Central Florida's Independent Jewish Voice
Central Florida's Independent Jewish Voice
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The fall festivals concluded with the holiday of Simchat Torah, the celebration of the Torah. Students, teachers, parents and grandparents all came together to celebrate. The Jewish Academy of Orlando takes great pride in its role as Central Florida's only Kindergarten-eighth-grade Jewish day school. At the Jewish Academy, students learn about the central role that Torah plays in the lives of the Jewish people as the source of our common history, the source of our spirituality and the source of... Full story
Last August, the Heritage reported about the sixth surviving member of the Monuments, Fine Arts and Archives program, better known as the Monuments Men, Rouben Sami, who lives in Winter Park. The same day the article ran in the paper, Aug. 15, Sami turned 93. His family hoped he would live to see the day when his name would be officially added to the list of recipients of the Congressional Gold Medal-Congress' highest civilian honor in recognition of distinguished achievements and... Full story
Correction The Heritage headline on the front page of the Oct. 31 issue, ‘JCC South sold to Rosen Foundation,’ is incorrect and misleading. The Federation, understandably, is concerned that it will lead to confusion. The Jack and Lee Rosen Southwest Orlando Campus (property), which the Federation owned, was sold to the Harris Rosen Foundation. The JCC that is situated on the property was not sold to the Rosen Foundation. Showing continued generous support of the Jewish community, the Harris Rosen Foundation has announced its plan to pur... Full story
Congregation Beth Am in Longwood invites all Jewish Veterans, our military men and women on active duty and their families to attend the Shabbat Morning service at 9:30 a.m. on Nov. 8, 2014 in recognition of Veterans Day. Included in the invitation are the surviving families of those who have served our country. This year Beth Am encourages the families of our young men and women currently stationed in American, Afghanistan, Iraq, and on military posts throughout the world to attend this special service. Rabbi Rick Sherwin believes that the... Full story
LOS ANGELES (JTA)-With a borscht-curdling geshrei, Halloween this year falls on Shabbat. On a Friday night, trick-or-treaters, even Jewish ones, will be knocking. Should we open the door? Or should we be spooked about joining the celebration? After reading that on Oct. 31, Urban Adama, a Jewish-oriented educational farm and community center in Berkeley, Calif., would be holding a "Challahween Kabbalat Shabbat"-chanting and meditation plus a potluck dinner and Halloween dessert candy bar-I... Full story
About a year after the American Studies Association’s (ASA) widely condemned vote to endorse a boycott of Israeli academic institutions, the organization’s policy on Israel is receiving renewed scrutiny over a practical application of that vote. The ASA’s 2014 annual meeting, to be held Nov. 6-9 at the Westin Bonaventure Hotel in Los Angeles, has garnered criticism for a stated policy of excluding Israeli academics. In December 2013, a resolution passed in a vote among the 5,000-member ASA, the oldest and largest association devoted to the i... Full story
Congregation Beth Sholom of Leesburg is celebrating its 60th anniversary with a gala luncheon on Sunday, Nov. 2, at noon, held at Pennbrooke Fairways, 501 State Road 44, Leesburg. Sixty years ago, the Jewish families of Leesburg, some of whom were Holocaust survivors, decided to build a synagogue so that they would finally have a house of worship. Beginning in the late 1940s and continuing into the early 1950s, 12 Jewish Leesburg business people and their families met at each other's home for... Full story
In conjunction with the JCRC's Grits and Bagels Brunch, over the next few weeks, The Heritage is running a series of articles about local Jewish community members who made an impact on the Civil Rights movement. This is the third in the series. Local developer and philanthropist Hy Lake may have been the first real estate developer to sell a home to an African-American family back in the 1970s, "At that time, it was an unthinkable and actually, impossible thing to do, said Harriett, as she told... Full story
JFS Orlando presents Friends of JFS Sunday Brunch in celebration of its 36th anniversary and to honor Sol Schick, recipient of the George Wolly Leadership award, on Sunday, Nov. 16 at noon at the Heathrow Country Club, 1200 Bridgewater Drive, Heathrow. Proceeds from the event benefit JFS Orlando. Schick is a long-time supporter of JFS Orlando, the Winter Park community and the thousands of people in Central Florida that JFS serves a year. The Friends of JFS Sunday Brunch will support the... Full story
Beginning in the early 1990s, Turkey became the one Muslim-majority country that maintained a robust strategic relationship with Israel. The two countries developed strong trade ties. Israel helped update the Turkish air force and Turkey allowed the Israeli air force to train in its airspace. There were major plans underway to further upgrade strategic ties. In an unfortunate turn of events, Turkey’s elected prime minister (and now president), Recep Tayyip Erdogan, decided to take the once highly secular country in a very different direction a... Full story
Every time I pick up a newspaper (I am of that generational bent) I hold my breath. I do the same thing in turning on the news. Matter of fact, wife Rachel will greet me with “Anything in the news about Israel?” To be a Jew and to live like a Jew, be it Orthodox, Conservative, Reform or whatever, you must be aware of the Jewish world and what happens to Jews. Israel. What is happening in Europe with the rise of Anti-Semitism all of a sudden? Somebody gets arrested or accused—“Oy! I hope he/she is not Jewish.” When the financial world collapsed... Full story
Islam is a problem for the faithful, as well as for the rest of us. Its 1600 years of accumulated doctrines may not differ in essence from what Jews have accumulated in 2500 years or Christians in 2100 years. What is problematic, however, are all those Muslims stuck in a cycle of warfare against heresy and non-believers. It’s the same problem that produced centuries of killing among Christians from their earliest period, and hopefully has petered out in its last bastion of Northern Ireland. Jews have avoided killing one another over a... Full story
NEW YORK (JTA)—“See it. You Decide,” the Metropolitan Opera of New York exhorts in a promotional push capitalizing on the controversy over its new production of “The Death of Klinghoffer.” Well, I saw it. And I’m not sure which was more of a letdown, the hubbub over the show or the show itself. Let’s start with the critics and protesters, since they are responsible ultimately for turning the show into the most buzzed about cultural happening in New York (at least since the close of the Jeff Koons retrospective on Sunday at the Whitney Museu... Full story
On Oct. 8, 1985, our 69-year-old, wheelchair-bound father, Leon Klinghoffer, was shot in the head by Palestinian hijackers on the Achille Lauro cruise ship. The terrorists brutally and unceremoniously threw his body and wheelchair overboard into the Mediterranean. His body washed up on the Syrian shore a few days later. Beginning on Oct. 20 for eight performances, a baritone portraying “Leon Klinghoffer” appeared on the stage of the Metropolitan Opera and sang the “Aria of the Falling Body” as he artfully fell into the sea. Competing choruse... Full story
Ex-presidents seldom take an interest in Jewish affairs, with two notable exceptions. One is Jimmy Carter, who has repeatedly clashed with the Jewish community. Another is Herbert Hoover, an unlikely ally of the Jews who passed away 50 years ago this week (Oct. 20, 1964). Most ex-presidents have gone quietly into the sunset, and some have taken issue with the few who have chosen to speak out on current affairs. George W. Bush, for example, last week had some strong words in reaction to fellow ex-president Carter’s public criticism of President... Full story
MORNING AND EVENING MINYANS (Call synagogue to confirm time.) Chabad of South Orlando—Monday and Thursday, 8 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 Israel—Sunday, 9 a.m., 407-647-3055. FRIDAY, OCTOBER 31 Ligh... Full story
Camp Barney Medintz, summer resident camp of the Marcus Jewish Community Center of Atlanta, will present their annual new musical slide production in Orlando on Tuesday, Nov. 18, at the Jewish Academy of Orlando, beginning at 7 p.m. Jim Mittenthal, camp director, will meet with new and returning families, answer questions pertaining to the 2015 summer camp season, and provide applications for registration. Camp Barney Medintz is located in the North Georgia Blue Ridge Mountains on 540 wooded acres surrounding two lakes just 75 miles northeast... Full story
A Shabbat lunch was recently celebrated at Brookdale Dr. Phillips, an assisted living community, with a short service led by Jewish Pavilion Program Director Gloria Green, and assisted by volunteer Jackie Benfeld and by Jackie Kazimer of Hospice of the Comforter. To become a volunteer for The Jewish Pavilion call 407-678-9363 or see www.jewishpavilion.org.... Full story
Marjorie “Marge” A. Dreayer, 88, of Lake Mary and formerly of Orlando, passed away Saturday Oct. 18. She was 88 years old. She has been a resident in the Central Florida area for over 60 years and a charter member of Temple Israel and was active in Hadassah, Sisterhood and The Jewish Pavilion. Mrs. Dreayer performed on the stage at the Orange Blossom Playhouse in the 60s and 70s starring in numerous musicals like “The Sound of Music,” “The King and I,” “Damn Yankees,” and “Fiddler on the Roof.” For the past 15 months, Mrs. Dreayer’s passion f... Full story
The 16th annual Central Florida Jewish Film Festival is a cinematic celebration of Jewish life, culture, and history. Six films will be shown during the weekend of Nov. 15-17. All will be shown at the Enzian, 1300 South Orlando Ave., Maitland, with the exception of the first film, "Kidon," which will be shown at the Orlando Science Center, 777 E Princeton St, Orlando. This program is part of Enzian's cultural festival circuit and is co-presented with the Jewish Community Center of Greater Orland... Full story
Sarah Danielle Dorman, daughter of Brian and Amy Dorman of Longwood, will be called to the Torah as a bat mitzvah on Saturday, Nov. 8, 2014, at Congregation Beth Am. Sarah is in the seventh grade at Sanford Middle School where her favorite classes are civics, language arts and drama. Her hobbies and interests include soccer, singing Broadway tunes, reading and watching "Glee." As part of her bat mitzvah, Sarah will honor Avielle Richman, a 6-year-old who was murdered at Sandy Hook Elementary... Full story
This is indeed a small world... The following is a poem titled “I’m Free.” The author is unknown to us: “Don’t grieve for me, for now I’m free, I’m following the path God laid for me, I took his hand when I heard his call, I turned my back and left it all, I could not stay another day, to laugh, to love, to work or play, Tasks left undone must stay that way, I found the peace I sought today, If my parting has left a void, then fill it with remembered joys, A friendship shared, a laugh, a kiss, Oh yes, these things I too will miss, Be not burden... Full story
A brunch and book discussion with author Kristin Harmel will take place at Temple Israel on Sunday, Nov. 9, at 11 a.m. in the Roth Social Hall. This event is sponsored by the Sisterhood of Temple Israel, and members of the entire community are cordially invited to attend. Kristin Harmel is an international bestselling novelist whose books have been translated into numerous languages and sold all over the world. “The Sweetness of Forgetting” was a bestseller in many countries and won the reader’s choice prize for Romantic Novel of the Year... Full story
"Each year, the Jewish Pavilion's A Walk in the Park, reminds us of the promise each generation has made to honor, respect and look out for our senior community," said Norma Ball, event co-chair. On Sunday, Oct. 26, hundreds of participants of all ages, ranging from babies to bubbies, made good on this promise by taking part in the Pavilion's annual A Walk in the Park, benefitting seniors in long-term care facilities in Greater Orlando. At just 10 weeks old, Jack Broffman was the event's... Full story
While the Pavilion has been breaking bread with seniors in long-term care since 1998, there is much more to the organization beyond the challah. Executive Director Nancy Ludin noted, "Lunch and Learn serves as a great example of how the Pavilion enhances the lives of seniors all year round, and not just during the holidays. Program Director Cathy Swerdlow, an experienced instructor in both Judaica and history, leads a bi-monthly discussion at Oakmonte Village in Lake Mary that promotes healthy... Full story
