Southeastern Virginia: Chesapeake • Norfolk • Portsmouth • Suffolk • Virginia Beach
Archives
A heartfelt celebration that brings together students, families, and friends to honor the special bonds between generations, Strelitz International Academy’s annual Grandparents and Grandfriends Day achieved its goals. The event was marked by warmth, gratitude, and...
A trip that brought the stories of Hampton Roads’ Jewish history to life was the culmination of From the Shtetl to the South, a 10-week course hosted by the Konikoff Center for Learning of the United Jewish Federation of Tidewater. Participants joined Rabbi Michael...
Camp JCC wrapped up another successful Winter Camp to conclude a fun filled 2024. More than 50 children attended the camp during the two weeks of school holiday closures, enjoying the “Camp JCC Winter Cabin” with each day featuring its own song as its theme for the...
The alarming rise in antisemitism and hate crimes was the topic for a gathering of community leaders hosted by United Jewish Federation of Tidewater’s Jewish Community Relations Council and Holocaust Commission on Thursday, December 12. Meredith Weisel, regional...
To Life: The Past Is Present, Holocaust Stories of Hampton Roads Survivors, Rescuers, and Liberators is a collection of stories and reflections from those who witnessed this brutal history. Published by the Holocaust Commission of the United Jewish Federation of...
I stood in Nationals Park on November 10, 2024, gazing across the vast expanse of empty seats. While we hoped for a crowd of tens of thousands to gather in unity, the turnout of closer to 5,000 felt like a stark reminder of the challenges we face. The energy was...
Nearly 200 members of Tidewater’s Jewish community gathered at the Simon Family JCC for the first-ever Community Impact Day on the last Sunday of November. Partnering with 18 local non-profits and seven Jewish camps, participants raised more than $700 while fostering...
Cars started lining up down Corporate Woods Drive at 8 am on the Tuesday before Thanksgiving, eagerly waiting for the Jewish Family Service Food Pantry to begin its Thanksgiving food distribution. Busy volunteers and staff were loading carts carrying bags of...
The 2024 Tidewater Shabbat Project was once again a smashing success. The weekend began with the Travelling Chassidim leading Friday night services at B’nai Israel Congregation on Nov. 15. The synagogue came alive as everyone joined together in dance while singing the...
Over six weeks, the 2024 Lee & Bernard Jaffe Family Jewish Book Festival brought together bestselling authors, emerging voices, and an audience hungry for stories. The festival began with a look into history, as novelist Rachel Beanland transported attendees back...
For the eighth consecutive year, clients at Jewish Family Service of Tidewater have been adopted by members of the Catholic Church of St. Stephen in Chesapeake. Carol Ehrbar, who coordinates this project for St. Stephen each year, helped collect more than 3,000 gifts...
As the 2024 calendar year nears the finish line, one pervasive question is: How is it possible to leave behind the stresses and anxieties of the past 12 months and approach 2025 with renewed hope and opportunity? With ongoing wars and hostilities in the Middle East...
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...
The sun shone brightly on Sunday, June 2 as students and their families from the Strelitz International Academy Mitzvah Club gathered at the Virginia Beach Oceanfront for a beach cleanup event that blended service with fun.The day began with laughter as children...
Rabbi Madeline Torop Budman and Rabbi Aaron David Torop Budman were ordained at Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion on Saturday, June 1. The ordination took place at the historic Plum Street Temple, a 158-year-old landmark in Cincinnati, Ohio. A Norfolk...
In a time of unprecedented antisemitism, United Jewish Federation of Tidewater organized a workshop on combatting antisemitism in the arts. The event, held on Wednesday, May 15 at the Chrysler Museum of Art, focused on creating a more inclusive and welcoming...
Proud to support Jewish military families, PJ Library is piloting a new Military Parent Connector program in partnership with the JWB – Jewish Chaplains Council and United Jewish Federation of Tidewater. Although Parent Connectors have been in PJ Library...