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Tidewater’s Jewish community lost a giant on Saturday, June 6 with the passing of Kurt Rosenbach. Kurt was equally a man of vision and action. More than all of his volunteer service—often as founder or chair, he continued to press the community to realize financial...
Recent weeks have been extremely difficult for our country. The Jewish Community Relations Council of the United Jewish Federation of Tidewater is appalled and angered by the death of George Floyd at the hands of officers in the Minneapolis Police Department. Our...
When the Simon Family JCC opened on Monday, June 8, seniors bounced back in real numbers. Even with the necessary implemented regulations and other logistics, “overjoyed” was the overall response. In particular, Silver Sneaker students say they are thrilled to be...
Tidewater Jewish organizations secure more than $20.6-million in legacy commitments through LIFE & LEGACY® initiative Three hundred and twenty-five local donors have made 550 legacy commitments to support the Tidewater Jewish community since LIFE & LEGACY...
As we began to plan for a very different looking summer and reaching out to families in new ways, we realized that our plans and the work we were doing weren’t just for the families, they were for us, too. Being stuck at home has been emotionally draining for all of...
The Jewish Changemakers Fellowship is a three-week online leadership experience, July 6–July 24, free of charge for current and aspiring Jewish leaders, 20–25 years old, focusing on career development, networking, and making a difference in the community. Young adults...
Opening reception: Sunday, Feb. 10, 3–6 p.m. The Mike Kantor who worked in Saks Fifth Avenue in Manhattan after he graduated from college could hardly have pictured himself as an aspiring artist in his 60s. But that is how Kantor identifies himself these days,...
Saturday, Feb. 23, 6:30 pm Be Happy! It’s Adar! Purim is coming with a busy night at Beth El. The Megillah reading and costume parade begins at 6:30 pm. A children’s program will take pace in Barr Hal with refreshments, a balloon artist and a magician after their...
Sunday, Feb. 10, 11 am What does an African American, an evangelical Christian and a Jewish college student have in common? They are the featured speakers at this year’s AIPAC brunch at Ohef Sholom Temple. As in years past, the Ohef Sholom Temple Men’s Club,...
Sunday, Feb. 17, 10–11:30 am With Purim approaching on Feb. 24, thoughts turn to the great heroine of the Tanakh, Queen Esther. Esther had the courage to use her position to save the Jewish people. Few people have the opportunity for such dramatic heroism today, but...
Sunday, March 17, noon–2 pm Take three of the most enthusiastic, creative, involved, Jewish women in Tidewater. Ask them to plan a Passover Seder, open to all women in the community. Tell them they have two hours to share the story of the Jews’ exodus from Egypt, and...
Thursday, Feb. 7–Sunday, Feb. 9 Dr. Ron Wolfson, an expert in the field of synagogue and Jewish community transformation, will appear on four separate occasions in Norfolk and Virginia Beach to speak, teach and interact with the community. A professor of education at...
The Holocaust Commission of the United Jewish Federation of Tidewater partnered with Congregation Beth Chaverim in Virginia Beach to host an encore presentation of the 63-minute documentary, What We Carry (in its entirety), on Jan. 6. Featuring the stories of local...
The opening night of the 20th Anniversary of the Virginia Festival of Jewish Film, presented by Alma* and Howard Laderberg, took place at the Sandler Center for the Performing Arts on Saturday, Jan. 19. Several speakers introduced the festival, including Scott Katz,...
Only 40 people were expected to attend the first movie in the five-part, film-based education program, Step Up for Israel, on Jan. 10 at Norfolk’s Temple Israel. But at 7:15 pm, members of the congregation began counting the number of folks coming into the downstairs...
Every Autumn, congregants from area synagogues leave Tidewater for a different kind of “Promised Land”—the land flowing with orange juice and sun-tan lotion. The minyanim are a little bit smaller, and cherished neighbors are absent for a season. This past summer at...
With its frayed cover and sticky note tabs sticking out from a number of pages, Gary Takakin’s copy of The Spirituality of Welcoming: How to Transform Your Congregation into a Sacred Community by Dr. Ron Wolfson is testimony to the number of times the book has been...
WASHINGTON (JTA)—With the Israeli election results split evenly between the right-wing bloc and everyone else, no one in Washington is ready to stake their reputation on what the outcome means for the U.S.- Israel relationship and the Middle East. Except for this: The...
Likud leads, but rise of Yesh Atid, Jewish Home bode bumpy road ahead for Netanyahu TEL AVIV (JTA)—His party shrunk, his opponents grew and his challengers multiplied. But with the results in, it seems Benjamin Netanyahu survived the Knesset elections on Jan. 22 to...
WASHINGTON (JTA)—The inaugural poem included a “shalom,” and three rabbis and a cantor attended the traditional next-day inaugural blessing. But the message that Jewish Democrats were most eager to convey during President Obama’s second inauguration on Monday, Jan. 21...
These weeks, we are reading the Torah portions that narrate the story of the confrontation between Moses and Pharaoh, leading up to the Exodus from Egypt. We are also approaching the annual “Presidents’ Day” celebration. Let’s allow these two realities to speak to...
An interfaith alliance including Jewish religious and lay leaders is seeking a ban on assault weapons and high capacity ammunition magazines. Faiths United to Prevent Gun Violence held a news conference on Jan. 15 calling for the bans, as well as improved background...
As an investment advisor and partner with the firm, The Alcaraz Mercadante West Investment Group of Wells Fargo Advisors, Janet Mercadante takes the responsibility of investing her clients’ money very seriously. For 22 years, she has helped people plan for their...
Teresa Toranska, a Polish journalist and writer who wrote several books chronicling Polish-Jewish history, died in Warsaw. Toranska, a native of Volkovysk, now Belarus, died Jan. 3, the day after her 69th birthday. In 2011 she was diagnosed with lung cancer. Her most...
Norfolk—Sara Belle Behrman Schapiro, 92, passed away Dec. 19, 2012. She was a native of Portsmouth and a resident of Norfolk. She was the daughter of the late Abraham Behrman and Ida Siegel Behrman. She was the sister of the late Bernard, Aaron, and Julian Behrman....
Virginia Beach—Frances Saperstein, 89, passed away Dec. 26, 2012. She is survived by her two daughters Judy Saperstein and Gayle Sorrell. She also is survived by three grandchildren Jason and Becky Silverstein, Geni and Chuck Wilson, Joel and Shannon Sorrell, and one...