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With permission to reprint from Jewish Community Relations Council of Greater Washington and Washington Jewish Week, this is a recent Q&A with candidates for the U.S. Senate, Senator Tim Kaine and Hung Cao. Printed are the candidates’ responses to two questions...
October 7, 2023, changed us. The attack on our beloved Israel was truly soul crushing for our entire community. We followed the news hour by hour, spoke with friends and family in Israel, and prayed for their safety. Beyond October 7, seeing what was starting to...
(How are you?) מה שלומך? (What's up?) מה נשמע? These simple, innocent questions that we automatically use at the beginning of an interaction with someone we know have, since October 7, 2023, become loaded in Israel. With every phone call or conversation with my...
Lay leaders are integral to the functioning of Jewish Tidewater. With multiple synagogues, day schools, and various agencies meeting myriad needs of the community, Jewish Tidewater’s lay leadership helps steer the missions and define the goals of each organization, as...
At Tavss, Fletcher, Maiden & Reed, Richard Tavss and his daughter, Besianne Tavss Maiden, specialize in different areas of law, yet they communicate and share ideas multiple times each day. Both attorneys look forward to the next generation joining the firm, when...
Boaz Kritchman, an Israeli with two adult children living in Tidewater, facilitated the donation of a painting last month to the United Jewish Federation of Tidewater. The impetus for the donation, by his son, Lotan Kritchman, stems from a desire to remember...
As we usher in 5785 this week, I again wish you and your families l’shana tova tikatevu. May each of us be inscribed in the Book of Life. And may we find better days ahead for all of Israel and the Jewish people.In this issue of Jewish News, I want to take a moment...
Meet “Ellen,” a perpetual giver. From her synagogue, the Food Bank of Southeastern Virginia, and Hillels, to her alma maters, Ellen supports a wide array of causes on a monthly or yearly basis. Some contributions come directly from her cash flow, while others are...
Every year, the Jewish Family Service Food Pantry—a cornerstone of Jewish Tidewater’s support system—assembles Rosh Hashanah care packages for more than 120 seniors, many of whom live in nursing homes or are homebound. These holiday bags, filled with essentials such...
The first meeting of the Holocaust Commission of the United Jewish Federation of Tidewater’s Next Generation group occurred on Sunday, August 11 in the Survivor’s Room at the Sandler Family Campus. Comprised of children of Holocaust survivors, as well as third...
The men of Nadiv voted and chose Camp JCC as the recipient of the group’s fundraising efforts during the ‘24-‘25 programming year. Nadiv gathered on Thursday, Sept. 5 at the Virginia Beach home of Laura and Fred Gross to socialize and discuss where to direct the...
The Strelitz International Academy’s (SIA) 36th Annual Golf Tournament, held on Wednesday, August 28 at the Virginia Beach National Golf Club, proved to be another hole-in-one event. Known as the Bob Josephberg Classic, this tournament remains SIA’s premier annual...
An independent school serving students from infants and toddlers through kindergarten and then to 5th grade, Strelitz International Academy recently earned full accreditation from the Virginia Association of Independent Schools.Founded in 1973, VAIS is the leader in...
Fifty years ago this month, 16 teens from Tidewater were experiencing a trip of a lifetime. . . their first to Israel. The month-long adventure was just after 1973’s Yom Kippur War, adding to these teens’ acute awareness of politics and news.It’s not such a surprise...
After a tumultuous journey of delays and lots of preparation, my family touched down in beautiful Lisbon, Portugal. We were met by family from all over the world. Relatives reunited from South Africa, Israel, the UK, and Florida around a delicious dinner spread at...
Visiting five of New York City’s buzzing foodie hotspots to indulge in an exclusively curated tasting menu of Israeli delights, was a treat we won’t soon forget.The Israeli food tour ranged from sumptuous Yemenite soup dumplings to fire-roasted and creamy cool...
Joanna and I had the chance to visit our daughter Yael, who was in Israel this summer.It was our first chance to visit Israel since October 7th, and we were left inspired by the resiliency of Israeli society. The experience gave us a recharge for what has been a...
I spent 12 days of my summer at Sababa Sleepaway, a Jewish camp at the beach.Sababa is located on the campus of Old Dominion University. Jewish kids from all over the country come to Sababa to learn about the beach and discover Judaism through nature.Almost every day...
The Women’s Division of United Jewish Federation of Tidewater held its first “Girl’s Night Out” on Thursday, July 25 at the Sandler Family Campus.Members of the Women’s Philanthropy committee were asked to each bring a friend or two to the event. The result was a...
The Shabbat@Home dinner on Friday, June 7 was a heartwarming culmination of a year-long series of learning sessions presented by the Konikoff Center for Learning and PJ Library of the United Jewish Federation of Tidewater, in partnership with Ignite757. The series...
Individual Retirement Accounts (IRAs) can be a popular vehicle for retirement planning, offering a reliable way to save for the future while enjoying tax advantages. Effectively managing an IRA, however, requires understanding its benefits and partnering with the...
ShinShinim are exceptional Israeli high school graduates who postpone their mandatory military service to serve as cultural ambassadors in Jewish communities around the world. These young emissaries are chosen through a rigorous selection process that evaluates their...
Nadiv capped off another terrific year of Jewish philanthropy, social action, and networking during a social at the Virginia Beach home of Bonnie and David Brand on Tuesday, May 14. This past programming year (which ran from August 2023 to May 2024), Nadiv...
Susan Donn has no plans to slow down. “I am enormously busy, but I don’t know what I do!” she laughs, explaining how this 82-year-old occupies her days. After a long career as a commercial interior designer, and an attorney-husband who still works full-time,...
Growing up in Pittsburgh, Pa., Nancy and Jay Lazier did not cross paths, even though their mothers knew each other through Hadassah. Not until a Hillel mixer at University of Michigan, where Nancy was a freshman and Jay, a sophomore, did they meet. “We were too young...
Married for 59 years, Sue Ellen and Seymour Teach have lived in the same Larkspur house for 53 of those years. Sue Ellen, 82 years old, grew up in Norfolk where her family attended B’nai Israel Congregation. A graduate of Old Dominion University with a degree in...
Joel and Sara Jo Rubin have long been dedicated to promoting Jewish education. “It began at home and participating in synagogue and Jewish events for our young family,” says Sara Jo. “We were adamant that our children (Molly and Danny) would be raised to practice and...
The Honorable Scott Joseph Flax was sworn in on May 1 to begin his eight-year term as a Judge of the Second Judicial Circuit Court. He is the third Jewish circuit court judge to be appointed in Virginia Beach, following the Honorable Jerry Friedman and Honorable Alan...
Food is always a Jewish topic, and every Shabbat and Jewish holiday are new opportunities to overindulge.Maimonides famously says (Deot 4:15) that overeating is unhealthy and everyone knows that keeping healthy makes good sense. But to what extent is a healthy body,...
David Leon, president of United Jewish Federation of Tidewater, first travelled to Israel 50 years ago on the first commercial flight from the United States after the Yom Kippur War. This past March, he was on United Airline’s first flight to Israel following the...
Adults over the age of 55 visited the Simon Family JCC to celebrate National Senior Health and Fitness Day on Wednesday, May 29. The day was filled with fun, laughter, health, and fitness – deeming it a huge success.Vendors from all over Tidewater offered information...
As several major construction phases are wrapping up, much excitement is in the air regarding the completion of Aviva Pembroke. With an anticipated opening date of early October, prospective residents and neighbors within the Pembroke area are preparing for the...