Rusted Root has Cantorial Roots

In July 2005 I saw one of my favorite bands, Rusted Root, in concert at The House of Blues at the Mandalay Bay hotel in Las Vegas. Following the show, the members of the group signed autographs and met with their fans as they usually do. The first one to come sign autographs was Liz Berlin (in photo), one of the singers of the group.

I spoke to her for a few minutes and she signed a CD insert to "Rabbi Jason." One might think that signing an autograph for a rabbi would prompt her to mention that her father is a cantor (a Conservative cantor no less).

I only learned that her dad was a cantor after getting a link to an article about her on the PittsburghLive.com website. I received the link in a Google Alert because the words "Jewish Theological Seminary" appeared in the article. Apparently, Liz Berlin's dad, Rick Berlin, decided to attend cantorial school at the Jewish Theological Seminary in 1996. That means that we must have overlapped by a couple years since I started rabbinical school in 1998. I searched the Web for a photo of Cantor Rick Berlin (in photo) and sure enough... I remember him. He was ordained in 2000.

I'm not sure if Liz Berlin is Jewish or not (mother is Mary), but in the article she is quoted as saying that she realizes her wedding ceremony to her husband, Mike Speranzo, several years after the birth of their child was "not the Christian thing or the religious thing, according to standard religious practices, as far as the dynamics of the family, to do it that way."

Here's the section about her dad the cantor:

Before she could pursue music, however, she had to convince her parents it was the right thing to do. That turned out to be surprisingly easy. Rick and Mary Berlin attended the group's second show -- at the Graffiti Rock Challenge in 1991 -- and realized Rusted Root was not a whim or indulgence.

"It was the first time we heard the band, and they'd only been together a week or so," Mary Berlin says. "Sometimes you know something is special. I knew Rusted Root was going to make it. I just knew it. I had that intuition."

"She was absolutely right in dropping out," Rick Berlin says.

So inspired was Berlin by his daughter's success -- he calls Liz "my hero" -- that he decided to change his career.

"It was because of her willingness to take a chance that I decided to take my risk in 1996," says Rick Berlin, who shut down a business to attend the Jewish Theological Seminary in New York to become an ordained cantor. "There were risks, and it wasn't easy, but her success was one of the things that made me take that chance."

Florence Melton, Of Blessed Memory

One of the first things I knew I needed to do when I moved to Columbus to become rabbi of Congregation Agudas Achim was to meet with Florence Melton. Florence was one of the greatest gifts to Jewish education in recent time. Sitting in her apartment, I was extremely impressed not only with her intellect and concern about Jewish education, but with her innovative ideas as well. I am grateful for that meeting with Florence and to my congregant Don Ruben, her neighbor who helped organize the meeting.

At the time of our meeting, she was planning to leave the next day for her winter in Florida where she would celebrate her 95th birthday at the end of January and be honored in Boca Raton. Rather than prepare herself for the trip, she spent well over an hour with a young, new rabbi in town (and his wife). She asked about my own pedagogical philosophy, my view on day school education versus synagogue religious school, and what I thought should make up the curriculum of a Jewish high school student. She certainly didn't show her age -- she was sharp and witty. She was a beautiful woman with deep insight and a passion for the Jewish people. I am fortunate to have met her and to have taught in the Florence Melton Adult Mini-School in Detroit.

Several weeks ago, I received a message that Florence would like me to call her in Florida. She was writing an article about her "Communiteen" educational program for high school students in Columbus and wanted my assistance. By the time I picked up the phone to call her, her son Gordy informed me that she had gone into a hospice program. I didn't get to have that conversation with her, but I will be certain to make sure her article is published.

May the legacy of Florence Melton continue to be a source of inspiration and blessing for all who knew her. May her lifetime of work for Jewish learning continue to bear fruit for generations to come.

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From the Columbus Dispatch

Florence Zacks Melton, successful inventor, entrepreneur, philanthropist and advocate for Jewish education, died tonight in Florida. She was 95.

Melton, formerly of Grandview Heights, had been living in Boca Raton, Fla., for the past couple years and had taken ill recently.

Born in Philadelphia to Russian immigrants, Melton grew up too poor to have dolls, she once said, so instead she imagined.

That creativity sparked practical inventions such as foam-rubber slippers and innovative Jewish education programs.

At R.G. Barry Corp., which she co-founded in 1947 with her first husband, Aaron Zacks, Melton invented a type of women's shoulder pad that snapped into a bra strap, simplifying a popular fashion item of that era.

She also created a line of chair pads, adjustable car seat covers and neck pillows. A few years later, R.G. Barry would take off after the idea for foam-rubber slippers came to her.

By 1980, R.G. Barry was the world's largest producer of comfort footwear. Her son, Gordon Zacks, was CEO at the time.

Several years after Aaron Zacks died, Florence married Samuel M. Melton. Together they helped establish Ohio State's Melton Center for Jewish Studies in 1976, and also spearheaded other charitable efforts geared mainly toward education.

In 1980, she developed a two-year adult Jewish literacy program affiliated with Hebrew University of Jerusalem. Today, the Florence Melton Adult Mini-School, as it is known, operates in more than 70 communities in North America and Australia. Melton was inducted into the Ohio Women's Hall of Fame in 1994. She was preceded in death by both husbands and son, Barry Zacks. She is survived by son Gordon Zacks of Bexley.