Central Florida's Independent Jewish Voice
Central Florida's Independent Jewish Voice
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On May 30, Jewish Academy of Orlando celebrated the class of 2019 with acceptances to their top-choice middle schools, including a 100 percent acceptance rate at both Trinity Preparatory School and Lake Highland Preparatory School. The acceptance rates are not surprising given that the fifth-grade class, on average, scored nearly three grade levels ahead of peers nationally on the IOWA Achievement Assessments. The grade-level composite score, which includes Language Arts, Math, Science and...
(JNS)-In the midst of his whirlwind week-long Florida governor's business development mission to Israel with more than 100 delegation participants, Gov. Ron DeSantis visited the Gush Etzion region, just south of Jerusalem and over the Green Line. His purpose was to meet with community leaders and small-business owners who are on the front lines as targets of the anti-Israel BDS movement. During a press briefing on Wednesday hosted at the Hub Etzion business center, DeSantis said, "Here is the th...
(Israel Hayom via JNS)-Nechama Rivlin, the wife of President Reuven Rivlin, passed away at Rabin Medical Center in Petach Tikvah on Tuesday, June 4, 2019, a day before her 74th birthday. Israel's first lady had suffered from pulmonary fibrosis, a condition in which scar tissue accumulates in the lungs and makes it difficult to breathe, and had undergone a lung transplant in March. In recent years, Rivlin had been seen in public with a portable oxygen tank, including when accompanying her...
The Jewish Federation of Greater Orlando’s Jerome J. Bornstein Leadership Development Program is accepting applications for its fall 2019 class. Co-chairs Rhonda Forest and Abby Nelson opened the Bornstein Program’s application period in a community-wide announcement. The program, named in honor of long-time community volunteer and leader Jerry Bornstein (Z”L), is designed to find the next generation of Jewish leaders in Central Florida and prepare them to address the challenges and opportunities of servicing the community. Those selec...
Temple Israel installed a Little Free Library on Sunday, May 19, outside the synagogue facing Moss Road. The installation event took place during a worldwide Little Free Library weekend celebrating the movement's 10-year anniversary. According to its website, "Little Free Library is a nonprofit organization that inspires a love of reading, builds community, and sparks creativity by fostering neighborhood book exchanges around the world. Through Little Free Libraries, millions of books are exchan...
All good things must come to end. Thankfully the monthly musicals at Brookdale Lake Orienta will continue in September. What a wonderful "season" it had been with some of the most wonderful entertainers. Not only did the talent bring such joy to the residents on Sunday afternoons, these artists showed such passion with their music, making it more meaningful. Stewart Bloom, one of the entertainers as well as monthly volunteers stated, "My performance was heart-felt and I think our seniors knew....
Ten Israeli high school student performers will present a high-energy song and dance performance on Tuesday, June 18 from 6:30 p.m. - 8 p.m., at Temple Israel, 7350 Lake Andrew Drive, Viera, Fla. They will also share stories of their life in Israel. The Sister City Program of Cocoa, Florida, and Beit Shemesh, Israel, is jointly sponsoring this performance along with Temple Israel, Temple Beth Sholom, and Bridges for Peace. Door prizes featuring beautiful Israeli gifts will be awarded. Tickets:...
Most people at least recognize the name of Israel's prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu. But few outside Israel know the name of Israel's president, or that Israel even has one. In Israel, the prime minister is the head of the government and the president is the head of State. Israel's current and 10th president is Reuven (Ruby) Rivlin. He was elected to a seven-year term five years ago this week. He has a long and remarkable family life and political career in Jerusalem. This week his wife,...
(JNS)—A number of Massachusetts Jewish and pro-Israel groups are condemning several Democratic state lawmakers for participating in an Eid al-Fitr event at the Massachusetts State House that was co-hosted by the Massachusetts branch of the Council on American-Islamic Relations, which has a long history of anti-Israel and anti-Semitic sentiment. In response to an inquiry from JNS regarding the event, Jewish Community Relations Council of Greater Boston executive director Jeremy Burton responded: “We welcome the efforts and intentions of our pol...
(JNS)—The United States has sent 900 new troops to Saudi Arabia and Qatar amid the threat from Iran, announced U.S. Acting Defense Secretary Patrick Shanahan on Wednesday, May 29. “I don’t see a change in any behavior,” he told reporters on his way to Indonesia. “The situation still remains tense. It is a high-threat environment.” Last week, U.S. President Donald Trump said the United States will send 1,500 troops to the Middle East to serve in a “mostly protective role” in response to the Iranian threat. An estimated 600 were already there, re...
(JTA)—I’ll admit it: At first I didn’t think it was a big deal. Someone alerted me to a tweet from Politico touting their cover story about Bernie Sanders’ wealth. “The Secret of Bernie’s Millions” is illustrated by a montage of the Jewish senator, one of his homes—and a tree sprouting $100 bills. You know: Benjamins. The text of the original tweet touting the piece, since deleted, read “Bernie Sanders might still be cheap, but he’s sure not poor.” A Jew, banknotes, that word “cheap”—how is that not anti-Semitic? That’s what critics wanted...
The U.S. is in a worldwide battle for making trade among the nations fairer and more balanced than it has been for several decades. This is a bipartisan issue and enjoys support by members of Congress from both sides of the congressional aisle. The motivation for trying to bring our trade imbalances down and ultimately to eliminate them altogether has far reaching consequences for the economic health of our nation. Prior administrations have recognized this problem and have diplomatically tried but failed to correct these trade imbalances. Inte...
(JNS)—In a puff piece on Nabih Berri, the speaker of the Lebanese parliament, published on the occasion of his 80th birthday last year, the broadcaster France 24 headlined its profile, “The Great Survivor of Lebanese Politics.” This wording suggested that Berri is a successful politician in the sense that this image is understood in the Western democracies; someone who negotiates, navigates, cajoles and compromises his way through his country’s legislature and invariably comes out on top. But if Berri has been the “great survivor,” this is due...
(JNS)—In what crazy, upside-down world does a Palestinian Arab randomly stab Jews in Jerusalem, get shot dead by Israeli policeman and then become the focus of an Associated Press article with a headline about Israelis killing Palestinians? In our crazy, upside-down world, that’s where. The latest craziness began when the terrorist was strolling through the Old City of Jerusalem on Friday morning when he happened to see a Jewish man. So, the Arab stabbed the Jew. The stabber then went a little further along, until he spotted a Jewish child wal...
(JNS)—Israelis are rightly infuriated that their politicians couldn’t get their act together and form a government after national elections held on April 9. A rerun scheduled for Sept. 17 will be an enormous waste of time and money. But almost as infuriating as the new election is the way this turn of events will serve as an excuse for months of bloviating from Israeli and international pundits about the crisis in Israeli democracy. That means we’re about to be subjected to nearly 100 more days of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netan...
(Israel Hayom)—Yisrael Beiteinu chief Avigdor Lieberman’s post-election ploy will go down in history as one man’s attempt to distort Israeli democracy. As a result of this move, Lieberman has lent a hand to the few individuals at the State Attorney’s Office who, in order to bring down Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, are willing to break with precedent to redefine various felonies to suit their agenda. This type of legal “trial balloon” is a serious infringement on democracy and the will of the voters. The results of the election for state c...
MORNING AND EVENING MINYANS (Call synagogue to confirm time.) Chabad of South Orlando—Monday - Friday, 8 a.m. and 10 minutes before sunset; Saturday, 9:30 a.m.; Sunday, 8:15 a.m., 407-354-3660. Congregation Ahavas Yisrael—Monday - Friday, 7:30 a.m.; Saturday, 9:30 a.m.; Sunday, 9 a.m., 407-644-2500. Congregation Chabad Lubavitch of Greater Daytona—Monday, 8 a.m.; Thursday, 8 a.m., 904-672-9300. Congregation Ohev Shalom—Sunday, 9 a.m., 407-298-4650. GOBOR Community Minyan at Jewish Academy of Orlando—Monday—Friday, 7:45 a.m.—8:30 a.m. Temple I...
The Jewish Pavilion is an organization that connects Jewish seniors with their heritage and roots. A large number of senior living facilities have ongoing Shabbat and holiday programs while other residences have visitations by staff and volunteers from the Pavilion. The Jewish Pavilion is comprised of a small group of program directors who oversee the activities offered to the community, but the group that enables these programs to thrive are the wonderful volunteers. Without the ongoing dedication of volunteers, the Jewish Pavilion would fall...
A sellout crowd of 225 Jewish Pavilion supporters and Citrus Club members gathered in early June for a fun and relaxed networking and social event in the Citrus Club's opulent downtown setting. The 18th-floor sunset views provided a gorgeous backdrop for the evening's festivities, which included drinks and small bites, a whiskey tasting, raffle prizes, and a few premium silent auction items, including club-level tickets to upcoming Jennifer Lopez and Jonas Brothers concerts at Amway Arena. The...
Ten years ago this week, my father and I spent our last Father's Day together. My mother and he had moved up to an independent living facility in Upstate New York four miles from me. Two years later, his health had deteriorated, and he passed away November 2008. People may remember Bill Cohen for his stores in Keeseville, his community service, his pride in his family. What I remember-and treasure-about Dad were the stories about him that my siblings and I share again and again. Many of them...
It only took Brigitte Gabriel 14 minutes to make her point as she gave a keynote speech addressing the rise of global anti-Semitism before the United Nations in September 2014. She received a standing ovation as she spoke out strongly for Israel. Spring forward almost five years, and Gabriel, through her organization ACT for America, is still speaking out strongly for Israel, democracy and Judeo-Christian values. She was recently in Orlando to promote her new book, "Rise: In Defense of...
Today, June 14th is my birthday... (Do NOT ask the year!). When I was little, my mother said that people were flying their American flags in honor of my birthday. I believed her! 'Anti-Semitism is no longer the extreme... 'It is now mainstream!' "This frightening thought comes from World Jewish Congress CEO and Executive Vice President ROBERT SINGER when he recently addressed the Conference on Combating Anti-Semitism in the OSCE Region in Bratislava, Slovakia, which brought together political...
(JNS)—Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis signed legislation on Wednesday, May 29, barring anti-Semitism and other religious discrimination in the Sunshine State’s public schools. The Florida state legislature unanimously passed the legislation in both chambers in April. The law adopts the U.S. State Department definition of anti-Semitism and mandates that discrimination against Jewish people be considered similar to acts of racial discrimination in Florida’s public-education institutions. “The bill sends a strong signal that Florida will not tolerat...
WASHINGTON (JTA)—Everyone started by praising the American Jewish Committee, naturally enough. But in their video greetings to the group’s annual policy forum here, 13 Democratic candidates proceeded to demonstrate a party grappling with what story they should tell to one of its most important demographics: Jewish voters. Some candidates started by decrying anti-Semitism. Others started by holding up the U.S.-Israel relationship. A couple didn’t mention Israel at all. Some remarks lasted under...
Ann Friedman, age 95, of Maitland, passed away on Saturday, June 1, 2019, at AdventHealth Hospice—Altamonte Springs. Ann was born in Romania on Oct. 25, 1923, to the late Aaron and Fanny Chilimacher Wexler. The family immigrated to the United States and Ann had the opportunity to graduate high school and attend two years of college at City College of New York. A homemaker, she was married to her late husband, Bertram “Bert” Friedman, for over 56 years when he passed away in March 2007. Ann was the mother of three children; her son Harold of Ma...
