What’s Happening

Thursday, Nov. 29, 6 pm Hilton Virginia Beach Oceanfront Friends of the Israel Defense Forces (FIDF) from all areas of the Commonwealth of Virginia will gather for the first-ever FIDF Virginia Chapter Gala to support well-being and educational programs for the IDF...

What better way to start off the New Year, than with a little bit of cleaning? When Israel Today’s first ever Artist-in-Residence, Hanoch Piven, arrives in Tidewater, supplies will be needed. In order to have a workshop based on found objects, the Community Relations...

The 30th Annual Hebrew Academy of Tidewater’s Bob Josephberg Classic, which raises money for Hebrew Academy of Tidewater and Strelitz Early Childhood Education Center, will include a continental breakfast, on course lunch, beverages, snacks, and a post-tournament awards reception and dinner.

While the end of summer is almost here, United Jewish Federation of Tidewater’s Young Adult Division still has plenty of fun planned, especially at its annual End of Summer Shabbat Dinner and Pool Party.

Israelis living in communities on the border with Gaza, known as the Gaza Envelope, are facing a wave of extreme terrorism. Since April, rockets—made from kites, balloons, and other devices—have barraged the region, causing fires that have burned thousands of acres of...

Mondays, beginning August 13, 7 pm, Simon Family JCC The Simon Family JCC is offering a free Hebrew Reading Crash Course that is designed to teach those with no basic knowledge of Hebrew how to read the language in five easy lessons—just in time to be better prepared...

Thursday, September 6, 6 pm Sandler Family Campus United Jewish Federation of Tidewater will launch the 2019 Annual Campaign with Izzy Ezagui, the first one-armed military sharp shooter and author of Disarmed; presented in partnership with The Lee & Bernard Jaffe*...

Sunday, July 29, 4 pm Simon Family JCC, free A troupe of talented Israeli Scouts, the Tzofim Friendship Caravan, will return this month to the Simon Family JCC for an afternoon performance. These young Israelis travel across North America sharing their message of...

Tuesday, August 28, 10:30 am, Tee-off, 12 pm Cypress Point Country Club, Virginia Beach The 30th Annual Hebrew Academy of Tidewater’s Bob Josephberg Classic, which raises money for Hebrew Academy of Tidewater and Strelitz Early Childhood Education Center, will include...

July Photography by Eitan Stern This exhibit of Eitan Stern’s photographs provides an unexpected look at the people and places of Israel. Using a camera to capture ordinary people in an empathetic light, Stern’s love for humanity is expressed through his focus on...

Friday, July 13, 7 pm July’s second Friday of the month Shabbat service for Tidewater Chavurah will take place at the home of Rabbi Ellen Jaffe-Gill and Spencer Gill in the Bayside area of Virginia Beach. A “congregation without walls,” events are held in members’...

July Eitan Stern uses a camera to capture ordinary people in an empathetic light. Stern’s love for humanity is expressed through his focus on street photography, portraits, and compositions questioning social issues of today. His photography has received several...

Begins Monday, Nov. 3, 7:15 pm, B’nai Israel Norfolk’s B’nai Israel Congregation is offering a free Hebrew Reading Crash Course to all members of the Tidewater Jewish community. The course is designed to teach those with no basic knowledge of Hebrew how to read the...

Thursday, Nov. 13, 7 pm, United Jewish Community of the Virginia Peninsula Author of The Invisible Front: Love and Loss in an Era of Endless War, Yochi Dreazen will speak about his new book. One of the most respected military journalists in the country, Dreazen is the...

Friday, Oct. 24, 5:30–8 pm Experience a real Shabbat dinner with friends and families and do an activity related to the week’s Parsha, Noah. Also see what the sky looks like that night, and talk about the sky in Noah’s time. Sponsored by the Simon Family JCC Children...

Sunday, Oct. 12, 2 pm A 1999 TV movie based on the novel by Jane Yolen, The Devil’s Arithmetic is the first film of The Jewish Museum and Cultural Center’s season. The story of a Jewish girl who, during a Seder, is transported in time to 1942 Poland where she is sent...

Wednesday, Oct. 29, 5–8:30 pm Jewish Family Service of Tidewater is hosting a ‘one-stop shopping event’ featuring numerous direct sales and community vendors. The event will take place at TowneHall (attached to TowneBank), 137 Mount Pleasant Road in Chesapeake. Free...

Sunday, Oct. 19, 2:30 pm Virginia Opera returns to the Simon Family JCC with a performance for young opera enthusiasts with scenes from The Empress and the Nightingale. This Hans Christian Andersen classic is a children’s story of a small bird sharing her gift of...

The Mothers Circle program begins Tuesday, Oct. 21, 9 am In the United States, at least half of all Jewish marriages are interfaith marriages. In many such unions, women of different faiths want to understand more about Judaism and raising Jewish children, but may not...

Sunday, Oct. 19, 2:30 pm The Simon Family JCC presents a Virginia Opera production of The Empress and the Nightingale for families and children. This adaptation of Hans Christian Andersen’s classic children’s story of a small bird sharing her gift of song has a cast...

Thursday, Oct. 2, 5:30 pm Young Jewish adults in Tidewater will perform a mitzvah by volunteering at the Foodbank of Southeastern Virginia. There, volunteers will sort and pack non-perishable food items for Mobile Pantry and emergency food relief. They will also...

November 7–9 Allison Josephs of jewinthcity. com will visit Tidewater as B’nai Israel’s Scholar In Residence. Her visit is made possible by a grant from the Temple/Synagogue Initiative of the United Jewish Federation of Tidewater. Founder and director of JITC, Josephs...

Wednesday, Oct. 22, 6–8 pm, Whole Foods Open to all young Jewish women (ages 22 through 45), the cost for this YAD event is $20 and includes an original painting, wine and cheese tastings. Spots will fill up fast, so register soon at...

Saturday, Oct. 11, 7pm Celebrate Sukkot at the Young Adult Division’s 2nd Annual Sukkah Hop with a night of fun, food, drinks and a celebration of the holiday. YAD’s Sukkah Hop is a progressive dinner held at the homes of several YADians who live within walking...

YAD Talks: Monday, Sept. 29, 6 pm Two new initiatives to enrich education and business networking for Jewish young professionals are being planned by the Young Adult Division of United Jewish Federation of Tidewater. Jacob Mart, YAD Business Networking co-chair, says,...

Wednesday, Oct. 8, 11:30 am–2 pm The Business and Legal Society of the United Jewish Federation of presents a lunch, discussion and tour of ZIM USA, the North American headquarters of one of the world’s largest cargo shipping companies, the Israel-based ZIM Integrated...

Classes begin: Tuesday, Oct. 21, 9 am There may be as many as 200,000 non-Jewish mothers across the nation who are raising their children Jewish due to skyrocketing Jewish intermarriage. Since 2002, Big Tent Judaism/Jewish Outreach Institute has sponsored a program...

With a Jewish Accent,” Sundays, 2 pm Nov. 4, Jarrod Tanny Dec. 7, Dr. Maura Hametz Jan. 11, Peter Adams March 1, Dr. Adam Mendelsohn The Jewish Museum and Cultural Center’s 7th Annual Lecture series begins on Sunday, Nov. 4 with Jarrod Tanny, professor of Jewish...

through November Ellen Goldstein has served the BBYO Eastern Region of North Carolina and Southern Virginia’s Jewish communities for the past 13 years as BBYO Eastern Region’s regional director. Now, BBYO would like to honor and celebrate the impact she has had on the...

Sunday, Sept. 28, 10–11:30 am, Simon Family JCC by Leslie Shroyer The Simon Family JCC will host a Fall Holiday Sampler where children can try a miniature Rosh Hashanah Sedar, taste Tashlich Sorry Crumbs and make Sukkah decorations. They will even get a Simchat Torah...

Tuesday, Oct. 7, 4–5 pm Sarah Lightman, award-winning artist, curator and researcher, will be the guest lecturer at Old Dominion University’s University Theater. Co-curator of Graphic Details: Confessional Comics by Jewish Women, Lightman also edited the book of the...