Everyone loves latkes. Making them is another story. is buying frozen potato pancakes at Trader Joe’s selling out? Some say, ‘most definitely.’ This is the first article (of two) featuring serious cooks who ‘play with their food’ and riff on the universally revered...
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IT’S OFFICIAL – Strelitz International Academy
Strelitz International Academy—A school wearing many HATs! You don’t have to be Jewish to love Strelitz International Academy. (Still, it doesn’t hurt.) Hebrew Academy of Tidewater (HAT) has been recognized as an exceptional learning experience for nearly 65 years....
Super Sunday: 2020 Vision
The ways to give just got super easy Sunday, November 17, 9:30 am–1 pm, Reba and Sam Sandler Family Campus Super Sunday, Nov. 17 9:30 am—Training 10 am–1 pm—Phone-a-thon 10–11:30 am—Shift 1 11:30 am–1 pm—Shift 2 Super Sunday, as always, is being planned by a group of...
Jewish Book Festival 2019-2020
Stirring up Good Trouble. The Science of Snacking. Israeli Innovation. Groundbreaking Genetics and Profit Meets Purpose. The annual celebration of Jewish writers, books, and ideas, Simon Family JCC’s Lee & Bernard Jaffe Family Jewish Book Festival provides...
Jewish Tidewater: A survey for the future
It’s been 18 years since Tidewater’s Jewish community conducted any type of survey—and that one focused on demographics. Called the 2001 Jewish Community demographic Study, it revealed where Jewish people lived, how old they were, who comprised what households (ages...
For Alfred Moses, luck comes in threes
When three teenage Jews approached an American lawyer on the streets of Bucharest with three bold questions, they unknowingly inspired a future U.S. Presidential advisor, UN Watch chairman, and U.S. ambassador to Romania who changed the lives of countless Romanian...
Americans don’t know much about Judaism but love the Jews, survey says
(JTA)—U.S. Jews know more about religion in general than their non-Jewish neighbors, a new survey shows. Americans who are not Jewish, meanwhile, don’t know a lot about Judaism. But they like Jews more than any other religious group. And they think there are more Jews...
Summer fun with a Jewish lens
Beach and ocean and exotic trips aren’t the only ways to experience summer fun. In fact, for many members of Tidewater’s Jewish community, that fun happens by incorporating something Jewish into a summer trip or activity. Within the following pages, we highlight a few...
Restoration continues at the B’nai Israel Cemetery in Norfolk
With a significant contribution from United Jewish Federation of Tidewater’s Cemetery Fund, coupled with the tireless work of numerous volunteers, B’nai Israel Cemetery is showing the results of a massive restoration effort that began 14 months ago. B’nai Israel...
UJFT passes the gavel at Biennial Meeting
Amy Moss Levy assumes Federation presidency at biennial meeting The installation of United Jewish Federation of Tidewater’s new president and a recap of the year’s highlights were among the items that took place during the 2019 Biennial Meeting on Thursday, June 13....
Community mourns and stands strong together following tragic killings in Virginia Beach
The horrific shooting that took place on Friday, May 31 at Virginia Beach’s Municipal Center, resulting in 13 deaths, shook the entire Hampton Roads community and brought world-wide attention and offers of sympathy to the area. It was the type of attention Virginia...
Jewish community meets local and global needs
Community Campaign tops $4.8-million and looks to finish strong! The 2019 Annual Campaign is winding down and what a year it’s been. Starting in June 2018, 38 community members participated in the Journey Home Mission to Israel. Co-chaired by John Strelitz, UJFT...
Business
Dear Readers, “It’s not personal, it’s strictly business,” Michael Corleone says to his brother Sonny in The Godfather. A renowned line from the famous film, it is exactly the opposite of what the articles in this section on business emphasize. For those featured,...
Participation in 2016 Week of Extraordinary Deeds exceeds expectations
The week of October 19-25 was billed as an extraordinary one for the Tidewater Jewish community. Volunteers worked on committees and with the staff at the United Jewish Federation of Tidewater, planning events to help make life better for others, while also...
CRC’s 5th annual Israel Today offers vibrant ideas and bold perspectives from three experts under 40
All events are free, open to the community and held at the Reba and Sam Sandler Family Campus in Virginia Beach The Community Relations Council of the United Jewish Federation of Tidewater is joining with community partners, including all area synagogues and Jewish...
Diverse lineup for JCC’s annual Lee and Bernard Jaffe* Family Jewish Book Festival
Sunday, Nov. 1–Sunday, Nov. 15 Eight authors will speak at the Simon Family JCC as part of the Lee and Bernard Jaffe* Family Jewish Book Festival, enlightening the minds of the young and old, history buffs and environmentalists. Seth M. Siegel will kick off the...
Abundant opportunities to “do good” at 2nd Annual Mitzvah Day
Sunday, Oct. 25, 1:30–4:30 pm, Sandler Family Campus All ages. Free and open to the community. Register at www.JewishVA.org/mitzvah-day Last year’s inaugural Mitzvah Day attracted more than 300 community members who leapt at the opportunity to do mitzvot (good deeds...
Passing the shofar—from generation to generation
At three-years-old, Sam Sachs was visiting his grandparents’ house when he picked up one of his great grandpa’s (Rabbi Sam Sobel, of blessed memory) old shofars. “He just blew the roof off the house,” says his mother, Jenny Sachs. “For my entire life, I cannot get any...
Jewish Federations of North America President Jerry Silverman to kick off Annual Campaign
Thursday, Sept. 17, 6:45 pm He’s casual, he’s passionate, he’s earnest and he heads up a movement that ranks collectively among the top 10 charities in the world. “He,” is Jerry Silverman, president and CEO of The Jewish Federations of North America. Silverman will be...
United Jewish Federation of Tidewater and Community Relations Council statement on proposed Iran Nuclear Deal
The United Jewish Federation of Tidewater and its Community Relations Council believe the proposed nuclear deal between Iran and world powers is cause for grave concern. We share the Administration’s goal of achieving a negotiated, peaceful solution to Iran’s nuclear...
Federation installs new president and honors community members at biennial meeting
The 2015 Biennial of the United Jewish Federation of Tidewater was more than a public meeting where new officers and board members were installed. The evening event, held on June 16 at the Sandler Family Campus, was a celebration of leadership, volunteerism and...
Will Iran be able to build nuclear weapons? Your voice matters!
The answer could be determined by the June 30 deadline for a final agreement between Iran and the five permanent members of the U.N. Security Council and Germany (known as the P5+1 which includes the U.S., UK, China, Russia, France and Germany). The outcome has...
Agencies are “Coming Together” to create new opportunities for cooperation and cost savings on Sandler Family Campus
It was 2004, and the Tidewater Jewish Community celebrated. Years of research, planning, fund raising and construction culminated in the opening of the Sandler Family Campus on 20 acres at the end of Corporate Woods Drive in Virginia Beach, just off the I-264...
One in six Jews are new to Judaism — and nine other new Pew findings
NEW YORK (JTA)—The Pew Research Center’s newly released 2014 U.S. Religious Landscape Study offers a trove of data on American Jews based on interviews with 35,071 American adults, 847 of whom identified their faith as Jewish. Here are some of the more interesting...
Israel Fest at the Simon Family JCC a Celebrate Israel event
Sunday, May 17, 11 am–5 pm The biggest outdoor community event of the year, Israel Fest promises to be a day of fun for the entire family. Israeli cuisine, the return of the Israeli band Hataklitim, the Bar Kocva Israeli Art Expo, and so much more will assure that the...
Spring into Healthy Living!
Joan Lunden–Sunday, April 26, 2 pm Run Roll or Stroll–Sunday, May 3, 8 am 11th Annual Run, Roll or Stroll Have you seen the sunrise at the Oceanfront lately? I have! For the last seven years, a group of dedicated JFS board members, employees and other volunteers have...
JCC’s Celebrate Israel Series plans an action-packed April and May
The Simon Family JCC’s Second Annual Celebrate Israel series, presented by Charles Barker Automotive, will deliver four powerful and inspiring events in April and May. Last year, the JCC began the series, which joins several programs to highlight Israeli culture. “The...
After divisive campaign, Israelis deliver clear victory for Netanyahu
TEL AVIV ( JTA)—After weeks in which polls consistently showed Zionist Union holding a slight lead over the Likud Party of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, the Israeli leader effected a dramatic comeback to win a decisive victory in Israeli elections. With 99...
Local rabbis say amen to choice of Tidewater Together Scholar-in-Residence 2nd Annual Tidewater Together
Thursday–Sunday, March 26–29, 2015 When Rabbi Sharon Brous arrives in Virginia Beach on March 26 to begin a four day weekend as the 2nd Annual Tidewater Together Scholarin- Residence, she’ll meet a community that’s curious to find out: how does someone earn the title...
Across Oceans and Generations—A Jewish History of Tidewater, VA
Documentary of Tidewater Jewish community’s past, present and future Across Oceans and Generations—A Jewish History of Tidewater, VA Sunday, March 8, 4 pm, Sandler Family Campus A keen interest in history and the desire for what she thought would be a relatively small...
Stories and support abound on Super Sunday
The question of whether the Tidewater Jewish Community’s traditional phone-a-thon could still work in 2015 was answered with a loud, “yes,” on Sunday, Jan. 25. The Super Sunday phone-a-thon was a success, with contributions to date exceeding $103,000. Planned and...
French Jewry 101: From Rashi to Dreyfus to Hyper Cacher
This month’s deadly hostage siege at a kosher supermarket in Paris has French Jews (and some non-Jews) proclaiming “Je suis juif,” or “I am Jewish,” in solidarity with the four people killed in the attack. Who are the Jews of France? Here’s a primer. How many Jews are...