Avie and Orit's Wedding June 4, 2003
by Rabbi M. David Geffen (father of the groom)
Avie and Orit were married in "Makom Batevah" a natural setting about ten miles north of Netanya.

Officiating was Rabbi Yaakov Adler, son of Ruth Ziff Adler - he and Avie are both great-grandsons of Rabbi Tobias Geffen.Some of the unusual guests were the former minister of finance, Avraham Beige Shohat, who hired both Avie and Orit when they first started to work - Avie in 1993 - Orit in 1999. Former minister and protege of Shimon Peres - Yossie Beilin who is friendly with Orit's mother Orit's parents are Tamar (Tami) and Zohar - both are native Israelis. Tami's parents are still alive - both holocaust survivors. Zohar's parents were halutzim in the twenties arriving from Poland.

At the wedding - from the groom's immediate family along with his parents were his sister Elissa and her husband, Chemi Burg, with their 3 children, Ori, Lyron and Eden who live in the Golan Heights ....and his brother Tuvia Jeremy Geffen, his wife, Keren and their son Daniel who came to the wedding from New York City.....

Also attending- were first cousins - Ruth Ziff Adler and her husband Judge Steve Adler - chief judge of the national labor court of Israel, all five of their sons were present - two with their wives - a few Adler grandchildren.

Dr. David Wilensky, son of Bessie Geffen Wilensky, still living in Chicago, two of their daughters were present - their oldest daughter Rinat just had her fifth son - the daughter of Professor Jacob T. Wilensky, Devora, was in Israel and came to the wedding.All three daughters of the late Dr. Daniel Ziff came - Rachel, Dr. Batsheva, and Shirit some came with husbands and children. Also, Ellie Ziff, ex-wife of Dr. Daniel Ziff and her husband, Maurice Corb.Allen Hoffman and his wife Dr. Stefani Hoffman and their daughter Avi were present. Allen's grandmother in St. Louis Ethel Geffen Liebson, was a first cousin of Rabbi Tobias Geffen.

Allen has written a number of novels and his wife translated the autobiographies of Natan Scharansky and Ida Nudel - she heads an eastern european institute at the Hebrew University.Dr. David Geffen returned from the usa two hours before the wedding - he came with his second and fiancee - they are getting married in august (on shabbat in Jerusalem at Auruf) - his oldest son and his wife were present.Reuven and Yaffa Geffen who live on a Moshav were present - he is next after David and then their sister Sara Geller is the cantor now in a synagogue in Olney, Maryland. Reuven did not bring his two children - they will be bar and bat mitzvah in early july in Beersheva. Dr. and Mrs. Abraham will be going over for the simchas.

Also present - Professor Dov and Bilha Levin. Dov is a great-nephew of Mrs. Tobias Geffen.

He walked from Vilna to Italy from January to June in 1945 and was smuggled in to Palestine as an illegal in october 1945. Dov is one of the leading authorities on the history of the jews in the baltic countries. Rabbi and Mrs. Geffen assisted him when he first came to palestine.

Also present was Nira ben-Zvi and her husband Danny. Her mother Sonia was the daughter of Yona Geffen, a brother of Rabbi Tobias Geffen. Her older sister Yona died a few years ago. Nira has two children and some grandchildren.
Photos are from Only Simchas

 

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