Talmudical Academy

Gershon Kranzler, former Talmudical Academy principal and sociology professor, died Thursday of cancer at Johns Hopkins Hospital. He was 84 and lived in Northwest Baltimore. When he arrived at Talmudical Academy in 1955, it was a school of 200 children on Cottage Avenue. When he left in 1967, enrollment had grown to 600 and the school had moved to a new campus. Described as a Renaissance man who combined a profound religious faith with intellectual curiosity, he was the author of 15 children's books, including "The Golden Shoes" and "The Glass Blower of Venice."

Baltimore's Jewish population continues to grow, but younger, non-Orthodox Jews are less likely than others to be actively engaged in Jewish organizations, a recent study of the Jewish community has found. The study, commissioned by The Associated: Jewish Community Federation of Baltimore, is described as "a snapshot of Jewish Baltimore," one the organization attempts to capture about every decade. Among the findings: •The Jewish population in the Baltimore area has grown 2 percent, to 93,400, since 1999, when the last survey was conducted.

Once heralded as "The Jewish Jordan," Tamir Goodman never lived up to the hype. A national celebrity at 17 as a junior at the Talmudical Academy in Pikesville, Goodman faded out of the spotlight by the time he turned 20. Without his disappointments in basketball, Goodman said in an interview this week, he would not be as prepared for the end of his professional playing career in Israel and the beginning of a new one. He will announce his retirement at...

Once heralded as "The Jewish Jordan," Tamir Goodman never lived up to the hype. A national celebrity at 17 as a junior at the Talmudical Academy in Pikesville, Goodman faded out of the spotlight by the time he turned 20. Without his disappointments in basketball, Goodman said in an interview this week, he would not be as prepared for the end of his professional playing career in Israel and the beginning of a new one. He will announce his retirement at...

When his mother visited Israel in November, Tamir Goodman asked her to bring him back one thing: a sky-blue yarmulke. The color would match his basketball uniform at the Talmudical Academy in Pikesville."

At Beth Abraham Synagogue in northwest Baltimore, a 16-year-old basketball player was the topic of conversation at Tuesday morning's services. At Beth Tfiloh in Pikesville, the youth figured into the rabbi's sermon Saturday.At midweek, two octogenarians shopping at nearby Seven Mile Market paused in the produce aisle to debate the athlete's play. And on Reisterstown Road at Tov Pizza, where Orthodox Jews gather not only to eat but also to pray, talk for days has centered on Tamir Goodman of the Talmudical Academy.

On September 7, 2005, RABBI SAMUEL FISHBEIN, beloved husband of the late Rebbitzen Ruth Fishbein (nee Schultz), loving son of the late Yaakov and Feiga Fishbein and family who perished in the Holocaust. Loving cousin of Gertrude and the late Izzy Wolfe, Betty and Joe Levin, Nathan and the late Betty Burak, all of Silver Spring, MD. Also survived by many other cousins and friends. Services were held on Wednesday, September 7 at the Talmudical Academy. Interment Har Hzeisim Cemetery, Jerusalem, Israel.

From its perch on a hill above the Baltimore Beltway at Old Court Road, Talmudical Academy endured the noise of cars whizzing past its open classroom windows on warm days for 25 years.But the sometimes-deafening roar will no longer intrude on classroom activities, thanks to a new air-conditioning system that the state government will help pay for.The private parochial school has received a promise that the state will pay $75,000 of the $160,000 bill to air condition the buildings.The Baltimore County Council is expected to approve at its meeting tonight the local government's $10,000 portion of the bill -- money actually provided by a private, anonymous donor that is being passed through the council.

Solomon Karen, a retired Baltimore elementary school principal who also headed the secular program in the lower school at the Talmudical Academy of Baltimore, died Saturday of leukemia at Johns Hopkins Hospital.Mr. Karen, who was 59 and lived on Amy Lane, retired in 1988 as principal at the Farring Elementary School and then headed the program at the Talmudical Academy for a year.Principal of the Garrett Heights Elementary School for 11 years before his final two-year assignment at Farring, he had also been an assistant principal after starting his teaching career in 1956.

Today's 75th anniversary of the Talmudical Academy is a reminder of the significant role the Orthodox Jewish community plays in Baltimore. If anything, that role is getting more pronounced. Baltimore is said to have the largest percentage of Orthodox Jews of any American city and each year some 150 additional families move in, mostly from New York.Several reasons explain Baltimore's attraction for these religious families. Houses here are often relative bargains for large, young families.

Tamir Goodman is coming home. And this time, he'll gladly leave his old nickname behind him, stashed with all the hype and unmet expectations that became such a burden. Goodman, dubbed the "Jewish Jordan" by Sports Illustrated during his junior year at Talmudical Academy in Baltimore, will join the Maryland Nighthawks of the new Premier Basketball League after playing professionally in Israel. He'll be introduced to the media Wednesday at a news conference at Georgetown Prep, and his first game will be in January.

On September 7, 2005, RABBI SAMUEL FISHBEIN, beloved husband of the late Rebbitzen Ruth Fishbein (nee Schultz), loving son of the late Yaakov and Feiga Fishbein and family who perished in the Holocaust. Loving cousin of Gertrude and the late Izzy Wolfe, Betty and Joe Levin, Nathan and the late Betty Burak, all of Silver Spring, MD. Also survived by many other cousins and friends. Services were held on Wednesday, September 7 at the Talmudical Academy. Interment Har Hzeisim Cemetery, Jerusalem, Israel.

"I like 'Cat in the Hat' by Dr. Seuss because the sun would not shine, it was too wet to play and the children heard a bump sound so they jumped and there was the Cat in the Hat." -- Tyshell Plater Tench Tilghman Elementary "I liked 'Moe the Dog in Tropical Paradise' by Diane Stanley because it is a book about a dog who does not like winter. He surprised his friend Arlene by painting his wall like a tropical paradise." -- Elise Hoskins Eldersburg Elementary "The book 'Harry in Trouble' by Barbara Ann Porte is about a boy in trouble.

"I read 'Oh, Tucker!' by Steven Kroll. Tucker is a very happy dog. He moves too fast and knocks over everything in his house. But he loves his family so much, and they love him." -- Jeremy Davis Cross Country Elementary "The book 'Jessica's Mermaid, Sweet Valley Kids' by Molly Mia Stewart is about Jessica, who saw a mermaid. Her friends did not believe her because Jessica always made up stories that were not true. She had to find the mermaid again, or her friends would leave her forever.

Gershon Kranzler, former Talmudical Academy principal and sociology professor, died Thursday of cancer at Johns Hopkins Hospital. He was 84 and lived in Northwest Baltimore. When he arrived at Talmudical Academy in 1955, it was a school of 200 children on Cottage Avenue. When he left in 1967, enrollment had grown to 600 and the school had moved to a new campus. Described as a Renaissance man who combined a profound religious faith with intellectual curiosity, he was the author of 15 children's books, including "The Golden Shoes" and "The Glass Blower of Venice."

Basketball player Tamir Goodman has committed orally to accepting a full basketball scholarship next fall from Towson University, his father, Karl Goodman, confirmed last night."

''Best book, 'Max and the Baby-sitter' by Danielle Steel and Jacqueline Rogers. Max and his baby-sitter were making cookies. If you like funny books, read this one to find out what funny things happen when they make the cookies.''- Rashdia BrownLeith Walk Elementary``I liked reading 'Cinderella' by Charles Perrault. First, I liked the action. I liked when Cinderella was running down the steps and lost her shoe. Second, I liked the ending. I liked when the prince married the girl.''- Kasia BrandesWellwood International School``I like 'Zack's Alligator' by Shirley Mozelle because it is a book where Zack gets something in the mail.

Maryland-bound basketball player Tamir Goodman of Talmudical Academy apparently will transfer out of the 62-student, all-boys school in Pikesville and met yesterday with officials at nearby Beth Tfiloh, according to a source close to the situation.A member of the Maryland Interscholastic Athletic Association's C Conference, Beth Tfiloh is a coed Jewish school.Goodman is an Orthodox Jew whose faith restricts him from playing from sundown on Friday to sundown on Saturday, and Beth Tfiloh "follows those same rules," said MIAA executive secretary Rick Diggs.

There are indications that the University of Maryland men's basketball program has cooled on recruit Tamir Goodman.Sources inside the Terps athletic department and those familiar with his recruitment say the coaching staff was unimpressed with Goodman's play during an injury-slowed summer.Goodman went from obscurity to national sensation last January, when he accepted a scholarship offer from Maryland coach Gary Williams during his junior season at Talmudical Academy in Baltimore. Goodman, an Orthodox Jew, has since transferred to Takoma Academy, a Seventh-day Adventist institution near College Park, to seek better competition.

During the summer, Tamir Goodman gave the odometer a workout in regular trips to College Park for pickup basketball games at the University of Maryland, the school that offered him a scholarship earlier this year.Those trips to the Washington area apparently won't end anytime soon. The 17-year-old has transferred from Talmudical Academy to Takoma Academy, a Seventh-Day Adventist institution, and will commute daily to the Takoma Park school.Chava Goodman, his mother, and Takoma Academy coach Joe Perrone both confirmed the move yesterday, though neither would comment further.