The Inside Press

Magazines serving the communities of Northern Westchester

Inside Press

FRANKENSTEIN-THE MOVIE SCORE Comes to the Chappaqua Performing Arts Center March 22

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FRANKENSTEIN-THE MOVIE SCORE is a Production of Friends of Chappaqua Performing Arts Center

Grammy-nominated composer Michael Shapiro’s FRANKENSTEIN-THE MOVIE SCORE with live orchestra will be performed by the New Chappaqua Orchestra under the direction of the composer at the Chappaqua Performing Arts Center, 480 Bedford Road, Chappaqua, New York 10514 (info@chappaquapac.org) on Saturday night, March 22, 2025 at 8 p.m.  Doors open at 7:30 p.m.  Tickets are available at https://chappaquapac.org/

The classic early sound horror film Frankenstein starred Colin Clive and Boris Karloff (in his breakout role as the Monster) and was directed by James Whale.  The hit movie Frankenstein is largely credited with saving Universal Pictures from bankruptcy, breaking all box office records during the Depression era. However, the film was produced prior to through composed film scores being typically used (indeed King Kong in 1933 was the first film to have a full film score).

In 2002, Michael Shapiro composed an orchestral film score for the classic film Frankenstein and was premiered by The Chappaqua Orchestra at the Jacob Burns Film Center played simultaneously with the movie.  Since its premiere in Pleasantville, the score has been performed in one of its four versions (chamber orchestra, full orchestra, wind ensemble, and opera) worldwide over 65 times from St. Petersburg, Russia, Milan, Italy, Bergen, Norway, Trier, Germany, Birmingham, Liverpool, and Manchester, UK, to performances all over the United States and Canada, including the opera version premieres at the Los Angeles Opera and Atlanta Opera and the wind ensemble version by the Dallas Winds at the Meyersohn Symphony Center. 

The Chappaqua performance, under the direction of composer Michael Shapiro, will be the first time the score has been played in Westchester in over ten years.

Holocaust & Human Rights Education Center Announces New Board of Directors Chairperson

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HHREC new Board of Directors Chairman, Daniel Weinreb

The Holocaust & Human Rights Education Center  (HHREC) has elected Daniel P. Weinreb as their Board Chairperson. Weinreb is a Principal at Paragon Realty Group LLC, a real estate company based in Westport, CT that specializes in acquiring and developing retail and commercial properties.  Weinreb will serve a three-year term effective January 1, 2025.  He has been serving as a board member since 2005, and succeeds Michael Gyory, who served as Board Chairperson since 2021. Gyory will continue to serve as Vice Chairperson of the HHREC Board.

Weinreb is the son of a Holocaust survivor, Bernie Weinreb, who escaped from the Vilna Ghetto in Lithuania in 1943, fought with the Partisans, and eventually came to live in America in 1947. 

Reflecting the responsibilities, lessons and core values instilled in him by his father, he has, for over 25 years, helped spearhead a Yom HaShoah program designed to educate and enlighten the congregants and children , on behalf of his synagogue, the Jewish Community Center of Harrison; the Community Synagogue of Rye; KTI Synagogue of Port Chester; and Congregation Emanu-El of Westchester. He is a graduate of the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania, and has lived in Purchase, NY for the last 36 years with his wife, Wendy.

“I am who I am because I am the son of a Holocaust survivor.” said Weinreb. “Nothing has had as important an impact on me as the fact that my father lived through what he did and managed to survive the Holocaust. Along with my mother, he instilled in me the basic understanding of good and evil, what is important – and what is not.  I am truly honored to be elected as the new Board Chair of the HHREC and look forward to continuing working with our talented, diverse, and dedicated Board members. I especially want to thank Michael Gyory, Joseph Kaidanow and Millie Jasper for all their inspired work as well as the leadership they provide.  Rising antisemitism and hatred continue to remind us all how important the work of the HHREC is and, together with our Board, staff, and supporters, we will continue to carry on our mission – to teach the lessons of the Holocaust and encourage students to stand up and speak up for dignity and respect, and against prejudice and bigotry.”

“It has been a tremendous privilege to be Chairperson of the Holocaust & Human Rights Education Center for the past four years” said Gyory. “I look forward to working closely with Daniel and HHREC to share the lessons of the Holocaust, genocides and human rights crimes to teachers and students in Westchester County and the greater Hudson Valley area.” 

Weinreb previously served on the Board of Directors of the Jewish Community Center of Harrison and is a past Chairman of the Real Estate Executives Division of UJA. He and his wife Wendy were among the initial volunteers who worked with Maria Fareri Children’s Hospital at Westchester Medical Center to help with fundraising and the development of community awareness activities. They were also founding members of the Parent’s Advisory Council at the Children’s Hospital. 

About The Holocaust & Human Rights Education Center

The Holocaust & Human Rights Education Center (HHREC) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization based in White Plains New York that serves schools, synagogues, colleges, churches and civic centers in Westchester and the greater Hudson Valley area. The HHREC Mission is to enhance the teaching and learning of the lessons of the Holocaust and the right of all people to be treated with dignity and respect. HHREC works with teachers and students to help schools fulfill the New York State mandate that the Holocaust and other human rights abuses be included in their curriculum. Since 1994, the HHREC has brought the lessons of the Holocaust, genocide, and human rights violations to more than 3,000 teachers, and through them to thousands of students. For more information visit www.hhrecny.org call 914.696.0738 email info@hhrecny.org

 

 

Start the New Year with a New Career at Club Fit!

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If you’ve pondered a career in the world of fitness, a golden opportunity awaits you!  You’ll also have a chance to meet your own fitness goals while helping others do the same.

Here’s how: Join a growing team that’s passionate about fitness, wellness, and making a difference in the community!  Club Fit is hiring, and hosting a Career Fair to find talented individuals to join in shaping a healthier future.

The Career Fair is happening in two locations on two consecutive Saturdays:

January 18th at Club Fit Jefferson Valley & January 25th at Club Fit Briarcliff. Each fair will take place from 12 p.m. – 4 p.m.

You can anticipate exploring your potential to fill a wide variety of Open Positions:

These include:

  • Personal Trainers, Fitness Coaches, and Group Fitness Instructors
  • Receptionists, Café Workers, and Childcare Workers
  • Massage Therapists
  • Lifeguards & Swim Instructors
  • Basketball Coaches

Club Fit requests that you complete the prescreen form to secure your onsite interview, and kick off a fulfilling career in 2025: https://www.clubfit.com/career-fair-rsvp/

Second Generation Holocaust Speaker to Share Unique Story of Missing Licenses Found in Germany

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On Wednesday, January 8th, the Holocaust & Human Rights Education Center (HHREC) will host second generation Holocaust speaker Lisa Salko, who will appear on the HHREC MemoryKeeper series to present 13 Jewish Drivers’ Licenses.  

In November of 2018, Salko, her sisters and cousins traveled to Lichtenfels, Bavaria, Germany to reclaim their grandfather’s and two great uncles’ drivers’ licenses which had been confiscated by the Nazis 80 years earlier, shortly after Kristallnacht. The drivers’ licenses had been rediscovered while the town was digitizing records in 2017. What started as a trip about reclaiming a part of their family turned into something so much bigger than them.

13 Jewish Drivers’ Licenses is about a small Bavarian town coming to terms with its darkest past. Salko shares the story of her weeklong trip which coincided with the 80th Anniversary of Kristallnacht.

“I’m grateful to be sharing my personal story with you.” said Salko. “ It’s an important story; one of discovery, reflection, reconciliation, and hope. It is extremely relevant given the rise of antisemitic occurrences in our country today, throughout Germany and Europe, I’ll be taking you on a journey to Lichtenfels, Germany where my maternal family is from, and introduce you to a remarkable group of Upstanders, and share all they have done to educate their community about the Holocaust and the importance of Holocaust remembrance.”

Salko is a member of the HHREC GenerationsForward program, which is composed of second and third generation children and grandchildren of Holocaust victims and survivors, who share their family stories. She has presented 13 Drivers’ Licenses at synagogues, libraries, educational symposiums, middle and high schools; at Manhattanville University, Baruch College/CUNY, the Museum of Jewish Heritage, the German Consulate in New York, the Church of St. Ignatius Loyola in NYC, and Yad Vashem: The World Holocaust Remembrance Center in Jerusalem, Israel. This past March, she appeared as the keynote speaker at the HHREC High School Human Rights Institute at Iona University.

Salko also served as a consultant and appeared in a short documentary film 13 Drivers Licenses’,  an internationally acclaimed and award-winning film directed by Ryoya Terao, a Documentarian and Professor at NYC College of Technology/CUNY. The film has won over 30 awards worldwide.

Salko is a real estate professional at Benerofe Properties Corp., a real estate and private equity investment firm based in White Plains, NY.

The program will commence online via Zoom at 7:00PM. The event is free and open to the public. For more information visit the HHREC events page at hhrecny.org.

About The Holocaust & Human Rights Education Center

The Holocaust & Human Rights Education Center (HHREC) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization based in White Plains New York that serves schools, synagogues, colleges, churches and civic centers in Westchester and the greater Hudson Valley area. The HHREC Mission is to enhance the teaching and learning of the lessons of the Holocaust and the right of all people to be treated with dignity and respect. HHREC works with teachers and students to help schools fulfill the New York State mandate that the Holocaust and other human rights abuses be included in their curriculum. Since 1994, the HHREC has brought the lessons of the Holocaust, genocide and human rights violations to more than 3,000 teachers, and through them to thousands of students. For more information visit www.hhrecny.org call 914.696.0738 email info@hhrecny.org

 

HHREC Selected by New York State Education Department To Revise Curricula For Teaching History of the Holocaust

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The Holocaust & Human Rights Education Center (HHREC) of White Plains has been selected by the New York State Education Department to revise and update all curricular resources to teach the Holocaust and other genocides in order to meet the 1994 mandate. Steven A. Goldberg, the HHREC Director of Education, serves as the project manager. The Archives Trust under the leadership of Janet Braga is designing a unique platform to house the project.

HHREC will work with 29 active and retired educators from New York State to research and write materials for elementary, middle, and high school social studies and ELA teachers. One of the guiding principles is the notion of unique people rather than anonymity, reflecting the importance of case studies of individuals as lenses into a better comprehension of the enormity and complexity of these historical events. In addition to chronological segments on the Holocaust, the Resource Guide will also include sections on the Nature of Human Behavior, Literature and Art, The United States and the Holocaust, and “other genocides,” such as Armenia (1915-17), Holodomor (1932-33), Rwanda (1994), and Rohingya (2016).  A special template for the analysis of genocides will be included. The guide will contain glossaries of terminology, lessons, activities, primary and secondary source readings, with questions, visual documents (i.e. photographs, maps, political cartoons, graphs, and charts), and hyperlinks to both personal testimonies and films.

“We are very excited to share the news that HHREC has been selected by the New York State Education Department to work on this important initiative.” said Millie Jasper, HHREC Executive Director. “As we have seen a significant rise in antisemitism and a growing number of people questioning the history of the Holocaust and other genocides, it is important now more than ever to educate students about these historic events, and their relevance today in our schools and communities, here in New York State and across the country.

 

NEWS COURTESY of the Holocaust and Human Rights Education Center

About The Holocaust & Human Rights Education Center

The Holocaust & Human Rights Education Center (HHREC) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization based in White Plains New York that serves schools, synagogues, colleges, churches and civic centers in Westchester and the greater Hudson Valley area. The HHREC Mission is to enhance the teaching and learning of the lessons of the Holocaust and the right of all people to be treated with dignity and respect. HHREC works with teachers and students to help schools fulfill the New York State mandate that the Holocaust and other human rights abuses be included in their curriculum. Since 1994, the HHREC has brought the lessons of the Holocaust, genocide and human rights violations to more than 3,000 teachers, and through them to thousands of students. For more information visit www.hhrecny.org or call 914.696.0738 email info@hhrecny.org