Latest News

Archives

Community celebrates lifelong learning

Community celebrates lifelong learning

Jewish Tidewater gathered on Thursday, May 29 to celebrate Jewish learning across the lifespan. Bringing together clergy, educators, and organizational leaders from across denominations and institutions, the evening was a powerful display of unity and a shared...

Unity Concert is all about Jewish pride and community

Unity Concert is all about Jewish pride and community

More than 450 people joined B’nai Israel to welcome the Maccabeats to the Sandler Family Campus for the Unity Concert last month.The concert was made possible by a Tidewater Jewish Foundation Community Impact Grant and organized in partnership with the Konikoff Center...

Medical Directives versus Medical Orders

Medical Directives versus Medical Orders

An 84-year-old woman in the intensive care unit asked if the facility had a copy of her advance medical directive to support her healthcare wishes. The doctor explained that, in the hospital, this legal document did not serve the purpose she intended and instead...

Parents gift therapy practice to daughter

Parents gift therapy practice to daughter

Dr. Michael S. Weissman and his wife, Brina, opened Churchland Psychological Center in 1981, serving Hampton Roads for nearly 45 years.As clinical director, Weissman offers individual adult psychotherapy, family and marital counseling, and psychological testing, while...

Kiddish

Kiddish

Kiddish is a Jewish News column celebrating little people – their first introductions, milestones, simchas, and accomplishments. Sharing these special moments and achievements with Jewish Tidewater creates a collective kvell! Noa Hanna DratchBorn January 9,...

Leadership elected for Tidewater’s BBYO

Leadership elected for Tidewater’s BBYO

Elections for Tidewater BBYO chapters took place on Saturday, May 10. The positions of president; vice president, programming; and vice president, membership are elected for a school-year term, while the other three positions are elected for fall and spring terms....

Street names for Andrew Fine in VIBE Creative District

Street names for Andrew Fine in VIBE Creative District

In keeping with the ViBe’s 10-year anniversary celebrations, the Virginia Beach City Council recognized the ViBe Creative District with a Resolution at its meeting on Tuesday, May 20. The City Council thanked ViBe co-founders Andrew Fine and Laura Wood and executive...

Yom Hashoah 2025 Honors and Remembers

Yom Hashoah 2025 Honors and Remembers

Falling on the 82nd anniversary of the Warsaw Ghetto uprising, this year’s Yom Hashoah community commemoration reminded Tidewater’s Jewish community of how important it is to remember those who perished in the Holocaust and honor those who survived. More than 350...

Federal cuts to food assistance devastate JFS Food Pantry

Recent federal budget cuts have significantly impacted food banks across the country, and the food pantry at Jewish Family Service is no exception.The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has eliminated more than $1 billion in funding for programs that helped schools...

Beth El’s new rabbi is a man of many talents

Jacob Herber arrives in Norfolk July 15 Cyclist, scholar, father, mentor, musician, soccer, hockey, and baseball fan, U.S. history buff, Coast Guard Chaplain…and rabbi.That pretty much describes Jacob Herber, who assumes the pulpit at Norfolk’s Congregation Beth El in...

Life & Legacy helps future look brighter

When “Judy” sat down with her daughter over Rosh Hashanah dinner, their conversation drifted from brisket to legacy. She had just learned about the Life & Legacy program and felt inspired to share her own hopes for the future of Tidewater’s Jewish community. “It’s...

Investment planning for senior living

Lois Einhorn and her late husband, Barry, moved to The Talbot in 2019. The senior, independent living community in Norfolk opened more than 20 years prior to their move, in the same neighborhood as the couple’s long-time home.A random solicitation in the mail offering...

Funeral pre-planning benefits grieving loved ones

Estate planning prepares assets for future generations, while advanced funeral planning prepares for another inevitable future, diminishing some of the stress for grieving loved ones.“You can face it now and take care of it or let it fall on your family at that time,”...

BBYO was busy in March

Tidewater BBYO had an active agenda last month. The teens volunteered, socialized, and celebrated Shabbat as part of their March calendar.During Operation Hamantaschen for PJ Library at the Simon Family JCC, the teens set up the event, baked, and delivered the...

David Elcott on the future of Liberal Democracy

“We were not ready for this.”With those sobering words, Dr. David Elcott opened his presentations during his visit to Tidewater earlier this month as part of the Konikoff Center for Learning. He spoke to students, faculty, and community at Virginia Wesleyan, members...

This year… Tidewater. Next year… Jerusalem.

Whenever a mission participant returns from Israel, their first and often fondest memories are of their tour guide. And for the past 10 plus years, Tidewater’s exclusive Israel tour guide has been the amazing Zalman Spivak, a unique combination of many fine skills and...

Passover: a holiday with myriad parts and favorites

The eight-day holiday of Passover begins this year with First Night Seder on Saturday, April 12 and continues through sundown on April 20. Many people observe the holiday by including favorite family recipes and traditions into their Seders. Others introduce current...

Nadiv’s social at Q-Masters Billiards scores a great break

Nadiv, the young professional men’s fundraising group for United Jewish Federation of Tidewater, held a social event on Monday, Feb. 17 at Q-Masters Billiards in Virginia Beach.More than 25 men in their 20s, 30s, and 40s attended – some were Nadiv ‘regulars,’ while...

Israel at war: With Broken Hearts, We Stand Together

Community members gathered on Thursday, Feb. 25 for a poignant ceremony led by Tidewater’s Shinshinim, Danielle Hartman and Emily Patyuk, to commemorate more than 500 days of war in Israel and to honor the countless lives lost since October 7, 2023. The ceremony also...

Despite a snowy start, film fest goes off without a hitch

The 32nd Annual Virginia Festival of Jewish Film overcame a chilly beginning to deliver a week of outstanding films and vibrant community spirit across Virginia Beach and Norfolk.After a strong start on Sunday, Feb.16 with the Israeli film, Running on Sand, the...

Exploring Torah through dynamic dialogue

Deep learning and spirited conversation took place when Abigail Pogrebin and Rabbi Dov Linzer led a thought-provoking discussion at It Takes Two to Torah. Hosted by the Konikoff Center for Learning of the United Jewish Federation of Tidewater, the event earlier this...

Beginning with B’nai Tzedek

For the Kass family, giving back is more than just a value — it’s a responsibility. When their son Jonah was preparing for his Bar Mitzvah, Melissa and Aaron Kass knew they wanted to instill the importance of community and responsibility. The B’nai Tzedek: Youth...

Bob Zentz recognized with Music Lifetime Achievement Award

Local folk musician Bob Zentz was bestowed a 2025 Music Lifetime Achievement Award from Veer Magazine during a ceremony at Elevation 27 last month. With a career that includes nearly every aspect of music – as a writer, performer, retailer, manager, mentor – Zentz has...

Tidewater BBYO goes to International Convention

Partaking in BBYO’s International Convention 2025 was truly an experience I will never forget. The annual gathering took place this year over President’s Day Weekend in Denver, Col.From listening to the incredible speakers to dancing and singing with my friends at the...

Purim in Tidewater

The holiday of Purim begins this year on Thursday, March 13.Plenty of opportunities exist in Tidewater to participate in Purim festivities to commemorate Haman’s failed plot to destroy the Jews of Persia.The reading of the Megillah, Purim Carnivals, Purim Parties, and...

John Feigenbaum at the center of the U.S. coin industry

From a tidy and unassuming office on the second floor of his office building in Virginia Beach, John Feigenbaum, a local Jewish community member, sits on a raised chair before his elevated computer screen and sets the pricing used by coin dealers throughout the United...