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Ellie Brooke and Deb Segaloff visited BINA High School to present the Holocaust Commission’s What We Carry program to students on Friday, June 9. The women presented the story of David Katz, a Holocaust survivor of blessed memory. This program was the culmination of...
The Simon Family JCC offers a calendar of bold perspectives and community enrichment for members and guests. With record number attendees for Camp JCC and speakers such as Dennis Ross, the JCC serves as a gathering place for fun, education, and social networking. The...
NEW YORK (JTA)—On Jan. 27, President Donald Trump made Mark Hetfield’s job impossible. Hetfield is the president and CEO of HIAS, an organization that resettles refugees in the United States. A week into his presidency, Trump issued an executive order barring refugees...
NEW YORK (JTA)—The vast majority of Reform and Conservative rabbis affiliate as Democrats, according to a new study. The study, published this month by Yale University, found that more than 80 percent of Reform rabbis, and about 70 percent of Conservative rabbis,...
Words Matter: Now More Than Ever Wednesday, July 26 and Thursday, July 27 The Holocaust Commission of the United Jewish Federation of Tidewater’s highly praised Biennial Educators’ Conference provides educators with tools, strategies, and techniques to use for...
On Tuesday, June 7, the Hebrew Academy of Tidewater Class of 2017 held a very moving graduation ceremony. Of the 14 students graduating from the school, 12 had attended the HAT since preschool. Next fall, these graduates will attend a variety of excellent schools...
It may have begun on a dark, rainy September night, but the 6th Annual Israel Today series ended with a bang on a beautiful, warm May evening, as the Tidewater community gathered to cook with Chefs Nir Margalith and Guy Marom, of travel and culinary group Puzzle...
Just who qualifies as a ‘senior’ is a bit confusing these days. That’s mainly because the definition of ‘senior’ and who identifies as one, is more of a moving target than ever before. While it wasn’t that long ago that very few people worked beyond 65 years old, or...
The American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee (JDC) is responding to catastrophic flooding and mudslides in Sri Lanka, the result of the worst storms to hit the island nation since 2003. JDC, together with its local partner Sarvodaya, a Buddhist-inspired...
(JTA)—Try to think of the most famous Israelis in history. Not necessarily the most consequential or “important” ones— like any number of Nobel Prize winners or behind-the-scenes Middle East peace deal negotiators—but those who are most universally recognizable. Most...
Technology is now ubiquitous. Kids seem to be born knowing how to use it. Still, if they want to keep up with the technology curve, they will have to learn to build, program, and code. As a result, STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) has recently...
Father's Day, June 12, 2017
“Federation doesn’t have a mission problem… it has an image problem!” So began Jonah Halper, CEO of ALTRUICITY and founder of NextGen:Charity and CharityForum. Halper was the guest trainer at a recent United Jewish Federation of Tidewater’s Campaign Ambassador...
WASHINGTON (JTA)—The good news for Israel in President Obama’s speech at the United Nations was his insistence that any steps Iran might take to solve the standoff over its nuclear program must be transparent and verifiable. The bad news was that Obama wasn’t clear...
DERBENT, Russia (JTA)—Accustomed to the sound of gunfire at night, neighbors of Rabbi Ovadia Isakov were not particularly startled when a shot rang out on Pushkin Street on July 25. But unlike the volleys that partygoers often fire heavenward in this lawless corner of...
Jewish educators gather for two evenings each August at the Simon Family JCC for the Jewish Education Council’s Summer Institute. This hands-on workshop is designed to improve teaching skills and share what works and inspires in the classroom. Mary Meyerson, a...
What do five rabbis, five cantors, and five members of military families have in common? They all participated in this year’s annual shared Selichot services, held on Saturday night, August 31. For about two decades, the Conservative congregations of South Hampton...
Stanley Peck loves Shabbat, looking forward to sundown every Friday. He loves everything about it. He loves the prayers, the food, honoring God, and of course, being with his family. Peck recently had a bit of a challenge. He was at Beth Sholom Village for about a...
As any parent and child has experienced, the first day of school is always highly anticipated. Between setting the alarm clock for an on-time arrival to donning those very special “first day of school clothes,” it can be very exciting. A scan of friends’ Facebook...
This summer I thought a lot about my very first trip to Israel exactly 50 years ago. In July and August of 1963, I went on a program for high school juniors sponsored by Camp Ramah. It was only the second year of operation of the National Ramah Seminar in Israel that...
JCC Maccabi Games and ArtsFest This summer, the Simon Family JCC gave me the opportunity to learn more about journalism at the Maccabi Games and ArtsFest, This International Jewish Junior Olympic and Artistic conference was held in Orange County, Calif., August 4–9....
Laura and Jerry Miller’s vision of a library, filled with books and learning resources, where anyone in the Tidewater Jewish community can come to learn and study, will begin another chapter in its storied history on October 6. The Laura & Jerry Miller Family...
Terri Tavss Sarfan, president, Simon Family Jewish Community Center Profession Jack-of -all-trades/ Master of none Education Bachelor of Science in Marketing, Virginia Commonwealth University Family Married to Lonny Sarfan Two daughters: Alex and Stephanie Four-legged...
It has been an exciting and active summer for the administration and faculty at the Hebrew Academy of Tidewater and Strelitz Early Childhood Center. While many spent the last few months packed with family fun and sensational travel experiences, everyone ultimately...
Thursday, Oct. 3, 11 am When we are consumed with our own culture and way of life, it is sometimes hard to imagine anyone else being intrigued in what is to us, a standard interest. At Tallwood High School’s Global Studies and World Languages Academy in Virginia...
Although the weather forecast predicted showers, the rain stayed away and families and friends shared a fun-filled evening at the Super Summer Shabbat at the Simon Family JCC on August 16. Presented by the Young Adult Division of the United Jewish Federation of...
Tuesday, Sept. 10, 6:30 pm Each year, the United Jewish Federation of Tidewater initiates a new fundraising drive, known as the Annual Campaign. To inform, inspire and motivate the community about the campaign, the UJFT presents a campaign kickoff—a pep rally of...
On a beautiful night at the Virginia Beach Oceanfront last month, 30 members of the United Jewish Federation of Tidewater’s Women’s Cabinet took full advantage of the summer evening. Hosted by Cabinet Chair Jodi Klebanoff at the home of her sister Stacy Brody, the...
An article in The Times of Israel recently reported that Israel is fourth in a ranking of countries with the most efficient health care. Hong Kong, Singapore and Japan were in the top three slots. The U.S. ranked even behind Iran, in 46th position. Compiled by...
JERUSALEM (JTA)—The final two charter flights of new immigrants from Ethiopia landed in Israel. The two airplanes carrying the 450 new Israeli citizens arrived Wednesday, Aug. 28 at Ben Gurion Airport. A steady trickle of approximately 200 Ethiopian immigrants per...
During a brief visit in mid-August to a handful of large cities in North America, the president of Israel’s Bar-Ilan University made a special stop in Virginia Beach. On Sunday, August 11, Professor Moshe Kaveh, BIU president, was introduced to about 40 community...
Lisa’s* face lit up with joy when she reflected on visits to the “Big Top” with her son until his untimely death to cancer several years ago. She described happier times gone by, but her voice reflected sadness, as if she had already accepted that her circus days were...