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If I had to sum up my mother in one word, it would be generous. My mom, Ellen Wagner, is generous with her love, her time, and her knowledge. She is always willing to open her home to anyone who might be alone for the holidays, she has a hard time saying no to...

My mom raised me with help from her mom, my Bubbie, at a time when there were not as many successful single parent households as there are now. She always wanted me to succeed without regard for what I may have been missing  in my life and never wanted me to use what...

United Jewish Federation of Tidewater’s Lee & Bernard Jaffe Family Jewish Book Festival hosted a successful event with New York Times bestselling author Lisa Barr, who discussed her latest book Woman on Fire at the Chrysler Museum of Art. The event was in...

A small but mighty group of Federation donors recently returned from a magnificent week-long journey through time and space to ancient and modern Israel. From Feb. 28 to March 9, participants of the 2023 UJFT Community Mission to Israel wandered through history,...

Dear Readers, Calling the current climate in Israel “complicated” could be the understatement of the century. Never do I recall major Jewish organizations, donors, and celebrities making public statements against Israel’s domestic policy. Or tens of thousands of...

The supreme governing bodies of the Technion, the Council acting on behalf of the International Board of Governors, and with the approval of the Technion Senate, resolved to confer upon Avraham Ashkenazi the Technion Honorary Fellow Award. The ceremony is slated to...

During my formative years, the 1960s, my parents instilled in me a love of both Judaism and Israel. As a college student, I volunteered on a kibbutz one summer, working in the fields and hitch-hiking around Israel. I married a non-Jew, who later converted to Judaism...

I ran into my dear friend Amy Lefcoe last spring at the Simon Family JCC and asked her, “So, when are we going back to Israel?” “Hmmm, let me think about that,” Amy replied. As always, Amy worked her magic and created what would fast become one of my most memorable...

Dear Friends, Passover (Pesach in Hebrew) celebrates freedom as we recall the Exodus from Egypt more than 3,000 years ago. Family and friends at a seder, springtime, renewal, and freedom are just a few of the images that come to mind when we think about this most...

In her third floor speech since becoming a Congresswoman representing Virginia’s Second District, Congresswoman Jen Kiggans spoke about the importance of supporting Israel. The speech took place on Friday, March 10. The speech follows: Madam Speaker, I rise today to...

The recent terrorist murder in Israel of two Jewish boys from Har Bracha in the Arab village of Huwara fills the Jewish world with sadness. Yet, it is the extrajudicial response by religious settlers to the killings which resulted in widespread civilian destruction in...

Anyone who has traveled by the Pembroke Square area in the last few weeks might have seen exciting developments taking place on the corner by Target. Aviva Pembroke, the premier senior community that is being created in partnership by Beth Sholom Village and Pembroke...

We joined the Tidewater delegation for Jewish Advocacy Day in Richmond on Wednesday, Feb. 8. In the morning, we all met to ride the bus to Richmond at the Simon Family JCC—you could feel the excitement. After six months of working with the community, meeting people,...

NADIV, United Jewish Federation of Tidewater’s young men’s Giving Circle, recently completed this year’s giving process at the Jewish Museum and Cultural Center in Portsmouth. On a Sunday evening in February the members were hosted for a dinner, learned about the...

Luca Calliott proves that one can never begin reading the Jewish News too early.

Almost 50 early morning risers boarded a bus to Richmond for Virginia’s annual Jewish Advocacy Day on Wednesday, Feb. 8. Organized by the Jewish Community Relations Council (JCRC) of the United Jewish Federation of Tidewater, the delegation joined nearly 200 citizen...

International Holocaust Remembrance Day was observed this year by United Jewish Federation of Tidewater’s Holocaust Commission with the publication of To Life: The Past Is Present, Holocaust Stories of Hampton Roads Survivors, Liberators, and Rescuers. This collection...

Dear Readers, Longevity unwittingly turned into the theme for this issue’s Mazel Tov section. Doing so makes perfect sense, and frankly, I wonder why we’ve never done it before. After all, when celebrating at weddings we hope the marriages will be “forever” and when a...

Jewish News: When and where did you meet? Minette and Charles Cooper: In New York on a blind date through Marjorie Quarte, a senior in Minette’s house at Smith College who was dating Charles’s brother Joel. JN: Charles, how did you convince Minette to move to Norfolk?...

Caught on Camera: Dani Weinstein says she wants to read Jewish News to see who she knows in each issue.  

Next month, Sandy Goldberg, account executive at Jewish News, turns 80. If he hadn’t shared the news, no one would know. He’s always active…traveling with his wife Anne, busy with his family, entertaining, exercising at the Simon Family JCC, and working the phones and...

Tidewater’s ShinShinim, Aya Sever and Alma Ben Chorin, have been busy this winter spreading Israeli culture and education throughout the community. In addition to leading programs at the Simon Family JCC, they have engaged with students at Strelitz International...

Dear Readers, Last month I listened to an Apple News In Conversation podcast featuring an interview with Steve Lopez, author of Independence Day: What I Learned About Retirement From Some Who’ve Done It and Some Who Never Will. In his mid-60s and considering...

Jewish News: Where were you educated? Stephanie Adler Calliott: I attended the University of Maryland College Park and had the best four years as a Terp. My college roomies and I are still very close. JN: What was your work history? SAC: When I graduated from college,...

Jewish News: Where are you from and where were you educated? Bernie Mayer: I am from Cincinnati, Ohio. My undergraduate degree was from Miami University (Ohio), and I completed my Master of Science in Social Work at The University of Louisville (Kent School of Social...

Jewish News: Where were you educated? Edward Karotkin: I earned my Bachelor of Science degree at Union College, Schenectady, New York; and attended medical school at Wake Forest, formerly Bowman Gray School of Medicine. JN: What was your work history? EK: I have been...