jvalley.org | jewish community news

December 2005

69-year-old Holocaust survivor finds stiff competition as realtor

During the innocent years between 5 and 8, Boris Kapilevitch spent every waking moment hiding from Nazi soldiers, searching for scraps of food to stay alive, and bearing witness to unspeakable horrors. By comparison, it would seem that competing to make a living as a realtor in the Silicon Valley would be easy. But life does not operate by comparison.

For Boris and his second wife Larisa Blank, trying to make ends meet in their relatively new life in the United States is quite a struggle. Nearing ages 69 and 58 respectively, the couple stretch each month to pay their mortgage on the small Los Gatos town home they purchased five years ago. Laid off from a programming position several years ago, Larisa bakes pastries and works part-time at the Jewish Federation of Silicon Valley. Boris is competing against hundreds of realtors. More

Fond of more than fondue

Tracey Cutler describes her life as “very busy.” She and her husband Mitchell own and operate La Fondue restaurant in Saratoga, parent two teenagers (ages 15 and 17), and travel often to Israel and other exotic destinations. Yet Tracey still manages to integrate volunteering into her hectic schedule. She says a big part of her life is helping others in whatever small ways… More

Henry Winkler to speak at Federation annual event dinner

Henry Winkler will speak at the Jewish Federation of Silicon Valley’s annual dinner on Saturday, January 7. The event begins at 5:30 p.m. at the Levy Family Campus with a cocktail reception, and continues at 6:30 p.m. with a Havadalah ceremony and dinner. Drs. Arlene and Rick Noodleman are chaircouple of the event.

Winkler was born in New York City, the son of Harry and Ilse Winkler, German Jewish Holocaust survivors who immigrated to Manhattan in 1939. Winkler’s family identified strongly as being Holocaust survivors, and even belonged to a synagogue built by survivors. More

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