VOICES
Ideas of Our Time
Thank you for your interest in
Voices 2026 General Admission is now sold out. To be notified in the event additional tickets become available, please send an email to jschwarzkopf@templeisrael.com with the subject line Voices 2026 General Admission.
Limited reserved seating through sponsorships are still available.
Please contact Judith Friedman, Director of Congregational Philanthropy
at jfriedman@templeisrael.com or 612-374-0342.
More information below
VOICES Ideas of Our Time
Tuesday, May 5, 2026
7:00 p.m.
Join us for an evening featuring violinist Itzhak Perlman, held in collaboration with Violins of Hope, which tells the remarkable stories of instruments played by Jewish musicians during the Holocaust.*
This evening’s event will also honor the generations in our community who carry personal stories of the Holocaust.
Itzhak Perlman is one of the most celebrated violinists of our time and a 16 time GRAMMY Award winner. Renowned for his extraordinary artistry, warmth, and humanity, he has performed with every major orchestra and in leading concert halls around the world, captivating audiences with both his virtuosity and his joy for making music.
Mr. Perlman has received the highest honors for his artistic contributions, including the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the National Medal of Arts, a Kennedy Center Honor, a GRAMMY Lifetime Achievement Award, four Emmy Awards, and the Genesis Prize. In recent seasons, he has continued to tour internationally, celebrating milestone programs that reflect the breadth of his career, from classical masterworks to klezmer traditions.
Deeply committed to music education, Mr. Perlman and his wife Toby founded the Perlman Music Program, which has mentored hundreds of gifted young musicians and is shaping the future of classical music worldwide. He also shares his expertise through an exclusive MasterClass series, inspiring the next generation of artists around the globe.
Violins of Hope presented by the Minnesota JCC
Voices of Hope is part of Violins of Hope, a powerful international initiative presented by the Minnesota JCC and the Eiger & Zaidenweber Families will be coming to Minnesota in May 2026. The collection features 70 restored string instruments once played by Jewish musicians before and during the Holocaust. Each violin carries a personal history, bearing witness to lives interrupted and the enduring strength of the human spirit.
Throughout the Twin Cities and greater Minnesota, these remarkable instruments will be shared through concerts, exhibitions, and educational programs. Together, these experiences honor the memory of the Holocaust while lifting up themes of hope, resilience, resistance, and unity. Through music, the voices of the past are heard again, inviting reflection, learning, and connection across generations.
Violins of Hope reminds us that even in the darkest moments of history, creativity and faith endured. Voices of Hope invites our congregants to listen, remember, and find meaning through the power of music as a bridge between memory and hope.
THANK
YOU
Our annual fundraiser, VOICES: Ideas of Our Time, is a celebration that supports Temple Israel as a vibrant, thriving home for Jewish life in our community.
Event Chairs
Cindy & Joey Shapiro
Honoring
Eva Kieffer
Partner Organizations
Minnesota Jewish Community Center
Those in our community whose lives were changed by the Holocaust. Families who are honoring loved ones are denoted with an asterisk.
Remembering
We thank those whose contributions honor loved ones whose lives were forever changed by the Holocaust.
Heather & Kevin Besikof
Shirley & Marshall Besikof Family
Kara & Ted Bigos
Alexander Cannon
Ann & Neil Covin
Rosie & Andy Gellman
Joseph & Marguerite Rubin
Doree Glaser & Jim Brown
The Glaser Family
Shani & Sam Graber
Nancy & Bob Hartman Family
The Hornstein and Zimmerman Families
Doctors Phil & Mary Beth Kibort
Cym & Jesse Kibort
Susan & Wayne Miller
Elaine & Howard Rubin
Cindy & Joey Shapiro Family
Maxine & Ben Steinberg Family
Ellie & Mark Wolpert
Sponsors as of April 20, 2026.
Diamond Sponsors
Underwriting Sponsors
Cindy & Joey Shapiro*
Visionary — $25,000
Mimi Gleekel
Sylvia & Sam Kaplan
Stuart Nolan
Leader — $18,000
Anonymous
Barbara Finch
Sandra Okinow
Sue Zelickson
Patron — $10,000
Anonymous
Martha & Dan Aronson
Ted & Kara Bigos*
Dr. Stanley & Luella Goldberg Family, Ellen & Andrew Luger, Fred & Rosalie Goldberg, and Martha & Dan Aronson
Denise & Marshall Hertz
Carole & Marty Kaplan
Ellen & Andrew Luger
Sharron Steinfeldt
The Tankenoff Families Foundation; Scott & Hindy Tankenoff, and Marsha Tankenoff
Platinum Sponsors
Gold Sponsors
Pillar — $5,000
Judi Belzer & Jerry Waldman
Shirley & Marshall Besikof*
Alex Cannon*
Elaine & Gary Dachis
Lisa Doty and Steve Kalin
Phil & Mary Kibort*
Rosalie & Andrew Gellman*
Nancy & Bob Hartman*
Susan & Wayne Miller*
Mark Robbins
Abigail Rose & Michael Blum
Leslee Shapiro
Maxine & Ben Steinberg*
Marjorie & Irving Weiser
Weiser Family Foundation
The Zimmerman-Hornstein Family*
Kehilla — $2,500
Amy & Stan Baratz
Cecelia Bistner
Howard Chanen & Michelle Mercer
Susan Colby
Karen & Morris Davidman
Debra & Michael Finn
Kara & Jeremy Frank
Edwin Freeman
Maggie Gilbert & Bob Rosenbaum
Shani & Sam Graber*
Andrea & William Johnstone
Cindy & Doug Kanter
Susie & Hart Kuller
Gail & Steve Machov
Michelle Mercer
The Parks Group
Elaine & Howard Rubin*
Anne & Michael Stanfield
Debbie & Jed Stillman
Alexa Stroner
Aviva Weisberg
Elliot Wolson
Kim Wolson & Norman Abramson
Sheri & Scott Yarosh
Deborah Zimmerman & Jonathan Root*
Ilene & Bruce Zwick
Sustainer — $1,000
Barb & Frank Abramson
Joyce & David Abramson
Wendy & Howard Bach
Molly & Sid Bader
Judy & Bruce Barnett
Linda & Robert Barrows
Betsy & Paul Beck
Pam & Bob Berkwitz
Gail Bernstein & Tom Davis
Barbara & Thomas Carlstrom
Kathleen Chaikin Bernstein & Jerry Bernstein
Elaine Burton
Diane & Richard Cohen
Ann & Neil Covin
Frank A. "Sandy" Donaldson
Jill & Jon Eisenberg
Lillian Fallek
Lisa & Charlie Feldbaum
Sherri & Larry Feuer
Wendy Fox & Jeff Barin
Shirley & Byron Frank
Edwin Freeman
Marcy Frost & Mark Ratner
Jeri Glick-Anderson & Charles Anderson
Howard & Heidi Gilbert
Patricia & Richard Golden
Sally Greenberg & Abbe Smith
Susan & Doug Greenberg
Kim & Cliff Greene
Mark Halvorson
Judy Harris
Morris Hartman & Michael Bahr
Micki Herman Kay & Neil Kay
Ellen Hertz & Randall Zats
Betsy Hirsch & Matt McGue
Susan & Michael Horovitz
Bruce Idelkope
Ida & Tom Isaacs
Ellen Joseph & Dennis Ready
Jill & Lennie Kaufman
Jane Ketroser
Maureen Kucera-Walsh
Betsy Kuller & Ben Gerber
Richard Launer & Amy Sadoff
Joy Leibman
Helen & Ralph Levitt
Bridget Manahan & Joe Alexander
Jill & Andrew Miller
Rosanne Nathanson
Margie & Charlie Ostrov
Jaime & Mike Proman
Nancy & Jim Proman
Rachel Ratner & Peter Shanedling
James Rice
Carol Rosenblatt
Sue & Jim Roth
Caron Rubin & Marc Meirovitz
Amy Sadoff & Rick Launer
Mimi Sanders
Karen & Paul Schanfield
Judith & Mark Segal
Yvonne & Chuck Selcer
Carol Shapiro
Betsy & Steve Sitkoff
Cathy Snyder
Alene & Anthony Sussman
Jim Tankenoff
Francine & Stephen Trachtenberg
Deborah Walstein
Billy Weisman
Pamela & Steve Wexler
Karen & Alan Winner
Ellie & Mark Wolpert
Dawn Yellott and Sandy Donaldson
Penny & Mark Ziessman
Silver Sponsors
Benefactor — $500
Joyce & David H. Abramson
Jill Binder
Cindy & Don Brown
Carol Chomsky & Steve Liss
Diana & Jeremy Cohen
Charlotte Cohn
Robert Edelstein
Gary Gardner
Art Glassman
Kay & Bruce Goldstein
Bruce Goodman
Lindsay & Blake Holden
Judy Karon
Marion & Steve Kahn
Neil Lapidus
Arlene & Zvi Leibovich
Carly & Drew Levin
Sharon & Buzz Levitt
Carol Chomsky & Steve Liss
Betsy Maurer & Andrew Schulman
Betsy Michel
Naomi Perman
Dan Ribnick
Muffy & Lawrence Rudnick
Betsy & Mayer Tapper
Suzanne & Everett Weinstein
Jodie & Andy Weinstein
Miriam Weinstein
Sari & Jon Witzke
Anne & Allen Wolf
Ron Zamansky
*Denotes those individuals honoring loved ones whose lives were forever changed by the Holocaust.
Sponsorship Opportunities
Diamond
Invitation for two to a cocktail soirée with Itzhak Perlman on May 4
Pre-event hors d’oeuvres reception
Luminary
$36,000
Premier seating for 10
Visionary
$25,000
Premier seating for 6
Leader
$18,000
Premier seating for 4
Additional sponsorship seating is available for $250 per seat only for those who have purchased a sponsorship. Limited to 4 additional tickets.
Platinum
Pre-event meet and greet with Itzhak Perlman
Pre-event hors d’oeuvres reception
Patron — $10,000
Premier seating for 2
Gold
Pre-event hors d’oeuvres reception
Pillar — $5,000
Preferred seating
for 4
Kehillah — $2,500
Preferred seating
for 2
Silver
Reserved seating
Sustainer — $1,000
Reserved seating for 2
Benefactor — $500
Reserved seating for 1
Additional seating is available for $250 per seat only for those who have purchased a sponsorship. Limited to 4 additional tickets.
General Admission tickets will be available for purchase in the spring.
For more information, please contact
Judith Friedman, Director of Congregational Philanthropy, at jfriedman@templeisrael.com or
612-374-0342.