B’nai B’rith names Jim Stanton its Person of the Year

The Isadore Garsek Lodge of B’nai B’rith will honor Jim Stanton with its Person of the Year Award at 11 a.m., Sunday, June 12 at Ahavath Sholom. 

After a pandemic hiatus, all involved are thrilled to be back in-person for the award.

Jim has touched virtually every Jewish organization in the Tarrant County Jewish Community.

Jim is a naturalized Texan. He hails from New York, New York and graduated from Hobart College and earned a master’s degree in communications from Syracuse University.

He is a regular attendee at Shabbat services at either Ahavath Sholom or Beth-El. He chairs Beth-El’s Safety and Security committee and often greets congregants at services. After the shooting at the Tree of Life Synagogue in Pittsburgh, Jim began assessing the security needs of the Tarrant County Jewish community. He coordinated with the Federation and obtained grants for security enhancements and helped oversee the implementation of security measures. He was instrumental in garnering the services of the Secure Community Network to provide community security programs and training. That training is credited with assisting Rabbi Charlie Cytron-Walker and three fellow Beth Shalom Congregants with escaping physically unharmed when an armed man held them hostage for more than 11 hours Jan. 15 in the synagogue.

Among the many boards on which Jim serves or has served  are Congregation Ahavath Sholom, Beth-El Congregation, Congregation Beth Shalom, B’nai B’rith Isadore Garsek Lodge, the Jewish Federation of Fort Worth and Tarrant County and Tarrant County Hebrew Free Loan Association.

Jim was a devoted partner to his late wife, Elaine. He is the father of four children and eight grandchildren: David and Tami Stanton  and their children Isabel and Philip in Austin; Michael and Alisa Nogen and their daughter Aerin in New York City. Sarah and Michael Holland and their children Edith, Doris and Simon in Austin; and Caron and Alex Zamansky and their children Nora and Reece in Sacramento, California. When not spending time visiting family or on his community endeavors, Jim enjoys riding his bike on Fort Worth and neighboring county trails.

Also at the luncheon, the Lodge will present the B’nai B’rith Community Service Award to Rabbi Sidney Zimelman in recognition of his dedication and commitment to the Jewish community. 

Tickets for the luncheon are $25 and can be purchased by contacting Rich Hollander at rich.d.hollander@gmail.com; Alex Nason at alexnason@charter.net; or Marvin Beleck at marvinbeleck@aol.com.

Congratulations to Jim Stanton and Rabbi Sidney Zimelman on their well-deserved honors.

SCN presents crucial training

More than 120 people from across Tarrant County showed up at Beth-El Congregation on Monday, May 23, for Secure Community Network’s (SCN’s)  “BeAware & Countering Active Threat Training and Exercise.” 

The first part of the training covered the basics of situational awareness — how to recognize suspicious or potentially dangerous behavior and threats, and what to do – whether you are in synagogue, at school, at work or just running errands. The second part covered what to do if you are faced with an active threat, including how to prepare in advance, how to commit to action during an incident, how to respond to the arrival of law enforcement, and the importance of additional programs such as Stop the Bleed™. The training incorporated the principles of the nationally recognized “Run-Hide-Fight” approach to surviving active threats. The training concluded with an exercise to demonstrate how to apply these skills in which participants barricaded the room they were in. The entire event was recorded by CNN for a special on antisemitism to be broadcast later this summer.

Brad Orsini, SCN’s senior national security advisor conducted the program. SCN is the official safety and security organization of the Jewish community in North America.