we can to protect
that.”
Smith, a Tacoma Democrat, echoed those
sentiments.
“It’s amazing what the nation of Israel has
accomplished in such a short time,” he said.
Reichert, an Auburn Republican, stressed his
support for Israel as an ally in the Middle East.
“Israel needs to know for certain that it has
friends around the world and in Washington state,” he said. “What affects Israel
affects America. Israel’s enemies are our enemies.”
The governor emphasized Israel as an economic
partner with the state, whose advances in agriculture and water conservation
technology have benefited Eastern Washington.
“My goal is to make it an even greater trading
partner – both ways,” Gregoire said.
The event was more than laudatory and
reflective, it was also educational.
Booths were set up with information on Israel’s
history and the Holocaust. Attendees could make sandals, help weave a
rainbow-colored Torah cover and splash their hands in a salty kiddie pool
doubling as the Dead Sea. One could write a prayer on a piece of paper and slide
it into a paper-bag recreation of Jerusalem’s Western
Wall.
Judith Kay, 56, of Tacoma, said her prayer was
for peace and some personal things.
“In the big historical perspective, it’s
amazing to be alive when Israel exists,” she said. “I hope Tibet doesn’t have to
wait so long.”
The celebration marks Israel’s modern birthday,
but Jewish history dates back thousands of years.
“It’s a little odd to celebrate Israel’s 60th
birthday when Israel’s birth predates modern history,” Reichert
said.
Tacoma City Councilman Mike Lonergan called the
moment “bittersweet,” noting the young nation continues to face challenges to
its very existence.
But on a lighter note, he remarked on the
overnight improvement in the weather:
“My church attempted to put on a youth barbeque
yesterday and I’m seriously questioning who has better
connections.”
Ian Demsky: 253-597-8872
Originally published: May 5th,
2008 01:22 AM (PDT) |