Arts & Entertainment

Paws of War providing veteran's service animals with free veterinary care as part of their Hearts and Heros vet clinic. Photo by Anthony Lambroia
In support of their mission of giving back to veterans and first responders, non-profit Paws of War recently hosted their “Hearts and Heroes” event at their headquarters in Nesconset, where they provided 27 service animals with free veterinary care, which included wellness checks, flea and tick medications, vaccinations, bags of dog food and microchipping service.
Dr. Marissa Altieri, DVM, treated over 27 service animals at Paws of War’s Hearts and Heros free vet Clinic. Photo by Anthony Lambroia

The pandemic has brought financial challenges to veterans and first responders. Many disabled veterans live on low or fixed incomes and their service animal’s medical care is essential so they can provide the level of support and comfort upon which the veterans depend.

“As a former veteran, I know how critical and expensive it is to take care of these service animals. They are more than just pets; these animals provide emotional support and tasks for these heroes when it is needed most,” said Kelli Porti, Veteran & Community Outreach Liaison for Paws of War. 

Dr. Marissa Altieri, DVM, volunteered her expert veterinary care to the pop-up clinic and its patients, donating her time to assist Paws of War as a way to give back to the community and support the non-profit’s mission.

“Veterinarians enable animals of all kinds to live their best life and to be as happy and healthy as possible. Service animals are responsible for their health and well-being and in many cases the lives of their owners. Volunteeringmy time and medical knowledge for Paws of War and their mobile clinic is my way to honor these veterans for all they have done for our country,” said Dr. Altieri. 

 Hearts and Heroes is part of a continual program, Vets for Vets, hosted by Paws of War that gives back to service men and women by providing free veterinary care for their service animals; their wellness is essential in providing their exceptional service to their owners who are U.S. military veterans suffering from the emotional effects of war.

For more information about Paws of War and their Hearts and Heroes program, visit their website, https://pawsofwar.org.  

 

Ostrich eggshell beads found at the Mlambalasi site. These beads are examples of Later Stone Age cultural objects that people created and traded as they traveled the continent. Photo by Jennifer Miller

Ancient DNA from the remains of nearly three dozen African foragers—groups associated with hunting, gathering, and fishing—sheds new light on how groups across sub-Saharan Africa lived, traveled and settled prior to the spread of herding and farming. The study involved an international team of 44 researchers including experts from Stony Brook University. The findings, to be published in Nature, produced the earliest DNA of humans on the continent, at some 5,000 to 18,000 years old.

View of the Mlambalasi Rock Shelter in Tanzania, where one of the newly DNA sequenced individuals was recovered by Elizabeth Sawchuk in 2010. Radiocarbon dates suggest that this individual lived approximately 18,000 years ago, making their DNA the oldest currently known in Africa. Photo by Katie Biittner

The new genetic findings add weight to archeological, skeletal and linguistic evidence for changes in how people were moving and interacting across Africa toward the end of the Ice Ages. Around 50,000 years ago, distinct groups of foragers began exhibiting similar cultural traditions, hinting at the development of exchange networks and interregional connections. The reason for this shift, which archaeologists refer to as the Later Stone Age transition, has remained a mystery.

“We demonstrated for the first time that a major archeological transition some 50,000 years ago associated with profound shifts in technology, symbolism, and so-called ‘modern behavior’ in fact coincided with major demographic changes,” said Elizabeth Sawchuk, PhD, Co-First Author, Research Assistant Professor at Stony Brook University and a Banting Postdoctoral Fellow at the University of Alberta. “We found that ancient foragers across eastern and south-central Africa are a mix of eastern, southern, and central African ancestry, showing there was widespread movement and mixing across sub-Saharan Africa coinciding with the transition from the Middle to Later Stone Age.”

Previous research proposed a genetic cline (or gradient) of variation among ancient African foragers extending from eastern to southern Africa. To the research team’s surprise, this new analysis indicates a three-way cline instead of a two-way cline that includes a central African ancestry – a significant point of future investigation because there has been less archeological research in central Africa than other parts of the continent.

“By associating archaeological artifacts with ancient DNA, the researchers have created a remarkable framework for exploring the prehistory of humans in Africa,” says Archaeology and Archaeometry program director John Yellen of the U.S. National Science Foundation, one of the funders behind this project. “This insight is charting a new way forward to understanding humanity and our complex shared history.”

Sawchuk and Stony Brook colleague and Co-Author Jason Lewis, PhD, presented ancient DNA (aDNA) from six individuals from the Late Pleistocene and early Holocene from five sites in Tanzania, Zambia, and Malawi

These six individuals have now yielded the oldest human DNA from sub-Saharan Africa.

The six individuals were analyzed with 28 previously published ancient persons associated with foraging and/or Later Stone Age material culture. The research team also generated higher coverage data for fifteen of these individuals which permitted a more in-depth look at their DNA.

Lewis co-led a team reanalyzing the history of work and collections from the ancient Tanzanian rockshelter site of Kisese II, particularly in the context and dating of the human remains, allowing the collection to be included in the present study. The skeletons from the site were originally excavated in the 1960s but remained unstudied until recently.

“The work is a great example of the unexpected and important results that can come from going back to old museum collections to take another look with new approaches and technologies, in this case using aDNA methods,” said Lewis.

Ancient DNA and archaeological data now both point toward a demographic transition across Africa around the time that beads, pigments, and symbolic art became more widespread. Sawchuk, Lewis and colleagues note that while scientists have proposed shifts in social networks and perhaps changes in populations sizes played a role, such hypotheses have remained difficult to test.

“We’ve never been able to directly explore proposed demographic shifts until now,” explains Sawchuk. “It has been difficult to reconstruct events in our deeper past using the DNA of people living today, and artifacts can’t tell the whole story. The DNA from people who lived around this time provides the missing piece of the puzzle, offering an unprecedented view of population structures among ancient foragers.”

While this three-way population structure can only be explained by widespread movement and mixing in the past, the researchers also note that the traveling and mixing didn’t last.

Individuals in this study were most genetically similar to their geographic neighbors, which suggests that by 20,000 years ago, people had already stopped moving as much. The authors explain this coincides with archaeological evidence for “regionalization” toward the end of the Ice Ages when Later Stone Age industries began to diversity and take on distinctive local attributes. So while stone and beads continued moving through exchange networks, people themselves began living more locally.

Mary Prendergast, the study’s co-Senior Author and Associate Professor of Anthropology at Rice University, said there are arguments that the development and expansion of long-distance trade networks around these ancient times helped humans weather the last Ice Age.

“Humans began relying on each other in new ways,” she said. “And this shift in how people interacted with one another may have been what allowed people to thrive.

“The work also helps address the global imbalance of research, as there are around 30 times more published ancient DNA sequences from Europe than from Africa,” she added. “Given that Africa harbors the greatest human genetic diversity on the plant, we have much more to learn.”

The entire research team included scholars from the United States, Canada, Kenya, Malawi, Tanzania, Zambia and several other countries. Critical contributions to the study came from curators and co-authors from African museums who are responsible for protecting and preserving the remains.

 

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Apple Cinnamon French Toast Casserole
Apple Cinnamon French Toast Casserole

(Culinary.net) Waking up, no matter how late, can be such a drag. You’re moving slow and cuddled up warm under the blankets. However, your stomach is growling which means eventually you are going to have to arise. When you do stumble out of bed, it’s time to get the day started with a delicious casserole on your plate. It’s a warm, freshly baked Overnight Apple Cinnamon Fresh Toast Casserole.

Prepared the day before and chilled overnight, this casserole is ready to throw in the oven once you’re up. It’s gooey on the inside and baked to a perfect crisp on the outside, plus it’s filled with mouthwatering apples and ground cinnamon, not to mention the sweet glaze drizzled on top at the end. It’s perfect for any breakfast or brunch occasion and the little ones will enjoy the sweet crunch, as well.

Whether you are waking up on an early Monday morning or lounging around in your pajamas for an hour (or two) over the weekend, this breakfast casserole is worth the wait.

Find more breakfast and brunch recipes at Culinary.net.

Yield: Serves 12

Ingredients:

  • Nonstick cooking spray
  • 1 package (20 ounces) French bread, cubed, divided
  • 1 can (20 ounces) apple pie filling
  • 9 eggs
  • 1 cup half-and-half
  • 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
  • 1 cup powdered sugar, plus additional (optional)
  • 2 tablespoons milk, plus additional (optional)

Directions:

  1. Spray 8-by-8-inch glass baking dish with nonstick cooking spray.
  2. In baking dish, add 10 ounces cubed French bread in bottom of dish. Pour apple filling over bread. Top with remaining cubed French bread. Set aside.
  3. In medium bowl, whisk eggs, half-and-half and cinnamon. Pour evenly over bread.
  4. Cover with aluminum foil and chill overnight.
  5. Heat oven to 325 F.
  6. Remove foil and bake 50-60 minutes.
  7. Let cool 10-15 minutes.
  8. In small bowl, whisk powdered sugar and milk. Add additional, if needed, until pourable glaze is reached. Drizzle over casserole before serving.
See video here.

METRO photo

By Nancy Marr

During the pandemic, when we were reminded that farmworkers were working hard to provide food for the rest of us, farmworkers in Suffolk were working for long hours with no break, on farms where they had no running water or toilets, could not take time off to care for their children or family members who had COVID, were often not eligible for overtime and were often undernourished. Although they could be considered “essential workers” they had few resources. The people who work on our farms have long been at the bottom of the food chain. 

The first legislation that was passed was President Franklin Roosevelt’s National Labor Relations Act in 1935. It gave laborers the right to strike for better conditions, but it did not cover agricultural workers or anyone in domestic service. 

Recently, there has been new legislation to increase their rights, but it is not always effective because it may not be enforced. Also, many workers do not know what their rights are or fear that they will lose their jobs if they protest. 

In California, because of the efforts by Cesar Chavez and Dolores Huerta and the United Farm Workers, formed in 1971, the state passed the landmark Agricultural Labor Relations Act in 1975, giving farmworkers in California the right to unionize and negotiate for better wages and working conditions. 

In 2019, New York State passed the Farm Laborers Fair Labor Practices Act, even though it was opposed by the New York State Farm Bureau. The bill sponsor, Senator Jessica Ramos, said, “The Farmworkers Fair Labor Practices Act has lingered in this body for twenty years, with seven sponsors on both sides of the aide. I have traveled to seven counties in New York, visited fourteen farms, talked to countless farmworkers, and held three hearings on this bill. There are 80-100,000 farmworkers that are the backbone of New York’s multi-billion-dollar agricultural industry.”  

The bill gave farmworkers the right to organize, and the right to bargain collectively but it did not give them the right to strike. The law also required farmers to provide Disability and Workers Compensation coverage, paid family leave, a day off each week, and overtime pay after sixty hours. (The current New York State budget may include help to farmers to pay the overtime pay.) The effectiveness of the law will depend on how much it is publicized.

This year, the first step toward unionization under the new law took place at the Pindar Vineyards in Peconic. The New York State Public Employment Relations Board officially certified Local 388, the union established by Pindar workers with the help of Angel Reyes Rivas, the Long Island Coordinator for the Rural and Migrant Ministry. Located in upstate New York, with an office in Riverhead, the Ministry is a statewide nonprofit organization that works with rural disenfranchised communities, helping them develop their own leadership. 

A group of workers on the East End has found a way through collective action to earn enough money to buy their own land. Last year, they formed the Long Island Farmworker Flower Cooperative with the help of organizers from the Rural and Migrant Ministry. Through the cooperative they support one another and can meet their economic and cultural needs through a jointly owned and democratically controlled enterprise. 

By learning agricultural management, including sales, finance, and accounting, and pooling their resources, they can become producers, buying land and greenhouses for their own flower production. They hope to be independent and be an example for other immigrant communities. To support their efforts, visit the Amandla Long Island Worker Education Center, 573 Roanoke Avenue, Riverhead (631-381-0498) or contact RuralMigrantMinistry.com. For more information, read Mark A. Torres’ Long Island Migrant Labor Camps: Dust for Blood, published in 2021.

Nancy Marr is Vice-President of the League of Women Voters of Suffolk County, a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization that encourages the informed and active participation of citizens in government and influences public policy through education and advocacy. For more information, visit www.lwv-suffolkcounty.org or call 631–862-6860.

'The Automat' will be screened on April 11.
Rosalind Harris (Tzeitel)

The long-anticipated spring Port Jefferson Documentary Series kicks off Feb. 28 with a screening of Fiddler’s Journey to the Big Screen at Theatre Three, 412 Main Street, Port Jefferson. Narrated by Jeff Goldblum, the film draws on behind-the-scenes footage of the making of Fiddler on the Roof with interviews and never-before-seen stills, capturing how this beloved musical made its triumphant, hazardous journey to the big screen and its unparalleled impact as a cultural force. Guest speaker via live Zoom will be Director Daniel Raim.

Up next on March 7 at Theatre Three is Youth v. Gov, the story of 21 young people, ages 13 to 19, from all over the nation and all walks of life who collectively sue the United States government for violating their constitutional rights by threatening their futures with the effects of climate change. Guest speaker will be Director Christi Cooper via live Zoom.

The season continues with Refuge, a story about fear and love in the American South, at Theatre Three on March 14. A leader in a white nationalist hate group finds healing from the people he once hated — a Muslim heart doctor and his town of refugees. Guest speakers via live Zoom will be directors Din Blankenship and Erin Bernhardt, and Chris Buckley and Heval Kelli, subjects in the film.

After a brief hiatus, The Automat will be screened at Theatre Three on April 11. Chock-full of rich archival footage of old Philadelphia and NYC, this everything-you-wanted-to-know-about-automats film is a lighthearted trip through the history of Horn & Hardart’s iconic and innovative eateries. Guest speaker will be Director Lisa Hurwitz.

a-ha, The Movie heads to Theatre Three on April 18. The music of Queen and the Velvet Underground instilled a sense of destiny in three teenagers living in a small town in 1970s Norway. That dream led to A-ha: the synth-pop trio featuring keyboardist Magne Furuholmen, vocalist Morten Harket, and guitarist Pål Waktaar-Savoy. Featuring new interviews with the band and previously unreleased behind-the-scenes footage. Guest speaker via live Zoom will be Director Thomas Robsahm.

Next up is Zero Gravity to be screened at John F. Kennedy Middle School, 200 Jayne Blvd., Port Jefferson Station on May 2. The documentary follows a diverse group of middle-school students from San Jose, CA, who compete in a nationwide tournament to code satellites aboard the International Space Station. Guest speaker via live Zoom will be Director Thomas Verrette.

Final documentary at Theatre Three on May 23 TBA.

*All screenings will be held at 7 p.m.

All tickets are $10 and are available online or at the event (cash only).  For more information or to purchase tickets, visit www.portjeffdocumentaryseries.com. The series is sponsored by Brightview Senior Living of Port Jefferson Station and Covati & Janhsen CPAS PC of Port Jefferson.

 

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'Hands of Gold'

By Jeffrey Sanzel

Author Roni Robbins

At the suggestion of his daughter, nursing home resident Sam Fox records his life story. “Now where to being with this taping for Eliza? I was a decent man, I suppose.” In that “I suppose,” author/journalist Roni Robbins sets in motion the engaging but unreliable narrator in Hands of Gold, subtitled One Man’s Quest to the Find the Silver Lining in Misfortune (Amsterdam Publishers). Sam refers to some of his dormant experiences as “a ravaging tapeworm” that he wanted to purge. What follows is a textured, first-person narrative reflecting turn-of-the-century European life and North American immigration, as well as struggles with money, family, and health. 

 

Robbins’ novel is based on cassette tapes left by her maternal grandfather. In a decade-spanning journey, Hands of Gold’s sweeping nature never loses its intimacy. 

Sam Fox was born in Jacovo, Hungary, in 1905, the ninth child of a poor Jewish family that would eventually grow to thirteen (with his widowed father marrying his wife’s sister to produce the additional offspring). It is a life of farming and prayer for the family. 

Robbins provides a vivid depiction of poverty, threatened by violence and unrest, both in the form of anti-Semitism and the threat of war. She creates the cramped, cold conditions of the shtetl, a large family where servings of food were almost rations. As Sam’s mother would tell them, “That’s what you have and that’s what you eat.” 

Robbins wisely eschews the easy, idyllic family life for one of constant challenges, exacerbated by Sam’s father’s passing and his elder brother’s return. Always in the background is the hope of America—the land where the streets are paved with gold. At age eighteen, Sam escapes the family (as well as dodge army service), ending up destitute in Prague, only to return home. With his second attempt at liberation, he spends time in Germany before crossing the Atlantic and jumping ship in Montreal. The book is a Brave New World adventure story, a unique take on “Go West, young man.”

In Canada, he falls in love with Hannah Stein. The seamstress-Yiddish theatres’ singer is dynamic, self-assured, and strong with an annulled marriage. From the first date to marriage and beyond, the courtship is beautifully chronicled.

At age twenty-one, Sam snuck over the Canadian border. His first impression is not the idealized United States. “As I stepped off the platform, I noted how closely packed the buildings, how shmutzy the streets were with blackened snow and fetid water …” Four of his brothers and four of his sisters had already made homes in America. But even then, it is not a joyous reunion; his sister, Sophie, greets him with a mixed reception.

He witnesses the conflict between immigrants who have forged uneasy assimilation and those who still cling to their old-world Jewish traditions. Robbins never evokes anything less than an honest picture.

Sam finds work and starts a family. Central to his story is tuberculosis developed at age twenty-six. The repercussions and medical setbacks coupled with the separations from his family plague him for years to come. He is in and out of employment, often spending weeks in the hospital or rest facilities, trying to work his way back to Hannah and his children. As in Europe, his existence was marred by poverty. The book chronicles the organizations that supported people like Sam—both government bureaus and Jewish agencies. The services aided but did not fully alleviate the burdens faced by poor and sick people. 

No book on this subject can avoid the effects of the Holocaust. Much of Sam’s family is lost in Europe. Sam’s oldest son served in the post-World War II army, and his experience going through the Displaced Persons camps is poignant and powerful.

Sam ponders generational gaps and muses on the contrast of his childhood with his children. “My children, like most, didn’t comprehend how good they had it. When I grew up, I didn’t always have shoes to wear […] Only on Friday nights did we have to wear shoes. They didn’t necessarily fit properly, but luckily, we only had to wear them for a few hours […] Children learn more when they have their own families to support …” 

Robbins captures Sam’s voice, with its European cadence and liberal use of Yiddish. (The words are easily understood in context or using the book’s glossary.) Sam questions many of his choices but accepts their eventual outcomes. 

“If there’s something I’ve learned, it’s that some days start out badly and don’t get any better. Other days are quite momentous and you have to hold tight to those. Be thankful for every day you experienced love and blessings because you never know when your faith will be tested again.” 

Hands of Gold explores and celebrates the gratitude of one man’s soul. Pick up a copy online Amazon.com or BarnesandNoble.com. For more information on the author, visit www.ronirobbins.com.

Allied Pediatrics celebrated their grand opening on Feb. 16. Photo from Allied Pediatrics

Allied Physicians Group, an independent provider of high-quality comprehensive family health care services for both children and adults, recently held their grand opening and ribbon cutting ceremony for its new office, Allied Pediatrics of Rocky Point, at 346 Route 25A, Rocky Point, on Feb. 16. The new office is the 24th Allied location on Long Island, bringing the total number of pediatric offices in the New York Metropolitan Area to 36, and is also Allied’s first office that has been constructed from the ground up.  

The 5,500 sq. ft., state-of-the-art pediatric office has eight employees, with three pediatricians Dr. Nubia Vargas-Chen, Dr. Eric Levene and Dr. Daniel Freidman. With an urgent need for Pediatricians in the area, these physicians will provide the highest quality of care to all patients in the Rocky Point and surrounding communities.  

The event was attended by Councilwoman Jane Bonner on behalf of the Town of Brookhaven.

Councilwoman Jane Bonner presents Dr. Kerry Fierstein, CEO of Allied Physicians Group, with a Certificate of Congratulations from the Town of Brookhaven on Feb. 16.

“I am very happy to welcome Allied Physicians Group’s to the Rocky Point community. This is an important new business in our community and I wish Dr. Fierstein and her staff the best of luck. We have a growing number of families with young children in the area who will be well served. This new office will be convenient for families living here in Rocky Point and the surrounding area,” said Councilwoman Bonner. 

The Rocky Point office has health safety protocols in place to protect patients from the spread of COVID-19 and other illnesses. Design elements include separate sick and well areas and a state-of-the-art HVAC system with UV lighting to improve air quality. Services for patients and families includes wellness care, vaccinations, sick care, a new parent helpline, breastfeeding support, telehealth services, nutrition assistance, asthma control education (ACE) and community education (webinars, CPR classes). 

“Our experienced pediatricians and clinicians are committed to providing high quality care and exceptional service to families and children of the Rocky Point community,” said Dr. Kerry Fierstein, CEO of Allied Physicians Group. “With a growing number of children in the community, this new office is convenient for families in Rocky Point and the surrounding areas.” 

Pictured in top photo are, from left, Lauren Diguisieppe, Angela Holdorf, Ariele Alon, Angela M. Noncarrow, District Office Director for Senator Palumbo, Pat Athanasakes, Nicole Mann, Dr. Gregson Pigott, Commissioner of the Suffolk County Department of Health Services, Dr. Nubia Vargas-Chen, lead physician at Allied Pediatrics of Rocky Point, Town of Brookhaven Councilwoman Jane Bonner, Dr. Kerry Fierstein, CEO of Allied Physicians Group, Andrew Phillips, Kevin Edwards, SVP of Business Development, Patricia Martin-Quinn, Allen Wirtenson, David Baskin, Jennifer Colamartino, Sylvia DaCunha, Heather Edwards, Executive Director of Allied Foundation, Tina Colangelo, Mary Ellen LaSala, Cathryn Mackie, Margaret Galatioto, Jack Rosebery, Josh Klinger, Brianne Chidichimo, Director of Marketing for Allied Physicians Group.

For more information, call 631-315-7747 or visit www.alliedphysiciansgroup.com.

From left, Park and Melissa Tulip. Photo by Barbara Anne Kirshner

By Barbara Anne Kirshner

What makes for bonded pairs? Do they have to be siblings or a mother and her offspring or maybe it’s two that started off as acquaintances only to realize life was much better together than apart?

Park was seven years old when ten week old dachshund puppy, Melissa Tulip, joined our family. We had gone through a traumatic loss the year before with the untimely death of our beautiful Madison whom after two highly invasive back surgeries passed at only seven years three months old. We were despondent. I saw our Lexington, who was six years old at the time, staring out the back sliding glass doors looking for Madison and wondering if she would emerge from behind the thick arborvitae.

Park and Madison were best buddies. From the moment Park came into our house, Madison took him under her care and he looked up to her. Both Lexington and Park were sad without Madison. The house became painfully quiet as all of us were mourning the loss of our beloved girl. Lexington had always been somewhat of a loner, and even after Madison passed, she remained the loner. Park, who was used to having Madison at his side, was lost without her.

Then on Memorial Day 2013, light and life returned when Melissa Tulip joined our family. It was as if she stepped inside the house, put down her bags, looked around and declared, “Let the games begin!” And boy how they did!

Lexington showed Melissa Tulip the ropes, teaching her to bark at the Labs next door and how to climb the ramps placed in strategic positions around the house offering easy access to our king size bed, the living room sofa and the love seat in my study.

But Park ignored Melissa Tulip for the first month she was with us. Then the day came when something triggered a recognition in Park. Madison sometimes sported a strand of pearls, especially on holidays. When she passed, I wanted to preserve the pearls as a keepsake so instead of letting Lexington or Melissa Tulip wear them, I wrapped and placed them in my jewelry box.

One day while shopping, I saw a crystal necklace and thought, instead of pearls, Melissa Tulip would wear crystals. I came home with my find and placed the necklace around Melissa Tulip’s neck. That’s when I witnessed something that was so extraordinary I couldn’t deny it. Park looked at Melissa Tulip wearing the necklace and did a double take as if he recognized the soul within. From that day to this, Park and Melissa Tulip have been inseparable. From the moment their eyes greet each new day until a blanket of night tucks them in, these two are together.

They communicate easily with each other, they know each other’s moods and understand when one isn’t feeling well, they go on adventures together, they sleep with noses touching and Park has become Melissa Tulip’s groomer. He will even step aside and let her lick the remnants of his food bowl. I have seen her take a bone out of his mouth and in response he will never growl, but instead simply search out another. He is always extremely giving to her.

Park is fifteen and a half years old now and Melissa Tulip will be nine on March 13. Park went through a terrible health scare last year when he suddenly lost the use of his hind legs. But with the help of a wonderful vet who practices alternative medicine, Park progressed and miraculously the paralysis disappeared.

All during the five months of his convalescence, Melissa Tulip was right there by his side watching over him. The little sister became the protector.

We dread the thought of our sweet boy, Park, not being here anymore and we worry about how Melissa Tulip will go on after Park. When Lexington crossed the rainbow bridge in 2020, Park and Melissa Tulip helped each other through the loss. What will Melissa Tulip do without her soul mate?

But soul mates last forever, don’t they? When the day comes for Melissa Tulip to cross over that rainbow bridge, I’m sure Park will be waiting to welcome her. Then the bonded pair will once more play together, search out Heavenly adventures together and curl up together when the day is done.

A behind the scenes moment in the documentary with director Norman Jewison (right) and Chaim Topol in the role of Tevye on the set of Fiddler on the Roof.

By Melissa Arnold

The long-anticipated spring Port Jefferson Documentary Series kicks off Feb. 28 with Fiddler’s Journey to the Big Screen, a homage to the beloved movie musical.

There is something visceral about Fiddler on the Roof. Whether on stage or on screen, it has a way of gripping your emotions and stirring up memories like few other musicals can.

Based on the story Tevye the Dairyman by Sholem Aleichem, the original Broadway production of Fiddler on the Roof opened in 1964 and became the first musical to run for more than 3,000 performances. The epic, three-hour film adaptation came along in 1971, and quickly earned accolades as the highest-grossing movie of that year.

Rosalind Harris (Tzeitel)

Nearly 50 years later, filmmaker Daniel Raim set out to document all that he could about the film through the eyes of its cast and crew. Along the way, he explored what Jewish culture, faith and family ties mean to him in the present day.  

The finished product, “Fiddler’s Journey to the Big Screen,” is narrated by actor Jeff Goldblum and presented by Zeitgeist Films.

“I brought a lot of curiosity into my exploration of Fiddler on the Roof,” said Raim, who lives in Los Angeles. “It wasn’t just about what makes [director] Norman Jewison’s film so great, but what Norman Jewison’s personal and spiritual journey was like in the process of making it.”

Raim’s grandparents were Holocaust survivors, and his parents met in Israel, where he moved as a teenager. While there, he attended an art-focused high school and, upon graduation, began to make documentaries for the Israeli Defense Force during his required time of military service. He later returned to the United States and attended the American Film Institute.

As for Fiddler on the Roof, Raim recalled watching it for the first time at his grandparents’ house.

“My great-grandparents died in the Holocaust, and when I was watching Fiddler with my grandparents, a portrait of them hung on the wall. My great-grandfather was a kosher butcher and a rabbi, and my grandfather took me to synagogue and taught me about their values,’ he recalled. 

“I was so moved watching it with them — it felt like I was looking at a realistic portrait of Jewish life in Tsarist Russia in 1905, what life might have been like for my great-grandparents’ generation as they wrestled with changing times and anti-Semitism. I had a very specific connection to it and began to ask questions: Who am I? Where do I come from? How did my family live? It made it very meaningful to me.”

Ironically, director Norman Jewison wasn’t Jewish at all. Despite this, he had a deep desire from early childhood to learn more about Jewish culture, especially as he faced harassment because of his last name.

Neva Small (Chava)

It took Raim more than 10 years to complete the film as he traveled the world interviewing the cast and production team. The 88-minute documentary offers an intimate, heartfelt peek inside the memories and creative process of Chaim Topol (Tevye), Rosalind Harris (Tzeitel), Michele Marsh (Hodel) and Neva Small (Chava), among others. The film also includes behind-the-scenes footage and thoughts from production designer Robert F. Boyle, lyricist Sheldon Harnick and renowned composer John Williams.

Raim made a point of showing just how much effort and research went into developing the Fiddler film, so that it could be as authentic as possible. Norman Jewison and John Williams traveled to Israel for a research trip before production began, where Williams pored over Yiddish archives and music. In the documentary, Williams shares what he learned about different types of music that were meaningful in that era and culture, and about the importance of the fiddle in a musical and historical context. 

Similarly, producer Robert Boyle had to research what life was like in a shtetl, or small Jewish community. It was a difficult process, as the shtetls were targeted and destroyed during the Holocaust. Despite this, Boyle was able to faithfully recreate a Jewish painted synagogue based on the very little information he could find.

The attention to detail and commitment to authenticity is only part of what makes Fiddler on the Roof so enduring, Raim said.

“I think the appeal of the stories by Sholem Aleichem, up through the Broadway musical and the film, is that their themes and issues are universal — the breaking down of traditions, the relationships and tensions between family members,” he said. “Everyone can relate to it. You have these beautiful narratives with complex, fun characters, and it can be both joyous and heartbreaking. And then for Jewish audiences, it’s almost like an origin story that they can see themselves and their families in.”

While many in the film industry faced life-altering changes during the pandemic, Raim used his downtime as the final push to complete the documentary.

Michele Marsh (Hodel)

“At the start of the pandemic, I began to collaborate with Michael Sragow, who was the co-writer, co-producer and lead researcher, and producer Sasha Burman. The three of us worked together over Zoom during the lockdown. I thought, now is the time to pull out the juiciest archival footage and interviews I’d ever shot and start working on and shaping them. I really feel like thanks to the pandemic I could really focus on this film, and I was blessed to be able to continue filming original interviews in 2021.”

Production was completed this past December, making the Port Jefferson Documentary Series one of the first showings with an audience. 

The Port Jefferson Documentary Series began in 2006 with a group of friends around a dining room table. The series has since won the title of Best Film Festival on Long Island for six consecutive years.

“When I screen a film, I need to experience an emotional connection before I share it with my board members, and one doesn’t need to be Jewish to appreciate Fiddler on the Roof,” said Barbara Sverd, co-director of the twice-yearly Port Jefferson Documentary Series. 

“Why is it so successful? I think it’s because it’s about average, everyday people trying to make a living, trying to keep old traditions alive, trying to fit into an ever-changing world they may not understand and leaving the Old World behind for an unknown future. But its broader message is about hope, faith and acceptance,” she said.

“We are proud to present Fiddler’s Journey to the Big Screen as a sneak peek before its theatrical premiere and as a welcome back to our Long Island audience. It’s the first in our upcoming Spring Series, and we are thrilled to have director Daniel Raim as our guest speaker by Zoom.”

IF YOU GO:

Fiddler’s Journey to the Big Screen will be shown on Feb. 28 at Theatre Three, 412 Main Street, Port Jefferson at 7 p.m. A conversation with Daniel Raim via Zoom will follow, where audience members can ask questions and share their thoughts. All tickets are $10 and are available online or at the event (cash only). In accordance with Theatre Three’s policy, masks, vaccination cards and a photo ID are required to attend. For more information or to purchase tickets, visit www.portjeffdocumentaryseries.com. 

 

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Studies suggest the microbiome may influence weight loss or gain

By David Dunaief, M.D.

Dr. David Dunaief

Each of us carries trillions of microorganisms in our bodies. These make up each individual’s microbiome. It includes bacteria, viruses and single-cell eukaryotes. Our relationship to these organisms is complex, and much of it is still only loosely understood. What we do know, however, is that these microbes have key roles in our healthy functioning.

While the microbiome is found throughout our bodies, including the skin, the eyes and the gut, we’re going to focus on the gut, where the majority of the microbiome resides.

Why do we care? The short answer is it may have a role in diseases — preventing and promoting them. These include obesity, diabetes, irritable bowel syndrome, autoimmune diseases, such as rheumatoid arthritis and Crohn’s, and infectious diseases, such as colitis.

Human Microbiome Project

Like the Human Genome Project, which mapped our genes, the Human Microbiome Project, funded by the National Institutes of Health from 2007 to 2016, sought to map and sequence the composition and diversity of these gut organisms and to spur future research. There have been some enlightening preliminary studies already.

What affects the microbiome? Drugs, such as antibiotics, can wipe out the diversity in the microbes, at least in the short term. Also, lifestyle modifications, such as diet, can have an impact. Microbiome diversity also may be significantly different in distinct geographic locations throughout the world.

Microbiome’s role in obesity

Obesity can be incredibly frustrating; most obese patients continually struggle to lose weight. Obese and overweight patients now outnumber malnourished individuals worldwide (1).

I know this will not come as a surprise, but we are a nation with a weight problem; about 70% of Americans are overweight or obese (2) (3). For the longest time, the paradigm for weight loss had been to cut calories. However, extreme low-caloric diets did not seem to have a long-term impact. It turns out that our guts, dominated by bacteria, may play important roles in obesity and weight loss, determining whether we gain or lose weight.

The results from a study involving human twins and mice are fascinating (4). In each pair of human twins, one was obese and the other was lean. Gut bacteria from obese twins was transplanted into thin mice. The result: the thin mice became obese. However, when the lean human twins’ gut bacteria were transplanted to thin mice, the mice remained thin.

By pairing sets of human twins, one obese and one thin in each set, with mice that were identical to each other and raised in a sterile setting, researchers limited the confounding effects of environment and genetics on weight.

The most intriguing part of the study compared the effects of diet and gut bacteria. When the mice who had received gut transplants from obese twins were provided gut bacteria from thin twins and given fruit- and vegetable-rich, low-fat diet tablets, they lost significant weight. But they only lost weight when on a good diet; there was no impact if the diet was not low in fat. The authors believe this suggests that an effective diet may alter the microbiome of obese patients, helping them lose weight. These are exciting, but preliminary, results. It is not clear yet which bacteria may be contributing these effects.

This definitely suggests that the diversity of gut bacteria may be a crucial piece of the weight-loss puzzle.

Possible role for gut bacteria in rheumatoid arthritis development

Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is an autoimmune disease that can be disabling, with patients typically suffering from significant morning stiffness, joint soreness and joint breakdown. What if gut bacteria influenced RA risk? In a study, the gut bacteria in mice that were made susceptible to RA by deletion of certain genes (HLA-DR genes) were compared to those who were more resistant to developing RA (5). Researchers found that the RA-susceptible mice had a predominance of Clostridium bacteria and that those resistant to RA were dominated by bacteria such as bifidobacteria and Porphyromonadaceae species. The significance is that the bacteria in the RA-resistant mice are known for their anti-inflammatory effects.

Counteracting antibiotics’ gut effects

Many experience gastrointestinal upset while taking antibiotics. This is because antibiotics don’t differentiate between good and bad bacteria when they go to work. One way to counteract the negative effects is to take a probiotic during and after your course of antibiotics. I recommend Renew Life’s 30-50 billion units once a day, two hours after an antibiotic dose and continuing once a day for 14 days after you have finished your prescription. If you really want to ratchet up the protection, you can take one dose of probiotics two hours after every antibiotic dose.

Although nobody can say what the ideal gut bacteria should consist of, we do know a few things that can help you. Diet and other lifestyle considerations, such as eating and sleeping patterns or their disruptions, seem to be important to the composition and diversity of gut bacteria (6). Studies have already demonstrated prebiotic effects of fiber and significant short-term changes to the microbiome when eating fruits, vegetables and plant fiber. The research is continuing, but we’ve learned a lot already that may help us tackle obesity and autoimmune disorders.

References: 

(1) “The Evolution of Obesity”; Johns Hopkins University Press; 2009. (2) cdc.gov (3) nih.gov (4) Science. 2013;341:1241214. (5) PLoS One. 2012;7:e36095. (6) Nutrients. 2019 Dec;11(12):2862.

Dr. David Dunaief is a speaker, author and local lifestyle medicine physician focusing on the integration of medicine, nutrition, fitness and stress management. For further information, visit www.medicalcompassmd.com.