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2005 February 5765

Inside This IssueFrom the Chairman ........................... 2Kibitzing with the President ............... 3Student Financial Aid ........................ 5Out and About .................................. 5General Briefing ................................. 6M. Charles Bakst ............................... 6

ServingMinute by

Minutepage 3

Did you ever wonder where themoney goes from the drawingsheld at Association meetings and

social events? One-half, of course, goes tothe holder of the lucky number at the meet-ing. But where does the other half go?

How about the Tsunami disaster reliefprogram! With little fanfare and a great dealof speed, the Touro Welfare Committee,with the unanimous endorsement of the

Board of Directors, made a $1,000 dona-tion to T.C.N., a Jewish organization thathas been involved in rescue and recoveryefforts from the very beginning of the di-saster. The only discussion at the board cen-tered on how large a donation and throughwhich agency it should be given.

The money came from Touro's WelfareFund which also includes donations receivedfrom members.

by Stevan Labush, Chairman, Touro Welfare Fund

Touro's constitution provides that allregular members receive a freegravesite on Touro land at Lincoln

Park Cemetery and that the adjoining onemay be reserved for his spouse as long as theland is available.

The key phrase here is: as long as theland is available. Touro has taken steps toassure that land will be available, at least fora longer time!

Joel Pressman, chairman of Touro'sCemetery Committee, announced thatTouro has purchased 104 gravesites in newlydeveloped land at Lincoln Park Cemetery.Those gravesites will be used when the ex-isting land in our rotation cemetery is ex-hausted. It gives Touro more than 300

Touro Adds to Cemetery Land Holdingsby Art Poulten

gravesites which based on past experience,should provide available land for our mem-bers well into the 21st Century.

Joel explained that about 1200 grave-sites were created in the newly developedland at Lincoln Park. First, organizations al-ready owning land were given an opportu-nity to purchase additional plots. Touro wasamong the first to commit to purchasingthe maximum allowed. Another 500gravesites were offered to the communityat large and the remainder are being heldfor use on an as-needed basis.

In other cemetery-related news, theTouro Board has voted to increase the costof the adjoining gravesite reserved for amember's spouse on the current rotation

land to $300, still a considerable saving fromwhat gravesites are being sold for at LincolnPark. Perpetual care is not included for thatgrave or for the member's free site. Press-man said the increase in the charge will helpoffset Touro's cost of annual care on its un-used gravesites.

This new land at Lincoln Park is valu-able, but it is not enough. Several years ago,Touro formed a Cemetery Search Commit-tee to look for land to build a new cemeteryfor Touro and the community at large. Todate, nothing has been found that meets ourcriteria but the committee continues to lookfor a suitable means to fulfill our promiseto our members.

There are times Touro makes donationsto organizations and wants the communityto know it. There are other times that thedonation is much more important than anyresulting publicity. The Tsunami disaster wasone of the latter. But it is important thatyou, as a member of the Association, knowwhere this money goes.

Tsunami Relief Effort Receives Touro Donation

Faces in the Crowdpage 4

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www.tourofraternal.org

by Jed R. Brandes

Social

SceneFrom the Chairmanby Robert Miller

Touro had a jam-packed month in De-cember. Events included the traditional

Chanukah Party and Chinese Dinner andMovie on December 25th. The first-everTouro Tailgating Party was a great success asthe Patriots chipped in by pounding theBrowns. The February 16th meeting was heldat the West Valley Inn hosted by FriendshipLodge. Another great meal.

The action continues well into spring!Nominations of Board Members andLodge Officers will be at Touro Hall March2nd.

Comedian Paul D'Angelo headlines theentertainment at the March 5th Two-fer tobe held at the Imperial Room at RhodesPlace.

On March 13th Touro goes to PPAC tosee Jackie Mason.

A busy month concludes on March 23rdas Touro hosts its annual Membership OpenHouse.

The month of April will be equally livelywith Touro's Bowling Party, the Joke Offwith Burt Fischman and the inaugural TouroFamily Feud Night.

Turn to our website for up-to-date de-tails:

When each of us joined Touro we received specific instructions during the initia-tion ritual about the gavel.

"The gavel in the hand of the President is a sign of authority and should commandyour respect."

So I ask you, why have we had such a problem recently in maintaining decorumduring the business part of our monthly meetings?

Members are talking constantly during the meetings, causing disruptions and tak-ing away from the spirit of the meeting. Members are talking among themselves whilethe President is speaking – during committee reports. Brothers talk during the memo-rial service (imagine if it were your memorial). Gentlemen, please, it has to stop!

Yes, Touro is a place to have fun. Sure, we are here to socialize. Yes, we want tokibbitz with our friends. However, during the all-so-brief meeting portion of ourevening, there's really no reason why there can't be a little decorum!

Say what you want or think that I am making a big deal about this. Those of youwho have been president know exactly how it feels. Our two current presidents havebeen frustrated by the lack of respect for the gavel shown by our membership. Pleasehelp us maintain the decorum needed for a meeting to take place in an orderly fashionso we can move on to the real reason everyone came in the first place – to eat and to beentertained.

I have asked our Inside Guard to be more of a Sergeant at Arms to help facilitatethe decorum needed. I will also consider implementing fines or some other penalty forfailing to respect the gavel in the hand of the President.

Look at it this way: what would you do if you were speaking to your family or agroup of your friends and everyone in the room was talking and no one was payingattention to you? It's the same scenario, isn't it?

In the spirit of HARMONY, FRIENDSHIP and BENEVOLENCE I ask for yourcooperation in helping make our meetings more meaningful instead of just goingthrough the motions.

Decorum is needed. PLEASE!

Gentlemen, mark your calendars for pMarch 23rd. It's the most fun Open Houseyou've ever been to at Touro. Want proof? Here it is !

First, we brought back your very favorite Touro meal, the unbeatable K.F.C. (ko-sher fried chicken). Next, we found the area's funniest comedian, Michael J. Petit,known as "The Man with a Thousand Voices". Michael has appeared in Vegas as wellas comedy clubs all over the country. His act includes a stand-up routine with manycelebrity impersonations.

We've lined up some great incentives for those who sign up new regular membersthe night of the Open House. We're talking great prizes !! How do you win? Simple !!Bring in a qualified "regular member", have him sign up that night and you'll beentered to win fantastic, and I do mean fantastic, prizes to be drawn that night.

Finally, and best of all, you'll get to bring your favorite friend, relative, or in-lawinto the finest Jewish fraternal organization in the country. Not only will you enjoytheir company at future Touro meetings and events, but also you'll absolutely receive15 Bagel Bucks to use as you choose, just for bringing a new regular member in.

Mark your calendar for Wednesday, March 23rd for Touro's Annual Open House.My friend Al Cerrone gave me permission to say: "You'll be glad you did!"

Join Usfor the

Most FunOpen House

Ever!by Andy Lamchick

March 23

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Each Board of Directors meeting starts in the same manner.The members file in and find the minutes of the previousmeeting waiting for their inspection. After the meeting is

called to order, one of the first items on the agenda is to approve theminutes. Board members are solicited to make any corrections oramendments to the minutes. From time-to-time,a correction will be needed: a name is misspelled,or an incorrect date is listed. It is remarkable that,given the length and breadth of the board meet-ing discussions, there are no substantial errors.But, then, Jerry Tebrow is the Association Secre-tary.

Just the sight of Jerry tells a lot about the man.Never a hair out of place, moustache perfectlytrimmed, clothes neat and coordinated. A man ofprecision. The perfect person for recording theaffairs of the Board.

That is just half of the story. For Jerry, serviceis a major life theme. Anything he can do to fa-cilitate the greater good is a welcome task. Thisarticle is a perfect example. I informed Jerry that he'd be the subjectof the next Tourogram profile and we agreed to speak later in theweek. But, the next morning, I received an e-mail from Jerry with a650-word "autobiography."

Jerry has been married for 36 years to Joan, and they have onedaughter, Tracey. He served in the RI Army National Guard for 31years, attaining the rank of Lieutenant Colonel. He was Comman-dant of the State Military Academy. And, he was awarded the RhodeIsland Star for exceptional meritorious military service to the state.

RESPECT. It's a word that seems to have lost its meaning. You see it atour meetings, you see it on the highways, and you see it in our everyday interactions. Are we so caught up in our own lives and in our own

2 or 3 square feet of personal space that we forget that we share our space withothers?

I can tell you from personal experience that trying to conduct a Touromeeting can be very frustrating. It is especially troublesome when new mem-bers stand before us to join our Association. What do we say about ourselves

when we cannot show a little respect and holdour conversations for even 20 minutes while theritual is taking place?

It really takes very little effort from each ofus to show others that they are important. Weshow that to our dear departed brothers after theyare gone. Why don't we show that to each otherwhile living? It only takes a moment, a littlethought, a little kindness and a little tolerance –a little common sense — to show respect to eachother.

Let's give the word RESPECT its rightfulmeaning during Touro meetings.

It is the second highest military award given by the state.A retired math teacher at Coventry High School, he went the

extra mile by serving as Math Department head. He still tutors stu-dents. He is also a director of the American Computer Science League,a computer science contest for high school students.

Jerry joined Touro in the mid 1980s;mostly attending couples functions, but not a lotof meetings. He gradually became more involved,attending social committee meetings and finally,getting appointed as Association Secretary. Hepoints out that, in this capacity, he cannot vote atboard meetings. But, he takes satisfaction in hisability to serve on committees, attend the meet-ings and voice his opinions. He doesn't need the"glory" of being elected to the board by Touro'smembers. He is content to serve.

Much of the work Jerry does for Touro isbehind-the-scenes committee work. He continuesto be a major force on the Social Committee, ar-ranging for military figures to speak at member-

ship meetings. And his Trivia Night at the January meetings hasbecome a great Touro tradition. He has made major contributionsto the great success of Touro's golf tournaments. He jokes that he isa member of the Orientation and Cemetery committees, helpingTouro members when they come and when they go!

In the autobiography, Jerry wrote that his "close friends are Touromembers and, I never thought that Touro plays such a large part inmy life." It is safe to say that the benefits of that relationship runboth ways.

To Protect and Serveby Jed R. Brandes

Kibitzing with the Presidentby Ed Deluty, President, Friendship Lodge

Trivia Contest Winners

Jerry Tebrow

Trivia Night Winners at the January 19th Meeting: (pic-tured center, l-r) Jed Brandes and Barry Schiff took top prizewith second place winners (pictured right, l-r) StevenDinnerman and Andy Lamchick and third place went tothe team of (pictured left, l-r) Stephen and Howard Kosofsky.

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Faces in the Crowd

at Touro's

Chanukah Party

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For the 2005-2006 school year,your Board of Directors has sub-stantially improved the Touro

Student Financial Aid program. Touronow will offer up to $31,000 in edu-cational aid to members and theirfamilies in the form of two outrightgrants of $3,000 each (previously$2,500) and as many as 10 interest-free loans of up to $2,500 each (previ-ously $2,000).

Here are the programs and howyou can receive the appropriate appli-cations.

Student Financial Aid by Alan D. Lury, Chairman, Student Financial Aid Committee

EDUCATIONAL GRANTS: Regular Touro members, their spouses and children, and chil-dren of deceased regular Touro members are eligible. The applicant must attend an accreditedinstitution of higher learning on a full time basis for the 2005-2006 academic year. Awards willbe based on financial need, academic record and other criteria as outlined in the application.Please note that grant applicants or the parents of grant applicants must have been a member ofthe Association for at least two years.

STUDENT LOANS: Regular Touro members, their children and children of deceased regularTouro members are eligible for interest-free Student Loans. Students must attend an accreditedinstitution of higher learning on a full-time basis for the 2005-2006 school year. The loansmust be co-signed by a regular Touro member in good standing who must remain a member ingood standing during the life of the loan.

Please look for our early March letter detailing the specific application processes.

Fall Two-fer at the "O" Club

Tailgate Partyat Touro Hall

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President Ed Deluty and Friendship Lodge played host at our an-nual Brunch meeting Sunday, December 19th. Following thebusiness meeting, Chef Chairman Miller's cooking crew saw that

each member enjoyed lox, eggs, kugels and all the fixins.Our speaker was Providence Journal political columnist M. Charles

Bakst. Mr. Bakst’s acerbic wit was on display on subjects including holidayreligious displays, the Rhode Island General Assembly, the 2006 stateelections and, of course, the Red Sox. The floor was opened to questions,and our politically savvy brothers did not fail to put Mr. Bakst on thespot.

Mr. Bakst was well received by our brothers, no matter their part ofthe political spectrum they represented.

Touro WelcomesM. Charles

Bakstby Barry Jay Schiff

Brig. Gen. Rick Baccus, former Commander of Joint TaskForce 160, offered Touro members a vividpicture of the detainee operations at Guantanamo Bay in

Cuba, during October's lodge meeting.After the monthly lodge meeting and ini-

tiation of new members, Brother Jerry Tebrowintroduced Gen. Baccus to the audience. AnArmy veteran with 29 years experience, he su-pervised over 1400 American military police atGuantanamo during 2002. During that stay, theAl Qaeda and Taliban detainee population grewto over 600.

The General first gave us background in-formation on the detainees' transportation tothe base, then their treatment and living condi-tions. He showed us many pictures of the base and different stagesof the detainees' housing, which continually evolved during that year.

General Briefing on the Al Qaeda Detaineesby Lester Nathan

Gen. Baccus explained why the captured men are considered tobe detainees rather than prisoners-of-war. While this distinctionaffects their legal rights, they are still treated by the guards as if they

were prisoners-of-war.Prior to this assignment, the General

served with the 43rd Military Police Brigadebased in Warwick, and his presentation camefrom that perspective. In his opinion, the pri-mary goal of the operation is to gather intelli-gence about Al Qaeda and the Taliban, a job donemainly by military intelligence specialists at thebase.

After returning to the Ocean State, RickBaccus has become an administrator for theRhode Island Department of Mental Health,

Retardation and Hospitals, based in Cranston. He is on standbyduty with the Army Reserve.

Channel 12's

Mike MontecalvoPaid a Visit November 17th

General Baccus speaking to the membership.

Pictured left to right:Channel 12's

Mike Montecalvo withHarmony Lodge

President Jeffrey Davis,accepts a gift of

appreciationfrom Touro for spending

an enjoyable eveningwith the membership.

Any "yamulke"in a storm.

Mort Coken improvises ashe says the prayer over theChalah at the November

17th meeting

Service with a smile. Pictured are our volunteers preparing to serve at the December19th meeting.

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BJs

One of the "perks" of Touro mem-bership is a special group rate at

BJs Wholesale Clubs throughout thecountry. The current regular annual feeis $40. If you're a Touro member, youcan join for half that: $20 a year.

If you're interested, please contactthe Touro office by phone (401-785-0066), email (tourofratl@aol.com) ormail (P.O. Box 3562, Cranston, RI02910) and the proper forms will besent to you. Then, bring the completedform to the service desk at your localBJs. The membership expires Septem-ber of each year so you'll be chargedjust a portion of that $20, dependingon when you apply.

After that, renew for a full yeareach September at the register at thenearest BJs. It's that simple.

Steven FeinbergEdmond GoldbergDavid GoldsteinCarlos GoncalvesAndrew GoodmanHarvey GreenLeonard GreenbergHarris GreenstoneSteven HersheyCarl LevinStephen LevittPeter LewissJay LitmanHarvey MichaelsHarold MukamalMichael PennJoel RittnerWilliam ScheragaIrving SchneiderHerbert SpivackRabbi Peter SteinHerbert StrachmanMerrill TemkinFreddric ThalerHarris Weiner

N E W B R O T H E R Swho joined in 2004

Touro Welcomes Ten New Membersat Our October Meeting

Touro welcomes our newest members. Listed alphabetically: Edmond Goldberg, David Goldstein,Andrew Goodman, Harvey Green, Leonard Greenberg, Carl Levin, Peter Lewiss, Jay Litman,Herbert Spivack, Harris Weiner

TouroLife Members

Clubfor 2004

The following is a list of regularTouro members who have either

reached the age of 80 or have been amember for 50 years and have joinedour "Life Members Club":

Jordan Bergel

Irving Chorney

Jesse Edenbaum

Paul Field

Gerald Finkelman

Myer Grossman

Irwin Rubin

Howard Werchadlo

I N M E M O R I A M

Brothers who have passed away in 2004:

Max AisonJack BilowMaurice ChorneyFred DunderSamuel EisenstadtJean GinsburgSam GormanDavid HazmanGeorge IdlisHarvey KayePerry KleinErnest KrasnerMortimer LamchickIsrael LaudonSheldon LazarusJulius LevinJoslin OkenWallace SergeIrving WattmanMilton WintmanNorman Wolfe

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HARMONY • FRIENDSHIP • BENEVOLENCE

Touro Fraternal Association

45 Rolfe Square, P.O. Box 3562,Cranston, RI 02910Phone: 401-785-0066Fax: 401-941-8781E-Mail: tourofratl@aol.comWebsite: www.tourofraternal.org

HARMONY LODGEJeffrey Davis, PresidentBarry Schiff, Vice PresidentSteven Waldman, SecretaryPeter Hodosh, Treasurer

FRIENDSHIP LODGEEdward Deluty, PresidentJed Brandes, Vice PresidentSteven White, SecretarySteven Shaw, Treasurer

February 2005

Editor: Bruce WeismanColumnists: Jed Brandes

Edward DelutyAndrew LamchickRichard LevensonLester NathanArthur PoultenBarry SchiffGerald Tebrow

Robert Miller, ChairmanAndrew Lamchick, Vice ChairmanGerald D. Hodosh, TreasurerGerald Tebrow, SecretaryJudah Rosen, ChaplainArthur Poulten, Chairman EmeritusMilton BronsteinMorton CokenSteven DinermanAndrew GilsteinRobert HodoshStevan LabushRodney LockeAlan LuryNathan LuryLester NathanJoel PressmanBarry ShawDr. Aaron ShermanMichael SmithBruce WeismanIrving Wolpert

BOARD OF DIRECTORS • 2004-2005

Visit Touro's Website at www.tourofraternal.org

Non-Profit Org.U.S. Postage

PAIDProvidence, RI

Permit #719

TOURO FRATERNAL ASSOCIATIONP.O. BOX 3562CRANSTON, RI 02910

Nomination of OfficersWednesday, March 2 • 7:00 pm

Touro Hall

Nominations will be heldfor both

Harmony and Friendship Lodge Officersalong with

Six Board of Director Positions

All members welcome.• • •

Join us for Ben & Jerry's Ice Creamafter the meeting.

• • •For more information contact:

the Touro office at:785-0066

or check out our website at:www.tourofraternal.org