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The 29th Annual Elie Wiesel Writing and Visual Arts Competition, which invites students in grades 6 - 12 to reflect on the lessons of the Holocaust and explore how they might be able to rid the world of antisemitism, bigotry, and hatred, is now open. The Holocaust...
NORFOLK - David Bruce Jorgenson, age 83, departed this world on October 31, 2025. David lived a life full of love. Just before he was born, his parents – Minnesota transplants to Los Angeles – rode a train back to rural Minnesota to be surrounded by his first...
PORTSMOUTH - Richard Siff, devoted husband and father, passed away on November 11, 2025. Born in Norfolk, Virginia, he was the only child of Leon and Doris Siff. Richard cultivated an early interest in electronics through amateur radio, which led to a...
MCLEAN, VIRGINIA - David Louis Taetle, 75, passed away peacefully at home surrounded by family on November 15, 2025. Born in Washington, D.C., Mr. Taetle attended Bryant University before embarking on a long and successful career as a financial consultant to...
Legacy 2025 L’ Dor V’Dor – From Generation to Generation Grand opening: Saturday, December 6, 6:30 pm, Sandler Family Campus Henri Matisse, Ben Shan, and Jacques Lipchitz were the names mentioned by Mia Laufer, PhD, the Irene Leach curator of European Art for the...
After experiencing vibrant and deeply moving Chaguim at Temple Emanuel, Pati, Lia, Ben, and I traveled to Buenos Aires, my hometown, to celebrate two very special occasions with our family there — my niece Martina’s Bat Mitzvah and my mother’s 75th birthday. We...
November 24, 2025, 11:00 AM–3:45 PM: Join the Simon Family JCC and Red Cross in the Jaffe Gymnasium, 5000 Corporate Woods Drive, Virginia Beach, for a lifesaving blood drive. Every two seconds, someone in the U.S. needs blood, and one donation can save up to...
Begins Friday, November 21• 10 am - 3 pm, Sandler Family Campus United Jewish Federation of Tidewater is launching a new initiative to bring community members together: Monthly Volunteer Days. Volunteers will gather once a month to take part in meaningful hands-on...
Jewish News appreciates all who support the newspaper with generous contributions – whether in honor of or in memory of friends and loved ones or as a Friend of Jewish News. Friends of Jewish News Walter Fenska G-d Bless Israel Piotr and Charlotte Przyjemski Happy...
Israel in Focus: Hamas’ War – Truth and Consequences. An evening with MAJ John W. Spencer, USA (Ret.) Wednesday, December 3, 7:30 pm, Sandler Family Campus, Free In an era where global conflicts are increasingly fought in dense urban environments, understanding the...
The day following the election of Zohran Mamdani as mayor of New York City, Ted Deutch, CEO of American Jewish Committee, distributed the following email. The world’s attention is focused on New York City with Zohran Mamdani winning the mayoral election, and I...
(JTA) — The Anti-Defamation League is launching a nationwide legal service to connect victims of antisemitism with lawyers who can take their cases on a pro-bono basis. The initiative comes as the ADL has increasingly turned to litigation as a tactic — the...
Women’s Philanthropy and guests gathered on a crisp fall evening on the Sandler Family Campus for a beautiful “Night Under the Stars” to celebrate Sukkot earlier this month. The setting couldn’t have been more perfect — the glow of string lights, the scent of fall in...
International Kallah is where BBYO members from across the globe come together to explore their Jewish identity and learn about their shared Jewish heritage, all while enjoying adventures in a beautiful camp setting. It takes place for 20 days during the summer at the...
Camp JCC is not just an excellent summer camp, it is a place where children, teens, and young adults connect, build community, learn, play, and grow with each other throughout the year. The skills, friendships, memories, and joy of Camp JCC are not limited to two...
This Sukkot, Jewish Family Service celebrated the holiday’s spirit of gratitude and community by launching its “Fill the Sukkah” Food Drive — an initiative that combined tradition with tzedakah. Instead of decorating a traditional sukkah this year, JFS invited...
The online world can be confusing and scary for people of all ages. That is why on Wednesday, Sept. 17, Secure Community Network’s Regional Security Advisor for Tidewater, Mike Goldsmith, spoke with the JCC Senior’s Club about recognizing common scams. Protecting...
Sunday, November 2, 4 - 7 pm Rabbi Rosalin Mandelberg has been weaving her unique and essential thread in Jewish Tidewater’s tapestry with steadfast grace and love for more than 20 years. As senior rabbi at Ohef Sholom Temple, she has led with wisdom, devotion, and...
Program launches November 1 Jewish Family Service helps local Jewish families of all ages. Many of these families are single parents coping with financial challenges. Here is one such story, written on behalf of a JFS client: A young mother approached JFS for...
Saturday, November 8, 7 pm Congregation Beth El will celebrate 175 years of Jewish life in Tidewater with an evening featuring music, food, drinks, and highlights of the past 175 years – as well as insights into the future. This evening is for celebrating...
As 2025 winds down and Jewish Book Month marks its 100th year, the final stretch of Tidewater’s Jewish Book Festival offers a meaningful way to gather in community, reflect on the year behind us, and celebrate the stories that connect us. The conversation...
Sunday, January 11 Ohef Sholom Temple Jewish Family Service will host a special luncheon to celebrate the remarkable legacy of the Hebrew Ladies Society of Tidewater. Established in 1902, this pioneering group of women laid the foundation for what would later become...
Friday, November 21 10 am – 12 pmSandler Family Campus Jewish Family Service will host its annual Thanksgiving Drive the Friday prior to the holiday, offering people in need to pick up a free Thanksgiving meal through its drive-up pantry. To volunteer to help...
Tuesdays, 10 am -12 pm Sandler Family Campus Every other Thursday 10 – 12 pm, Aviva A combined knitting and crocheting group, Knots for Kindness is open to beginners and experienced makers alike. All are welcome. All projects — scarves, lap blankets, and full-sized...
Sunday, November 23, 10 am - 12 pm Sandler Family Campus Members of the Tidewater community will come together next month for Community Impact Day, a morning dedicated to learning, giving, and strengthening community connections. Now in its second year, the event will...
VIRGINIA BEACH - Lawrence Edward “Larry” Bress passed away peacefully on October 9, 2025, in Virginia Beach, Virginia. Born in Norfolk on November 26, 1942, to Lewis and Bertha Bress, Larry was a devoted husband, father, grandfather, and brother whose warmth,...
NORFOLK - With profound sadness, we announce that Bettie Minette Cooper, age 87, died on October 14, 2025. Minette was born on December 23, 1937, in New York City, N.Y. to Louis Leyens Switzer and Bettie Kleisdorf Switzer. She was raised in a family that valued music,...
VIRGINIA BEACH - Marsha Hirschler, 80, passed away at her home surrounded by family, on October 7, 2025. She was preceded in death by her father, Jack Thornton, Sr., mother, Ruth Thornton, and brother, Jack Thornton, II. Born in West Virginia, Marsha grew up in...
NORFOLK - Samuel Sandler, 59, passed away peacefully on October 6, 2025, surrounded by the love of his family. Born on December 7, 1966, to Jack and Jacqueline Sandler, Samuel grew up in a home filled with warmth, humor, and strong family values. He will be remembered...
VIRGINIA BEACH - With profound sadness and deep love, we announce the passing of George Walter Stein on October 7, 2025, at the age of 83. George was a devoted and loving husband, father, grandfather, and valued friend to many. George is preceded in death by his...
In sanctuaries across the nation, in fact, across the globe, rabbis and cantors spent much of the recent High Holidays speaking about the rifts – the competing views – that exist within their congregations concerning Israel, Gaza, and the political divides in the...
Editor: Ever since Oct.7, 2023 this country (and around the world) has seen a strong upsurge in antisemitism. Much of this originates with right-wing white supremacists and the left Muslim pro-Palestinian sectors. But a large contingent also comes from...