Programs and Lectures

Authors at the Astor 2012

Myriam Miedzian

He Walked Through Walls

Thursday, January 26, 2012, 7:00 P.M.
In the JCC • Astor Judaica Library

In He Walked Through Walls, Dr. Miedzian captures an important aspect of the twentieth century experience—the will to survive. She recounts the story of her father, who faced death during three wars. This is a success story about survival skills, foresight, luck, courage and chutzpah.

This program will commemorate International Holocaust Remembrance Day.

Admission: $8/ JCC Member; $10/ Non-member

Stan Levenson and Sid Shapira

Memoir and Memories

Thursday, February 23, 2012, 7:00 P.M.
In the JCC Astor Judaica Library

Enjoy an evening of capturing memories, featuring local authors Stan Levenson and Sid Shapira.
Stan will speak about his memoir: When Brooklyn Was Heaven-A Memoir from Brooklyn to L.A. and Places In-Between.Sid Shapira will share his process of creating family histories using the Stories Be Told method.

Admission: $8/JCC Member; $10/Non-Member

Lisa C. Paul

Swimming in the Daylight: An American Student, a Soviet Jewish Dissident, and the Gift of Hope

Sunday, March 4, 2012, 7:00 P.M.
In the JCC Astor Judaica Library

Lisa C. Paul, a college student and Catholic from Wisconsin, never expected she would become prominent in the dangerous fight for human rights in the Soviet Union. But while working in Moscow as a nanny for an American family in 1984, she studied Russian with Inna Meiman—a Soviet-Jewish dissident and refusenik—and both their lives would forever change.

Admission: $8/JCC Member; $10/Non-Member

Ashley Rindsberg

Tel Aviv Stories: Life, Death, and Love in Israel’s Unholy City

Thursday, April 26, 2012, 7:00 P.M.
In the JCC Astor Judaica Library

Tel Aviv is a place of contradiction, an urban dream of the Middle East where sleek European cafes sit beneath stone minarets—where Berlin-style hipsters sip coffee next to black-hatted rabbis—where charity, sex, conflict and controversy overflow the streets. In Tel Aviv Stories, Israel’s “White City” is revealed.

Don't miss author Ashley Rindsberg, a San Diego native and alumnus of the San Diego Jewish Academy.

Admission: $8/JCC Member; $10/Non-Member

The Library Expresses itself with Poetry

Jewish Poets-Jewish Voices

Three evenings featuring local Jewish Poets followed by open mic. Bring your poetry to read or sing, or just listen and enjoy.

Tuesday, January 17, 7:00 P.M. - Featured Local Poets: Elizabeth Schwartz, Frieda Levinsky, Sue Marder
Tuesday, February 21, 7:00 P.M. - Featured Local Poets: Bonnie Baron, Gertrude Rubin, Ida Deichaite, Joan Kurland and Bonnie Baron reading the poetry of her late mother, Gertrude Rubin.
Tuesday, March 27, 7:00 P.M. - Featured Local High School Students/ Poets: San Diego Jewish Academy, High Tech High, Soille San Diego Hebrew Day School

Free Admission. To reserve your seat, please RSVP (858)362-1150