For Jewish children with disabilities, a religious...

For Jewish children with disabilities, a religious education has been hard to come by.

The Los Angeles area has 16 Orthodox Jewish day schools and more than 50 Orthodox synagogues, but until recently there have been no special education programs for Jewish children.

The Etta Israel Center for developmentally disabled youths, the first organization of its kind on the West Coast, opened its doors this summer to offer an Orthodox Jewish education to children with disabilities. The center, supported by private donations and grants, provides free Torah study classes, socialization and self-esteem programs, youth groups and family counseling.

“We spent three months doing field research, and found a definite need (for these programs) throughout the Jewish community and the Orthodox community as well,” said psychologist Michael Held, executive director of the center.

Most religious children with disabilities attend public schools, but because of school dress codes they are often not allowed to wear yarmulkes, which the Orthodox consider an important part of their religious observance, or they are teased because they look and dress differently from other students.

The Jewish community, Held said, needs to be enlightened about the needs of the handicapped.

“There are still many families who have a sense of shame that their child is not ‘normal,’ ” he said. “There is a lot of ignorance about what a disability is and how it affects an individual’s quality of life. There is a failure to appreciate that a disabled person is a whole person. Because of the historical emphasis in Judaism on academic and intellectual achievement, there may be even more of a difficulty of coming to terms with the issues of a disabled person.”

The center is headquartered in the Jewish Community Building in the Mid-Wilshire area, but the programs are offered in various synagogues and schools throughout Los Angeles. About 30 families participate.

In September, the center will open a two-hour Sunday school program, which will focus on Jewish learning and the holidays, and give children an opportunity to learn in a Jewish environment.

Held hopes to open a full-time school at some point but realizes that would be a costly endeavor.

Frieda Katz attends the parent education groups, and she said the programs have been helpful to her 10-year-old son, Jacob, who has Down’s syndrome.

“He loves going to the youth group stuff, and to the meetings and for the holidays,” said Katz, a teacher who lives on the Westside. “He doesn’t have the kind of place to go to experience Jewish things on his own level--the temple is not appropriate for him, and he’s embarrassed to wear his yarmulke to school.”

Katz, who has five children, feels programs for Jewish children with disabilities are long overdue.

“The community has been supportive, but if a new child is born, I don’t know how much support is readily available,” she said. “The fact that (the Etta Israel Center) is in existence, as soon as a child (with a disability) is born, there’s a phone number parents can get. “

For more information, call (213) 651-5122.

OUTREACH

* The Commission on Human Relations for Los Angeles County and the Muslim Public Affairs Council will hold a free seminar titled “Islam: Beyond the Stereotypes,” from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. Thursday. Speakers will include Rep. Howard L. Berman, (D-Panorama City), chairman of the Congressional Subcommittee on International Operations, who will discuss “Muslims Through the Eyes of Congressmen,” and Maher Hathout, chairman of the Islamic Center of Southern California. Other seminar topics will include fundamentalism, Muslim women, human rights, and democracy in Islam and American Muslims. RSVP by Tuesday. 434 S. Vermont Ave. (213) 383-3443.

* The Metropolitan Ecclesiastical Jurisdiction will present its 10th annual women’s convention Thursday through Sunday at the Red Lion Inn in Glendale. The theme of the convention is “Passing the Torch to the New Generation,” and will include day and evening workshops. 100 W. Glenoaks Blvd. (213) 732-0507.

* The Los Angeles Jewish Family Service will offer an eight-week support and counseling program for people coping with infertility, from 7 to 8:30 p.m. beginning Tuesday. The non-sectarian program is coordinated by Jewish Family Service staff therapist Dvora Kravitz, who specializes in issues relating to reproductive health. There is a sliding scale fee. 6505 Wilshire Blvd., Suite 608. (213) 852-7723.

* Calvary Baptist Church of Pacoima will hold its annual church revival beginning Sunday at 10:55 a.m. and 7:30 p.m., continuing nightly at 7:30 p.m. through Friday. The theme is “Evangelism, the Reasonable Thing to Do.” (818) 896-0798. 12928 Vaughn St.

* The South Coast Ecumenical Council is sponsoring a kick-off celebration for Project Koinonia from 3:30 to 5 p.m. Sunday at Covenant Presbyterian Church. Project Koinonia will establish dialogues among congregations throughout Long Beach to encourage communication across racial, ethnic and denominational lines. The celebration will include prayer and a variety of music, from Latin to Gospel. 607 E. 3rd St., Long Beach. (310) 595-0268.

REBUILDING

Bishop Albert F. Mutti of the United Methodist Church in Topeka, Kan., spent this week with 16 volunteers painting and repairing a center for the homeless operated by Wesley United Methodist Church in Los Angeles.

The Rakestraw Center was damaged during last year’s riots and was chosen by the United Methodist Church as one of four “shalom zones,” areas or buildings across the Southland that the Methodist church has dedicated itself toward rebuilding.

Mutti and his crew paid their own way from Kansas to Los Angeles. Within a week, they had renovated the kitchen and added an emergency exit for the center, which provides food, job training and placement, child care and other basic services. “We can really see the difference,” Mutti said.

Mutti and the other volunteers came to Los Angeles despite the flooding that has devastated parts of the Midwest. Mutti said he has been assured that teams from California will come to his city to help rebuild.

“I think that’s the way the church ought to work,” he said.

Los Angeles Bishop Roy Sano was also among those who pitched in at the homeless center this week. In October, the denomination will try to raise $5 million for projects in the shalom zones, which include communities in Pico-Union, the San Fernando Valley and Long Beach.

BRIEFLY

The Rev. G. Worth George, 60, a United Church of Christ pastor and executive director of Pilgrim Place in Claremont, a retirement community for professional religious workers, has received the 1993 Award of Honor from the California Assn. of Homes for the Aging. George, 60, has been executive director of Pilgrim Place for more than 20 years . . .

The Rev. John A. Privett has been appointed Provincial Superior of the California Province of the Society of Jesus. Based in Los Gatos, Privett, 53, will supervise 532 of the 4,485 Jesuits in the United States. He currently holds an appointment as senior lecturer at the University of Santa Clara, and in 1988 was appointed rector of the Jesuit community there.

Stephen P. Carleton, longtime professor, academic dean and executive vice president at California Baptist College in Riverside, has been appointed head of the Southern Baptist Education Commission in Nashville, Tenn. Carleton has worked at the college since 1967.

Notices may be sent to Southern California File by mail or c/o Religion Editor, Los Angeles Times, Times Mirror Square, Los Angeles, Calif. 90053, or by fax to (213) 237-4712. Items must be brief and arrive at least three weeks in advance of the event announced. Include a phone number, date, time and full address.