His must- read essay in Tower Magazine, “Israeli Identity and the Future of American Jewry,” outlines the scope of the assimilation problem we are facing. Hazony says: Oblivion knocks. The two obvious alternatives—aliya and Orthodoxy— require so radical a change in...
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Israel looks to send $1 million in aid to flooded Houston Jewish community
JERUSALEM (JTA)—Israel’s Diaspora Affairs Ministry is advancing a plan to send $1 million in emergency aid to Houston’s flood-hit Jewish community. In announcing the plan Monday, Sept. 4, Diaspora Affairs Minister Naftali Bennett called it an “unprecedented”...
Tidewater Jewish community contributes to Hurricane Harvey Relief Fund
Hurricane Harvey bombarded the Gulf Coast on August 26 with destructive winds and devastating flooding. The storm caused catastrophic destruction throughout the city of Houston and surrounding areas. The need for immediate relief and long-term aid continues to rise,...
A Jewish ‘Dreamer’ is scared, but refuses to despair
BOSTON (JTA)—At 15, Elias Rosenfeld became a “Dreamer.” At the time, the Venezuela native was attending Dr. Michael M. Krop Senior High School in Miami, where he had lived since he was 6 years old, when his Jewish family moved to South Florida from Caracas. His mother...
Nadiv, Young Men’s Giving Circle, caps off successful first year
When we saw the JCC campers playing with oversized Connect4 and checkers boards on the blacktop, an entire year of experimentation and hard work came full circle. Yes, all the effort was worth it. In fall 2016, YAD—United Jewish Federation of Tidewater’s Young Adult...
Annual Campaign kickoff features David Hazony
Tuesday, September 12, 6:30 pm Sandler Family Campus United Jewish Federation of Tidewater’s 2018 Annual Campaign kicks off with a cocktail reception and keynote address by acclaimed author and lecturer, David Hazony. An American-born Israeli writer, translator, and...
HAT begins a new school year proclaiming, “We’re more than a school, we’re family!”
As Hebrew Academy of Tidewater and Strelitz Early Childhood families enter the building this year, they are greeted with friendly smiles, photos of engaged children, and a new bulletin board that announces, “There’s no place like the Hebrew Academy of Tidewater.” On...
Tidewater teens in Israel
A pledge brother at Clemson asked me to go on Birthright on a national trip, Shorashim—the only Birthright trip organizer that has Israeli soldiers for the entire 10 days. Those seven Israelis were some of the greatest people I’ve ever met. In the Negev, we stayed in...
Beth Sholom Village to add performance stage to its active community room
The Abisl Theater will present entertainment with a “Jewish Twist” It has hosted everything from bingo games to women’s auxiliary lunches, but by summer 2018, what is known today as The Pincus Paul Social Hall, named for a late benefactor, will also house the area’s...
Shabbat sermon: A remarkable Bar Mitzvah ceremony on a day of concern
I wasn’t here at Beth El last Shabbat, a day that brought concern and anxiety to us Jews in the Commonwealth and beyond. Miriam and I were in Florida so we could be with her father as he celebrated the 80th anniversary of his bar mitzvah. He put aside his walker and...
Rosh Hashanah
As this High Holiday season approaches, a fresh New Year feels incredibly important for 5778. The news around the globe, nation, and our very own state, continues to have most of us on the edge of our seats and not far from our trusted news sources. Soon, however,...
Sunday School in the 21st century
In Spring 2017, the Ohef Sholom Temple board of directors unanimously approved a proposal to welcome independent households to one year of enrollment in the Temple’s Reform Jewish Sunday morning classes. An “independent household” is a family that expresses its Jewish...
Favorite Chanukah or Thanksgiving traditions
A large and emotional gathering at Thanksgiving David Abraham Every Thanksgiving, we travel to Indianapolis to be with my side of the family. This has been a long-standing tradition that my family loves to do. We have a tremendous amount of fun and camaraderie. I am...
Every day is Thanksgiving when we recite 100 blessings
Memories of Beth El and Thanksgiving A native of Norfolk , Shulamith Elster is the daughter of the late Rabbi and Mrs. Paul Reich (Congregation Beth El, 1935 to 1967). She writes occasionally for the Washington Jewish Week reflecting on her 50 years in the Washington...
Armada of fans show up to support Hal’s Navy
Like sailors rallying around their captain or destroyers protecting their carrier group, the audience that came to hear Hal Sacks speak about his memoir, Hal’s Navy, on Wednesday, Nov. 6 at the Simon Family JCC, showed up in full support of the newly published author....
My history with the family of Lee Harvey Oswald’s Jewish killer
NEW YORK (JTA)—We were sharing a pastrami sandwich and pickles at the Los Angeles landmark Canter’s Deli. I was 24. She was nearly 50 years older, with a piercing voice as loud as her flaming red wig. Her name was Eva Rubenstein Grant, and she was a little-known...
Last pages of Book Festival satisfy diverse groups
With good book sales and attendance, wonderful sponsors and concluding events, this year’s Lee and Bernard Jaffe* Family Jewish Book Festival was among the most successful at the Simon Family JCC. Closing events included Marion Grodin, a stand-up comedian, who had a...
TJF honors veterans at Jewish War Veterans Monument
Approximately 60 people attended Tidewater Jewish Foundation’s annual Veterans Day Memorial Ceremony on Monday, Nov. 11. Philip Rovner, president and CEO of TJF, welcomed guests at the monument and Captain James Eilberg, SC, USN (Ret), officiated. Cantor Aaron...
2nd Annual Tour De Mensch Bike Ride and JWV Brunch a success
The Mens Club of Congregation Beth El teamed up with the Tidewater, Post 158, of the Jewish War Veterans of the United States to help organize the Second Annual Tour De Mensch Bike Ride followed by a community brunch on Sunday, Nov. 3. The Tour De Mensch is a 15-mile...
Holocaust Commission takes its show on the road
While many people spent the evening of Thursday, Oct. 31 shepherding children around seeking sweets, the Holocaust Commission sent its representatives to Roanoke for a different kind of solicitation. Elena Baum, Commission director and Mickey Held, former chair headed...
Remembering the Yom Kippur War at Temple Israel
Last month, Temple Israel commemorated the 40th anniversary of the Yom Kippur War. During the ceremony, Eitan Mor, a member of Temple Israel and a native Israeli, offered his memories in a speech titled “Impressions and Departed Souls.” These are excerpts from his...
Talk to the Hand: Global information operations for the Post-Coup Muslim Brotherhood
News reports claim that one of the last senior Egyptian Muslim Brotherhood (MB) leaders was taken into custody in late October, which may lead some to believe that the radical Islamist organization had been effectively defeated by the new Egyptian military government....
First steps taken to identify trove of Holocaust-era art found in Munich
BERLIN (JTA)—The extraordinary disclosure earlier this month that a trove of more than 1,400 vanished artworks were found in a Munich apartment has raised more questions than it has answered. What were these works, which were produced by masters such as Chagall,...
In the typhoon-ravaged Philippines, Israel brings its experience in disaster relief
(JTA)—Obviously wanting to get back to work as the medical manager of the field hospital set up by the Israel Defense Forces in the Philippines, Lt.-Col. Dr. Ofer Merin speaks hurriedly about the three days his team has been seeing patients in the typhoon-ravaged...
Special Needs class and training program at Ohef Sholom
One of the most significant issues facing religious school educators is accommodating students with special needs in the supplementary school setting. With numerous obstacles to overcome, both practical and attitudinal, it is challenging to adapt curriculum, implement...
Preventing a nuclear-armed Iran
Last month I attended a powerful and very well attended presentation at B’nai Israel Congregation sponsored by United Jewish Federation of Tidewater’s Community Relations Council. Bob Feferman, outreach coordinator for the not-for-profit and non-partisan advocacy...
Young Adult Division leadership programs are taking off in 5774
The Young Adult Division of the United Jewish Federation of Tidewater has been very busy in 5774. Between maintaining current outreach and engagement programs, adding new unique outreach initiatives, and rolling out signature leadership programs, it seems that not a...
Annual Israel Today Forum brings innovative topics and expert speakers to Tidewater
Compelling speakers, interesting topics and timely discussions have characterized the past two seasons of the Community Relations Council of the United Jewish Federation of Tidewater’s Israel Today Forum. With the announcement of its third season, which begins next...
Israel Advocacy class discusses facts and issues
What should an advocate of Israel say when someone who knows very little about the country asks about its legitimacy? The answer to this basic question, according to Mark Solberg and Sandra Haas-Radin, Ph. D., is intricately tied to Israel’s history and political...
Couples have ‘together time’ working out at the Simon Family JCC
For Amy and Kirk Levy, three weekly classes are the draw for working out together at the Simon Family JCC. Kirk, who works nearby, meets Amy as often as he can on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays for noon Tabata with Starr Kimmer Gargiullo or Tony Pearsall at the...
Week of Extraordinary Deeds proves to be…extraordinary
Inspired and energized Jewish volunteers embarked on a unified effort last month to reach out to others in the community and speak with them personally about the United Jewish Federation of Tidewater—what it is, what it does, and why continued support is vital to...
Fun afternoon for youth—and Youth Ambassadors—at JCC
English conversations, Hebrew singing and the universal sound of children’s laughter spilled from the Simon Family JCC cafeteria on the afternoon of Wednesday, Oct. 30. Inside the room, local teens from Tallwood High School’s Global Studies & World Languages...