Calendar for the week of June 24, 2011

June 26
Machane Chodosh anniversary banquet
CONGREGATION MACHANE CHODOSH of Forest Hills is holding its 72nd Anniversary Banquet at Rockwood Park Jewish Center, located at 156-45 84th Street in Howard Beach. The event will honor longtime member Jane Stiefel and Talmud Torah director Ricky Schneider on his efforts to provide free weekly Bar Mitzvah and Hebrew classes to public school students, resulting in hundreds of bnei mitzvah since his arrival in 1997. For more information and sponsorships, contact 718-793-5656.

60 Minutes to Serenity
CHAZAQ is hosting Rabbi Yisroel Roll at Congregation Anshei Shalom, located at 80-15 Kent Street in Jamaica Estates. Rabbi Roll will is a Baltimore-based psychotherapist and a cofounder of LIFE Task Force. The free public event begins at 8 p.m. Sushi will be served. For more information, contact Yaniv at 917-617-3636 or Info@Chazaq.org

Bone Marrow Drive for Ayelet Galena
YOUNG ISRAEL OF GREAT NECK, located at 236 Middle Neck Road in Great Neck, is holding a bone marrow drive for one-year-old Ayelet Galena, who is diagnosed with a rare bone marrow failure disorder. The event will be held from 9:15 a.m. until 12:00 p.m. Adults ages 18 to 55 can participate. For more information, contact Racheli Brandsdorfer at goldfisher@gmail.com.

June 27
Collecting Matisse and other masters
PENINSULA PUBLIC LIBRARY, located at 280 Central Avenue, is hosting art historian Mary Vahey, who will speak about the current Jewish Museum exhibit “Collecting Matisse & Modern Masters: The Cone Sisters of Baltimore.” The illustrated presentation is about two sisters who collected some of the most famous early works in modern art, including paintings by Picasso, Van Gogh, and Renoir. The free event begins at 1 p.m. For more information, contact 516-239-3262

Ask Aviva and Meir Rizel to speak in Queens
YESHIVA OHEL SIMCHAH, located at 141-41 72 Avenue in Kew Gardens Hills, is hosting a Neve Ohr lecture with The Jewish Star columnist Aviva Rizel and her husband Meir, who is the Director of Men’s Education at Shalom Task Force and Deputy Director of The SHALOM Workshop. They will speak on the topic of “Marriage: The Act of Compromise.” The women-only lecture begins at 9 p.m. For more information, contact litehouseinfo@gmail.com.

June 29
Israeli-American night
JEWISH COMMUNITY RELATIONS COUNCIL OF LONG ISLAND is holding an Israeli-American Night at the Chapin Lakeside Theater in Eisenhower Park. The groups Six13 and Metropolitan Klezmer will perform. The event begins at 7 p.m. For more information, contact David Neuman at 516-677-1866 or newmand@jcrcli.org

June 30
Rabbi Sitorsky speaks on Tammuz
ECG RESOURCES, located at 148 Doughty Boulevard, suite 312 in Inwood, is hosting Rabbi Mordechai Sitorsky of Bayswater. Rabbi Sitorsky will be speaking on the occasion of Rosh Chodesh Tammuz. The event begins at 12:30 p.m. followed by minchah service after the lecture. For more information, contact 516 374 7070 ext. 16 or Hadassah@ECGResources.com

July 6
BBQ and wine tasting fundraiser
ONE ISRAEL FUND is holding its second annual Five Towns barbecue and wine tasting at the home of David & Malkie Neuberg, located at 7 Manor Lane in Lawrence. Funds raised at the event will be used to obtain medical and security equipment for Jewish communities in Judea and Samaria. The fund also continues to assist families displaced from Gush Katif. The cost per couple is $125. For more information and sponsorships, contact Ruthie at 516-239-9202 ext. 10.

Influence of Yiddish humor
FRIEDBERG JCC, located at 15 Neil Court in Oceanside, is hosting historian Kenneth Libo, who will be speaking on the influence of Yiddish humor on American culture, including Yiddish expressions and contributions to theater and film. Libo is a professor at Hunter College and a former editor at The Forward. The event begins at 2 p.m. Suggested donation is $6. For more information, contact 516-766-4341.

Ongoing
Pictures of partisan resistance exhibit
HOLOCAUST MEMORIAL AND TOLERANCE CENTER OF NASSAU COUNTY, located at 100 Crescent Beach Road in Glen Cove, is hosting “Pictures of Resistance. The exhibit runs through July 15. Open daily from 10 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. and Sunday 12 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. Suggested donation is $10.00 for adults, and $5 for students and seniors. For information and directions call 516 571-8040 ext. 100 or visit www.holocaust-nassau.org.

Recession support group
THE JCC OF THE GREATER FIVE TOWNS is sponsoring a support group for the economically distressed. Key themes will include unemployment, financial issues, empowerment and support. The meetings are held on Thursday mornings at 10:30 a.m. at Temple Israel, located at 140 Central Ave in Lawrence. This group is part of Connect to Care, an initiative funded by UJAFederation of NY. For further information and to pre-register, contact Talia Rapps at 516-569-6733 x213.