Alexander Muss students find unlikely link at Jerusalem Matisyahu concert

Alexander Muss High School in Israel (AMHSI) is a program built on exploration and discovery. Students are inspired to live outside their books and encounter new ideas. On October 10, a group of 16- and 17-year-olds encountered authentic Israeli culture at a concert, although it was performed by an American artist. Matisyahu rocked Jerusalem that evening, but for the nearly two dozen AMHSI students, he rocked their hearts.

Matisyahu is an alum of the AMHSI program, a fact the students learned about days before the concert. For them, that connection made the artist's music more meaningful.

"This feels very cool. It's like I'm a part of something bigger," said Solomon Friedman, 16, speaking about his excitement at hearing Matisyahu in Jerusalem. "It really shows me that this path I am on, the path of learning at AMHSI, is one that can lead to success. It is very exciting and inspiring."

"I know Matisyahu's music," said Nathan Pitock, 17. "But I don’t know it that well. And it's something else to hear it in Israel, where Matisyahu got his start." 

Couple's generous bequest continues to impact JNF programs

Dr. Galli S. Ascher spent much of her life devoted to helping others as a medical doctor in the field of pathology with a specialty in hematology and cancers of the blood. When she passed away in February 2014 in Long Beach, Calif., she left a legacy of altruism that will continue through a generous bequest of over $4 million to JNF from the estate of Dr. Ascher and her late husband Lionel F. Ascher.

"The Aschers were big supporters of Israel," recalled Alan B. Unterman, a close family friend and trustee of the Ascher Family Trust. Unterman knew Galli since he was a young boy; his father, David Unterman, worked alongside her in the pathology department of the Veterans Administration Hospital in Long Beach for many years, where she held the position of chief pathologist.

"I grew up knowing the Aschers," he said. "They were present at my bris, bar mitzvah, Passover seders, and other celebrations. I remember them to be an eccentric couple. Galli was extremely opinionated, while Lionel was more bookish. They were always on the hunt for new and different things."

In the JNF Kitchen: Baked pita bread with lentils and feta

Photo: Etiel Zion

Pita is the quintessential Israeli bread, but it usually plays a supporting role to other dishes.This #RecipeOfTheWeek, Baked pita bread with lentils and feta gives pita bread a leading role.

This inventive recipe -- akin to pita lasagna -- is another delicious creation brought to us by Noa Zer. Noa, who lives in Moshav Paran in the Central Arava, heads the Resource Development Department at the Central Arava Regional Council, where she is responsible for fundraising as well as foreign affairs and connections to Jewish communities in the Diaspora.

Noa is married to a second-generation farmer from Paran and together they are starting their second agricultural season as pepper growers. The Central Arava is a key region– a focus of JNF’s Blueprint Negev initiative.

In the JNF Kitchen: Crispy potato and sage salad

This #RecipeOfTheWeek comes from Noa Zer. Noa was born and raised in the suburbs of Tel Aviv and moved to Moshav Paran in the Central Arava desert in 2011. She heads the resource development department at the Central Arava Regional Council, where she is responsible for fundraising as well as foreign affairs and connections to Jewish communities in the Diaspora. 

Noa is married to a second-generation farmer from Paran, and together they are starting their second agricultural season as pepper growers. The Central Arava, a region characterized by sharp climate changes, extreme topographical conditions, scarce water, and dramatic natural beauty is a key focus of JNF's Blueprint Negev initiative.