Other News

Now in its 24th year, Jewish Family Service of Tidewater’s Chanukah Gift Program annually helps local Jewish families in financial need with gifts and gift cards for their children and teens, and with money for those without children. This year, JFS received donations...

WASHINGTON ( JTA)—“Cantor Kaufman!” Rabbi Jonah Pesner shouted across the intersection of 3rd and D in Washington’s Northwest quadrant, packed sidewalk to sidewalk with women in pink pussycat hats and their male friends. “A song!” Jason Kaufman, the cantor at Beth El...

(JTA)—In the run-up to his swearing-in on Friday, January 20, President Donald Trump made a series of big promises to Israel. Aside from his oft-repeated pledge to move the U.S. Embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, he has talked about reviving the peace process with...

(JTA)—One Jewish group that joined the Women’s March on Washington has seen its online donations double since the election of Donald Trump as president. Another has twice as many guests as usual attending its annual conference. A third has seen its social media...

An article this month in the London-based The Jewish Chronicle, headlined: “Trump will widen the fissures in Jewish America,” states: “American Jews are well positioned to weather the storm that Mr. Trump has unleashed. The same, however, cannot be said for the...

For the last 16 years, Kehillat Bet Hamidrash/Kempsville Conservative Synagogue and Temple Israel have enjoyed a programming partnership, sharing simchas, celebrations, programs, and prayers. Hanukkah 5777 saw another opportunity for being together. KBH holds an...

WASHINGTON (JTA)—A new American Jewish Committee poll found 65 percent of Jews nationwide planning to vote for President Obama and 24 percent for Mitt Romney, with another 10 percent undecided. The poll, conducted Sept. 6-17 among 1,040 Jewish voters nationwide, found...

NEW YORK (JTA)—In 1935, a trial was held in Bern, Switzerland, in which two individuals were being prosecuted for distributing the notorious anti-Semitic document The Protocols of the Learned Elders of Zion. At the trial, witness after witness came forward testifying...

Jake Levy is prepared for his freshman year at the University of Pennsylvania. Beyond his clothing, his academic supplies and his dorm necessities, he is very clear about his Jewish identity. He declares without hesitation, “I love all things Jewish.” When he reflects...

The launching of the Friends of Melton/Alumni Association sets into place a plan for the future of the Florence Melton Adult Mini-School at the Simon Family JCC. Graduates, who have completed the first two years of the Mini-School, recently met to share ideas,...

It’s been an exhilarating few weeks since the Hebrew Academy of Tidewater Konikoff Center of Learning and Strelitz Early Childhood Center preschool students returned to school on Aug. 27. Hallways and classrooms are bright and inviting, and students are now...

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (JTA)—Republicans and Democrats may not have much common ground this election year, yet their national conventions shared one feature: Both gatherings were blessed from the podium by prominent American rabbis. The Democrats had Rabbi David Wolpe, a...

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (JTA)—It was the nutsand- bolts convention that nearly broke down over the most ethereal of issues: Jerusalem and God. But by its third and final night, the Democratic National Convention had gotten back on message: jobs, jobs, staying on course with...

Thursday, Sept. 27, 6–8 pm In conjunction with the Jewish New Year, the United Jewish Federation of Tidewater is beginning its 2013 Annual Campaign to raise awareness and much needed funds to strengthen and perpetuate Jewish life in Hampton Roads, in Israel and...

Calvin Belkov went to Israel for the first time when he was 60 years old. During his childhood, he realized the historical significance of the Jewish homeland because so many of his parents’ generation had perished during the Holocaust. From reading magazines and...

Jackson, Miss.—The Goldring/Woldenberg Institute of Southern Jewish Life (ISJL) recently launched a new national blog, “Southern & Jewish.” Created in partnership with My Jewish Learning, the blog is hosted on the MyJewishLearning.com website. MyJewishLearning.com...

The United Jewish Federation of Tidewater’s 2013 Annual Campaign begins on Thursday, September 27 from 6-8 p.m., at the Sandler Family Campus. The Kick Off event features the opening of From Gondar to Jerusalem: The Remarkable Rescue of Ethiopia’s Jews, a compelling,...

WASHINGTON (JTA)—It sounds like a political double feature with much of the same plot, but with different outcomes for the issues that tend to preoccupy Jewish voters. The same key words and themes are bouncing around Jewish events at the Republican convention in...

It began with a chance phone call to Temple Beth El and the question, “Where can a nice group of Jewish War Veterans have a kosher diner in Norfolk?” Several people put their minds together and suggested a dinner hosted at the Simon Family Jewish Community Center....

Following up on the success of Sababa Sundays of the past two years, the Community Relations Council of the United Jewish Federation of Tidewater hosted a new event for local college bound Jewish students: Bringing Israel Home. Held on Sunday, Aug. 5 at Bite...

The word “No” isn’t in Lawrence Steingold’s vocabulary. He just can’t bring himself to utter it. A Certified Public Accountant and Virginia Beach resident, Steingold’s demeanor is easy-going and friendly. His eyes sparkle with warmth and curiosity, but his head tilts...

June 7 marked not only the graduation ceremony for Hebrew Academy’s Class of 2012, but also a farewell reception for Zena Herod, outgoing head of school. Held on the Sandler Family Campus, the cardo was filled with nearly 200 well-wishers including HAT trustees,...

In anticipation of an era of growth and increased involvement with the greater Tidewater Jewish community, B’nai Israel installed Rabbi Sender Haber as its new spiritual leader earlier this month. Rabbi Haber arrived in Tidewater more than 10 years ago as one of the...

TEL AVIV (JTA)–First-time visitors to Israel might be taken aback to see groups of armed teenagers walking through a city plaza on a weeknight, or surprised to walk into a public bathroom and see an M-16 laying across the sinks as a soldier washes his face. But guns...

In 2010 I was asked to chair the Community Relations Council’s (CRC) education committee. Eliot Weinstein serves as vice chair. This committee assists with common education situations in our local school systems both public and private. Our goal is to provide a united...

Bill Nusbaum, 56, has a painting in his home of the village of Positano which he bought at an art auction at Ohef Sholom Temple in 2008. The landscape of the picturesque village nestled into a cove, precariously perched on the mountainside of Italy’s Amalfi Coastline,...