“The directions said we could take inspiration from anywhere such as inspiring people, places we love, landmarks, quotes, or historic events,” says Gruber. “For me it was an easy choice.” Turns out the Hawaiian-born third generation Filipino American and so-called “Army brat” was married to Larry, a Jewish sailor whom she met in New Jersey. “So, I was a Navy wife and then became an Army mom” when her twin sons enlisted, one of whom subsequently graduated from the U.S. Military Academy at West Point. 

In fact, 26 of her family members have been in one military uniform or another, having collectively given 300 years of service to their country. “And I was a procurement analyst for the Navy for 22 years,” adds Gruber, “so clearly I have a feel for these men and women.” Indeed Larry was assigned to ships for 17 of his 22 years in the Navy, “so I had the main role in raising the kids.”

No wonder Gruber opted to include the logos of all five military branches in her quilt pattern. “I hope it inspires more people to respect those who serve and thank them and their families for their sacrifices.” 

Grossman’s late dad was in the Navy, but the Hopewell/Petersburg native chose to highlight the plight of those of her faith in her design. “Frankly I am very upset with how our government is treating immigrants today, considering how many Jews came to America to escape persecution.” Grossman’s 16”x20” block (same size as Gruber’s) reminds that Jews fled pogroms in Eastern Europe and came to this country, most passing by the Statue of Liberty, erected in the New York harbor in 1886. “As most of us know, Emma Lazarus’ poem called The New Colossus, which is on the statue, includes the words, ‘give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to breathe free.’ Those words speak to me, so I decided to use the welcoming of foreigners, and particularly Jewish ones, as my theme.”

A former president of her synagogue, Grossman sewed a pair of ships on her piece. The first one is coming to America over blue waves in the early 1900’s, its passengers greeted by a hand offering friendship. The second boat, however, recalls ones that brought Holocaust refugees to America’s shores, through dark and ominous seas, and were turned away.  “I don’t know whether anyone else sending in quilt blocks will focus on religious freedom, but it is a very important issue for me.”

Visit the project website at visitwilliamsburg.com to see what others have submitted.  

Sometime this year, Visit Williamsburg will stitch the sections, as many as 4,000 are expected, into one huge birthday quilt, unveil it in April and then display it at the Colonial Williamsburg Visitor Center. No doubt these two Hampton Roads Jewish crafters will drive there to see how hundreds of other creative countrymen and women chose to commemorate this nation’s rich diversity.

 Through United Jewish Federation of Tidewater’s partnership with Secure Community Network, Tidewater is part of a national security initiative. We work closely with law enforcement and Jewish institutions across the region to strengthen security, share information, and coordinate response efforts. This ongoing coordination helps ensure that Jewish institutions are prepared, connected, and supported in maintaining a safe and secure environment.

 We remain in constant contact with local, state, and federal law enforcement and actively monitor the threat landscape. We also remain in close contact with all our Jewish institutions and are assessing opportunities to further improve our security preparedness and infrastructure. As a precaution, additional patrols are being conducted around Jewish institutions in Tidewater. At press time, there is no information indicating a specific threat to local Jewish institutions.

 As always, we encourage organizations and community members to remain aware of their surroundings and report any suspicious activity—both to law enforcement and through our incident reporting link: JewishVA.org/incident.

See something, say something.

Your awareness is the first line of defense. Report suspicious activity immediately: JewishVA.org/incident.

Why it matters.

The West Bloomfield incident demonstrates how training, preparation, and vigilance save lives. Every action you take contributes to keeping Tidewater safe.

 Bring SCN to your synagogue for a training session. SCN’s gold-standard curriculum empowers participants with hands-on training and life-saving skills to prevent, respond to, and recover from potential incidents. To schedule a session, email mgoldsmith@ujft.org or call 757-965-6125.

Eight best practices for community safety.

As recommended by JFNA, SCN, and the ADL:

• Coordinate with law enforcement and SCN Regional Security Advisor 

• Extend security perimeters wherever possible

• Limit events to pre-screened attendees

• Require registration and verification for public events

• Share event details only with confirmed attendees

• Control access to known participants

• Stay alert and report suspicious activity

• Add armed law enforcement, private security, or trained volunteers

Thank you for your vigilance and commitment to keeping our community safe. Working together, we strengthen the security of our entire community.

Mike Goldsmith is Tidewater’s Secure Community Network’s regional security advisor.  He may be reached at mgoldsmith@ujft.org.

While we knew there was a chance a war might break out, our nephew and niece were having a baby, and we were meeting our sister and brother in Zichron Ya’akov to celebrate.  Zichron, as the Israelis call it, is an idyllic, small hill town 30 minutes south of Haifa with great ice cream.

 Just before our arrival, our great nephew was born after two girls. We were to be there for the Bris. Then things started to change.

• Israeli airspace closed.

• Our sister and brother’s flight was diverted to Athens two hours outside Tel Aviv.

• We were thrown into Israeli wartime life.

War in Zichron Ya’akov

We were staying at the beautiful ELMA Luxury Art Hotel overlooking the Mediterranean Sea. The hotel has three shelters. One in the underground parking lot (-4); one in a more comfortable building but without internet; a safe room in the gym.  To get to -4 was a 15-minute walk. We got it down to 6 minutes. BUT if it’s a rocket you only have 90 seconds to get there safely.  So, after many trips to -4, we opted for the gym, which was under 90 seconds from our room and more comfortable, if not quite as safe, but this was Zichron.

 If you look at the Home Front Command app warning map, which is new for each missile/rocket launched, Zichron is among the safest places in Israel as it is out of the range of the Hezbollah rockets and not a place of interest for Iran with few people and no strategic sites. Still, people are vigilant and take all this seriously.

Each night we had dinner at our nephew and niece’s home with their three children.  Our nephew made delicious meals as we gathered around their table.

 The Bris became a private event for 30 as public gatherings were not allowed.  It was still marvelous with a joyous welcome to our newest family member, Noam Avraham Levin. The maternal Safta grew up in Egypt in the Karaite community, so we experienced his rich traditions for a Brit melah where the ceremony parallels a Jewish wedding…heartfelt and meaningful.

 Accompanied by music, the baby was escorted in by the mother carrying him on a pillow and flanked by the maternal and paternal grandmothers. He was presented to the mother’s uncle who walked back and forth seven times.  The baby was then placed on the father’s lap on the pillow.

 With 35 years of experience, the most amazing mohel performed the circumcision in the blink of an eye with nary a peep from the baby.

 Both grandfathers delivered beautiful tributes to the baby and family. Neill and I were honored to be stand in grandparents for our diverted sister and brother.

 Since it was Purim, our nephew had arranged a chanting of the Megillah. With 13 grandchildren, parents, and grandparents, the groggers sounded loud each time Haman’s name was mentioned. Kids and some adults were in costume, many with face paint. 

 Midway through the Megillah reading we got an email from our hotel that they were closing the next day after breakfast. We would deal with that later. It was a gorgeous day, so we decided to walk the mile and a quarter back to our hotel.

Visitors to Zichron 

Our first visitor of the afternoon was a close friend we call “Mr. Israel”. During his drive to Zichron from Tel Aviv, he had to stop under an overpass as a siren sounded. He showed us a video of the Iron Dome intercepting a missile right next to where he was. Incredible! He counseled us to move to Tel Aviv, and we set a plan to help us exit the country in time for my upcoming scans and next chemo infusion.

 Our second visitor was a friend who now lives in Caesaria, 10 kilometers south of Zichron.  We had a heartfelt catch up and were all grateful for the time together. He came despite his daughter’s concern.  His Sabra wife understood.

 The next morning our beloved driver, Moti, picked us up to drive to Tel Aviv. Thankfully, it was uneventful.

Tel Aviv – a horse of a different color

Within our first five hours in Tel Aviv, we were in the shelters more times than we were in five days in Zichron.  By now, Hezbollah had entered the war. The northern Galilee towns were once again evacuated. As the Upper Galilee is the San Francisco Bay Area Federation’s sister community, we were all too familiar with what that meant. Both Neill and I served on the San Francisco Jewish Federation’s Overseas Committee (me as chair), and we have visited Israel more than 40 times.

 A member of our hotel’s security team educated us on the difference between a missile from Iran which takes 9 to 10 minutes to arrive in Israel, and a rocket from Southern Lebanon fired by Hezbollah, which arrives in 90 seconds.  While the Iron Dome, David’s Sling, and other interceptor systems are amazing, they are not perfect so one MUST do exactly as prescribed to remain safe.

 Our new hotel in Tel Aviv had a mamad-like shelter on each floor.  These are inside the building; the rooms have no windows and a special door that protects from the bombs should they hit where you are. It’s what most people have in their homes. Then there is a -4 underground parking shelter, which is the safest, but takes longer to get there, and a Safe Room at -2.  We were in all of them for one siren or another. Staff was wonderful making sure everyone got into the shelter and the door was properly closed. Everyone goes into the shelter, and anyone outside who wants to come in is included. People talk to each other and exchange stories. It’s instant camaraderie. 

 Tel Aviv is a top place of interest for Iran so many missiles came our way, and we experienced many days of in and out of the shelters. On Shabbat they particularly wanted to disrupt our special day; seven times in the shelter from Shabbat dinner until 5 am the following morning. We were having Shabbat dinner with our cousin and her family when the first alarm sounded just as we were finishing our soup. Down we went to the shelter where the many children instantly started to play.

 Like 10 million Israelis, we trusted the IDF to protect us and to let us know exactly when we needed to head to a shelter. Two apps guide you.

Life goes on.

As the U.S. and Israel weakened Iran and Hezbollah, restrictions in Israel began to loosen. Our most amazing highlight was a remarkable visit to the National Library of Israel in Jerusalem. We were privileged to have more than two hours with the chair of the board and CEO of NLI. We left with a deep understanding of this most remarkable institution by, for, and of the people of Israel and the Jewish Diaspora. If you have not been able to visit, put it at the top of your list. If you can’t visit, sign up for free and explore their website (nli.org.il) to your heart’s content. We promise it is like no other library you will have ever visited. If you think we are exaggerating, ask my childhood friend, Art Sandler, who serves on the NLI U.S.A. board.

 We enjoyed a bonus visit with our family in Jerusalem before heading back to Tel Aviv.  The next day we had more visits with family and friends, including another childhood friend from Norfolk, Joyce Bigio, who lives in Tel Aviv.

 Tel Aviv also claims one of the most beautiful waterfront promenades, and we took advantage of getting some fresh air and watching everything from yoga to volleyball to beach paddle ball, fitness training, joggers, and dog walkers all enjoying Shabbat in their own way. 

 The two weeks passed so quickly and despite our unique circumstances of war, we chose to make lemonade out of lemons with every step. Although we were diligent, we were never afraid. Israelis are strong and brave and grasp life like no one else. We tried to follow in their footsteps. 

 Am Yisrael Chai.

A Norfolk native, Linda Snyder Brownstein and her husband, Neill, live in Deer Valley, Utah 

 “I cannot in good conscience support the ongoing war in Iran,” Joe Kent wrote in his resignation letter, which he addressed to President Donald Trump and shared on social media. “Iran posed no imminent threat to our nation, and it is clear that we started this war due to pressure from Israel and its powerful American lobby.”

 Kent continued, “Early in this administration, high-ranking Israeli officials and influential members of the American media deployed a misinformation campaign that wholly undermined your America First platform and sowed pro-war sentiments to encourage a war with Iran.” 

 He also accused Israel of having also drawn the United States into the Iraq War in the 2000s and said he had lost his wife, who died in a 2019 suicide bombing in Syria linked to ISIS, “in a war manufactured by Israel.”

 Kent, who has past connections to the far-right influencer Nick Fuentes, is the first senior Trump official to resign over the war. His words reflect a deepening and conspiratorial anti-Israel sentiment on the right, where the two-week old U.S.-Israel war on Iran is fracturing Trump’s MAGA coalition.

 “Joe Kent is an American hero, patriot and veteran,” the far-right personality Candace Owens wrote on X. Buckley Carlson, Tucker Carlson’s son who works for Vice President JD Vance, also tweeted that Kent was an “American hero.” 

 Trump, however, said he was glad Kent had resigned, while a White House spokeswoman said there were “many false claims” in Kent’s letter. 

 And Jewish leaders across the political spectrum condemned the letter, with some saying that even principled opposition to the Iran war could not justify its antisemitic tropes.

 Polls show that most Americans oppose the war, which has sparked a global fuel crisis and appears to threaten the economy more broadly. And some of Kent’s allegations appeared to echo what even some senior Trump administration officials have suggested: that Israeli officials manipulated Trump into believing both that Iran was a present danger to the United States, and that there was a swift path to victory.

 But he went further, saying that the dynamic reflected “the same tactic the Israelis used to draw us into the disastrous Iraq war that cost our nation the lives of thousands of our best men and women.” And he blamed Israel for a personal tragedy, too.

 A former U.S. Representative from Washington state, Kent was nominated by Trump to be the counterterrorism center’s director last year. Kent was previously a Libertarian and a Democrat before shifting his party to the GOP in 2021 and backing Trump.

 Kent is also a U.S. Army Green Beret and combat veteran who fought in the Iraq War, including in the Battle of Fallujah. He has credited the catalyst for his backing of Trump and belated opposition to the War on Terror to the death of his wife Shannon Smith, a military cryptologist, in a 2019 suicide bombing in the northern Syrian city of Manbij. 

 At the time, the bombing was connected to the first Trump administration’s campaign against ISIS. But in Kent’s telling now, the ISIS fight, too, could be chalked up to Israeli misinformation. 

 “As a veteran who deployed to combat 11 times and as a Gold Star husband who lost my beloved wife Shannon in a war manufactured by Israel, I cannot support sending the next generation off to fight and die in a war that serves no benefit to the American people nor justifies the cost of American lives,” Kent wrote in his letter.

 To veteran Middle East policy experts, Kent’s framing of Israel as the secret manipulators of recent global conflicts are a blend of nonsensical and dangerous.

 “It strips away any sense of agency on the part of the United States, all of these charges,” Aaron David Miller, a senior fellow at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace and former State Department negotiator on Arab-Israeli relations, told the Jewish Telegraphic Agency. “And it reposits that agency in the form of a clever, willful Israeli prime minister who somehow manipulates America into going to war.”

 Miller said that Trump was capable of entering a disastrous war on his own, “wanting to make history” by ending America’s decades-long tensions with Iran and assassinating its leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. “Netanyahu may be affecting the timetable of the war, but not the war itself,” he theorized.

 Kent’s allegations about Israel having “manufactured” the Iraq War and the Syrian civil war, Miller said, had no basis in fact.  “As to Iraq, there was a little event called 9/11,” he said. “Syrian civil war, I have no idea what he’s talking about.” The framing, he said, reminded him of decades of hearing from various partners in his line of work that the U.S. Congress was “Israeli-occupied territory.”

 In his letter, Kent does not blame Trump for the war, instead urging the president to rethink his approach.

 “I pray that you will reflect on what we are doing in Iran, and who we are doing it for,” he concludes his letter. “The time for bold action is now. You can reverse course and chart a new path for our nation, or you can allow us to slip further toward decline and chaos. You hold the cards.”

 The White House rejected Kent’s claims. “As President Trump has clearly and explicitly stated, he had strong and compelling evidence that Iran was going to attack the United States first,” White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt wrote in a statement.

 Leavitt added that Trump “ultimately made the determination” to strike Iran in “a joint attack with Israel,” and called the charge that Israel manipulated the president “absurd.”

 Asked about Kent directly at the White House, Trump said, “I always thought he was a nice guy but I always thought he was weak on security.”

 He added, “It’s a good thing that he’s out because he said Iran was not a threat. Every country recognized what a threat Iran was.”

 But Kent was celebrated for resigning by figures on both the left and right, with the loudest voices coming from the fringe.

 In addition to Buckley Carlson and Owens, who called the war “Bibi’s Red Heifer War,” other avatars of the far-right praised Kent. Marjorie Taylor Greene, the former congresswoman, called him “a GREAT AMERICAN HERO.”

 Some more liberal and centrist voices were also approving of Kent, without referencing his antisemitism. 

 “I didn’t support Kent’s nomination. Yet I’m glad he is willing to acknowledge the truth – there was NO imminent threat to the United States, and this war was a terrible idea,” Sen. Mark Warner of Virginia, a Democrat and vice chair of the Senate Intelligence Committee, wrote on X.

 “Have talked a lot of shit about Joe Kent over the years (deserved) and can’t speak to all of his motivations here but I gotta say its pretty refreshing to see that someone in the administration has a red line on something,” Tim Miller, an analyst on the liberal-leaning MS Now network and an editor of the anti-Trump publication The Bulwark, wrote on X.

 Meanwhile, both Trump allies — including far-right Jewish influencer Laura Loomer — and Jewish liberals and conservatives denounced Kent.

 “Good riddance,” tweeted GOP Rep. Don Bacon of Nebraska. “Iran has murdered more than a thousand Americans. Their EFP land mines were the deadliest in Iraq. Anti-Semitism is an evil I detest, and we surely don’t want it in our government.” 

 Jewish Democratic Rep. Josh Gottheimer, of New Jersey, also denounced Kent, writing, “Kent’s reduction of Iran to ‘Israel’s fault’ isn’t leadership, it’s bigoted deflection.”

 “Of course, Kent’s own post announcing his resignation is riddled with antisemitic tropes under the guise of blaming Israel,” Amy Spitalnick, head of the Jewish Council for Public Affairs, wrote on X. “You can vehemently criticize the Israeli government & oppose the war without engaging in dangerous conspiratorial tropes.”

 “You can resign and ostensibly make it about Iran, but scapegoating Israel and its ‘powerful American lobby’ for Trump’s decision to go to war puts Jews in danger,” Halie Soifer, CEO of the Jewish Democratic Council of America, wrote on X. 

 A statement from Brian Romick, head of Democratic Majority for Israel, similarly called Kent’s letter “deeply antisemitic” and added, “It is deeply alarming that a man holding one of the most sensitive national security positions in the United States government harbors these antisemitic views.” Romick also said Trump “made the decision to use military force against Iran.”

 “There is no place in public service for traffickers of antisemitic tropes such as Mr. Kent,” the Combat Antisemitism Movement, which has supported war with Iran, said in a statement. “For generations to come, the world will be a safer place as a direct result of the decisive military actions that have been taken by the U.S. and Israel.”

 Prior to his confirmation as national counterterrorism director, Kent served for a time as acting chief of staff to U.S. Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard. In that role, he was included in the 2025 “Signalgate” group chats in which highly sensitive planning of bombings in Yemen were mistakenly sent to a journalist. 

 Kent has also had past associations with Fuentes, whom he admitted to calling in 2022 to discuss electoral strategy for his House bid that year — though he disavowed Fuentes. Kent’s wife, Heather Kaiser, has contributed
to The Grayzone, a site founded by anti-Zionist Jewish writer Max Blumenthal.

 Kent has also spread conspiracy theories about the 2020 election and defended Jan. 6 rioters. While running for congress in 2022, Kent also talked to pro-Israel lobbyists AIPAC for support, according to a policy paper shared by a Jewish Insider reporter. 

 In that paper, Kent states, “The United States and Israel share common enemies in the Middle East, from terrorist groups like Hamas and Hezbollah to the totalitarian government of Iran,” later adding that he would “bolster the coalition that stands in opposition to Iran.” 

 Kent concluded, “Further, I will introduce legislation to strip the most vile antisemites in Congress from their committee assignments.”

 He hit and injured the congregation’s security director,
Danny Phillips, with his car as he plowed through the synagogue’s doors and drove down a hallway. But he didn’t manage to harm anyone else after he was shot by members of Temple Israel’s armed security team.

 And because the rest of the staff knew exactly how to respond to an active shooter threat.

 “We always worry that you can plan and plan and plan and practice and practice, and it won’t matter, because it will be something else, but it feels like a miracle that everything worked the way it was supposed to, that our team was so incredibly brave, local law enforcement’s been amazing, and that everybody’s OK,” Rabbi Jen Lader of Temple Israel says.

 Oakland County Sheriff Michael Bouchard and West Bloomfield County Police Chief Dale Young immediately praised the security response in the wake of the attack.

 Bouchard noted that the security team had “neutralized the threat” before police officers arrived.

 “I am deeply proud of the response, not only from the security that was on site, but also of all the police officers and the firefighters that are here right now, we train on active shooter events a lot,” Young said during a press conference outside the synagogue. “I think that training certainly helped to mitigate what happened here today.”

 Indeed, it was a situation that Jewish institutions across the United States have trained for, as antisemitism and threats of violence have ticked up in recent years, especially following the 2018 synagogue shooting in Pittsburgh that killed 11 Jews during Shabbat services. The rabbi of a synagogue in Colleyville, Texas, credited security training with enabling him to respond when a man took him and three congregants hostage in 2022.

 “Everybody flees danger, and our team went straight toward it, and they were the ones who neutralized the terrorist and saved everybody,” says Lader. “And our teachers followed, you know, to the absolute letter, our active shooter training and lockdown procedures, and saved every kid.”

 Beyond the synagogue’s full-time director of security, Lader says Temple Israel also has a full team of armed security guards on the premises at all times as well as a remote security system that is able to secure different areas of the building during threats.

 In late January, FBI agents also visited Temple Israel to train clergy and staff about how to respond to an active shooter.

 Michael Masters, the national director and CEO of the Secure Community Network, an organization that coordinates security for Jewish institutions nationwide, including in Tidewater, says that the outcomes of the attack reflected the preparedness of Temple Israel.

 “Investing in security is an investment, it’s a down payment on the Jewish future,” says Masters. “The community that made up the synagogue, the larger Detroit Jewish community, has been making that investment for years and years, and today, that investment paid off and lives [were] saved.”

 Among the security measures that Masters says his organization recommended were “bollards or fences or natural obstructions” to the building, controlling access to the facility through reinforced doors or windows and having a security presence.

 “What we hope this reaffirms is that security needs to be an ongoing investment in order to allow Jewish life, faith-based life, to thrive,” says Masters. “And very much that investment can result, and did result, in Jewish lives being saved, and so we all need to recognize that and commit ourselves as members of the community at every level to be a part of making that investment at whatever level we can.”

 In the wake of the fatal shooting of two Israeli embassy staffers in Washington D.C. in June, the synagogue hosted a town hall on hate crimes and extremism.

 Among the speakers at the town hall was Noah Arbit, a lifelong congregant of Temple Israel who represents West Bloomfield in the Michigan House of Representatives. Arbit said in an interview that after he first learned of the attack while working on the state house floor, he immediately began to cry and raced down to his home synagogue.

 “I campaigned on taking on hate crimes,” said Arbit. “To be working on these issues, and then to see it come home to roost in my own community, in my own synagogue, in my hometown that I represent is, frankly, just like my worst nightmare.”

 While Arbit praised the response by security and law enforcement as the attack unfolded, he said he was “outraged and enraged and deeply pained that it was necessary in the first place.”

 “Jewish communities across the country and world have watched, you know, for the past decade, as our institutions have congealed into fortresses,” he said. “We are now forced to live behind, basically, you know, militarized, institutionally securitized institutions, and what a shame that is. It’s not just a shame, It’s unfathomable, it’s unforgivable.”

 For Rabbi Mark Miller of Temple Beth El, another Reform synagogue a 20-minute drive away in Bloomfield Hills, the attack on Temple Israel served as a stark reminder of why security infrastructure was essential for Jewish institutions.

 “This is one of those moments when, for years and years, we have bemoaned that we have to put so much time and energy into security for our institutions,” says Miller. “And this is one of those days that reminds us that we don’t have a choice.”

 Miller’s synagogue had a recent security crisis of its own, when a man drove through its parking lot in December 2022 and shouted antisemitic threats as parents walked their preschoolers into the building. The assailant, Hassan Chokr, was sentenced to 34 months in prison in September for illegally possessing multiple firearms inside a gun store after leaving the synagogue.

 “It’s a terrifying day, obviously for a lot of people, especially for parents with their kids at not only Temple Israel but at ours and other temples and Jewish institutions,” Miller says.

 Lader says that among her congregants, two competing sentiments had jumped out: Those who “never, in a million years, in our heart of hearts, thought it was ever going to happen to us” and others who “knew it was only a matter of time before it knocked on our door.”

 But another feeling was even stronger, she says.

 “I think the overarching sentiment, and the one that I want to make sure gets out there, is our absolute gratitude to our internal teams, our amazing staff, local law enforcement and our teachers for really, like, a building full of absolute heroes, who were able to keep us safe,” Lader says.

 The most recent threat came Thursday, March 12 when an armed assailant rammed his vehicle into a large synagogue in suburban Detroit, where trained security forces shot at him and he was killed before he could injure anyone.

 The closure stems from a political standoff over immigration enforcement: Senate Democrats are refusing to fund DHS unless the bill includes new oversight and limits on ICE operations, while Republicans and the Trump administration insist on passing funding without those changes. The dispute intensified after the killings of U.S. citizens during recent immigration operations.

 Applications for the federal Nonprofit Security Grant Program, which helps synagogues, schools, and community centers pay for security guards, cameras, reinforced doors and other protections were due Feb. 1. But because the program is administered through the Federal Emergency Management Agency, a component of DHS, the ongoing shutdown has frozen the process before applications could be reviewed. An effort to end the shutdown failed in the Senate on March 12. (As of press time, the shutdown continues)

 That means organizations that spent months preparing proposals are now waiting indefinitely to learn whether they will receive funding, at a time of rising anxiety and threats.

 The grant program has become a cornerstone of security planning for Jewish institutions across the United States, especially in the wake of sometimes deadly attacks. Demand for the grants has surged in recent years as antisemitic incidents have climbed and security costs have soared.

 According to data from the Anti-Defamation League, antisemitic incidents in the United States have reached historic highs in recent years, with Jewish institutions frequently targeted with threats, vandalism and harassment. Community leaders say the uncertainty surrounding the grants is arriving at precisely the wrong moment.

 The NSGP is designed to distribute hundreds of millions of dollars annually to nonprofits considered at high risk of attack. Organizations submit detailed applications outlining their vulnerabilities and the security improvements they hope to fund, which FEMA then reviews and awards through state agencies.

 But during a federal shutdown, most DHS personnel responsible for reviewing those applications are furloughed. As a result, the process has effectively stalled.

 For many nonprofits, the delay creates practical and financial uncertainty. Security upgrades such as surveillance systems, bollards, access-control systems, and trained guards often depend on the grants, and institutions typically plan their budgets around the expectation of federal support.

 Jewish communal security groups say the program has been one of the most successful federal efforts to help protect religious institutions. Michael Masters, CEO of the Secure Community Network, a Jewish security nonprofit, says Jewish organizations rely on federal funding to cover essential security needs, saying that it was “a challenge” that DHS was currently not processing security grant applications.

 “There’s no other faith-based community in the United States that needs to spend $760 million a year, at a minimum, on security that we do,” Masters says. “That’s a reality of the threat environment that we have to adapt to, that we have adapted to.”

Yom Ha’Atzmaut – Sunday, April 26, 12 – 3 pm Sandler Family Campus

As Israel continues to face a difficult moment, the bond between the nation and Jewish communities around the world
feels especially powerful. Marking Yom Ha’Atzmaut, Israel’s Independence Day, is both a celebration and a meaningful show of solidarity—an opportunity to remember the sacrifices that led to the establishment of the State of Israel, honor those who safeguard it today, and renew a commitment to its future.

 Jewish Tidewater kicks off its Yom Ha’Atzmaut celebrations with the third annual Israeli Chef’s Table Experience on Wednesday, April 22. This signature event highlights Israel’s rich culinary culture while creating space for community. Guests will enjoy a kosher three-course menu crafted by this year’s chefs-in-residence, Ben and Zikki Siman-Tov, the rising culinary stars behind New York City’s Buba Bureka and authors of the acclaimed cookbook Eat Small Plates. Their cooking reflects the spirit of modern Israel—deeply rooted in tradition while shaped by diverse regional influences. Throughout the evening, the chefs will share personal stories that highlight the deep ties between food, culture, and heritage, creating an experience that celebrates the flavors and spirit of Israel around the table.

 “Small plates, for us, are not necessarily about the size. It’s about the concept of sharing with others and creating on a table, dishes that are meant to be eaten all together, and the joy of people combining different flavors and textures and building their own bites,” says Ben Siman-Tov. His philosophy — that food is interactive, communal, and celebratory — is at the core of Eat Small Plates and the way the two chefs cultivate gatherings.

 The annual Yom Ha’Atzmaut Community Celebration takes place on Sunday, April 26. This community-wide festival honors Israel’s 78th Independence Day and celebrates the enduring connection between Israel and Tidewater. Families, friends, and all synagogues from across the region will participate in an afternoon of Israeli culture, music, food, and interactive activities for all ages. 

 A new menu for the celebration will feature authentic Israeli cuisine and barbecue, bringing the flavors of Israel to life. The event will also include an ESEK Israeli marketplace. An organization committed to supporting Israeli small businesses and highlighting the stories behind their products, ESEK will bring to Tidewater more than 20 curated collections, including the NOVA Collection, showcasing creations by survivors of the Nova Music Festival, as well as offerings from IDF reservists working to sustain their businesses while serving their country. The diverse array of crafted items will include artisanal chocolates, olive oils, jewelry, and Judaica, allowing for great shopping. 

 Together, these events reflect the many ways Israel’s culture, creativity, and spirit continue to inspire Jewish communities around the world. From the flavors of Israeli cuisine to the music, traditions, and stories that define the country’s vibrant society, Yom Ha’Atzmaut brings the community together to celebrate Israel’s independence, as well as the resilience and unity of the Jewish people.

To purchase tickets or a table for the Israeli Chef’s Table, go to JewishVA.org/YH.

To learn more about the Yom Ha’Atzmaut volunteer opportunities, events, and registration, visit JewishVA.org/YH or contact Nofar Trem at NTrem@UJFT.org.

 That was the case in October 2020, when a representative of Rosenheim, Germany, contacted Ohef Sholom Temple about a former congregant and Holocaust survivor. He said the city wanted to honor her family and requested documents or photographs of her life in America and the name of any of her relatives. The temple put him in contact with her nephew, and the OST Archives provided the documents. 

 The former congregant was Charlotte Moos. Born in Rosenheim in 1914, she fled to Czechoslovakia in 1936 and the Philippines in 1940. She married another Jewish refugee, and following the Japanese invasion of the Philippines, she became a prisoner of war. Widowed after her husband’s death, she was released at the end of the war and transported to the mainland in a Liberty Ship. Moving to the Washington, D.C. area, she worked for the U.S. government, met and married a fellow Holocaust survivor, and moved to Norfolk, Virginia. 

 When Adolph Hitler came to power in 1933, Rosenheim was a city of almost 20,000 inhabitants, 38 of whom were Jews. Six years later, on the eve of World War II, only seven remained. Moos’s parents fled in 1938 following Kristallnacht; her half-sister Katharina left in 1939. One couple committed suicide; the others had escaped or were arrested.

 Moos’s father, Alexander, had been born in Czechoslovakia, and perhaps that’s why the family sought refuge there. But when the Germans invaded, Moos’s mother, Frieda, was deported to the Zamosc ghetto in Poland and murdered. Alexander was killed in the Majdanek death camp.

 However, Moos was one of approximately 1,300 Jews rescued by the Philippines, then a self-governing commonwealth of the United States. The rescue plan was most likely proposed by U.S. High Commissioner Paul McNutt, who got the idea from a friend whose brother worked for a Jewish relief agency. McNutt took the idea to Philippine President Manuel Quezon, and with the help of the Philippine Jewish community, Quezon put the plan into action. The original plan included visas for 10,000 Jews, but the 1941 Japanese attack and occupation of the islands halted all immigration for the remainder of the war.

 Moos was interned in a POW camp in Manila, probably the former Santo Tomas University. She would have been surrounded by many other refugees, including the cantor of Manila’s Temple Emil. Initially, conditions were fairly good, but they quickly deteriorated. As a citizen of a Japanese ally, Moos would have been exempt from internment, but the 1935 Nuremberg Laws had revoked the citizenship of all German Jews. 

 The camp was liberated in February 1945. The war ended in August, and that fall, Moos, recently widowed, left the Philippines and found a new home in Alexandria, Virginia. Her husband, Leo, had been part of a group of 14 Czech civilians who had fought with the U.S. Armed Forces. Captured on Bataan, he endured the infamous Bataan Death March, was transported to Japan on the “Hell Ship” Hokusen Maru, and died in a Japanese POW camp in Fukuoka in April 1945. He’s buried under a Star of David in the American Cemetery and Memorial in Manila. 

 Living in Alexandria, Charlotte found work as a secretary for the federal government, and in 1950, she married another Holocaust refugee, Henry Moos. He had immigrated to the United States in 1938, sponsored by his father’s first cousin, Albert Einstein. The couple moved to Norfolk, and in 1954, they joined Ohef Sholom Temple. Henry was active in and an officer of the Men’s Club, and Charlotte served on the Sisterhood Board. Charlotte died in 2000 at the age of 85, and Henry died in 2009, aged 96.

 In 2021, the city of Rosenheim memorialized Moos and her family by installing stolpersteine (“stumbling stones”) for them. Each “stone” is a 4” x 4” block, topped by a brass plate engraved with the name, birth date, and fate of the honoree. The blocks are installed in the street where someone victimized by the Nazis lived or worked. The idea was initiated by German artist Gunter Demnig in 1992, and today there are more than 107,000 stolpersteine in 30 countries. In Rosenheim, there are stones for Moos, her parents, and her half-sister, Katharina. Katharina, known here as Kate, and her husband, another Holocaust survivor, had also found refuge in Tidewater. Moos’s story had come full circle; the city she had fled almost 100 years ago is now one of 1,900 municipalities helping to ensure the Holocaust is not forgotten. 

My own seder plate does just that.  On my first trip to Israel when I was 17, I purchased a seder plate for my grandparents.  Eventually, it made its way to my mom’s table. Then, when my husband and I held our first seder, my mom happily handed it over, as she was thrilled to pass the task of hosting this holiday on to us. “You keep it,” she said without a hint of hesitation or appearance that she might ever take it back. After cleaning it that first year, I realized I had basically bought a souvenir. The back of the plate has a hook for easy hanging on the wall!  Never mind, all these decades later, it remains in good condition, with clearly labeled space for everything needed – the parsley, haroset, egg, etc. And when it goes on my seder table, it reminds me of so many memories and relatives. . .  and does the job!

I’m not alone in my affection for the “not so perfect” piece of Judaica for the holiday. Susan Cohen, Lynn Shoenbaum, and Sharon Grossman share images of their seder plates here, and the stories that go along with them.   

Susan and Andy Cohen

“We have a seder plate that I really love — we bought it from the Judaica shop at our synagogue in Northern Virginia,” says Susan Cohen. This was the plate, she says, that she and her husband, Andy, used “since our kids were young” at their annual Passover seders.

An even more special treasure for Cohen, however, is a mosaic orange that her Aunt Alice (of blessed memory) created for her family “that we display on the seder plate each year. My aunt was a very talented artist who studied Kabbalah. That inspired her,” says Cohen, “to create the orange to emphasize the centrality of women in Jewish families – in response to the apocryphal story of a rabbi who dismissively said a woman belongs on the bima the way an orange belongs on a seder plate.”

Cohen says, “I smile and think of her every year when I place it on our table.”

Lynn Schoenbaum

Old and ‘newish’ seder plates comprise Lynn Schoenbaum’s collection. 

The older plate is made of metal.  Schoenbaum’s mother, Ruth Ann, set this one on her table at family seders in Newport News and later in Williamsburg. 

“My grandfather always sat at the head of the table,” recalls Schoenbaum. “I remember him raising the plate to describe the significance of each item placed on it. “My Uncle Louis used it at a recent seder, and it brought back many fond memories.”

The ‘newish’ glass plates are from The Paisley Hippo, an artsy gift shop, that Schoenbaum owned in Ghent. 

And now, the plates, with much different looks occupy distinct but equally important memories of seders for Schoenbaum.

Sharon Grossman

“I actually made my ceramic seder plate and all ‘the pieces,’” says Sharon Grossman, a local artist. 

Grossman says she made it in the 1990s and has used it since. “I just got inspired to make something meaningful.  I’m very proud of it.”

The plate depicts the children of Israel crossing the desert with the Red Sea parting. A former slave carries a roasted egg on his head, for instance, and a little boy holds a frog.  To create the plate, she even used sand to conjure up the desert.

 In addition to lots of camels, Grossman’s seder table includes pyramid salt and pepper shakers, which get left behind in Egypt.

Looking for a Passover seder to attend this year? Check out these options and make a decision soon to secure a spot, as Passover begins at sundown on Wednesday, April 1.

B’nai Israel Congregation

Anyone who would like home hospitality for a Passover Seder can contact the congregation’s office: office@bnaiisrael.org.

Chabad of Tidewater

Community Seder

April 1 and April 2, 8:30 PM

RSVP at chabadoftidewater.com/sederrsvp

JCC Model Passover Seder

March 25, Wednesday, 12 – 2 pm

Active Adults are invited for an interactive Passover experience filled with storytelling and traditions led by Cantor Jennifer Rueben of Ohef Sholom Temple. Open to people of all faiths. Lunch and seder: $10. Sandler Family Campus. Register by March 23
at jewishva.org/seder. Contact Sarah Cooper for more information at SCooper@ujft.org.

Ohef Sholom Temple

Congregational Second Night Seder

Thursday, April 2, 6 pm

Join Ohef Sholom Temple’s family for a meaningful and joyful Second Night Seder led by Rabbi Roz and Cantor Jen. Together, share the story of the Exodus through song, tradition, and community, while enjoying a beautifully prepared holiday meal.

Plan to arrive by 5:45 pm, as the Seder will begin promptly at 6 pm.

Register at: https://mailchimp/ohefsholom/secondseder.

Temple Emanuel

Passover Community Seder

Thursday, April 2, 6 – 8:30 pm

Join Temple Emanuel as Rabbi Ari leads a meaningful, music-filled Passover seder. 

$45 for members ages 13+, $60 for non-members; $30 for children ages 5-12; Free for those under age 5. Subsidized tickets are available. Register by March 23 at TEVB.org.   

Jewish Virginia Beach 

Community Passover Seder 

Wednesday, April 1, 6:45 pm

A welcoming and meaningful Passover Seder with traditional dinner and insights for Jews of all backgrounds. 

Everyone is welcome. No membership or prior knowledge needed. Cost is flexible – no one will be turned away due to financial limitations. Those who need assistance can contact Rabbi Meir at Rabbi@jewishvb.org. Security will be present for everyone’s safety. Registration required at: JewishVB.org.