12/6/10

The Segerman Scale

The Segerman Scale




Your Men’s Club makes a science out of frying latkes for the annual Hanukkah Dinner, which arrives Dec. 5.

First, we gather volunteers in the shul kitchen on Thursday night, and Chef Gary Gillett breaks out the provisions and recipes. Then, we start peeling and grating and slicing and dicing potatoes and onions and a little garlic.

We combine the vegetables and add eggs and spices and matzo meal in huge bowls.

Then the cooking teams, led by Michael Miller, heat oil in broad skillets and start frying the latkes.

But, we would have no idea when each latke was ready if it weren’t for the Segerman Scale.

The Segerman Scale was created by our former president, Douglas Segerman, as a way to determine doneness. It consists of five levels: barely warm, rare on the inside, beginning to crisp, crispy and golden, and – Segerman No. 5 – the color and consistency of bronze shavings left out to weather.

Men’s Club cooks work very hard to maintain a consistent Segerman No. 4; we even have a photographic array for comparing the product in the pan with the most desirable level of doneness.

Come out for the Hanukkah Dinner, and see how well we did this year.

As well as the dinner, Men’s Club will sponsor a brunch at 10:30 a.m. Dec. 12 featuring congregant Barry Adelman talking about year-end tax and investment strategies.

Poker night is scheduled for Dec. 9.

Please don’t forget that, cold and gray though it might be, Men’s Club keeps the activities coming in January.

The third annual Men's Club Quiz Night will be Saturday, Jan. 8. Anyone interested in helping to arrange either food or prizes, please let Mike Sobul know.

The Men’s Club Brunch is Jan. 9, and Poker Night is scheduled Jan. 13.

And the Men’s Club/Women of Tifereth Israel Shabbat is coming up Jan. 29. Greg Margulies – even though he won’t be present for the event – will be wrangling volunteers for the various parts, so please get in touch with him or me to line up your piece today.

Always happy to be of service,

Bill Chronister, Men’s Club President

It's been a busy month for Men's Club

We've been involved in a lot of activities in the last few weeks -- you might have seen some of the officers and members in activities ranging from the library book sale to Buil-A-Pair and including the B'nei Mitzvah program and the blood drive.
Here are a few pictures of officers and members in action:


Dr. Dale Levy and Build-a-Pair

From left, facing camera, Jon Foreman, Douglas Segerman and Matt Marx work the Men's Club Cafe on a Sunday morning.

Bill Chronister shows Dr. Ted Borkan an unusual pamphlet available for purchase at the recent library book sale.


10/5/10

Ben Marrison visits Tifereth Israel

Ben Marrison, editor of The Columbus Dispatch, came to Congregation Tifereth Israel on Sunday and presented an informative discussion of how the newspaper covers the elections. He also discussed how the The Dispatch, despite the bad economy and the sliding fortunes of newspapers, continues to stand out among newspapers in Ohio and the region.

8/11/10

Dispatch editor to speak at first brunch

From a strictly Men’s Club perspective, September will be quiet. Right now, we have only a Poker Night on the schedule, for Sept. 2. Of course, there are also Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur, and the start of Sukkot ....
Speaking of Sukkot, we’re thinking of starting a new event, loosely called Steaks in the Sukkot. It would be unusual in that it would be only for members of Men’s Club. Poker Nights currently are the only events exclusively for Men’s Club members or their spouses.
The Steaks in the Sukkah program is tentatively scheduled for Sept. 27 and would take place in one of our members’ backyards. We’d say the blessings in the sukkah, then sit down to a steak dinner. At the same time, we’ll be running a bourbon-tasting. If you think this is a good idea and you’d be interested in participating, let me or one of the officers of Men’s Club know about it. We value your input.
Meanwhile, we’re putting together our lineup of brunch speakers.
Our first will be in the Upper Social Hall beginning at 10:30 a.m. on Oct. 3 and will feature Benjamin J. Marrison, editor of The Columbus Dispatch. Marrison has been in charge of the newsroom there since November 1999. He joined the newspaper after nine years at the Plain Dealer in Cleveland, including three years as its Statehouse bureau chief. He also worked at The Blade in Toledo.
At press time, Marrison intended to make a small presentation and then to field questions from those present.
As always, the brunch will be an informal gathering of those congregation members who wish to attend. Men’s Club provides the food, and you enjoy it and the speaker.
Please consider joining us for everything!
Always happy to be of service,
Bill Chronister, Men’s Club President

7/30/10

ADL director coming to Synagogue

At 7:30 p.m. Tuesday, Aug. 31, Nina Sundell, director of the Ohio/Kentucky/Allegheny region of the Anti-Defamation League, will speak in the Upper Social Hall about confronting anti-zionism and anti-Semitism on American campuses. The program is sponsored by the Men's Club of Congregation Tifereth Israel. Light refreshments will be provided. A donation of $5 per person is requested. RSVP by Aug. 27 to Men's Club President Bill Chronister at 614-563-3268 or wtchron@gmail.com.

7/2/10

The 36th World Zionist Congress addresses contemporary issues

(A report from FJMC):
In 1897 Theodore Herzl, the founder of the modern Zionist movement, gathered about 200 Jewish leaders from around the world in Basel, Switzerland, to discuss the condition of the Jewish people and to organize towards the creation of the Jewish state. On June 15-17, 2010, 113 years later, the 36th World Zionist Congress met in Jerusalem to renew Herzl’s vision and to address many of the issues facing world Jewry and the State of Israel today. This Congress, which meets in Israel every four years, is the closest thing to a World Jewish Parliament that exists.
One of the major organizations participating at the Congress was Mercaz Olami, the Zionist arm of the worldwide Masorti/Conservative Movement. North American Leaders of the Federation of Jewish Men’s Clubs (the parent organization of Congregation Tifereth Israel's Men’s Club), Women’s League, United Synagogue of Conservative Judaism, and the rabbinic and cantors' assemblies were joined by representatives of Masorti/Conservative Movement groups from Israel and 15 other countries at the Congress.
Mercaz joined with the Israeli political party Kadima and other local groups to form a united faction to advocate for pluralism and egalitarianism in Israel, and to promote Zionist education and youth development worldwide.
Many proposed resolutions were reviewed, discussed, debated, argued about, and either approved or rejected. Among the successful resolutions approved at the Congress were:
  • To oppose the currently proposed changes in the Israeli conversion law that will both negate the Law of Return and prejudice the rights of Jewish communities to act, each in its own way, regarding the conversion process.
  • Equal funding for all Jewish religious streams within the World Zionist Organization budget.
  • Encourage the government of Israel to recognize all streams of Judaism and their right to perform marriages and conversion in Israel.
  • Require that 30 percent of the membership in all WZO committees, boards and such be women.
  • Support funding by the Jewish Agency of all youth streams in Israel.
In addition, the Congress addressed several major political issues, endorsing stabilization of Israel’s relationship with the American government, a two-state solution, and a freeze on construction in the Territories.
-- From FJMC Vice President Myles Simpson

6/15/10

Picnics, baseball and serious talk

It’s time to renew your membership in Congregation Tifereth Israel’s Men’s Club. And to help you understand what your annual dues of $36 go for, consider the activities we’ve got for you this summer.


Because the Three Weeks started on June 29 with the Fast of Tammuz (and end with Tisha B’Av on July 20), things will be rather quiet through July.

Not so August, however.

On Sunday, Aug. 1, the annual Men’s Club picnic and afternoon of fun will begin at 3:30 p.m. near the tennis courts behind the Leo Yassenoff Jewish Community Center on College Avenue south of Bexley. We’ll have hot dogs and hamburgers and, as Dr. Dale Levy likes to say, all the fixin’s for all comers. As always, there is no charge. Please RSVP to me, at wtchron@gmail.com, so we can get a head count and make sure everyone gets food. Also let me know if you require anything special to make your picnic more enjoyable.

On Aug. 15, the KIO Region of the Federation of Jewish Men’s Clubs will invade our fair city to have a picnic and fill the stands for a Clippers game at Huntington Park. Festivities begin at 1 p.m. at the JCC with a picnic and softball games. The party then will transfer to Huntington Park to see the Clippers against the Louisville Sluggers starting at 5:05 p.m. Tickets are $20 per person; $17 for children under 12 and adults 65 and older. RSVP by Friday, July 9, to Mark Rosenson at mrosen3216@aol.com or (614) 861-3236.

And then on Aug. 22 comes the second annual Columbus Jewish Community Day, starting about 3 p.m. at Huntington Park. Many of the activities are still to be determined, but some things are certain: Ticket price will be $10 per person and will include beverages and two hotdogs, plus all the fixin’s, before the game; children will be allowed on the field before game time; and the opponents will be our Clippers vs. the Toledo Mudhens.

Last year, we sold more than 100 tickets to members of Congregation Tifereth Israel alone, and more than 300 throughout the Jewish community of Columbus and environs. We hope to do even better this year.

Please check with me, at wtchron@gmail.com, for tickets.

Finally, on the last day of the month – at 7 p.m. Tuesday, Aug. 31 – the Men’s Club is sponsoring a visit from the regional director of the Anti-Defamation League, Nina Sundell. Recent years have seen a resurgence of anti-Israel activity on the college campuses. These episodes oftentimes sow intimidation and fear among Jewish members of the university communities. Ms. Sundell will lead a discussion regarding anti-Semitic and anti-Israel activity on the college campuses and offer strategies for responding effectively.

Oh, and don’t forget Poker Night. The games are scheduled on July 8 and Aug. 12. Please check with Douglas Segerman, at djsegerman@earthlink.net, or Mike Sobul at lsobul@wowway.com, for locations and times.

Please consider joining us for everything!

Always happy to be of service,

Bill Chronister, Men’s Club President

Picnics and baseball

As you’re making plans for summer activities, don’t forget to include joining the Men’s Club for fun and games in June and August.


Activities begin with a trip to Cincinnati on Sunday, June 27, to watch the Reds take on the Cleveland Indians. If you’re interested in attending and would like more information, please contact our past president Dr. Daley Levy, at drlevy@ohioctvs.com.

But because the Three Weeks start on June 29 with the Fast of Tammuz (and end with Tisha B’Av on July 20), things will be rather quiet through July.

Not so August, however.

On Sunday, Aug. 1, the annual Men’s Club picnic and afternoon of fun will begin at 3:30 p.m. near the tennis courts behind the Leo Yassenoff Jewish Community Center on College Avenue south of Bexley. We’ll have hot dogs and hamburgers and, as Dale likes to say, all the fixin’s for all comers. As always, there is no charge. Please RSVP to me, at wtchron@gmail.com, so we can get a head count and make sure everyone gets food. Also let me know if you require anything special to make your picnic more enjoyable.

On Aug. 15, the KIO Region of the Federation of Jewish Men’s Clubs will invade our fair city to have a picnic and attend a Clippers game at Huntington Park. Festivities begin at 1 p.m. at the JCC with a picnic and softball games. The party then will transfer to Huntington Park to see the Clippers against the Louisville Sluggers starting at 5:05 p.m. Tickets are $20 per person; $17 for children under 12 and adults 65 and older. RSVP by Friday, July 9, to Mark Rosenson at mrosen3216@aol.com or (614) 861-3236.

And then on Aug. 22 comes the second annual Columbus Jewish Community Day, starting about 3 p.m. at Huntington Park. At press time, many of the activities were still to be determined, but some things are certain: Ticket price will be $10 per person and will include beverages and two hotdogs, plus all the fixin’s, before the game; children will be allowed on the field before game time; and the opponents will be our Clippers vs. the Toledo Mudhens.

Last year, we sold more than 100 tickets to members of Congregation Tifereth Israel alone, and more than 300 throughout the Jewish community of Columbus and environs. We hope to do even better this year.

Please check with me, at wtchron@gmail.com, for tickets.

And don’t forget Poker Night. Through summer, the games are scheduled on June 10, July 8 and Aug. 12. Please check with past president Douglas Segerman, at djsegerman@earthlink.net, or Secretary Mike Sobul at lsobul@wowway.com, for location and time.

And don’t forget: We’re looking at starting our brunch speaker series early, in the last week of August, with a visit from an Anti-Defamation League professional to address dealing with anti-Semitic and anti-Israeli activities on campus.

Please consider joining us for everything!

By the way, as I mentioned last month, we’ll be starting our annual membership drive this June, so please give it a thought before we contact you: Wouldn’t you like to be involved in Men’s Club?

Always happy to be of service,

Bill Chronister, Men’s Club President

5/5/10

May is busting out all over

This month, Men’s Club is planning a couple of “green” events. First, for the Men’s Club brunch starting at 10:30 a.m. on May 2, congregant David Roseman will talk about the “greening” of the synagogue. David has been involved in finding ways to lessen our footprint on Earth for a number of years, including by working with the Friends of Alum Creek and Tributaries and with Consider Biking.


Then, on May 9, David will help lead the annual Mothers Day planting on the synagogue lawn. This year, we’ve got trees – arborvitae – to put in along the west side of the property. So wear your digging clothes!

The monthly Poker Night is on May 13 – please contact Douglas Segerman at djsegerman@earthlink.net.

But the news is what’s coming in the summer. Right now, we’re looking at a trip to see the Indians and Reds play in Cleveland in June, and three big events in August: the Tifereth Israel Men’s Club picnic on Aug. 1, the Federation of Jewish Men’s Clubs KIO Region picnic and baseball outing on Aug. 15 and the Columbus-wide Jewish Community Day at Huntington Park on Aug. 22.

We’re also looking at starting our brunch speaker series early, in August, with a visit from an Anti-Defamation League professional to address dealing with anti-Semitic and anti-Israeli activities on campus.

Please consider attending – well – everything!

And that, in a round-about way, brings us to another subject:

We can’t do this without you. We have more than 90 members who pay their dues and who often volunteer to help us produce the huge volume of activities that the Tifereth Israel Men’s Club leads each year. And while we’re thrilled to have every one of them, please note that that represents about one-tenth of the eligible men who could be members.

Right now, we present the monthly brunch series and the Men’s Club Cafe on Sunday and Wednesday mornings. We help with the Purim Carnival and the Hannukah party. We support blood drives and synagogue planting. We have bike rides and baseball outings and picnics. We’ll be involved in a multiregion retreat in the fall. Frankly, there are more events, but I can’t remember them all.

And we need you to help with these and to present even more.

What might confuse some men is that there’s no check-off on the synagogue dues form to cover Men’s Club dues. We collect dues separately; so if you don’t send in the form we send you, we don’t receive your dues.

We’ll be starting our annual membership drive this summer, but please give it a thought before we contact you: Wouldn’t you like to be involved in Men’s Club?

In listing Purim Carnival volunteers, I somehow forgot to thank Jerry and Laura Sigal for their exemplary work on the cotton candy machine. Sorry, guys. I hope this makes up for it.

Let me know, please, if you have any questions or comments.

Always happy to be of service,

Bill Chronister, Men’s Club President

2/18/10

Thanks, and March events

Heading into the Purim-Pesach cycle, it’s easy to loose sight of events in the recent past. So there are a few people I’d like to thank for recent activities before we get dumped into the spin cycle.

There’s Douglas Segerman, who runs the monthly poker nights, the weekly minyan breakfast and the Sunday morning Men’s Club cafe, and who this year brought us the second annual Tifereth Israel Poker Tournament.
And Dale Levy, who just ended a successful second edition of the Build-a-Pair program in our Hebrew school, culminating in the World Wide Wrap on Super Bowl Sunday.
Mike Sobul continues to amaze and astound with his grasp of trivia on Quiz Night – a program that he thought needed to be resurrected, and so he did it. And now he’s in the throes of Purim Carnival preparations.
Greg Margulies and Rebecca Gurk can’t be replaced as organizers of the Men’s Club/Women of Tifereth Israel Shabbat.
Behind the scenes, Jonathon Foreman and Karl Rubin keep things moving – Jon keeps the money straight, and Karl feeds us all with ideas while standing ready to step in to help whenever needed.
Gary and Esther Gillett deserve all praise they might get, and then some, for their preparation of the Chanukah dinner. A lot of Men’s Club members get involved, including Art Uhrmann, Leon Pollack and our current officers. And where would we be without Mike Miller’s quality-control efforts on the latke production line? But it’s the Gilletts who make it all work.
And of course we thank the rabbis and cantor, Marc Neiwirth and the synagogue staff, as well as Margaret and Emmanuel and their crew, for all their help throughout the year.
So, March is here – and aren’t we thankful that February’s snows are behind us?
Men’s Club will have its monthly brunch at 10:30 a.m. Sunday, March 7, featuring our own secretary, Mike Sobul, who also is one of the top tax experts in state government. He’ll be discussing taxes and school funding.
The next poker night is March 11 – contact Doug Segerman for particulars.
And Men’s Club again will be involved in the annual Scholar in Residence weekend, which will be March 12-14 and feature Dr. Eric Goldman.
In April, we’re planning a special brunch coinciding with Yom Hashoah, in which we hope to involve the students of Hebrew High, as well as scholars in the adult education program.
And we’re already making tentative plans for the fall involving a visit from the regional head of the Anti-Defamation League to talk about dealing with anti-Semitism on campus and – completely unrelated – a Men’s Club excursion to Cleveland for a Browns game.
Let me know, please, if you have any questions or comments.
Always happy to be of service,
Bill Chronister, Men’s Club President

1/17/10

Lots O' Stuff Coming Up Fast!

Quiz Night

Quiz Night is this coming Saturday. The registration deadline is tomorrow. If you are planning to participate but have not yet sent in a registration form, please e-mail me and let me know by tomorrow.

Men's Club, WOTI Shabbat
Men's Club/WOTI Shabbat also this Saturday. Even if you have not signed up to participate, please join us.

Poker Tournament
The second annual Men's Club Texas Hold 'em tournament is a week from today. There is still time to register. Please contact Doug Segerman at djsegerman@earthlink.net if you want to join in on the fun.

World Wide Wrap and Next Sunday Brunch
The annual World Wide Wrap is Sunday, February 6 at 9:30. If you want to participate, be at the Shul at 9:30 ready to don your Tifillin. For questions, contact Dale Levy at drlevy@ohioctvs.com. Following the WWW will be the February brunch. The speaker will be Frank Moscowitz from the Buckeye Sports Bulletin. Please plan on joining us for both events.

Purim Carnival
The Purim Carnival is February 28. Volunteers will again be needed to help set up, to man games, to sell food, and to clean up. If you are interested in helping out, please let me know. There will be a planning meeting with USY next Sunday at 12:30 (before the poker tournament) if anyone is interested in attending (specifically, Karl and Mark R.).

1/5/10

2nd Annual Poker Tournament

The 2nd Annual Men’s Club Texas Hold’em Tournament takes place Sunday, January 24, 2010, in the Upper Social Hall of the synagogue. All men and women 18 and older are welcome!
Doors open at 1 p.m. – cards fly at 1:30!
* Initial Buy-In for $5,000 in chips is $75.
*Re-buy for $5,000 in chips is $75.
* Re-buy must be done before the tournament starts or before the end of the first break.
* $75 initial buy-in must be paid by Friday, January 15, 2010.
* Write checks to T.I. Mens Club, at 1354 E. Broad St., Columbus, OH 43205.
* Or, pay by credit card or PayPal!
Send e-mail to Doug Segerman confirming that your payment was sent.
For more details, contact Doug Segerman: djsegerman@earthlink.net