Central Florida's Independent Jewish Voice
Central Florida's Independent Jewish Voice
Sorted by date Results 1 - 25 of 36
Her demeanor is reserved. She speaks softly with dignity and grace. Yet beneath that quiet exterior lays a strength to spearhead many projects that enhanced the Orlando Jewish community. Sara Stern reveals her deep love of Judaism and the Jewish people through her accomplishments within organizations such as Congregation Ohev Shalom, Hadassah, the Jewish Federation of Greater Orlando and the Women's League of Conservative Judaism. Her motivation comes, she stated, from "a deep-seated belief...
When Kacie Zemel relocated from Orlando to North Miami Beach to accept a position as a third-grade teacher at a Jewish day school, she still thought of herself as an active participant in The Roth Family JCC of Greater Orlando community-despite living more than 200 miles away. She would teach her children by day, and then continue to make plans for The Roth Family JCC at night. During school breaks, instead of relaxing or recuperating, she would make the journey to Maitland to oversee the JCC's...
The Jewish Federation of Greater Orlando (JFGO) recently awarded more than $50,000 in community collaborative grants to local Jewish organizations and synagogues. The grants are designed to encourage and promote collaboration in the Jewish community and to support programs and services that enrich Jewish life in Orlando. To qualify for a grant, at least two agencies, synagogues or organizations must work together to develop and submit a proposal and implement a program. In addition, the programs or services must be open to the entire Jewish...
The Jewish Pavilion's new Inter-Generational program director, Walter Goldstein, has kicked off the One-on-One Bar/Bat Mitzvah Project with June and Jacob at Brookdale Island Lake. This is the program's second year of connecting seniors with bar or bat mitzvah students. Goldstein has started making the rounds to meet the local rabbis and educational directors to get the word out about the program, made possible in part by a grant from the Jewish Federation of Greater Orlando. For more...
The Scouts of Troop 641 showed their support of Eagle Scout candidate Steven Kluger last Sunday at Temple Israel. Steven's Eagle project was to rebuild the synagogue's outside fire pit and add permanent benches for the children. Several Eagle Scouts from the Troop were on hand to help with the project as well as Scout leaders and friends. Steven went through several meetings with leaders to finalize his plans. The project was completed just as the rain began falling. For more information on the...
Congregation Beth Am invites the community to its Open House and Back to School Bagel Bash on Sunday, Aug. 20, 9:30 a.m. to noon, where families will have the opportunity to check out CBA’s religious school and meet its new education director, Cantor Nina Fine. Enrolled students will have brunch with their class and teacher while parents can have a nosh and kibitz with other parents of children in their child’s class. Those children not yet registered will also be invited to brunch with their prospective classmates and teacher. Children and...
NEW YORK (JTA)-If Jared Kushner is the only person who can deliver Middle East peace-as his father-in-law Donald Trump said-he comes off as a reluctant savior. In a speech delivered Monday to a group of congressional interns and leaked to the media, Kushner expounded on the Trump administration's efforts to achieve Israeli-Palestinian peace. What emerged was an outlook that at once was resolutely pro-Israel and skeptical of the chances of success. "So what do we offer that's unique? I don't...
Palestinians are vowing to continue their efforts to prevent Jews from living in large parts of Jerusalem’s Old City, despite a July 31 Israeli court ruling permitting a Jewish purchase of several properties there. The ruling by Judge Gila Kanfi-Steinitz, deputy head of the Jerusalem District Court, capped a 13-year legal struggle over the purchase by Jewish investors of two Arab-run hotels and an unidentified third property, all owned by the Greek Orthodox Church and located in the area of the Old City known as the Christian Quarter. The t...
More than 1,000 Jews braved a searing heat wave Tuesday morning to visit the Temple Mount on Tisha b'Av, the saddest date on the Hebrew calendar, while thousands more sat on the floor-a traditional Jewish sign of mourning-at the Western Wall Plaza to commemorate the destruction of ancient Jerusalem by the Roman Empire in the year 70 CE. More visitors were expected throughout the day. One person, a 15-year-old boy, was lightly wounded when a Muslim worshiper threw a chair at him. He was given...
As much as President Donald Trump enjoys taking a metaphorical sledgehammer to even the merest of slights against him, there is no reason to repeat the commander-in-chief’s behavior in judging his administration. That there is so much darkness around Trump, his character and his intentions should not obscure the occasional rays of light emanating from his administration. In foreign policy, one can list a few achievements on this score. There was the appointment of Nikki Haley as U.S. ambassador to the United Nations. In a few short months, s...
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 decision to immigrate to Israel. Each day began at “the flagpole.” Kicking off every morning, hundreds of sleepy-eyed campers and counselors from all around the Pacific Northwest strolled to the flagpoles, where we would circle up around the American, Canadian and Israeli flags. Just as everyone cir...
It’s not yet clear that the commotions surrounding the Temple Mount and the incident in Amman are behind us. An optimist’s view is that two weeks of demonstrations, nastiness from the pinnacle of the Jordanian government as well as the Palestine National Authority, a few deaths and perhaps a couple of hundred injuries were nothing more than blips on a troubled history, now seemingly back to what’s been the normal range of manageable tensions. Those few days also invite some comparisons with minorities elsewhere, and especially African Ameri...
When presidential adviser Jared Kushner said in a recent private discussion that “there may be no solution” to the conflict between the Palestinian Arabs and Israel, he was just stating the obvious. For nearly a century, self-appointed wise men have been claiming to have the solution, but every such proposal has proved to be a mirage. The British thought they had the solution in 1922, when they sectioned off the eastern part of Mandatory Palestine—78 percent of the original mandate territory—and set up an Arab kingdom there, which came to be k...
PARIS—It took too long for the French people to recognize the Jewish victim of a brutal April 4 murder by name. After weeks of indifference by media outlets and politicians, French President Emmanuel Macron demanded publicly that the judiciary shed light on the nature of the crime. Significantly, Macron spoke of Sarah Halimi during the ceremony marking the 75th anniversary of the Vel d’Hiv, the roundup of more than 13,000 French Jews during the Holocaust in 1942. “Despite the denials of the murderer, our judiciary must bring total clari...
The last two weeks was not a good time to be prime minister of Israel. A series of unfortunate events led Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to make decisions that wound up being blasted from both the left and the right. Those decisions were, at best, debatable. But the resulting tsunami of disparagement that accused him of simultaneously being intransigent and a weakling may tell us more about the nature of the conflict between Israel and its enemies than it does about his shortcomings. Though he deserves criticism, the most important...
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...
NEW YORK (JTA)-Six years ago, the Israeli government released a series of controversial ads to show its expatriates that they would never feel at home in the United States. But last year, Israeli Cabinet members lined up to address a Washington, DC., conference celebrating Israeli-American identity. The ad campaign, which was pulled following a backlash from Israelis and Jews abroad, represented Israel's traditional attitude toward citizens who left its borders. Emphasizing its image as the Jewi...
A beginner in the Jewish genealogy search, Jane Edelstein recently attended the International Association of Jewish Genealogical Societies conference held in Orlando. This is the first article in a series about her experience finding her roots. You didn't know your great-grandparents, and even thinking about Europe at the turn-of-the-century doesn't really sound appealing to you. So why should you spend at least a little bit of time, and seek out your Jewish ancestry? "Jewish genealogy is not a...
(JTA)-Twenty years ago this summer, Anita Diamant-a freelance writer and author of several nonfiction books about Jewish practice, including "The New Jewish Wedding"-was awaiting the publication of her first novel. It was a work of historical fiction, set in biblical times, that focused on the story of Dinah, the only daughter of Jacob and Leah. The book was called "The Red Tent," and it has since achieved iconic status. The novel has sold millions of copies around the world and was adapted...
Cornerstone Hospice and Palliative Care invites Orlando and Kissimmee-area residents to volunteer to help patients throughout Orange and Osceola counties. Cornerstone Hospice volunteers may help by visiting with a patient at an assisted living facility or a home while a caregiver runs errands. The volunteers may also walk a patient’s dog, honor a fellow veteran or be a greeter at the inpatient hospice unit. All Cornerstone Hospice volunteers must go through training and will be subject to a background check. A training session will be on S...
Do you remember?... The following (in part) was sent to my editor from LAURENCE MORRELL and was passed on to me. (The original author is unknown). Growing up Jewish... If you are Jewish, and grew up in a city with a large Jewish population, the following will invoke heartfelt memories. (I grew up in Brooklyn, N.Y. with a super large Jewish population!) The Yiddish word for today is PULKES (PUHL-kees). Translation: THIGHS. Please note: this word has been traced back to the language of one of the...
Jordan’s foreign minister blames the “occupation” for the Temple Mount terror, and threatens even more dangerous crises. As recently as the mid-20th century, when Arabs last controlled parts of Jerusalem, they exhibited no respect for the Holy City. In 1948, when Jordan took control of the eastern part of Jerusalem, including the Old City, it divided the city for the first time in its 3,000-year history. Under the 1949 armistice agreement with Israel, Jordan pledged to allow free access to all holy places but failed to honor that commi...
Marylin Berman died July 7, 2017, comfortably in her home in Maitland from complications of vascular dementia. She was born April 10, 1940, to Leo and Pauline Chaitow in Bronx, New York. Marylin moved to Clearwater/Tampa area in 1941 with her family. In 1963, when Marylin married Ronald Berman she moved to Orlando. Marylin was a loving person who gave often of herself to others. When not working in the family business, Merton Restaurant Equipment, Marylin was a dedicated volunteer to Congregation Ohev Shalom and the Jewish Community. Marylin...
Written by his daughter, Marion Cohen Schwartz Frederick (Freddy) Cohen passed away on May 18, 2017, at 90 years of age, in Altamonte Springs, Florida. He was born on Jan. 11, 1927, in the Bronx, New York, to David and Sophie (Brand) Cohen. In 1948, he moved to Orlando where he met and married Shirley (Rand) Cohen (deceased, 1986). Together they had two children, Marion Cohen Schwartz and Jerry Alan Cohen (deceased, 1998) and working together for many years, they opened Great South Supply Company, a wholesale plumbing and heating supply...
Ann E. Finkelstein, age 88, of Philadelphia, Pa., passed away on Tuesday, July 18, 2017, at her residence. She was born on Dec. 27, 1928, in Paterson, New Jersey, to the late Benjamin and Helen Geneslaw Ginsberg. A high school graduated, she worked as a bookkeeper for a janitorial services provider. She relocated to the Orlando area from Holyoke, Mass., in 1994, with her husband, Martin, who predeceased her. Ann was a former member of Congregation of Reform Judaism, Hadassah, the Jewish Community Center’s Couples Club and 39ers. She is s...
