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More than 100 people participated in a full-day, active shooter simulation last month to test the City of Norfolk’s preparedness in the event of a critical incident. Together with the United Jewish Federation of Tidewater, Ohef Sholom Temple, and the Secure Community...
Tidewater Jewish Foundation hosted the Life & Legacy Plus Leadership Launch on Thursday, August 15. The event brought leaders of Tidewater’s Jewish organizations, agencies, and synagogues together, and marked the beginning of a renewed commitment to securing the...
The journey to healing can take many roads. Two of those paths – therapy and art – intersected earlier this summer in Israel. Leyla Sandler participated in the process.A licensed, independent clinical social worker in Virginia and Washington D.C., Sandler has worked...
Tuesday, September 10, 3:30 pm, Sandler Family Campus The national security director for Secure Community Network, Brad Orsini, will participate in a panel discussion following the showing of the HBO documentary, A Tree of Life: The Pittsburg Synagogue Shooting in...
Cheering on favorite Olympians isn’t the only fun had this summer. There’s been plenty of pool and beach time, along with trips to a variety of exotic, and even more not-so-exotic (yet perfect), destinations. For some in Tidewater, time away also incorporated a Jewish...
This year’s graduation season continues with plenty for Jewish Tidewater’s graduates and their families to celebrate.The June 3 issue of Jewish News recognized 41 outstanding graduates. We knew, however, that there were more grads for Jewish Tidewater to be proud of...
At 92, Ellie Porter is sharp as a tack with a keen memory, particularly of events 52 years ago that defined her life as a local community activist. “I was on the board of National B’nai Brith Women and a volunteer with Jewish Family Service here in Tidewater,”...
A 1977 graduate of the United States Naval Academy, Jerry Miller recently received The Distinguished Graduate Award, an honor “given to living U.S. Naval Academy graduates who have made a distinctive contribution to their field or community and have demonstrated...
Blue and White Fun Run a big (and messy!) success Jewish Family Service’s 20th Annual Run, Roll, or Stroll was held on Sunday, May 19 on the Reba and Sam Sandler Family Campus of the Tidewater Jewish Community. In conjunction with Yom Ha’Atzmaut activities, the campus...
Laughter, camaraderie, and the unmistakable spirit of Tidewater’s Jewish community filled the Sandler Family Campus’ Fleder Multipurpose Room on the evening of May 15. The occasion was the Simon Family Legacy Society’s celebration event dedicated to honoring those who...
Biden affirms commitment to Israel and fighting antisemitism The White House’s Rose Garden provided the festive backdrop for the celebration of Jewish American Heritage Month on Monday, May 20.Approximately 250 – 300 people attended the event at the invitation of...
The best of friends starting in kindergarten, Todd Copeland and Sam Brooke went to school together, spent time in each other’s homes as young friends do, and even travelled to Israel together. But they wouldn’t have old age together, as Sam passed away in 1993, around...
For more than 40 years, this annual celebration of Jewish authors, books, and ideas has featured authors from a variety of backgrounds who have written about a diverse array of topics, providing the community with opportunities to engage with bestselling and...
On October 7, 50 years after the last unprovoked mass enemy incursion into the sovereign state of Israel, hundreds of Hamas terrorists entered southern Israel from Gaza with the intent to murder as many Jews – mostly civilians – as possible and to kidnap hundreds of...
Liz Dovrat Where to start? How do you describe the terror, horror, and devastation of the last few days? It feels similar to how I processed the first shutdown of COVID-19, but with a knot of terror and sadness. My internal dialogue from the first day or two: My...
Carin Simon It was another hole in one event for the Strelitz International Academy’s 35th Annual Golf Tournament, affectionately known as the Bob Josephberg Classic. The tournament took place on Wednesday, August 30 at the Virginia Beach National Golf Club. The Bob...
Betty Ann Levin It is strange preparing for the new year while it still feels like the middle of summer outside, but like all things, that will soon change. I will be grateful for the cooler weather as we embark on 5784, a year which will continue to bring change to...
Todd Holcomb Members of Nadiv, United Jewish Federation of Tidewater’s Young Adult Division men’s giving circle, gathered at the Downtown Norfolk home of Jeff Chernitzer on Wednesday, Sept. 6 to kick off a new year of philanthropy, networking, and community service...
High Holidays 5784 September 2023
Jewish News staff report Sukkot begins at sundown on Sept. 29, five days after observing Yom Kippur. During this Jewish autumn festival, many families, congregations, and schools build a sukkah, a temporary structure with three walls and an organic roof that provides...
Elana McGovern The theme of this year’s United Jewish Federation of Tidewater’s Super Sunday Community Phone-a-Thon and Campaign Kickoff could not have been more fitting: “Today, Tomorrow, Always.” This was on the minds of almost 60 volunteers who manned the phones at...
Happy 5784! Rosh Hashanah Section September 2023
Jewish News staff report A group of Jewish philanthropists created Birthright Israel in 1999 with the goal of giving every eligible young Jewish adult around the world the opportunity to visit Israel. The 10-day, mostly free trip aims to motivate young people to...
Stephanie Peck While many area synagogues hire off-duty police officers or sheriff’s deputies during High Holiday services, Michael Goldsmith, regional security advisor for Secure Community Network, emphasizes the role each congregant plays in recognizing and...
Stephanie Peck At first glance, Rabbi Shlomo Eisenberg, B’nai Israel Congregation’s new rabbi, looks like a yeshiva student. Tall and lean, he has a generous smile and a warm welcome. After a few minutes of conversation, however, his composure and focus suggest a...
Lisa Richmon Few would deny that Jenny Sachs can hold her own. She’s a mom, practicing psychologist, and singer in a five-person band with her husband Matthew, a child and adult psychiatrist. During the pandemic, Sam, their 11-year-old son and only child, was...
Stephanie Peck Ten teen athletes from Tidewater travelled to Fort Lauderdale, Fla. to participate in the JCC Association of North America’s 41st Maccabi Games last month. Along with Tom Edwards, athletics director for the Simon Family JCC, these teens braved the...
On Saturday, July 29, I took my seven-year-old twin daughters to the large Gome Junction protest, the northernmost protest against the judicial reforms in Israel. These protests have been occurring for 30 weeks in a row at junctions and in cities across Israel. Since...
Much has changed since Beth Sholom Village opened its doors in 1980, but the tradition of caring has not. Among those changes: The name of the organization changed from Beth Sholom Home of Eastern Virginia, an assisted living community was added in 2004, and services...
The Guide to Jewish Living in Tidewater 2023
Originating in Israel, Gaga is a sport like dodgeball, played in a circular pit where players hit and roll the ball to eliminate opposing players. The Simon Family JCC built its first Gaga pit nearly 10 years ago to entertain students and campers on the Sandler Family...