Southeastern Virginia: Chesapeake • Norfolk • Portsmouth • Suffolk • Virginia Beach
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Area attorneys: Committed to their work, family, and communities Firm Virginia Indigent Defense Commission Norfolk Public Defender’s Office Specialty Criminal Law Education University of Miami University of Florida, JD Jewish organizations and involvement: I have...
Governor Glenn Youngkin announced several administration and board appointments on Friday, Sept. 29. Among them, Debbie Casey, Wood Rogers Vandeventer Black principal and vice chair, was appointed to Virginia’s Common Interest Community Board. The board regulates...
Terri Denison Last month, Jeffrey F. Brooke was elected chairman of the Norfolk Economic Development Authority. A member of Norfolk’s EDA since 2019, Brooke says he initially volunteered on this citizen’s board “because I was born and raised in Norfolk and have a real...
Robyn Weiner The High Holiday food drive at Ohef Sholom Temple is as much a part of the high holidays as Avinu Malkeinu. Each year, the synagogue’s youth group, OSTY (Ohef Sholom Temple Youth), organizes a food drive to benefit OST’s own soup kitchen and Jewish Family...
Alex Weisler (JTA) — A catalog of calamities is central to the liturgy of Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur. We Jews are asked to imagine ourselves perched on the precipice of life and death. Nothing frames it as starkly as Unetaneh Tokef, the roll call of ruin enumerating...
Stephanie Peck Each summer, the Jewish Community Relations Council of the United Jewish Federation of Tidewater submits a five-year, Jewish holiday calendar to area school districts, arts leaders, elected officials, and similar public and private institutions which...
Ally St. Pierre A reimagined entryway with a beautiful IB®-themed mural and new toddler classrooms helped contribute to the excitement as Strelitz International Academy welcomed the new school year with open arms and smiling faces on Monday, August 21. Three days...
Robin Ford For nearly a quarter of a century, the Be a Reader Literacy Project has transformed students’ lives in Norfolk and Virginia Beach Title I schools by igniting their passion for reading. As it enters its 24th year of operation, the project stands as a shining...
Elana McGovern joins United Jewish Federation of Tidewater as director of Young Leadership Campaign Amy Zelenka Throughout her professional career, Elana McGovern has worked in non-profits and philanthropy, consistently centering her work on the essential Jewish value...
Nofar Trem Children, grandparents, and everyone in between, joined PJ Library in Tidewater and UJFT’s Young Adult Division on Friday, August 25 at the Sandler Family Campus for a celebratory End of Summer Shabbat. Swimming with friends and family, adult deep-water...
Staff Report The Simon Family JCC is partnering with Lynnhaven River Now (LRNOW) to collect and distribute reusable bags. This program will help Virginia Beach residents reduce plastic bag pollution and prepare for a future when grocery stores, convenience stores, and...
Rabbi Dave Levy (JTA) — Last week we did it: My wife and I dropped our eldest son off for his first year of college. As you can imagine, it is a heady, emotional moment. There is pride and joy mixed with anxiety and the bittersweet sense that this primary chapter of...
For Temple Israel, in many ways, 2021 went out with a bang. From collecting more than $3,880 in gift cards for needy children in the community to collecting school supplies for children at Granby Elementary School, which netted more than $8,500, a summer Jewish Family...
Starting in 2022, the Stein Family College Scholarship will offer up to $20,000 a year for four years, according to Tidewater Jewish Foundation. This $80,000 scholarship opportunity makes it the largest scholarship in Jewish Tidewater. Awarded to Jewish students in...
Volunteers with Tidewater Chavurah provided a mitzvah for the Judeo Christian Outreach Center’s (JCOC) guests with a warm and filling dinner of chili, salad, cornbread, oranges, and cookies. After months of diligent planning, it paid off as the congregation got...
Make and pay your gift by December 31 to get your 2021 charitable tax deduction As the 2021 calendar year draws to a close, with Hanukkah behind us…and with a winter of “unknowns” fast approaching, now is the time to gather with friends and community members to...
Gaming site creates game-changer for Jewish families and teachers In recent years, there’s been a noticeable downward spiral of students’ attention spans. In 2010, the trend was apparent when Rabbi Dan Roth walked into a classroom of American students in Israel who...
With 38 years of experience teaching the performing arts, The Hurrah Players, Virginia’s Leading Family Theatre Company, is thrilled to be back in-person with its students. From jazz to musical theater to camera acting, Hurrah Players students learn it all. Learning...
Brith Sholom members have been patiently waiting for the time that they would be able to resume their monthly brunches in person. After all, it has been more than 20 months since they were able to be together and enjoy the camaraderie they looked forward to each...
The vision at Freda H. Gordon Hospice and Palliative Care is to reimagine what life with a serious illness can hold—providing patient-centered, holistic, and inclusive care to all eligible patients and their loved ones. As the organization soon enters its 10th year of...
November was a delicious month for Tidewater BBYO Teens. Despite the postponement of the annual Fall Fest due to rain, the cooler weather did not dampen the teens’ spirits with two fun food related events. On Sunday, November 14, 20 teens gathered for a Pizza Bake...
Some 40 Friends of the Israel Defense Forces (FIDF) supporters gathered last month at an event hosted by Betsy and Ed Karotkin and Rabbi Ron Koas to welcome and meet with visiting Israel Defense Forces (IDF) Naval officers from Ashdod Naval Base. The officers were...
Tidewater Chavurah celebrated Hanukkah on the eighth night. While it was lovely seeing the fully lighted menorahs, the best part was getting together in person. The latkes were the stars of the show, but all of the food contributed to a great meal.
This past year, the Ohef Sholom Temple Immigration Committee and Commonwealth Catholic Charities conducted a community-wide needs assessment and discovered an almost shocking and complete absence of affordable legal services for poor immigrants in Tidewater....
Ten years ago, Illya Buzunov never could have imagined that one day he’d be teaching Jews around the world how to prepare potato latkes. Until 2014, the Ukraine native didn’t even know he was Jewish. But that’s exactly what Buzunov, 24, will be doing on November...
Tidewater Jewish Foundation’s online donor portal recently received a visual upgrade. The update, which went live last month, aims to make the donor portal more accessible and straightforward for users. “We at TJF are committed to a positive donor experience. In...
What is racial equity? The phrase has been in the news, in communities, and in corporations with increasing attention of late. Simply put, racial equity means acknowledging that racism exists, working together to fix problems caused by discrimination, ensuring People...
Beth Sholom Village is not a synagogue, but a skilled nursing and assisted living facility. At the same time, BSV is a Kosher facility and celebrates Jewish holidays and traditions, underscoring how it operates. Aside from Shabbat services, a Christian service and...
As December 31 approaches, tax filers should be aware of a provision in the CARES act passed last year for 2021. While many choose to file itemized deductions, those who utilize standard deductions on their federal taxes have a unique opportunity for additional...
Strelitz International Academy is known for giving students a great foundation for life. SIA students graduate with the ability to apply to a range of excellent middle school and high school programs in the area, both public and private. Recently, a number of SIA...
A flurry of family-minded activity took place at the Simon Family JCC on Sunday, November 14. Parents and their children joined PJ Library in Tidewater for a special Sunday Fun Day that included a parenting workshop with Susan G. Groner, author of Parenting with...
November was a very big month for the Mitzvah Squad at Temple Israel in Norfolk. The congregation ended October by starting its Jewish Family Service Chanukah Gift Card Drive to benefit underprivilege children. Thanks to Temple Israel’s members, $3,737 in gift cards...