TOUR GUIDE Haim Kuznitz recently told the intriguing story of finding a wallet on a restaurant table in Italy. Among the contents of the wallet were a faded black-and-white photograph and a strand of hair. Written on the back of the photograph was “Frankfurt 1938.”
There were no credit cards to indicate the owner’s name, but there was a large sum of money. Kuznitz contacted the restaurant, but no one had come looking for a lost wallet.
After a few days, he was contacted by the wallet owner’s daughter, who told him the only things important to her family were the photograph and the strand of hair. Her grandmother had been murdered during the 1938 Kristallnacht riots, and these two items were all that the family had left of her.
After broadcasting the story, Kuznitz was contacted by former television personality Sari Raz, who told a similar tale. She and her late husband, Dan Biron, also a journalist, found a wallet on a Jerusalem restaurant table. They found credit cards with the name “Mr. White,” issued in Orange, Texas, alongside a large sum of dollars.
Biron, a quick thinker, surmised the owner would be calling his bank to cancel the credit cards. In those days, overseas calls from Israel could not be made directly, but only by dialing Bezeq 144.
Biron explained to the operator what had happened, and told her that if anyone tried to place a call to Orange, Texas, she should ask if his name was Mr. White, and give him Biron’s phone number. Sure enough, a short time later, the call came.
White had initially been in shock when the operator checked his name. He thought that he was being trailed by the Mossad, but was thrilled when she clarified.
When White called Biran, the latter asked which hotel he was staying at, and offered to deliver the wallet there. It transpired that White had come on a tour with a group of Mormons. When Biran and Raz arrived at the hotel, they found the whole group waiting for them. They were embraced, kissed, and blessed.
Biron was a well-known personality in Jerusalem. In addition to his position at the (now defunct) Israel Broadcasting Authority, he managed the Birman Musical Bistro at 8 Dorot Rishonim Street, where he often played the accordion.
In 2008, he made a failed run for mayor, competing with Russian philanthropist Arcadi Gaydamak, who didn’t win a single seat, and Nir Barkat, the clear winner.
Workers finally began to dismantle US Embassy inauguration tent
■ PRIOR TO the arrival of US President Donald Trump for the May 2018 inauguration of the US Embassy in Jerusalem, a huge wood and metal structure was built at the Prime Minister’s Residence entrance. This was to guarantee Trump’s security when he paid a brief visit there, when it was occupied by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
The structure remained in place in ensuing years, despite neighbors’ frequent complaints. The residence was not occupied by Netanyahu’s successors, Naftali Bennett and Yair Lapid, and by the time Netanyahu was back in office, the interior had been gutted, and renovation had started, which continues to this day.
Last week, workers finally began to dismantle the tent. But they left its infrastructure intact, removing the roof but not its framework. Meanwhile, a huge marquee put up by the Shin Bet (Israel Security Agency) on one of the two streets is still standing, and security has been beefed up.
This past Monday, the marquee was sealed, a metal barricade placed in front of it, and three vehicles assigned to the prime minister were parked by the barricade. An authoritative voice from inside the marquee sounded very familiar.
The Jerusalem Municipality is hiring
■ THE JERUSALEM Municipality is hiring – big time. Last Friday, three pages of classified ads were placed in the weekend edition of Israel HaYom for a variety of positions in some of the numerous community service, educational, sport, cultural, and social welfare facilities that operate under City Hall’s auspices. Each page was signed by adv. Lior Israeli, who wears several municipal hats, including head of human resources.
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