Month: January 2014

Archives

Registrations rolling in for Nadiv Poker Night

Registrations rolling in for Nadiv Poker Night

Tuesday, May 13, 6 pm • Sandler Family Campus The first-ever Nadiv Poker Night is set for launch.Registrations are coming in as poker players ready for a large-scale tournament at the Sandler Family Campus.Dinner is at 6 pm, and the tournament begins at 7 pm...

The Maccabeats to perform Unity Concert

The Maccabeats to perform Unity Concert

Sunday, June 8, 2:30 pm • Sandler Family Campus The Maccabeats are coming to town! Get ready for a rockin’ show with America’s premier Jewish a cappella group. Families across Jewish Tidewater are encouraged to attend.The concert is presented by B’nai Israel...

Herschel Blum

NORFOLK – Herschel Blum passed away on March 29, 2025, just weeks short of his 98th birthday. A private graveside service was held at Forest Lawn Cemetery in Norfolk.Family – daughters, grandchildren, great grandchildren – and many friends miss him – but celebrate his...

Robert (Bob) Brotman

VIRGINIA BEACH – Born December 18, 1940, in Brooklyn, New York, Bob was a fun-loving man who brought happiness to all those fortunate enough to have contact with him. Sadly, Bob passed away peacefully on May 3, 2025.Bob first caught sight of Margie Lewis at the...

Bernard “Bernie” Chovitz

SILVER SPRING, Md. - Bernard Chovitz passed away peacefully on April 25, 2025.Bernie is survived by daughter Phyllis Chovitz (Danny Gainsburg), son-in-law Phil Baker (Eileen), grandsons Izzy Gainsburg, Jesse Gainsburg, Nathan Baker (Molly), and great grandchildren...

Reatha Fay Kantor

VIRGINIA BEACH - Our beloved matriarch, Reatha Mirman Kantor (affectionately known as “Re”) passed away on April 25, 2025, at the age of 89.Reatha was born on August 7, 1935, in Norfolk, Va., the youngest child of Taft and Dora Mirman. She graduated from Maury High...

Sheila Van Dyke

PINEHURST, N.C. - Sheila Van Dyke, a woman of deep faith who had a gift for making close friends wherever she went, passed away peacefully on April 21, 2025, at her home in Pinehurst, N.C., after an illness.Born in Malone, N.Y., she was the daughter of the late...

Vote through May 4 in election for World Zionist Congress

Vote through May 4 in election for World Zionist Congress

Just a few days are left to vote in an election that gives American Jews an opportunity to directly shape Israel’s future.The U.S. election for seats in the 39th World Zionist Congress will help determine the balance of power in the legislative authority of a Zionist...

May is Jewish American Heritage Month

May is Jewish American Heritage Month

Established in 2006 when President George W. Bush proclaimed May as Jewish American Heritage Month, the designated month acknowledges Jewish contributions to American culture, history, military, science, government, and more.The proclamation by President Bush was a...

And then there were none. We need to pick up the mantle

And then there were none. We need to pick up the mantle

In 2010 when the Holocaust Commission conceived of what would become the What We Carry program, its previously robust survivor Speakers Bureau was beginning to shrink. Witnesses to history continued to leave us, but eventually the program grew, and consisted of films...

Stuart Berman

ROCKVILLE, MD - Stuart Alan Berman passed away at the age of 78 on February 25, 2025.Beloved husband of Beverly Berman; devoted father of Scott (Hillary) Berman and Rachel (Chris) Newman; loving brother of Judi Klass and Howard (Barbara) Berman; cherished Pop Pop of...

Charles N. Cooper

NORFOLK - With profound sadness, we announce that Charles Neilson Cooper, age 89, died on Tuesday, February 25, 2025.Charles was born on July 13, 1935, in Norfolk, Va. to Dudley Cooper and Mary Miller Cooper. He was raised in Norfolk alongside his older brother, Joel...

Marilyn Miller

NORFOLK – Marilyn Miller passed away peacefully on February 18, 2025, at the age of 97.She is survived by two sons and her daughter-in-law.Marilyn Miller was born January 29, 1928, in Brooklyn, N.Y. She was the only surviving child of Helen and Louis Epstein. Her...

Ronnie Hermelin Moscovitz

NORFOLK - Ronnie Hermelin Moscovitz passed away peacefully in her sleep at home, family by her side, on February 28, 2025.Born to Al and Bea Hermelin, of blessed memory, in Norfolk, Va., on May 7, 1940, she was the eldest of four children. Being diagnosed with...

Robert Oasis

PALM BEACH GARDENS, FLORIDA - Robert (Bob) Oasis passed peacefully at home on March 6, 2025. He was surrounded by both family and friends.Bob grew up in West Hartford, Conn., attended Hall High School and earned a BA from Curry College in Milton, Mass. His career...

Dr. Louis O. Tonelson

VIRGINIA BEACH - Dr. Louis O. Tonelson passed away on March 15, 2025.Dr. Tonelson was born to A. Rufus and Sara Tonelson on May 1, 1947, in Norfolk, Va.Dr. Tonelson is survived by his best friend and confidant of 54 years, his wife Anita. He is also survived by his...

Broken Vessels, Restored Souls: Ceramics in Jewish Mysticism and Art

Sunday, March 30, 12:30 – 2:30 pm, Torggler Center at Christopher Newport University In Judaism’s mystical traditions, the myth of the ‘breaking of the vessels’ imagines vessels of divine essence shattered at creation, left for humans to find and repair the...

Exploring the afterlife through Jewish perspectives

8-week course begins: Tuesday, April 1 12:30 – 2 pm, Sandler Family Campus What happens after death? It’s a question as old as humanity. For Jews, the answer has never been a singular, fixed doctrine. Instead, Jewish thought has evolved over millennia, offering a...

Buildings honor memories of Bibas boys with orange lights

The Israeli Embassy called for the lighting of buildings in orange in commemoration of the Bibas children, hoping that the illuminations would serve as a powerful gesture of remembrance and solidarity.The symbolic lightings were intended to honor the memories of Ariel...

Virginia’s Speaker of the House shares insights from Israel trip

The Speaker of the Virginia House of Delegates, Don Leonard Scott Jr., spent a rainy afternoon last month with members of Jewish Tidewater at the home of Laura and Fred Gross. His recent trip to Israel with AIPAC was the focus of the conversation.Jeff Breit, a law...

Advocates receive warm welcome on Virginia Jewish Advocacy Day 2025

My alarm went off on January 28 at 5:30 am. I was already up… It was at least 25 years since I had been a part of the Jewish Community Relations Council’s United Jewish Federation of Tidewater’s team visiting our Virginia legislators to highlight the issues of...

Renovations planned for Norfolk Mikvah’s Conversion/Men’s mikvah

Whether identifying as Reform, Conservative, or Orthodox, the Norfolk Mikvah enables every Jew in Tidewater to access the transformative, rejuvenating power of a mikvah.Brides before their wedding, those in the process of converting to Judaism, married women who keep...

Milestone anniversaries worth celebrating

“Love and marriage, go together like a horse and carriage. It’s an institute you can’t disparage.”Frank Sinatra first sang these Sammy Cahn lyrics in the 1955 television production of Thornton Wilder’s Our Town.Here, in Tidewater, several couples celebrating special...

Beginning with B’nai Tzedek

For the Kass family, giving back is more than just a value — it’s a responsibility. When their son Jonah was preparing for his Bar Mitzvah, Melissa and Aaron Kass knew they wanted to instill the importance of community and responsibility. The B’nai Tzedek: Youth...

Bob Zentz recognized with Music Lifetime Achievement Award

Local folk musician Bob Zentz was bestowed a 2025 Music Lifetime Achievement Award from Veer Magazine during a ceremony at Elevation 27 last month. With a career that includes nearly every aspect of music – as a writer, performer, retailer, manager, mentor – Zentz has...

Tidewater BBYO goes to International Convention

Partaking in BBYO’s International Convention 2025 was truly an experience I will never forget. The annual gathering took place this year over President’s Day Weekend in Denver, Col.From listening to the incredible speakers to dancing and singing with my friends at the...