Welcome to the electronic newsletter of the National Museum of American Jewish History. This newsletter is designed to keep you informed of exhibitions, programs and other activities of the NMAJH, the only Museum in the country exclusively presenting educational programs and experiences that preserve, explore and celebrate the history of the Jews in America.
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MUSEUM HOLDS ANNUAL FAMILY DAY OF FUN ON DECEMBER 25th.


Jon Nelson's Rockin' Kids Review will bring the house down in their "Being Jewish At Christmas" debut at the National Museum of American Jewish History. The annual "Being Jewish at Christmas" program of family fun, which features music, comedy, refreshments and more, will be held Thursday, Dec. 25, noon - 4 p.m.

Jon Nelson is a mainstay on the national children's music scene, both as a solo artist, and with his Jon Nelson's Rockin' Kids Review. His unique performances for kids and their families are rooted in his love of rock & roll and his desire to teach children through fun and interactive music. Jon's Rockin Kids' Review treats audiences to a rip roaring, hand clapping, foot stomping, educational and interactive concert that every child, parent and grandparent will love.

Jon's fresh, exciting and innovative original songs have appeared on several nationally distributed compilation CDs, and his music is heard on radio stations in the United States and abroad. Joining Jon Nelson's Rockin' Kids Review are returning BJAC entertainers Michael Rosman, whose amazing feats of all-ages comedy has been seen on The Late Show with David Letterman and The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, and who has performed numerous times inimage Atlantic City. Also returning is "Best of Philly" Party Entertainer Ken Fink from Wondergy, who fuels curiosity by making science fun and exciting. Also returning will be the Mark Segal Puppet Theatre. Refreshments provided by Kaplan's New Model Bakery will be provided, and all children will receive a "goodie bag."

"Being Jewish at Christmas" is held at the National Museum of American Jewish History, Independence Mall East, 55 North 5th Street, noon to 4:00 p.m. Tickets are $5 per person (children two and under admitted free). BJAC is also free to Museum members and members of the military. Tickets are available only at the door. For more information call 215-923-3811 x 148. "Being Jewish at Christmas" is made possible by the generous support of the Robert Saligman Jewish Heritage Fund.


FEEL FREE TO BE FLOORED BY THE MUSEUM'S CONSTRUCTION PROGRESS

As the steel structure rises on Independence Mall, passers-bimagey no longer see just a skeleton of the new building the museum is constructing.
Being added to the frameare steel corrugated panels that are now serving as flooring

While these panels are now bare, they will eventually support concrete flooring for the exhibition space. Concrete will be poured one floor at a time starting with the second floor the first week in January and ending with the roof the first week in March. While the floors are being worked on, welders, such as the one pictured below, continue working on the steel beams. Contractor INTECH Construction is scheduled to finish the steel structure by the end of January 2008.

The Museum is in the midst of a $150 million Capital Campaign for construction of the 100,000-square-foot, five-story building. More than $112 million has been raised for the Campaign.image The new Museum is scheduled to be completed in fall 2010. For information on how to support the Museum, contact Irv Hurwitz, the Museum's director of institutional advancement at 215.923.3811 x 133.

For an up-to-date picture of the construction site that refreshes every 15 minutes, view our Museum-Cam.

Photo Credit: Ilana Blumenthal


SUPPORT THE MUSEUM'S MISSION
For more information on the Annual Fund or the Museum's Capital Campaign, contact Irv Hurwitz, the Museum's director of institutional advancement, at 215.923.3811 x 133.


WHITE MODELS PLAY ROLE IN SHAPING EXHIBIT SPACES IN NEW MUSEUM


Among the ways the Museum's changing exhibition Shaping Space, Making Meaning offers visitors the opportunity to learn how a museum creates a major exhibition is by exhibiting models used by designers to explore the physical space of gallery that is difficult to sort out on paper. The pictured model was built to show how the Museum might re-create a suburban environment, which will be in the Museum's second floor, in a section of the exhibition that explores postwar America.

The home in the exhibition will be an immersive environment that will provide an opportunity to examine how physical spaces, the things people put in them, and the ways they used them can be a lens into how many American Jews balanced increasing social integration with continuing efforts to define Jewishness in postwar America.

The environment will contain objects related to the foods Jews ate, to the cookbooks they purchased, to the clothes they wore, the games they played, the sports they watched, and the fiction they read. The artifact cases in the suburban home will create a vivid illustration of everyday life in postwar suburbs. There will also be home movies projected on unexpected surfaces. A period television set shows excerpts from The Ed Sullivan Show, The Goldbergs, The Show of Shows, popular culture commercials and the 1947 World Series.

Admission is free to Shaping Space, Making Meaning, which also has design sketches, computer-generated images, video and text that also offer an insider's look at the process of developing a landmark exhibition about more than 350 years of American Jewish life. The NMAJH's exhibition design team is in the process of creating the 22,000-square-foot exhibition for the new Museum.


ASSORTED CHALLAH PLATES FOR SALE AT MUSEUM SHOP



The Museum Shop is offering an array of challah plates perfect for your Shabbat dinner table such as the one pictured here made in Israel by Artist Revital Ginsberg. This handpainted ceramic plate is adorned with a delicate floral pattern in olive and navy. The Hebrew phrase "Shabbat Shalom," meaning "Good Sabbath" is writtenimageacross the center. The bow pictured around the plate is included. The plate sells for $80.

This challah plate is one of a variety of Shabbat related items being sold at the Museum Shop and in its online store. The Museum Shop carries Judaica from artists all over the world. Visit the Shop to browse the large assortment of items in all price ranges. For more information contact the Museum Shop at 215.923.0262.

The Museum Shop is open Monday-Thursday 10 a.m.-5 p.m.; Friday 10 a.m.-3 p.m.; and Sunday 12 noon - 5 p.m. Proceeds from the Museum Shop support the National Museum of American Jewish History.


MUSEUM OFFERS COMEDY SPECIAL TO THREE SUBSCRIBERS



The Museum is teaming up with the Gershman Y to offer three E-Newsletter subscribers a special offer to attend the Moo Shu Jew Show, a mishugunah evening of Jewish inspired stand-up comedy along with a five-course Chinese dinner at Ocean City restaurant in Philly's Chinatown. The performance will take place on Christmas Eve, Wednesday, December 24, 6 p.m.

The Moo Shu Jew Show was created by comedian Cory Kahaney (pictured) who
performs regularly for Jewish audiences. She is the creator and star of off-Broadway's The J.A.P. Show: the Princesses of Comedy, Making Trouble, and Heroes of Jewish Comedy and has appeared on such television programs as The View, Last Comic Standing and the Late, Late Show with Craig Ferguson. Kahaney has been called "the go to gal for Jewish comedy" by Hadassah magazine. Moo Shu Jew Show also stars comedians Jim David, Lenny Marcus and Brad Trackman.

The first three people to respond to dkatz@gershmany.org will receive the subscriber offer of buy one, get one ticket free. Put "Moo Shu Jew Show" in the subject line and be sure to include your name and address in the body.

Tickets are $55 if purchased in advance and $65 at the door. The price includes the comedy show, dinner, tax & tip.

For more information on the show, other performers and to purchase tickets visit www.mooshujewshow.com or call 215.445.3012.


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National Museum of American Jewish History
Independence Mall East
55 North 5th Street
Philadelphia, PA 19106-2197
Tel: 215.923.3811 Fax: 215.923.0763
www.nmajh.org

Welcome to the electronic newsletter of the National Museum of American Jewish History. This newsletter is designed to keep you informed of exhibitions, programs and other activities of the NMAJH, the only Museum in the country exclusively presenting educational programs and experiences that preserve, explore and celebrate the history of the Jews in America.
___________________________________


Forward Editor Speaks On Jewish Vote

Jewish Americans are less than two percent of the United States population, but they play an outsized role in politics, according to Jane Eisner, editor of the Forward, the weekly newspaper covering the Jewish world and considered American Jewry's newspaper of record."The number of people who have been elected to office is far beyond our proportion of the population. And frankly, the amount of money that is donated from Jewish donors to political causes is far beyond our two percent. So, the Jewish vote is always very important."

There are four main issues those important Jewish voters will be considering in the upcoming election Eisner said while offering her analysis during "The Jewish Community and the Upcoming Presidential Election," a program recently held for 60 special Museum supporters. Those issues are: the Middle East, the economy, Republican vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin, and race. Regarding the Middle East she noted, "The discussion about Israel and her future really is framed more about Iran and the Iran question. That is also something the Israeli government is very, very concerned about and, indeed, all Americans are concerned about. But, I think that the questions about Iran and how the United States will treat a potential nuclear Iran are very, very important to Jewish voters."

The dramatic change in the economy in the last few weeks has led to virtually all national polls, and those in the battleground states, going to Obama, she said. However, she added, "I don't know how the economy is going to affect the Jewish vote." Eisner characterized Republican vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin as a wild card in the race and took note of the intense interest in her from Jewish voters. "I do wonder whether the attempt that the McCain ticket is creating to exercise the more conservative base of the party is having an affect on Jewish voters. We won't know that until the exit polls."

Eisner concluded by saying there is "no doubt that race will play a part in some of the decisions white voters make. I think it's especially true generationally. "Whether or not that trumps other issues that people have on the economy, on the Middle East, on leadership, how that balances out the Sarah Palin factor I'm not sure, but I do think that is what is part of what is going to be unfolding next month," Eisner said.


Auditorium Has a Role in New Museum

Imagine a heated debate on the role of religion in American politics. Steps away, no less, from Independence Hall, where the role of religion in the United States was first debated. Or, perhaps your tastes run to cutting-edge comedy or theater. Maybe it's a performance of songs by great American Jewish composers like Irving Berlin, George Gershwin and Richard Rodgers that you'd like to attend. Or a lecture on assimilation.

The opportunity to attend these types of programs in one place is closer than you think. The auditorium for the new National Museum of American Jewish History being constructed on Independence Mall continues to take shape. Both the concrete perimeter wall of the lower level and the floor where the auditorium will be located has been placed.

The auditorium, a multipurpose venue equipped for films, theater and concerts, was funded by a $5 million gift from Dr. Alexander and Lorraine Dell and the Michael & Susan Dell Foundation. The theater will seat approximately 200 people, including seats for those with disabilities. The auditorium, part of the Museum's education center located in the building's lower level concourse, will be home to a mix of programs, all geared toward making the Museum the preeminent national educational and cultural center celebrating the American Jewish experience.

"Programming in the new Museum will be second-to-none to any cultural institution in the country," said Gwen Goodman, the Museum's Executive Director/CEO. "We will provide a voice for Jewish Americans in all disciplines, artistic and academic, and enable the exploration of American Jewish heritage and culture." In addition to the auditorium and theater, the concourse includes an education center with two classrooms and a resource center. A sliding partition between the classrooms will enable it to be transformed into one large space. The concourse also includes an expansive public area that will be used for programs and special events.

As work continues on the concourse, construction workers and contractors at the site are working on other elements of the 100,000-square-foot, five-story building. A structural steel frame of the Museum is being erected and work on the building's electrical and plumbing systems is ongoing. The Museum is in the midst of a $150 million Capital Campaign for construction of the 100,000-square-foot, five-story building. Nearly $112 million has been raised for the Campaign.

The new Museum is scheduled to be completed in fall 2010. For information on how to support the Museum, contact Irv Hurwitz, the Museum's director of institutional advancement at 215.923.3811 x 133 or by e-mail.


Shop Offers Smashing Discount


The Jewish wedding, much like Jewish holidays currently being celebrated, is a time filled with celebration, tradition, and ritual objects passed down through generations. This kiddush cup (right) sold at the Museum Shop and designed by Gary Rosenthal is made with a compartment which holds the broken glass from the wedding ceremony. Rosenthal's hand-colored glass goblets (left), sold in the shop, are made for his wedding collection. They are available in blue, green and red as shown.

Rosenthal has been sculpting in welded metals for approximately 30 years. Together with a team of talented craftspeople, he creates one of the most popular and unique lines of Judaic art in the country. Combining copper, brass, and steel with fused glass, the collection has a contemporary style inspired by the rich history of the Jewish people. Work from the Gary Rosenthal Collection has been presented to presidents and to celebrities and can be found throughout the world in many fine galleries and private collections.

These wedding items are just a few of the many that are sold in the Museum Shop and online store. Customers who mention these items in the E-Newsletter will receive a 10 percent discount. Visit the Museum Shop to browse the collection or view the items online at www.judaicashop.net.

The Museum Shop is open Monday-Thursday 10 a.m.- 5 p.m.; Friday 10 a.m.-3 p.m.; and Sunday 12 noon - 5 p.m. Proceeds from the Museum Shop support the National Museum of American Jewish History.



Museum Sponsors Program With Authors at First Person Arts Festival

Award-winning author and critic Daniel Mendelsohn and journalist and critic Lise Funderburg have devoted years to dissecting the small details of family stories framed by history. They will share their work as part of a First Person Arts' production, Relative History, which is sponsored by the Museum.

Mendelsohn's Lost: A Search for Six of Six Million is a gripping account of six of his own family members, Holocaust victims uncovered through a detective-like search for facts about their lives and deaths. Lise Funderburg's Pig Candy reconstructs the Jim Crow south as she tends to her dying father who is living out his final years in his boyhood home in rural Georgia.

Mendelsohn and Funderburg will read from their works and discuss how family stories personalize the abstractions of history. Funderburg is a journalist, essayist, and critic. She is currently an instructor in creative nonfiction writing at the University of Pennsylvania. Mendelsohn is the author of three books and his essays have been widely anthologized. He teaches at Bard College.

The program will take place on Sunday, Nov. 16, 4 p.m.-5:30 p.m. at the Painted Bride Art Center, 230 Vine Street, Philadelphia. First Person Arts, founded in 2000, transforms the drama of real life into memoir and documentary art to foster appreciation for our unique and shared experience. It has showcased the work of more than 100 artists nationwide.


One Book, One Jewish Community Includes Museum as Partner

The Museum is once again partnering with the Jewish Federation of Greater Philadelphia for its annual One Book, One Jewish Community: Connecting People project. As a project partner, the Museum's educational program Memory Keepers is included in a resource guide for teachers, community leaders and others who want to have a program for OBOJC. The program, developed to complement the Museum's current exhibition, Shaping Space, Making Meaning, enables students to create their own exhibit related to American Jewish identity using non-accessioned artifacts. The students take on the roles of curator, registrar, and exhibit designers.

One Book,One Jewish Community is designed to bring Philadelphia's Jewish community together through shared conversations, discussions and events inspired by a selected book. This year's book, My Father's Paradise, is by first-time novelist Ariel Sabar, whose work has appeared in The New York Times, the Washington Monthly, and other publications.

My Father's Paradise tells the story of Yona Sabar, a descendent of a lost tribe of Israel made up of Kurdish Jews who lived in the mountains of northern Iraq, so isolated that they still spoke Aramaic and were mostly illiterate. They were self-made mystics, storytellers, and peddlers who lived in harmony with their Muslim and Christian neighbors. Yona and his family were among the 120,000 Jews who emigrated from Iraq in the 1950s after the founding of the state of Israel. My Father's Paradise explores how Yona dedicates his career to preserving his people's traditions, while he and his son Ariel travel together to today's post-war Iraq to find what's left of his birthplace.

Synagogues, agencies and other Jewish institutions will use the novel as a vehicle for conversation, sharing and celebrating not only the book itself, but also the values and issues raised in the story. Ariel Sabar will be at Temple Beth Hillel, Beth El for a OBOJC kick-off conversation on Sunday, Nov. 2 2008. For more information on author Ariel Sabar and One Book, One Jewish Community, visit the Jewish Federation of Greater Philadelphia's website. For more information on Memory Keepers, please visit the education page of the Museum's site.


Museum and Singer Janis Ian Team Up

Kirkus Reviews called legendary songwriter Janis Ian's new autobiography Society's Child "a juicily entertaining look at an unusual life in show business." The book earned a starred review from Booklist, which said, "fans will love this book, of course, but many non-fans, too, should find this painfully candid memoir hard to put down." O magazine called it "hugely readable." People magazine gave it 3½ stars.

The Museum is joining with Ian and her publisher Tarcher/Penguin to offer free copies of her book to the first five E-Newsletter subscribers to respond to enews@nmajh.org with the words "Janis Ian" in the subject line and include your name and address. Included with the book will be Ian's new CD, Best of Janis Ian: The Autobiography Collection, which includes all of her classic songs, remastered and available all in one place for the very first time.

Ian's first album, featuring the breakout hit "Society's Child," was recorded in 1965. The seminal "At Seventeen" from her second album, Between the Lines, garnered five Grammy nominations in 1975 and she opened the first-ever episode of Saturday Night Live in the fall of that year. At the close of the decade her Night Rains album went platinum throughout Europe, Africa and Australia, making Ian an international star.

In 2002, "Society's Child" was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame, with "At Seventeen" followed in 2008. Ella Fitzgerald once called her "The best young singer in America," while Chet Atkins said, "Singer? You ought to hear that girl play guitar. She gives me a run for my money!" In addition to the autobiography and CD, the Museum is also offering a pair of tickets to Ian's shows at the The Grand Opera House , in Wilmington, DE on Thursday, Nov. 13 and at the Sellersville Theater on Friday, Nov. 14.

___________________________________

National Museum of American Jewish History
Independence Mall East
55 North 5th Street
Philadelphia, PA 19106-2197
Tel: 215.923.3811 Fax: 215.923.0763
www.nmajh.org

Welcome to the electronic newsletter of the National Museum of American Jewish History. This newsletter is designed to keep you informed of exhibitions, programs and other activities of the NMAJH, the only Museum in the country exclusively presenting educational programs and experiences that preserve, explore and celebrate the history of the Jews in America.
___________________________________

MUSEUM TAKES NEXT STEPS ON FLOOR



The Museum has the floor, so to speak. Construction of the first floor of the new Museum being built on Independence Mall is 75 percent completed and expected to be finished by mid-October. Work on the first floor followed completion of the basement floor in early September. Among the components to be found on the new Museum's first floor will be the Only in America® gallery.

The gallery will feature interactive stations that focus on individual American Jews--some famous and some who should be more famous than they are--are-exploring and celebrating their contributions in America and to America. Also in September, a tower crane (pictured below) was erected at the site. The tower crane will lift and assemble the structural steel that will form the Museum's framework. The framework, or skeleton, is scheduled to be completed in February.



The Museum is in the midst of a $150 million Capital Campaign for construction of the 100,000-square-foot, five-story building. Nearly $112 million has been raised for the Campaign. The new Museum is scheduled to be completed in fall 2010. For information on how to support the Museum, contact Irv Hurwitz, the Museum's director of institutional advancement at 215.923.3811 x 133 or by e-mail. For an up-to-date picture of the construction site that refreshes every 15 minutes, view our Museum-Cam. To see additional photos of the Museum's construction like those above, click here.


EXHIBITION ASKS FOR INPUT
Museum Wants To Know Visitor Knowledge

To experience recreated environments that transport you to a certain time or a certain place. To see original documents and personal objects. To share family stories and memories. These are among the choices visitors to the Museum's current exhibition are given when asked the question, "What three topics are most important for an exhibition about the experiences of Jews in the U.S.?"

This question, along with others asking about the Museum's major themes of freedom, immigration, and religious tolerance, appear on interactive touch screens in Shaping Space, Making Meaning, the Museum's current changing exhibition.

The exhibition design team is using the responses to these questions to give them a sense of the trends that can be discerned in contemporary American Jewry. In addition, the touch screens have a short quiz to help the Museum learn about its audience's knowledge of American Jewish history.

Shaping Space, Making Meaning also has design sketches, computer-generated images, video and text that offer an insider's look at the process of developing a landmark exhibition about more than 350 years of American Jewish life.

The NMAJH's exhibition design team is in the process of creating the 22,000-square-foot exhibition for the new Museum.


MUSEUM SHOP OFFERS A DISCOUNT FOR THE HIGH HOLY DAYS

Just in time for the High Holy Days, the Museum Shop carries unique and hand-crafted items to grace your holiday table, including this pomegranate collection (pictured). It is said the pomegranate has 613 seeds, equal to the number of commandments in the Torah. The pewter pomegranates adorning the items in this collection remind us of the Torah's commandments, ensuring a righteous start to the New Year.

These pomegranate candlesticks, kiddush cup, and challah plate are made by San Francisco-based artist Patrick Meyer. Meyer received his training at the Ecole des Beaux Arts de Paris in Paris, France. He started as a jewelry designer in 1985 but soon began creating metal household items. Meyer's pieces are sold nationwide and are a beautiful synthesis of form and function.


The Kiddush cup sells for $60, the challah tray for $80, and the candlesticks for $165. The entire set can be purchased by E-Newsletter subscribers at a special discounted rate of $275.Along with Meyer's pomegranate collection, the Museum Shop sells other Judaica perfect for the High Holiday season. This includes electric yahrzheit candles and a vast array of hand-made apple and honey dishes.

Customers who mention the E-Newsletter will receive a 10 percent discount for the holidays. Visit the Museum Shop to browse the collection or look at the items online at www.judaicashop.net. For more information email Eva Schlanger or Elaine Silverman, or call the Museum Shop at 215.923.0262.

The Museum Shop is open Monday-Thursday 10 a.m.-
5 p.m.; Friday 10 a.m.-3 p.m.; and Sunday 12 noon - 5 p.m.

Proceeds from the Museum Shop support the National Museum of American Jewish History.



EXPERIENCE THE PRYOR EXPERIENCE
Museum Co-Sponsors Performance

Rain Pryor is performing her jazz-inspired cabaret The Pryor Experience in two October shows at the Painted Bride Art Center co-sponsored by the Museum.

The Pryor Experience will feature her signature comedic interludes. Her stunning voice is also showcased in this musical performance with arrangements from Grammy-nominated Keith Killgo. Growing up in Beverly Hills as the daughter of a classic Jewish mother and the African American humorist Richard Pryor, Rain Pryor brings a sharp wit to fundamental questions of race, faith, and identity.

Rain previously performed at the Painted Bride in 2005 with her one-woman show Fried Chicken & Latkes, which was also sponsored by the Museum. The Pryor Experience is being performed Saturday, Oct. 4, 8 p.m. and Sunday, Oct. 5, 3 p.m. The cost is $35, and $17.50 for members of the Painted Bride.

To obtain tickets please visit the Painted Bride's website.


MUSEUM JOINS PHILLY INSTITUTIONS WITH SPECIAL SUBSCRIBER OFFERS

The Museum is joining with the Rosenbach Museum & Library and the Arden Theatre Company to offer E-Newsletter subscribers free and discounted tickets. The Rosenbach is offering 10 pairs of tickets to their current exhibition, There's a Mystery There: Sendak on Sendak, while the Arden is offering a $5 discount on adult tickets for their production of Candide.

The Rosenbach's exhibition is a retrospective of the work of author and artist Maurice Sendak. Through a total of more than 300 original watercolors, pen-and-ink sketches, doodles, manuscripts, books, and dummy books from the 1950s, it focuses on Sendak's personality as a storyteller. The exhibition discusses difficult and mysterious themes and memories in his work. Sendak's prolific imagination is explored through the characters, influences, and settings of his books, as well as his quest to illustrate what he calls "the Other Story," the hidden meanings of a text that haunt and enrich his illustrations.

There's A Mystery There: Sendak on Sendak will be on display at the Rosenbach Museum & Library through May 3, 2009, with new works on view every four months. For more information on the exhibition visit the Rosenbach's website.

To receive a pair of tickets, be one of the first five subscribers to email fdawson@rosenbach.org with the subject line "NMAJH Promotion." All respondents will automatically be added to the Rosenbach's e-news mailing list.

The Arden's production of Candide, featuring Leonard Bernstein's legendary score, is a bold and brand new version of Voltaire's wicked satire. This funny musical cuts to the core and will shock audiences.

To take advantage of the special NMAJH E-Newsletter subscriber offer of $5 off adult tickets, call the Arden Theatre Company's box office at 215.922.1122 and mention this story. The offer is not valid on previously purchased tickets and not in conjunction with another offer or discount. The offer is not valid for Saturday night performances.

The production will run through October 19. Tickets are available on the Arden website.


___________________________________

National Museum of American Jewish History
Independence Mall East
55 North 5th Street
Philadelphia, PA 19106-2197
Tel: 215.923.3811 Fax: 215.923.0763
www.nmajh.org

Welcome to the electronic newsletter of the National Museum of American Jewish History. This newsletter is designed to keep you informed of exhibitions, programs and other activities of the NMAJH, the only Museum in the country exclusively presenting educational programs and experiences that preserve, explore and celebrate the history of the Jews in America.
___________________________________

SPIELBERG'S FOUNDATION MAKES $1 MILLION GIFT TO THE NEW MUSEUM

Steven Spielberg's Righteous Persons Foundation has awarded the National Museum of American Jewish History $1 million for its Capital Campaign. With the gift, the Capital Campaign has raised nearly $112 million toward its goal of $150 million for the new Museum being built on Independence Mall.

"We are pleased to be able to join a community of donors in making a grant to the Museum," said Rachel Levin, the Foundation's Associate Director. "As a Foundation committed to helping to build a vibrant American Jewish community, we were especially interested in the fact that the Museum tells the particular story of Jewish life in the United States and through that lens, the broader story of America."

"The Board of Trustees is gratified to have the endorsement and imprimatur of the Righteous Persons Foundation," said Gwen Goodman, the Museum's Executive Director/CEO. "The Foundation has recognized that we are creating an institution that will embody the stories, dreams and visions of the entire American Jewish community." The Righteous Persons Foundation is dedicated to supporting efforts that build a diverse and vibrant Jewish community in the United States.

Having been deeply moved by the experience of directing the film Schindler's List, Steven Spielberg decided to donate his portion of the film's profits to help support a flourishing and vibrant Jewish community. He consequently established the Righteous Persons Foundation in the fall of 1994 and continues to designate targeted film profits to the Foundation. The gift to the Museum is one of the largest in the Foundation's history.

"We are delighted that Steven Spielberg and the Righteous Persons Foundation support our vision for the National Museum of American Jewish History," said George M. Ross, the Museum's Co-Chairman with Ronald Rubin and its Capital Campaign Chairman. "It's gratifying to have the support of one of the leading creative minds in the country. His gift is further demonstration of our national campaign and we are certain it will inspire more support across the country."


MUSEUM TAKES CONSTRUCTION TO ANOTHER LEVEL

The outline of the auditorium is taking shape for the new National Museum of American Jewish History being constructed on Independence Mall. The concrete perimeter wall of the lower level where the auditorium (pictured below) will be located has been installed as well.

The auditorium, a multipurpose venue equipped for films, theater and concerts, was funded by a $5 million gift from Dr. Alexander and Lorraine Dell and the Michael & Susan Dell Foundation. The theater will seat approximately 200 people, including seats for those with disabilities. The auditorium, part of the Museum's education center located in the building's lower level concourse, will be home to a mix of programs, all geared toward making the Museum the preeminent national educational and cultural center for the celebration of the American Jewish experience.

In addition to the auditorium and theater, the concourse includes an education center with two classrooms and a resource center. A sliding partition between the classrooms will enable it to be transformed into one large space. The concourse also includes an expansive public area that will be used for programs and special events. Additionally, construction workers and contractors at the site are working on other elements of the 100,000-square-foot building. On the north side of the site at street level the first part of the floor of the 2,500-square-foot Museum Shop (pictured below) is being constructed.

Concrete slabs, or the floors, for the lower level and first floor, are being placed. Concrete walls are being installed as well. Work on the building's electrical and plumbing systems is ongoing and construction of the foundation walls of the Museum continues. The new Museum is scheduled to be completed in fall 2010. For an up-to-date picture of the construction site that refreshes every 15 minutes, view our Museum-Cam.


GIFTS FOR YOUNG CHILDREN NOW AT MUSEUM SHOP

The Museum Shop and online store carry a variety of gifts perfect for celebrating the significant Jewish life cycle event of the baby naming and bris, and for those first birthdays.

This whimsical print (pictured left) of Noah's Ark by Israeli-American artist Mickie Klugman portrays a dove, day & night, and the Hebrew alphabet all surrounded by a quote from Genesis. Animals for each letter of the English alphabet make up the border. The print is available with a variety of different frame and mat choices.

Klugman is an artist and calligrapher who has been specializing in Judaica since 1980. Among the many sources that inspire her delicate watercolor designs are traditional Jewish motifs, Persian and Arabic illumination, contemporary graphics, as well as art nouveau and art deco. Being an avid gardener, she loves to incorporate the beauty of nature into much of her artwork.

This Noah's Ark print is only one of a variety of Child and baby related items being sold at the Museum Shop and its online store. Others include first curl and tooth boxes, rattles, and baby kippot. In addition to prints and other gifts for children, the Museum Shop carries Judaica by a variety of artists. Visit the Museum Shop in person and online to browse the large assortment of items in all price ranges. For more information contact Museum Shop Managers Eva Schlanger, or Elaine Silverman, or call the Museum Shop at 215.923.0262.

The Museum Shop is open Mondays-Thursdays 10 a.m. - 5 p.m., Fridays 10 a.m.-3 p.m., and Sundays 12 noon - 5 p.m. Proceeds from the Museum Shop support the National Museum of American Jewish History.


NEW QUESTIONS POSED BY MUSEUM EXHIBIT ON AMERICAN JEWISH ISSUES

There is a clear difference of opinion between two NMAJH visitors in response to the new exhibit question, "Are opportunities for advancement equally available to all ethnic and racial minorities in the U.S.?" One visitor from Farmingham, MA states that the opportunity exists, and that people should make of it what they will despite the unequal access to it because of ethnicity or race. Another visitor from Santa Cruz, CA gives a firm, succinct, "Of course not."

The visitors are among many who are engaged in a lively debate about equal opportunity for all minorities and with other issues posed by the exhibit, "Drawing the Line," part of the Museum's changing exhibition, Shaping Space, Making Meaning. New questions asked in the exhibit are "Is Israel the homeland for all Jews," and "Should religion play a role in American politics."

The exhibition also offers visitors the opportunity to learn how a museum creates a major exhibition and at the same time allows them to offer feedback through interactive experiences to the design team working on the new Museum.

Other interactive elements in the exhibition include touch screens to engage visitors in a conversation about the Museum's major themes of freedom, immigration, and religious tolerance, and a short quiz to help the Museum learn about its audiences' knowledge of American Jewish history. The exhibition design team uses the answers to these questions to give them a sense of the trends that can be discerned.

In addition to the interactive elements, Shaping Space, Making Meaning has design sketches, computer-generated images, video and text that offer an insider's look at the process of developing a landmark exhibition about more than 350 years of American Jewish life. The NMAJH's exhibition design team is in the process of creating the 22,000-square-foot exhibition for the new Museum under construction and scheduled to open in 2010.


MUSEUM OFFERS LISA LOEB CHILDREN'S CD TO SUBSCRIBERS

The Museum and singer-songwriter Lisa Loeb have joined together to offer E-newsletter subscribers copies of her second CD of children's music celebrating the summer camp tradition.

Camp Lisa is a mix of old favorites ("Home on the Range," "Father Abraham") and a collection of original songs. Listeners will also find celebrity cameos from such artists as Nina Gordon, Jill Sobule and Steve Martin, who plays banjo in a song, "The Disappointing Pancake." Camp Lisa is perfect for camp sing-alongs or music making in your own living room.

Loeb has had success with a multi-dimensional career encompassing music, film, television, voice-over work and children's recordings. Her five acclaimed studio CDs include her major label debut, the gold-selling Tails and its follow-up, the Grammy-nominated, Gold-selling Firecracker. Loeb's television credits include an inspired look at finding love on her show No. 1 Single for E!

To receive your free copy of the CD be one of the first six e-newsletter subscribers to email the Museum at nmajh@nmajh.org with your name and address. Please put "Camp Lisa CD" in the subject line. To purchase a copy of Camp Lisa visit Barnes and Noble.


___________________________________

National Museum of American Jewish History
Independence Mall East
55 North 5th Street
Philadelphia, PA 19106-2197
Tel: 215.923.3811 Fax: 215.923.0763
www.nmajh.org

Welcome to the electronic newsletter of the National Museum of American Jewish History. This newsletter is designed to keep you informed of exhibitions, programs and other activities of the NMAJH, the only Museum in the country exclusively presenting educational programs and experiences that preserve, explore and celebrate the history of the Jews in America.
___________________________________


MUSEUM-CAM NOW ON THE MALL

The Museum has installed a high definition camera that allows people to follow the progress of the new National Museum of American Jewish History on its website as it is being built.

The link to the picture, which refreshes every 15 minutes, can be found on the Museum's homepage at www.nmajh.org. From its position across the street from the Museum site, the camera captures the construction of the Museum's west and north facades. The camera, dubbed the Museum-Cam, will stay up until the building is completed in the fall of 2010, allowing the Museum to record the construction process for its archives.

As of July, 2008, concrete for the first floor, which will house the visitor and group entrances, bookstore, and a major multimedia exhibition entitled "Only in America", is being laid. In the fall, the steel frame of the building will be erected. Previously the site was excavated and then shored up. Following that, the foundation for the building was put in place.

The new 100,000-square-foot building on Independence Mall will stand directly across from the Liberty Bell, two blocks south of the National Constitution Center, and one block north of the birthplace of American liberty, Independence Hall. Please look for the Museum-Cam link on the left-hand side of future NMAJH E-newsletters.For more information on the new Museum contact Irv at 215.923.3811 x133 .

___________________________________

National Museum of American Jewish History
Independence Mall East
55 North 5th Street
Philadelphia, PA 19106-2197
Tel: 215.923.3811 Fax: 215.923.0763
www.nmajh.org

Welcome to the electronic newsletter of the National Museum of American Jewish History. This newsletter is designed to keep you informed of exhibitions, programs and other activities of the NMAJH, the only Museum in the country exclusively presenting educational programs and experiences that preserve, explore and celebrate the history of the Jews in America.
___________________________________


1. BUILDING FOUNDATION TO BE COMPLETED BY JULY

The foundation is in place for the pre-eminent museum exploring American Jewish history. Work continues on the core exhibition, education programs are being developed and fundraising continues, with more than $108 raised toward the Capital Campaign goal of $150 million.

The literal foundation for the new Museum is on track as well. Foundations for the five-story building being constructed on Independence Mall are being poured and will be finished in July. The foundations are being put in following excavation and shoring of the site. In the fall steel will be erected on the site and approximately a year later the building envelope will be enclosed.

The Museum is constructing a new 100,000-square-foot building on Independence Mall that will stand directly accross from the Liberty Bell, two blocks south of the National Constitution Center, and one block north of the birthplace of American liberty, Independence Hall.



For more information on the new Museum contact Irv at 215.923.3811 ex 133.

Photo by Ilana Blumenthal.



2. WEDDING MEZUZAH FOR SALE ONLINE
Mezuzah Hold Glass Shards

The breaking of the glass under the chuppah is one of the most memorable moments at a Jewish wedding. Now, the memories of that moment can be retained, along with the glass shards, in this beautiful mezuzah carried by the Museum Shop. The mezuzah's white glass is sandblasted and kiln fired and blue silvercoat mirror has been added to the back for the letters to appear in the same vibrant blue.The wedding shards are placed in the Plexiglass casing.

The mezuzah, designed and handcrafted as part of artist Susan Fullenbaum's Ahava collection can be found in the Museum Shop's online store. Fullenbaum's current work focuses on themes taken from Jewish life and her own developing awareness of Jewish tradition. She creates handcrafted stained glass art commemorating joyous life cycle events, illustrating Jewish customs, or to be used in ceremonial life, much of it available in the Museum Shop.

Susan's art is represented in juried art shows and exhibitions nationwide and her commissioned art pieces are displayed internationally in galleries, synagogues, and private homes. She is a member of Artsites and the American Guild of Judaic Artists.This Mezuzah is one of a variety of wedding related items for being sold at the Museum Shop.

The Museum Shop carries Judaica from artists all over the country. Visit the Museum Shop to browse the large assortment of items in all price ranges. For more information contact Museum Shop Managers Eva Schlanger, or Elaine Silverman, or call the Museum Shop at 215.923.0262.

The Museum Shop is open Mondays-Thursdays 10 a.m. - 5 p.m., Fridays 10 a.m.-3 p.m., and Sundays 12 noon - 5 p.m. Proceeds from the Museum Shop support the National Museum of American Jewish History.


3. IDENTITY PROGRAM HELD FOR JEWISH AMERICAN HERITAGE MONTH
Panel Discussion Held at Museum

When Andre Key was asked if he felt more African-American or more Jewish, he replied, "I'm just simply both." Key, a graduate fellow at the Institute for the Study of Race and Social Thought and Center for Afro-Jewish Studies at Temple University continued, "We, as black Jews, don't want to be known as black Jews vs. "normal" Jews, so instead we call ourselves Israelites or Hebrews."

Key's remarks came during a provocative panel discussion on Jewish identity held recently at the Museum. "Jewish Peoplehood in the 21st Century and Beyond" was held in conjunction with the Museum's current changing exhibition "Shaping Space, Making Meaning" and Jewish American Heritage Month.

Over the course of the evening panelists, who came from different cultural backgrounds, also addressed the personal and communal challenges, that they faced as multicultural Jews and as Jewish Americans. The program was created as a way to facilitate conversation surrounding the ethnic diversity of Jews in America today. This issue of contemporary Jewish life is addressed throughout the "Shaping Space, Making Meaning" exhibition by asking visitors hotly debated questions such as, "Are Jews White?"

Much like Key, Hannah Lau, a rising senior at the University of Pennsylvania and a curatorial intern at NMAJH is a product of two backgrounds. When she spoke of her Chinese father and Jewish mother, she noted that she had never been conflicted about her own "experience as a 'Jewsian'. Jewish and Chinese cultural values are pretty similar." She went on to say, however, that "the only part that used to trouble me is the sense that I was never Jewish enough and never Chinese enough to really count."

Lau added that she feels children of intermarried families, particularly ones who do not "look Jewish" do not ultimately feel less Jewish. "It just may take them a little longer to understand what that really means. I've never had someone tell me to my face that I'm not Jewish." In response to the experiences related by the panelists, an audience member asked during a question-and-answer session following the panel discussion, "Given that we can be culturally different, what would you say is the core of Judaism, what is the one defining core piece of this religion that all Jews should embrace? What is the common thread?"

"The story we accept of ourselves. That is the thread. Sinai, the covenant, the Diaspora. The history we relate to keeps the community as a community," responded panelist Rabbi Jon Konheim, of Beth Am Synagogue in Baltimore, MD. The program's moderator, Dr. Rebecca T. Alpert, an associate professor of religion and women's studies at Temple University, agreed with Rabbi Konheim, but added that while a common narrative is in fact the core of the Jewish people, Jews do not have to all believe the story to be a religious one. It can just be thought of as the history of the Jewish people.

Rabbi Konheim, who leads the Conservative synagogue described as urban and egalitarian, concluded by saying, "The acceptance [of all types of Jews] has been good. It's a "bend over backwards" acceptance at my congregation. The challenge for us in the Conservative movement is to create a Judaism that is distinct, but not ethnic. I think it's so wonderful to look at the younger generation and see where I've come from. How times have changed. When I was young, Ashkenazis stayed in one group. In this generation Jews all mix together." Following the discussion, audience members were divided into groups to further discuss issues presented during the program.


4. NMAJH RECEIVES COLLECTIONS ASSESSMENT GRANT

A guest conservator will spend two days at the Museum in July evaluating current artifact collections care, thanks to a recently awarded $3,000 grant from Heritage Preservation, formerly the National Institute for Conservation. The conservator will examine storage methods and conditions as well as policies and procedures related to the Museum's collection of approximately 20,000 artifacts. The assessment will include a look at the Museum's security and climate control systems.

The assessment will be a collection-wide survey. Conservators have conducted more limited surveys of paper and textile artifacts in the collection in past years. After the site visit, the conservator will give the Museum a report enabling the institution to evaluate its current collections care policies, procedures, and environmental conditions. The report will also help the Museum make appropriate improvements for the immediate, mid-range, and long-range care of its collections.


The Museum is one of 2,500 that have been chosen to participate in Heritage Preservation's Conservation Assessment Program since its creation in 1990. Heritage Preservation's President Lawrence L. Reger, praised NMAJH for "making the vital work of caring for the collections and sites a priority and helping ensure that they are available to present and future generations." Heritage Preservation's Collections Assessment Program is supported through a cooperative agreement with the federal Institute of Museum and Library Services.

Heritage Preservation is the national organization dedicated to preserving our nation's heritage. Its members include museums, libraries, archives, historic preservation organizations, historical societies, conservation organizations, individual professionals, and other groups concerned with saving the past for the future. To learn more about Heritage Preservation, please visit www.heritagepreservation.org.

The Institute of Museum and Library Services' mission is to grow and sustain a "Nation of Learners". Through its grant making, convening, research and publications, the Institute empowers museum and libraries nationwide to provide leadership and services to enhance learning in families and communities, sustain cultural heritage, build 21st century skills, and provide opportunities for civic participation. To learn more about the Institute, please visit www.imls.gov.


5. BOOK OFFER IN CONJUNCTION WITH SHAPING SPACE, MAKING MEANING