Ohio Jewish Chronicle, 1994-08-11

              THE
The Ohio Jewish Chronicle
Serving Columbus and the CenlKal Ohio'
Jewish Community since 1922
VOLUME 72
NUMBER 32
AUGUST 11,1994
4 ELUL 5754
Jordanian - PLO wedge
may be useful, but
won't dislodge Arafat
page 3
 -J :	
Israel Bond rates raised
page 4
Temple Beth Shalom to
implement new curriculum
page 4
Bexley City Council
tows senior residence
page 6
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Marc Weiner to perform
at LYJCC on Aug. 23
page 10
Alan Wasserstrom to chair
CJF Annual Meeting
page 11
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At The JCC 10
Calendar ;.....: 3
Community, , 4-6.
Federation ...11
Fifty Years Ago;...,. ., , 4
FrontPage 2
In The N«ws 8
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Marketplace....; ......) .......12
Scoreboard....... ,,...,..........„ 10
Synagogues , , ......9
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EXTRA • ORDINARY PEOPLE
Florence MeUo^^ all seasons
By Ina Horwitz-Whitmore
YESTERDAY WAS
TOMORROW ONCE
— The very small moment
that spells success in an
eternity in time to be cherished and remeinbeted, not
forgotten and left behind.
... .I've reached the qge of 82
and still look for great tomorrows
...But —I don't forget the
here and now — For tomorrow is only borrowed.
Florence Melton
January 1994
Florence Z. Melton wears
many "hats" — .and wears
them all well. Her "moment of
success" is neither "small"
nor is it singular.
She is a devoted family
member, an astute businesswoman and inventor, a world
leader in furthering the quality
of Jewish education, a role
model for all ages, and a
uniquely creative individual,
who writes music, plays and
poetry.
For her many years of dedi
cated service,.leadership and
guidance to ;ihe community,
the Columbus Jewish Foundation will honor her at its 14th
Annual DinherMeetingto be
held Aug. 29.
Her accomplishments are
wide-ranging. She is an astute
business woman and a well
known inventor in the field of
Jewish education. At last count,
there were 71 "Florence Melton
Adult Mini-Schools" in North
America, along with a recently
established one in Australia.
Recently, in the comfortable setting of her condominium, we talked about her views
and insights on many subjects.
Q. "What is your philosophy
on life?
A. I have accumulated a
large inventory of blessings
and I believe the inventory
must be turned. If it isn't, it
helps nobody. The role model
for my life has helped me to
persevere, to work hard, to
feel an excitement in the challenge and to open myself to a
variety of different kinds of
learning experiences. I do believe that all of us have a role
to play — we are all here for a
purpose. When we are blessed
with particular skills, it is our
responsibility to use them toward helping people find their
way into the community and
to pursue creative ideas.
Q. What first motivated you
to help the Jewish community?
A. It was the sad state of
Hebrew schools and that was
back in the '40s when my children attended. From then on,
I became active in committees, communities and on the
local, national and international level, and my training
has given me an insight and
particularly a sensitive antenna, because I am an inventor
and am involved with numerous products which I developed.
Q. How has your attitude toward tzedaia evolved?     " *
A. When I was a child, there
was no such thing as charity. It
was just something we did —•
helping others. We were poor,
but we shared. There was no
label on it.
When our ancestors came to
this country, they usually went
to a friendship lodge or a circle
where they were able to borrow a little money to help
them.
During the Depression, my
late husband, Aaron Zacks,
and I were never afraid. If we
didn't have money for food,
we shared a bag of popcorn.
My husband's family came to
live with us in Terre Haute
after his father's store went
bankrupt in Montana. Although we didn't have anything, that was the way you
did things back then.
Q. Who most inspired you?
A. My grandmother was forever my spiritual person and
inspired me as a human being.
And she still is for me. She was
a woman who spoke only Yiddish, who brought with her the
religious fervor from the old
country. Though she was par*
tially blind, she was so joyous
all the time, telling us stories
and always helping someone.
Q. What do you think of our
younger generation?
A. I think they are underde-
prjved. Too many of them
see MELTON pg. 3
4
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