Avi Eli: Hebrew Hustler In 2011, Avi Eli was the guy with the funny accent hustling Dead Sea products at the mall. Today’s he’s enjoying life in Miami while Mr. Shawarma runs “hands free” and dominates Norfolk’s Middle Eastern street food sector. In 2015, following in...
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Business in the Jewish Community
"It’s not personal, it’s business.” Who doesn’t know that line from The Godfather? The truth is, as Kathleen Kelly says in You’ve Got Mail, business is personal. And, that’s exactly what the three quick profiles on business owners Avi Eli, Jody Greason, and Lindsay...
The annual Janet Gordon Mah Jongg Day of Play, Tournament, and Luncheon at Beth Sholom Village
For the last 11 years, the Gordon Family, headed by Daniel Gordon, has generously supported the annual Janet Gordon Mah Jongg fundraiser as a way to honor Janet Gordon in a meaningful and festive day. On November 3, 2019, Beth Sholom Village was filled with more than...
Eileen Filler-Corn is more than a “first” person woman for Virginia’s future
Democrats flipped both the Virginia Senate and House of Delegates on November 5. Days later, Eileen Filler-Corn won a competitive race for the top spot in the House, beating out three opponents. Already making history in Virginia as the first Jewish woman minority...
Congresswoman Luria a hit at Temple Israel Sisterhood event
Perhaps it’s not surprising that a Jewish congresswoman begins her talk to a Jewish group with personal references that the audience finds quite familiar. So it was with 2nd District Representative Elaine Luria who spoke to the Temple Israel Sisterhood on November 10....
The Tell: The Jewish players in impeachment
WASHINGTON (JTA) — The first public hearings in the Trump impeachment inquiry began this month with quite a splash. A bunch of Jewish actors are at play in this drama, and we’ve covered some before: Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, who is caught in the middle...
Everything you need to know about Israeli settlements and the Trump administration’s announcement
(JTA)—Secretary of State Mike Pompeo announced this month that the United States will no longer consider Israeli Jewish settlements in the West Bank to be illegal. Here’s an explainer about what the settlements are, how they are viewed in Israel and around the world,...
Congresswoman Elaine Luria leads effort to stand up for Israel and limit Hezbollah
Bipartisan letter to UN includes 240 Members of Congress Two hundred and forty lawmakers signed on to Congresswoman Elaine Luria’s (VA-02) bipartisan letter to United Nations (UN) Secretary General Antonio Guterres urging an international effort to defend Israel,...
Activities abound at Beth Sholom Village
A range of activities are always on the calendar at Beth Sholom Village—some for health, and some for fun. Residents at BSV, for example, work with restorative nursing staff six days a week to stay active and prevent falling. Led by CNAs, participants exercise to...
27 years of bringing light to local Jewish children and teens
A Jewish Family Service client I was in a domestic abuse situation for a long time. I finally got the courage to leave and move back in with family. I was pregnant at the time. Although my family was able to take me in, they were not prepared for the new costs of...
Mikvah construction underway
“It is hard to believe how far we have come with the construction of the Mikvah! So many community members from all over have already come together to support this project. Hoping for continued success!!” says Sarah Lipman. To learn more about the new Mikvah, or to...
Israelis are using photos of Greta Thunberg to shame each other over plastic utensils
Israelis who are concerned about a warming climate have a new tactic: using cut-out photos of the prominent teen climate activist Greta Thunberg to shame their colleagues for using plasticware. In workplaces across Tel Aviv, people are placing pictures of Thunberg,...
Camp JCC off to a splashing start
Monday, June 20 was the first day of Summer and the first day of Camp JCC. Campers routinely say swimming is one of their favorite camp activities, and children who stay for the entire day get swim instruction twice. These young campers sat on the edge of the pool to...
Falafel wars in Paris: Who’s got the better balls?
PARIS (JTA)—On a crowded sidewalk in the French capital, Yomi Peretz exchanges jokes and backslaps with customers who are waiting in a 20-yard queue in the rain to enter his falafel shop. This chummy interaction comes naturally to Peretz, a tall enthusiast of boxing...
Through all the clouds and rain, Israel Fest brought the sun
The Simon Family JCC didn’t allow the rumors of showers to rain on their parade for the 2016 Israel Fest. In fact, on Sunday, June 5, when the festival began at 11 am, the day brightened for all who attended. In place of sunrays and clear skies, the roof of the Reba...
Fluffy friends at Strelitz
Diana Smith’s two-year-old class at the Strelitz Early Childhood Education Center took care of some chicken and turkey eggs this past spring. The children helped keep the eggs warm and were excited to meet their new animal friends when they hatched.
Low scores, high morale, make JCC Golf Tournament one of the best
The Simon Family JCC’s 6th Annual Presidents’ Cup Golf Tournament, held on June 6 at Heron Ridge Golf Club in Virginia Beach, was a success, across the “leader” board. The weather was ideal—low humidity, a light breeze, and temperatures in the 70s, and the course was...
Turning prayers for Orlando into action
On the Sunday morning following the Capital Pride Parade in Washington, D.C., I slept in and woke up with glitter still on my face. Stickers and handouts I had collected while I marched with National Council of Jewish Women and the Religious Action Center of Reform...
AJC ad highlights U.S., European Mayors United Against Anti-Semitism
A two-page American Jewish Committee (AJC) ad in the June 6 issue of the Wall Street Journal listed the 508 U.S. and European mayors and municipal leaders who have signed on to its Mayors United Against Anti-Semitism initiative, pledging to combat the rise of...
Brett Pomerantz is recipient of 2016–2017 Stein Family College Scholarship of the Tidewater Jewish Foundation
The annual Stein Family College Scholarship of the Tidewater Jewish Foundation was awarded this month to Brett Pomerantz, a Hebrew Academy of Tidewater graduate, as well as a recent graduate of Western Branch High School in Chesapeake. The four-year scholarship for a...
From The Hal Sacks Jewish News Archives
June 23, 2006 The Florence Melton Adult Mini-School held a graduation ceremony for 23, the second largest class to graduate from the school since its inception in Tidewater. June 21, 1996 Jody Wagner, a partner in the law firm of Kaufman and Canoles, was installed as...
Annual Israel Today Forum celebrates five years
Another successful year of expert speakers and engaging dialogue concluded Wednesday, May 11 when Matti Friedman, former Jerusalem Bureau reporter and editor for the Associated Press visited Tidewater to share his take on mainstream media malfunction in the...
What We Carry premiere a huge success
Like a blustery March day in 2012, May 22, 2016 was a day full of anticipation for the Holocaust Commission of the United Jewish Federation of Tidewater. Four years ago, we had a new product no one had heard of called What We Carry. The innovative and interactive...
Sculptures by Lorraine Fink
Through June 16, Slover Library, Norfolk Mythically, with a wash of whimsy, this collection by includes 8- and 3-foot sculptures, which feature both obsolete and repurposed objects. The collection imparts a powerful, societal statement connecting past, present and...
Hebrew Academy Class of 2010 is off to college
Who doesn’t love a good before/after story? Hebrew Academy graduates from the Class of 2010 make a great one. And from the look of the photos, some pretty impressive growth happened in just a few short years. These students make HAT proud with their good hearts and...
CRC’s 5th annual Israel Today series ends with insight into mainstream media
It was a standing-room only crowd as the Community Relations Council of the United Jewish Federation of Tidewater and its community partners presented the final event in their 5th Annual Israel Today series on May 10. Matti Friedman, former Jerusalem Bureau reporter...
YAD’s leadership dinner with Matti Friedman
Past, present and future leaders of United Jewish Federation of Tidewater’s Young Adult Division (YAD) gathered to hear the Community Relations Council’s Israel Today speaker Matti Friedman, and enjoy dinner and cocktails on Tuesday, May 10. YAD offers different...
Father’s Day
Dear Readers, In honor of Father’s Day, we asked a few daughters and sons who work with their dads to write a couple of paragraphs about the experience of spending their adult lives alongside their fathers. The responses were incredibly passionate, respectful,...
Three Jewish takeaways from Bernie Sanders’ run for president
(JTA)—Hillary Clinton is the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee. But that’s not the end for Bernie Sanders, by far the most successful Jewish presidential candidate in American history. The Independent Vermont senator is defiant and says he’s taking the fight...
From the Hal Sacks Jewish News Archives
June 23, 2006 Cantor Jennifer Bern-Vogel of Ohef Sholom Temple sang the National Anthem to open the Tides game at Harbor Park. Attendance that night was 8,606, including 118 from Ohef Sholom as part of the Men’s Club Annual Tides Picnic. June 7, 1996 The board of...
Donald Trump’s anti-Semitism controversies: A timeline
NEW YORK (JTA)—Presumptive Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump is facing growing accusations that his campaign is countenancing anti-Semitism— if not encouraging it outright. Trump’s foreign policy slogan, “America First,” echoes the World War II -era...
One dollar goes a long way at United Jewish Federation of Tidewater
“Charity is not something we wait to do when we feel like it. We know if we wait to be inspired the inspiration may never arrive,” says Karen Jaffe, chair of the United Jewish Federation of Tidewater Annual Campaign. “So we perform acts of righteousness, whether or...