WASHINGTON (JTA)—One thing we know about elections is that Jewish voters can make a difference. Take Florida: The Sunshine State’s Jewish voters helped deliver its critical electoral votes to Barack Obama in 2008 and 2012. Problematic ballots in heavily Jewish Broward...
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Hot dogs are the greatest American Jewish food. Here’s why.
American Jewish food is most typically defined as pastrami sandwiches, chocolate babka or bagels and lox. But I am here to argue that the greatest American Jewish food may actually be the humble hot dog. No dish better embodies the totality of the American Jewish...
With a nod to Carl Reiner, My Favorite Year recalls the infancy of TV sketch comedy
Social distancing and staying inside is hard. Thankfully, accessing good things to watch during this time is not. This is another installation of a column on Jewish movies and TV shows to stream in quarantine. My Favorite Year Available for rent: Amazon Prime, Apple...
Board of Rabbis and Cantors of Hampton Roads’ Statement of Commitment to Combating Racism
Tzedek, tzedek tirdof: “Justice, justice you shall pursue” (Deut. 16:20). We, the Jewish faith leaders of Hampton Roads, are appalled not only by the murder of George Floyd on May 25 in Minneapolis, but by the long procession of African-Americans who have been...
Israeli Fellows at Virginia Tech provide perspective and an entry point to real-world Judaism
It doesn’t take a campus massacre or a pandemic for Virginia Tech students to bond with a charismatic and culturally distinct Israeli fellow, and to connect Jewishly. According to Sue Kurtz, executive director at Virginia Tech Hillel, students are nervous about the...
Tidewater women ‘travel’ to the Jewish communities of Minsk and Sofia…
Over three dozen local Jewish women, led by mission co-chairs Annie Sandler and Mona Flax, along with JDC professional Sandy Katz, made the long trek to the Jewish communities of Minsk in Belarus and Sofia in Bulgaria…all through the “magic” of the internet. Following...
A Spring Break camp
Monday, April 1–Friday, April 5 The Kids Connection at the Simon Family JCC, the Before and After School program, is offering a Spring Break Camp, featuring fun indoor and outdoor activities, art, free swim, sports, group games and much more. Full day camp is 6:30 am...
Lawyers without Rights: Jewish Lawyers in Germany Under the Third Reich
Thursday, April 11, 5:30–8 pm An exhibit and panel discussion at Old Dominion University will explore what happens when the rule of law is obliterated. The exhibit, Lawyers without Rights, was created by the German Federal Bar and has been shown in more than 80 cities...
Step Up for Israel at Temple Emanuel
Wednesday, March 20, 7 pm Israel and the West with Rabbi David Barnett Benjamin Netanyahu and many others have noted that most of the Arab world “does not hate the United States because of Israel, but rather hates Israel because of the United States.” Indeed, on the...
Two community members to receive Humanitarian Awards
Thursday, March 21, 5:45 pm The Virginia Center for Inclusive Communities has selected two members of the local Jewish community to be among those receiving its prestigious Humanitarian Awards this year. Robert “Bob” Nusbaum and Marian Bear Ticatch will be honored at...
Jersey Boys rings with themes familiar to Jewish audiences
March 5-16 When Rick Elice and Marshall Brickman started writing the book for the award-winning Broadway musical Jersey Boys, they didn’t think they had much in common with pop sensations and real-life, New Jersey natives Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons. “Marshall...
Maly Jackson shares her story at Beth El
The Beth El Religious School’s eighth and ninth graders listened to Ethiopian refugee Maly Jackson tell her remarkable story on Sunday, Feb. 3. Ethiopian Jews are descended from King Solomon and practice biblical Judaism, which means they do not celebrate Chanukah or...
Neil Lazarus champions concept of diplomacy in Israel Today Forum
Neil Lazarus barely uttered the word “diplomacy” during his whirlwind two-day visit to Tidewater on Feb. 13 and 14. Yet the prolific speaker demonstrated diplomacy in a variety of ways, through his informational discussions at area schools and a church, in his...
Jewish Family Service celebrates Social Work Month
March is Social Work Month, a time when Jewish Family Service of Tidewater recognizes and salutes its social workers and case managers. The profession of hope—fueled by resilience and advocacy, social workers daily help millions of struggling people dream differently....
Beginnings Infant Care at Simon Family JCC eases one mother’s transition back to work
Morgan Morrison is a first-year academic advisor for students in the College of Arts & Letters at Old Dominion University. She gave birth to her first child, daughter Chloe, in April 2012. She remembers how tough it was when deciding what to do for childcare. “I...
Ron Wolfson motivates community with interactive presentations
Entering the multi-purpose room at the Sandler Family Campus on the evening of Feb. 7, there was little indication that a lesson was being taught by the smiling man at the door who was extending his hand and offering a personal, “Welcome. It’s so good to see you.” The...
A Return on Investment: Enhancing Jewish education in the Former Soviet Union
After years of repression eroded all signs of Jewish life, one organization stepped in after the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991 and recreated a dynamic educational network that spans nine countries, includes 56 projects in 38 locations and serves more than...
Holocaust Commission’s educational presentation reaches record numbers of students
For more than 15 years, the Holocaust Commission of the United Jewish Federation of Tidewater has offered area schools a professional, multimedia show that culturally enriches, historically educates and socially motivates students about the Holocaust and all...
B’nai Israel Congregation hosts second film in CRC series
If the smiling faces and warm greetings of B’nai Israel Congregation members weren’t enough to make guests feel welcome at a movie screening held at the shul on Monday, Feb. 18, the sight and smell of bags filled with freshly made popcorn convinced moviegoers they...
Federation groups mingle and learn about Israeli and Virginia businesses
The growing collaboration between an Israeli entrepreneur, an American businessman and a Virginia agency seemed like a great topic for several of the United Jewish Federation of Tidewater’s affinity groups to explore. The Business & Legal Society of the UJFT could...
Giving back on Martin Luther King Day
A team from Temple Israel spent an afternoon volunteering at the Foodbank of Southeastern Virginia on Monday, Jan. 21. After a brief introduction and instructional video, the group, which ranged in age from 13 to 75, assisted with quality assurance by assessing...
Pope Benedict XVI—A Jewish Retrospective
Rabbi Arthur Ruberg delivered this Shabbat sermon at Congregation Beth El on Feb. 15, 2013 This has been an eventful week in the life of our country and in the world. There are so many topics I could address today. Of those, I’ve decided to talk about the Pope. Maybe...
Sharing our freedom
I have a brother who spends an extraordinary amount of time at the Kotel Hamaaravi (the Western Wall). Before he was married he even brought each of his dates to the Kotel. Despite the presence of a Mechitza, my brother managed to make these dates meaningful by...
The 20th Annual Virginia Festival of Jewish Film presented by Alma* and Howard Laderberg wrapped up a week of cinema with an incredible final day
The matinee showing of Six Million and One brought a crowd of more than 200 to view a moving documentary about the struggle of the second generation after the Holocaust, children of survivors, who cope with the emotional legacy of their parents’ suffering. Pete...
Ed Koch, pugnacious New Yorker and passionate Jew till his dying day
NEW YORK (JTA)—One of the proudest moments of Ed Koch’s life came during a trip to Israel in 1990, in the midst of the first Palestinian intifada. Koch had recently left City Hall after 12 years as mayor of New York City and was touring Jerusalem when a Palestinian...
Jewish groups mourn passing of human rights negotiator Max Kampelman
WASHINGTON (JTA)—Jewish groups mourned the passing of Max Kampelman, the top U.S. human rights negotiator who straddled the Carter and Reagan presidencies and helped bring about recognition of the plight of Soviet Jews. Kampelman, died at his Washington home on Jan....