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I remember having the family for dinner and walking into the den where Joyce and Leonard (Strelitz) were on the phone with national UJA office people in New York—there was no CNN back then. I felt a nervous immediacy being in the room with people getting news directly...
On May 23, 1967 Gamal Abdel Nasser closed the Straits of Tiran – the entrance to the Red Sea, ordered the UN force to leave Sinai, and moved six divisions (130,000 soldiers) into Sinai. This was against the agreement with the U.S. and United Nations after the 1957...
It took over our lives. I remember going to the Federation, which was located in the Center, from morning until late at night. We were raising money…on the phones constantly. Personally, I was getting my house painted and Morty and I would go home and have no place to...
WASHINGTON (JTA)—“You make us better,” James Comey told the Anti- Defamation League in his final public speech as FBI director. Judging from the applause in the conference room at the venerable Mayflower Hotel here, the feeling was mutual. Mired in investigations of...
(JTA)—Jewish groups largely came out against a new executive order allowing clergy to endorse or oppose candidates from the pulpit, fearing that it will erode the separation between church and state. The order, which President Donald Trump signed Thursday, May 4 at...
The annual Stein Family College Scholarship of the Tidewater Jewish Foundation was awarded this month to Sydney Levine, a soon-to-be graduate of Frank W. Cox High School in Virginia Beach. Levine is the ninth recipient of the four-year scholarship of up to $10,000 per...
Chefs Guy Marom and Nir Margalith of Puzzle Israel, an adventure tour and catering company, spent a week in Tidewater sharing their love of food and celebrating Yom Ha’Atzmaut, Israel’s 69th birthday. Sous chef Neta Margalith, joined her brother and Marom for a busy...
Sunday, April 30 was a beautiful day all around—not just the weather—as more than 1,200 people attended the Simon Family JCC’s annual Israel Fest to experience the culinary, cultural, and artistic gifts of Israel. Attendees at the celebration were treated to fresh...
May 15, 2017, Health Care Section
NEW YORK (JTA)—Think “Albert Einstein,” and certain images or phrases likely come to mind: “genius,” “kooky,” “wild hair,” “theory of relativity,” “E=mc2”—maybe even “Zionist.” Sex and violence? Not so much. Then there’s Genius—National Geographic channel’s first...
( JTA)—Anti-Semitic incidents in the United States soared 86 percent in the first three months of 2017 after rising by more than one-third in 2016, according to the Anti-Defamation League. There has been a massive increase in harassment of American Jews, largely since...
Early in her teen years, Zoe Martina Siegel knew that all was not right with the world. Her consciousness rose and she began to speak out. In fact, her Norfolk Academy senior speech was about reproductive rights and how politicized they are. It’s not so surprising,...
Past presidents of the Simon Family JCC gathered last month for an update about changes and developments at the Simon Family JCC. “We wanted our past presidents to learn about the exciting new programs we are implementing at the JCC, including Camp JCC, membership...
Serving as president of any board requires a commitment of time, mediation skills, funds and an abundance of patience. Meet the Presidents is a new Jewish News column that introduces these remarkable people who have accepted the challenge of heading local Jewish...
In July, I excitedly boarded a plane from Norfolk to start my new career with AIPAC in Houston, Texas. As I quickly worked to find a new apartment, pack my clothing, book tickets, and make plans to begin my life in Houston, I couldn’t help but look back on my...
David Abraham, CEO of Beth Sholom Village and his entire team—everyone from director of nursing to dietary and maintenance—all interact with residents and family members to have a good handle on the day-to-day operations. Watching and being “hands on” is not enough,...
My annual July pilgrimage to Israel, the land where our people came to be and where I had the privilege to grow up, proved again to be a rewarding experience. It was an opportunity to reconnect with family, friends, sites and food, practice almost exclusively my...
We were jet lagged and out of it when we exited the doors from customs into the arrivals area of the Tel Aviv airport. There was the usual crowd of people waiting for their friends and family. I was expecting a tour guide and a sign, but instead there were women —and...
In an information-packed and emotional two days, 75 educators, human rights activists, and interested community members explored the question posed by the 11th Biennial Educators’ Conference of the Holocaust Commission of the United Jewish Federation of Tidewater: Why...
These are the watchwords for the Days of Awe or the High Holy Days between the start of Rosh Hashanah and the conclusion of Yom Kippur. All are examined whether they have lived by these words in the past year and whether they promise to live by these words in the...
The evening of Thursday, June 20 began at Beth Sholom Village with drinks and appetizer’s prepared by The Village Caterers in honor of the Village’s annual meeting. The ceremony included many highlights. Neil Friedeman bid farewell to the board as president and...
Sunday, August 11, 5 pm After years of successful Sababa Sunday and Bringing Israel Home programs, a group of Jewish college students from Tidewater thought something needed to be added to the pro-Israel advocacy of the community. Comprised of Melissa Eichelbaum, Sam...
The Max Japha Volunteer of the Year award is presented annually by Jewish Family Service of Tidewater to honor an outstanding volunteer for his or her commitment to JFS. This year’s award was presented to Rita Brannan at the JFS Volunteer Appreciation Lunch last...
JFS recognizes and honors employees for longevity ‘Kind, caring and extremely efficient.’ That’s how one patient recently described Sharon Williams, JFS home health aide, and one of the many reasons she was selected as the JFS Home Health Aide of the Year for 2013....
On behalf of the Stein family, the Tidewater Jewish Foundation recently announced that Dinar Yusufov of Chesapeake is the 2013–2014 recipient of the Stein Family College Scholarship. She is the fifth recipient of this award established in memory of Arlene Stein. A...
For several years the Simon Family JCC has received requests not to close for so many Jewish holidays and to expand its Shabbat hours. The growth in the Kids Connection program and the Infant Care Center meant the closings had an even greater impact on the ability to...
“We met a real celebrity!” At least that’s how students at the Strelitz Early Childhood Center felt at the end of the school year after spending time with Emily Aronoff Teck of Miss Emily Celebrates. Aronoff Teck is a Jewish music educator and early childhood...
WASHINGTON (JTA)—A slight bump up on affirmative action, a plunge on voting rights, and on gay marriage, the mountaintop: federal legitimacy. It was a week of roller-coaster highs and lows at the Supreme Court for liberal Jewish groups. Their collective pledge: Stick...
Earning rave reviews from campers and their parents, there’s still time to register for Camp JCC to take advantage of all that it has to offer, including overnights, field trips and good ole simple summer fun. After a recent overnight and a great day of camp, Hannah...
Ten 17-year-old Israeli Scouts and two leaders visited the Simon Family JCC last month to perform on a Sunday evening and Monday morning for JCC campers. Each Friendship Caravan of Scouts, or Tzofim, consists of five males and five females. The group that performed in...
My parents raised me and my six siblings in Norfolk, Va., in essence, as the only “Haredi” kids in our day-school classes. As the “ultra-orthodox” kids who kept strict kosher, never drove on Shabbat, and who were wildly different from (and significantly shorter than!)...
Ready for a Jewish lawyer joke? You’ll have to read one somewhere else (Google the phrase and you’ll have your pick), because in this special Legal edition of the Jewish News we’re taking a more discerning look at legal professionals and the field of law. Judaism is a...