Written by Shlomit Ovadia of JCC Denver
I’m sitting outside with Wendy Feiner, her niece Alana Goldberg, and Wendy’s dad Jerry Feiner, on a warm fall day. The trio represents a family of 5 generations whose close ties to the J recently caught the attention of our staff. It’s a very sweet dynamic, and a bit hard to watch without feeling envious. Wendy holds her father’s hand tenderly, translating everything I say into a format he can understand and asking questions that jog his memory. Seated next to Wendy is Alana, who just as intently gives her grandfather an undivided level of attentiveness. “They’re my sugars,” Jerry says plainly through a gappy smile.
The Feiners all have a special tradition. Whenever visiting the JCC, they walk over to the hallway that leads to the Mizel Arts and Culture Center from the main JCC Lobby and look for the photo on display of Jerry that was taken in the 1950s. In the black and white picture, Jerry is wearing a baseball uniform and smiling loosely while posing with a large team of young boys. “We went to the JCC quite a bit [almost every day] to play baseball, basketball, and we also had the Hawks which was a football team, and played by Sloan’s Lake, where we swam with our heads above the water,” he says, recalling the questionably safe water.
The Feiner family cherishing memories with young Jerry and his baseball team! (Left to Right: Alana Goldberg, Jerry Feiner, Wendy Feiner)
“Do you remember any of those people,” asks Wendy, and no sooner is Jerry rattling off people by first and last name. Of Jerry’s childhood, “he was raised culturally Jewish, so, he knew everyone there…your life was Jewish, sort of like a shtetl,” Wendy answers, beaming. “It’s where all the Jews hung out. He rode his bike there,” to which the 90-year-old responds, “I left it at Betsy’s house,” as if his childhood just ended yesterday.
Wendy and her one-year-old granddaughter have been taking the Signing Smart baby sign language classes at JCC and visiting the decade’s photo wall every time. “It’s the L’dor V’dor,” says Wendy. “It’s really continuing that important relationship through the generations.” Having started her own childhood at the J, Wendy recalls attending preschool at the JCC and running down the same hallway where the photo of Jerry is on display, adding jokingly, “I remember the hallway being a lot bigger!” She attended Jewish youth group meet-ups at the J, took classes, and even worked at Camp Shai summer camp.
Wendy’s sister Lori and her daughter Alana own their fair share of Mizel Arts and Culture Center and JCC memories. Having attended Ranch Camp one summer and spent countless nights in the 4th and 5th grades practicing for performances of Fiddler on the Roof and Joseph and the Technicolor Dream Coat in the Wolf Theatre, Alana has memories that go back to when she was in the single digits. “Before Covid, my mom Lori went to just about every film,” at the Denver Jewish Film Festival, she notes, adding, “my [paternal] grandmother also used to swim there every day. I can still see her walking out of the pool.” Nowadays, Alana stays involved in engagement programs like Festo! Festo! and the Neustadt JAAMM Festival events that include comedy shows and educational film showings. “It helps for Jews to know there is a place they can go to that’s non-denominational, [and] where you don’t have to define ‘I’m Jewish’ in a certain way,” Alana notes.
“Use your core!” Wendy sings as Jerry gets up to walk towards the hallway with us. While Wendy pauses to talk to one of our staff, he turns and plops a kiss on Alana’s head. I’m wondering if I can secretly join their family. The family upholds certain traditions like spending Shabbats and Rosh Hashanahs together. Every Sunday, they grab breakfast at the Snooze restaurant by the Denver Tech Center because of their affinity for a particular waitress whose career they’ve been following for 30 years.
“I have the JCC phone number memorized since high school…why did I call them so much?” Wendy laughs with glittering eyes that rival the brightness of her neon pink manicure. The family, while strong in their traditions and all grown, continues to find reasons to come back to the J. “We know people we care about are going to be there when we show up,” Alana chimes in. “For my dad, it’s always a place he wants to donate to,” adds Wendy, turning to her father and asking, “did you spend a lot of time there? Did it mean a lot? Do you want that to continue for future generations?” To which Jerry gives a resounding “Yes.”
