The annual Lee & Bernard Jaffe Family Jewish Book Festival begins on November 2 with author Dan Grunfeld (see page 10), kicking off a series of events that will run through June. This year’s festival features 20 authors from around the world and from a variety of...
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High Holidays 2022
Chef Larry Adler: Cooking up a storm to break the fast
Virginia Beach’s Larry Adler, culinary faculty lead at Stratford University and a former training professional, has a long history of applying his skills and creativity to bringing food to the next level. For Jewish News readers, Adler shares a few tips...
SIA launches 2022–23 school year and a new strategic plan
Strelitz International Academy kicked off the school year on August 22 and unveiled a new five-year strategic plan: SIA Going Forth, Embracing Innovation and Inspiring Global Action. The plan is already underway. A steady growth in enrollment for SIA over the last few...
Holocaust Commission holds 15th Educators’ Conference
The Holocaust Commission capped off the summer in August with its first educators’ conference since 2019. The 15th conference, Reflections of the Past: Words STILL Matter, was a partnership between the Commission, the Virginia Beach Public Schools, and Echoes &...
A “Super Day” is planned to take place at the Sandler Family Campus
Sunday, September 18 Sandler Family Campus, 11:30 am–4 pm Some are calling it “Super Duper Sunday” because of all of the exciting activity planned for Sunday, September 18 at the Sandler Family Campus. With four events taking place, the phrase “Super Duper” is...
Team Virginia Beach shares experiences of JCC Maccabi Games in San Diego
The JCC Maccabi Games returned for its 40th year last month in San Diego, California with five days of competition, building friendships, and Jewish identity. Among the 1,300 teen athletes from 57 delegations and 67 JCCs across the United States, Canada, Mexico,...
L’Shanah Tovah 5783
Dear Readers, If you listen closely, you might hear congregations throughout the nation exclaiming, “We’re BACK!” and if you listen even closer, you might also hear “…almost.” High Holidays services in 2021 were a mixed bag, with many still concerned about attending...
Sounding the Shofar in Tidewater
It’s a ritual that is both solemn and joyful, that brings musical expression into Judaism. The Jewish News asked local shofar blowers how they got started, why they embrace the tradition, and a little about performance anxiety. Rabbi Aron Margolin, Chabad of Tidewater...
That’s a wrap: End of Summer Shabbat
PJ Library in Tidewater and United Jewish Federation of Tidewater’s Young Adult Division (YAD) teamed up again to host the annual End of Summer Shabbat Dinner and Pool Party at the Simon Family JCC. Families and friends experienced an evening of good music, pool...
Rain doesn’t stop Sababa and Fretomology
Despite a slightly soggy start to the night, Sababa Social Club’s summer party went on as planned. The Marty Einhorn Pavilion provided great shelter from the rain as Sababa committee members Alene Jo Kaufman and Ellen Hundley assisted United Jewish Federation of...
Keepin’ it jazzy with Jack Frieden
For Jack Frieden, the love of vocal music of the 60s and beyond (think the Beach Boys, the Beatles, and Crosby, Stills & Nash) eventually spread to an appreciation of jazz. Today, he is the host of the Norfolk-based radio show, The Vocal Sound of Jazz on WHRV 89.5...
A bit of normalcy goes a long way
Earlier this month, our community, along with communities around the world, celebrated the 73rd birthday of the State of Israel. On Sunday, April 18, the Reba and Sam Sandler Family Campus of the Tidewater Jewish Community was more vibrant than it has been in more...
Federation Women’s Division: Hard at work, even during a pandemic
The past 12 months have been unlike any before them in myriad ways. No one can argue with that. However, in other ways, it’s been business as usual for United Jewish Federation of Tidewater’s Women’s Division—with creative programming and fundraising. This year’s...
Motherhood reflections on shared traditions
When I was in college, I remember saying to my friends that I did not want to be a mother. It came with responsibility that I did not want. As a mother, you are given a precious gift, yet it comes with no instruction manual and no way to know that you’ll get it...
Beth Sholom Village gets vaccinated
Just like the rest of the world, Beth Sholom Village had been waiting. Waiting for what all hoped would be the answer to the devastating COVID-19 virus. The answer came in the form of a shot that takes about 30 seconds. Then, three weeks later, a second shot. On...
Lorraine Fink: We’re all in this together Virtual Art Auction and Sale
Monday, April 12–Thursday, April 22 https://www.jewishva.org/Lfinkart On view through May 10 in the Leon Family Gallery, Sandler Family Campus Art is meant to be viewed and shared, according to Lorraine Fink, and sometimes, it can also assist a favorite organization....
Happy Passover
Passover usually marks the start of spring and a reminder to celebrate redemption, hope, and renewal. Now, as we begin to emerge from one of the most challenging years of our lifetime, we see the possibilities of real celebration in our near future. For Jewish...
Rep. Elaine Luria states opposition to Iranian nuclear program in resolution and letter
Congresswoman Elaine Luria is the primary sponsor of one piece of legislation condemning Iran’s nuclear program. A bipartisan group of House members joined Luria earlier this month to introduce the resolution, which condemns Iran’s decision to enrich uranium to 20%...
Lorraine Fink art auction, sale, and exhibit
Monday, April 12–Thursday, April 22 On View: Leon Family Gallery, Sandler Family Campus Auction and sale: www.JewishVA.org/LFinkArt Lorraine Fink is generously donating 99 original works of art for auction and sale with all proceeds benefiting visual arts programming...
Investing in the intangibles
Children, teens, and their parents have been in a “virtual” world for more than one year and the social pressures, academic stresses, and lack of real-world experiences are taking their toll. Parents will do almost anything to help their children succeed, whether with...
COVID-19 vaccination registration assistance available
A phone application assistance and outreach program for people who need help registering for the COVID-19 vaccination is being offered by Jewish Family Service. People can call and speak to Sharon Rosenbaum and/or Jody Laibstain. They will help people navigate any...
Beth El feeds Tidewater: If you can’t feed a hundred people then feed just one.
During this time of the COVID-19 pandemic, we are all experiencing a relentless hunger—a hunger for our children and grandchildren, a hunger for our friends, a hunger for “normalcy.” But few of us, gratefully, have known hunger as an empty stomach crying out for food....
Dozoretz Hospice House, the region’s first, will assist grieving Families
Mary Parker was not ready for her husband of 33 years to die and certainly not for the intense care he would need in his final days. “Charles was just 48 when he was diagnosed with multiple myeloma before his death at the age of 64. After years of treatment, his...
As life lessons go, virtual Bar Mitzvahs make the path to ‘adulting’ real, fast
In 2020, Carin Joffe Simon and husband Mike Simon planned the first Tidewater virtual Bar Mitzvah for their son, Nate. When Betty Ann Levin watched the event, which was livestreamed on Facebook from their home, she joined the community of friends and family...
Pandemic-poked weddings: A new altar, an un-altered dress, and an altered state of mind
If you think the new sitcom, Call Your Mother is about children avoiding their mothers during the pandemic, you would be half right. The show, starring Kyra Sedgwick, is based, however, on life after the pandemic. The life-after-COVID messaging is pure hope and...
Hayden Caplan’s mitzvah project: Gaming for Gold for a friend
As Hayden Caplan prepared for his upcoming bar mitzvah in May, there was no question what he wanted to do for his mitzvah project. A friend from his pre-school days at Hebrew Academy of Tidewater, Benjamin Goldberg, an amazing young boy, passed away at just eight...
CAMP JCC VIRTUAL OPEN HOUSE
March 23 at 7 pm & April 26 at 8 pm Join this informational session to learn about Camp JCC 2021 and the program modifications that will be in place to mitigate the spread of COVID-19. Camp JCC Director, Dave Flagler, will present, answer questions, and will...
COVID-19 vaccination registration assistance available
A phone application assistance and outreach program for people who need help registering for the COVID-19 vaccination is being offered by Jewish Family Service. People can call and speak to Sharon Rosenbaum and/or Jody Laibstain. They will help people navigate any...
From balcony concerts and food distribution apps, to Israeli homecomings, UJFT-supported JAFI programs deliver a shot in the arm during COVID-19
The Jewish Agency for Israel, JAFI, is a global platform that founded and built the state of Israel. Now in its 90th year, its mission to overcome challenges facing Jews around the world expands its reach while responding to the hurtling impact of COVID-19. JAFI...
Tidewater Jewish Foundation partnership with Jewish Future Pledge aims to ensure the future of Jewish giving
Joining a two-year pilot program to proliferate a culture of legacy giving in communities across North America, Tidewater Jewish Foundation launched a new partnership with the Jewish Future Pledge earlier this month. TJF is part of a cohort of 11 local federations and...
Purim in Jewish Tidewater
Creativity reigns throughout the community with plans to celebrate Purim with both traditional and innovative, fun events. The holiday commemorates the saving of the Jewish people in Persia as recounted in the Book of Esther. Compiled by Ronnie Jacobs Cohen for Shalom...
