Heritage Florida Jewish News - Central Florida's Independent Jewish Voice

As a child, I spent my summers at Camp Solomon Schechter, a Conservative Jewish camp in Tumwater, Wash., set on the shores of Lake Joshua Stampfer. My experiences at Camp Schechter were central to the development of my Jewish identity and eventual...

Two days into my first Taglit-Birthright Israel trip, during which I led a group of 40 Americans around Israel, I heard the news of the Obama administration’s unprecedented refusal to veto a United Nations Security Council resolution condemning...

Google CEO Eric Schmidt believes Israeli entrepreneurs succeed because they challenge authority, question everything, and don’t go by the rules. “The impact of the Israelis on science and technology is immense, so that’s why I’m here and why...

When individuals move to Israel, most are transformed by the new experience in obvious ways. Some become more religious, others become more right wing, and many become more, well, Israeli. Over the last 13 months, I’ve witnessed my own...

In the wake of expanding East African-Israeli relations, African nations often reach out to Israel for know-how on a range of topics: water conservation, energy, agricultural productivity, counter-terrorism; and now business negotiation. Although it...

When I made aliyah over a year ago, I was warned that it would be hard. With no family here, many people gave me their contact information and an open invitation for any assistance when needed. But for me, for the first year, it really wasn’t all...

By Eliana Rudee (JNS.org) Living in Israel comes with many hardships, some of them known and some of them unknown. I expected certain dilemmas with the language, bureaucracy, cultural immersion and finances, for example. But there is one thing that...

(JNS.org) Exactly six years ago, when I was just 18 years old, I wrote as my Facebook status, “Doesn’t want to go home tomorrow :( I live in America but my heart is in Israel.” It was only my second time in Israel and I just knew. I knew that...

“I’m sure you get this question a lot, but...” It always starts with those words. What follows is the predictable, frequently asked question on the minds of friends, family, and Jewish mothers when I get back to the U.S. “Is it safe?...

This week, I was able to talk to many Jewish students from around the world (including a friend from my alma mater who is visiting Israel) about what it is like to be a Jewish student on their university campuses. I graduated from college just about...

Last week, Israel commemorated the assassination of Yitzhak Rabin, a prime minister of Israel and hero in the eyes of the Israeli people. I was struck by how significant the day is for Israelis and what this means in the context of ongoing conflict...

Every day now, I am waking up to news of more murders around Jerusalem. Outside my window, I hear screaming, and as my stomach twists in fright, I have to wonder whether I am hearing yet another Arab attack against Jews in my area. This violence is...