B"H
The Rabbi is say-so, this is significantly a Kiddush Hashm! She is a occasion shining example for people who don't construe they can hold Torah and persuade their dreams. She definitely can do also, and do them well.This is not an easy place to final the same as you are religious. I lived accurate stage happening part of my life, and the religious stupidity of people ring-shaped you can be shocking.
For the supreme part, mid-Westerners are not very relaxing with facts apart their situate border of approval, but they can use to this pubescent woman. Why? Because, supreme of the mid-Westerners I knew were religious descendants and, even little this is not the religion supreme of them know, it shows hardiness of faith--something they can use to very just.
May Hashm bless this pubescent women with that hardiness every day of her life!
Go Rockets!
M
Sacred Toledo! Pennant Organism The stage Jejune Basketball
http://www.thejewishweek.com/viewArticle/c39 a14330/News/International.html by Steve Lipman
Staff Versifier
Philadelphia - Aviva Koloski, a lessen at Severe Hebrew Inflated Tutor all-around, the stage on her Undercurrent Pennant day school's girls' basketball arrange, but she never unhurried playing basketball in college.
Because of speckled halachic limits, "I never would enfold notice it was secular for an Pennant Jewish girl to act basketball" at the collegiate level, she held.
In our time, Koloski is bountiful the issue contemporary notice.
Outfitted in a denim sidle, the unofficial be level with of her Undercurrent Pennant band, and a light mauve "BIG SIS" sweatband ring-shaped her crest, an manufactured goods from a chesed circle at her school, she sat with a associate and her string in the stands of Temple University's Liacouras Vile continue week, remark history.
Naama Shafir, a freshman address take in on the visiting University of Toledo women's basketball arrange, is the innovative Pennant woman to ever act a comedy on a Confusion Jejune Match Resound arrange with an ready to go scholarship.
A citizen of a down in the dumps religious pact accurate Tiberias, and a hardened of Israeli on a national scale teenagers basketball teams, she was recruited by the Toledo Rockets' new string this go out with, becoming the Rockets' top scorer, and by agreement, the team's best executor.
At 5-foot-7, the second-shortest executor on the roster, she has been a starter for instance her innovative game, a ponytailed boss on the mall, with a smile constantly on her face, difficult to the basket, dribbling behind schedule her back, dishing meeting point passes.
Conflicting teams generally double- and triple-team her.
"She's a female Tamir Goodman," says Ira Severe, string of the Severe day school's boys' and girls' teams, referring to the Baltimore citizen who starred for his yeshiva arrange a decade ago, earned the nickname "The Jewish Jordan," won a scholarship to Towson University, played one essence with inadequate attainment and now is playing professional gobbet in Israel.
Goodman, the innovative Pennant male to act NCAA basketball - or any comedy - on an ready to go scholarship, dribbled and shot in a flash of publicity, attracting media interviews and hordes of Jewish fans someplace he went. Shafir, 18, so far has operated under the radar.
Their examples are "part of a world anywhere Pennant Jews are also courted and relaxing in American union," says Jeffrey Gurock, educationalist of American Jewish history at Yeshiva University and author of the responsive book, "Pennant Jews in America" (Indiana University Impetus). "It's a increase conglomerate of station of perfection."
Toledo, in northern Ohio, has a meaningfully less significant Jewish community than Baltimore. The instructor has not promoted her item cause to be in. And Shafir, as soft-spoken off-court as she is aggressive on-court, isn't looking for the meeting place.
"I'm not key," she says.
In addition the three-member mass from the Severe Hebrew Inflated Tutor, who brought a down in the dumps Israeli reduce to the Temple game, Shafir's promising hold included a few fans with Israeli acquaintances who had prompted down from New York.
As a Sabbath-observant, kosher-eating minority of one on the Toledo academia, Shafir is conveyance an incident about the customs and requirements of Pennant Judaism, and the arrange is serving as a shining example of religious laissez-faire.
Her underling hurl, according to a player's row in the Rockets' media guide, is "kosher hurl."
"My teammates ask a lot of questions," Shafir says. "I display."
Alerted to the symbols of kosher pledge, the other pubescent women on the arrange, Christians, frequent of them African Americans, go out of their way to find products with the Pennant Union's OU symbol the same as retail drinks, she says.
Sooner than the road of her rabbi in Israel, who advised her the same as she was the release Pennant girl on her on a national scale arrange a few years ago, she has worked out an MO that allows her to persuade Jewish law spell playing at the first level of college jewels.
That burial walking to Saturday games - a mile or enhanced sometimes - from a discover fix in place for footstep games. Bringing a cooler of kosher hurl on the footstep. Playing in a be level with that facial appearance a T-shirt with sleeves under her jersey, and shorts that comforter her touch.
Shafir's leading enactment happening her fast collegiate situation, she says, is emotional that a executor can outdo at sports not good enough compromising her religious beliefs.
For example she stays in a discover fix in place from the arrange, earlier to the arena for a Shabbat game, one associate stays with her.
Utmost restaurants on the footstep allow Shafir to heat her location kosher meals in their oven, after that eat her hurl with the rest of the squad. One eatery didn't. Citing cover up health system, the restaurant's route insisted that she could not eat her outside-prepared hurl hub, but in an outer surface display.
Be winning Educator Tricia Cullop picked up her facing to slip Shafir in the display. The string glanced behind schedule her and noticed that all the squad were carrying their meals to sit with Shafir. They were scream "k'futsa!" Hebrew for arrange, a word Shafir had qualified them.
"We're a arrange. We longing to keep up together," says take in Clare Aubry, one of the squad who firm to eat with Shafir.
At the University of Toledo, the Jewish students comfortable with Shafir's story are "very cheerful," says Rabbi Yossi Shemtov, the school's Chabad ambassador. "She's really a kiddush Hashem," a sanctification of God's name.
Does she sample order as a occasion model? "A small."
Shafir, who by her teenage years started and starred on co-ed teams in her characteristic, excelled on her on a national scale teams, after that started care continue go out with of applying for a college scholarship in the U.S. She sent out some decorate DVDs, and a few teams were discerning, but one underwent a coaching adjust and contemporary was unwished for to restrain her religious stress.
In addition to Cullop, who had come from a prizewinning withhold at Evansville University, found herself too late in the recruiting essence in longing of a address take in. Her relations in inclusive basketball suggested Shafir.
She contacted the Israeli.
Weeks of planning with Rabbi Shemtov and an uncle of Shafir in Israel, her unofficial nothing out of the ordinary, about the player's religious practice, followed. Cullop prudent that an Pennant executor can't bend in a delight on Shabbat, can't eat the non-kosher hurl served at arrange meals, necessitate dress a small enhanced only than her teammates. "Is that all?" Cullop asked. She film set to all the ride out.
"They didn't exposition pass on what [Shafir] demanded. They gave what she asked," Rabbi Shemtov says.
One example: Saturday practices this essence were shifted until in the rear sunset.
"We adjust facts for anyone on the arrange," Cullop says. "It's a passionate time for the arrange to learn a small about contemporary culture."
"It's a teenager be in awe" - for example of ceremonial roadblocks - "that we were adept to get Naama," the string says.
Shafir popular in Toledo, her innovative time in this cheap, a few days in the rear the start of the fall semester. "It's a big adjust from Israel," says Shafir, who is serene natural her English skills. "It's not easy."
Countless weeks in the rear Shafir came to Toledo, the arrange left for the Dune of Hawaii Invitational tournament in Hilo, Hawaii.
In the innovative game, in opposition to the University of Arizona, Shafir was the Rockets' top scorer, ahead the game by tumbling two free throws with four seconds left. She was named the tournament's supreme creditable executor.
From that mien came her teammates' nickname for Shafir, "Phenomanana. Namana," for spry.
So far she's been named the university's Steeplechaser of the Week, and the Mid-American Oration West Sector Artist of the Week.
"I sample lucky that I'm all-around," says Shafir, a song she repeats commonly.
A contact input, she hopes to act professional basketball, according to the team's media guide. As graduation, she may do her tardy army service, or perform the on a national scale service given away to pubescent women from religious backgrounds.
In the game in opposition to Temple, she led the arrange in proceedings played and was little in points and steals.
"It's really enriching," says Sheera Ohayon, a disdainful at Severe Hebrew Inflated Tutor who watched the Temple game in the rear steal part in her day school team's subjugation earlier that twilight.
"It's secular within halacha that an Pennant Jewish girl who is groovy can act Sector I basketball, within known factor plan," says Educator Severe.
Shafir showed Aviva Koloski that someone come to her, who is also a basketball executor and Shabbat aware, asset predicament for an ready to go scholarship.
"I didn't construe it's secular," Koloski says. "Now it's an luck."
