Central Florida's Independent Jewish Voice
Central Florida's Independent Jewish Voice
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(JNS) — I looked at then-Rep. Doug Lamborn (R-Colo.) like he had a screw loose. We were on a congressional delegation in Israel in 2011, and he kept asking to see Israel’s Iron Dome missile-defense system. At the time, Iron Dome was new, highly classified and very much not on our itinerary. Each time he raised the question, I wondered how on earth I could possibly make that happen. But Lamborn, bless him, did not let it go. A few days later, our delegation met with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. During his briefing, the prime min...
At the Orlando Senior Help Desk, we’re always seeking out ideas and organizations that inspire seniors to live with greater vitality, meaning, and connection. One such organization is Sage-ing International, a nonprofit that invites us to reimagine the aging process – not as a time of decline, but as a powerful and fulfilling stage of life. Sage-ing International supports older adults in living their later years with intention, wisdom, and heart. Whether you’re just learning about this approach, or have already taken part in their progr...
(JNS) — In October 2003, Oran Almog lost his eyesight at age 10 in a terror attack at the Maxim restaurant in Haifa. His father, brother, grandparents and cousin were among the 21 people killed in the attack, which wounded 60, including his mother, sister and aunt. Sami Jaradat, a Palestinian Islamic Jihad member who dispatched the bomber, was released as part of a ceasefire agreement between Israel and Hamas in January. Almog, 32, told JNS on Sunday that it was hard for him to come to terms with Jaradat being free, but he understands “the big...
The Schvitz offered a kind of restoration that beats anything offered today. In the late 1960s and early '70s, when my sister, Vicky, or I came down with a bad cold, my father had an unconventional cure: He would drop us off at the, better known to Clevelanders as the Schvitz. It was a men-only institution every day of the week except Wednesday, which was Ladies' Night. Vicky and I checked in, stripped down, stowed our clothes in lockers, and wrapped ourselves in the signature Schvitz uniform: a...
When you experience a soft tissue injury like a sprain, strain, or pulled muscle, the first instinct is often to reach for ice or wrap the area. For decades, the standard recommendation was the RICE protocol: Rest, Ice, Compression, and Elevation. However, recent insights into sports medicine and physical therapy have led many experts to shift their focus to a newer protocol: MEAT – Movement, Exercise, Analgesics, and Treatment. Let’s look at both approaches, when to use them, and how to transition from injury to recovery effectively. The RIC...
Wandering Jews we are. And with so many choices there’s bound to be a lot of meandering. Orthodox, Conservative, Reform, and Reconstructionist are the main four branches. Other movements: Humanistic, Chabad, New age… Given the variety of practices presented, we see a smorgasbord of choices. I wonder how many other Jews have been on a circuitous path such as I have traveled. My earliest memories — other than those of eating kosher lamb chops — are riding in a car to Jewish day school in another...
Hadassah, the Woman’s Zionist Organization of America, is alive and strong in Central Florida. Founded in 1912 by Henrietta Zold, it is one of the largest international, volunteer Jewish organizations, with nearly 300,000 members in the United States. Hadassah was founded before Israel was a state and before women could vote. For 100+ years, Hadassah has worked proactively to find and implement solutions to some of the most pressing challenges facing each generation. Together, we’re advancing women’s health, supporting a strong Israel and insti...
(JNS) - As New York City eateries roll out their Chanukah doughnut offerings, including sufganiyot filled with flavors like pistachio cream or mango, bakery owners told JNS that customers continue to overwhelmingly demand classic jelly doughnuts, such as strawberry and raspberry. They also have found an increase in pre-orders well ahead of the holiday, which began Dec. 14 at night and lasts eight days. Those in this particular food business believe that this reflects the growing role that...
(JNS) - Come Dec. 14, most Jewish households welcomed in the holiday of Chanukah by kindling the first candle on their menorah. Many of us in the Diaspora chose to light them in a private setting indoors, surrounded by family and friends, yet out of the view of strangers. Some (a smaller number of households, I suspect) may be bolder and choose to display the menorah in a window visible to passing foot and vehicle traffic. An even smaller number of families may light the chanukiyah the way the...
These make great gifts for friends or service people. Makes 1 loaf or 3-4 mini loaves with 12 mini muffins. 8 T. water 2 T. flaxseed meal 1 1/4 cups sugar or granular sugar substitute 1 cup 14 oz. canned pumpkin purée 1/2 cup canola oil 1 1/4 cups coconut flour 1 tsp. cinnamon 1/4 tsp. salt 1/2 tsp. baking powder 1/2 tsp. nutmeg 1/4 tsp. cloves Pecan halves to decorate tops (optional) Preheat oven to 350 F. Line a 5x9 bread pan or 3-4 mini loaf pans with parchment paper that overlaps pan...
For a no-meat Chanukah meal, I make tuna salad molded in a fish mold, decorated with thin rounds of cucumber for scales and an olive eye, a green salad, potato pancakes, and Star Cookies. Both kids and adults enjoy decorating the cookies for dessert. I have different sprinkles, candies, and white and blue frostings in piping bags for people to make their own designs. (I also use this recipe to make the base for Hamantaschen at Purim.) Makes 15-5" large stars, 30-3" small stars. 1 cup butter (2...
Vibrotactile technology is a new, non-invasive way to help the body and brain by using small, gentle vibrations on the skin. These vibrations can send information to the nervous system, helping improve balance, manage pain, and even support those living with conditions like Parkinson’s disease or after a stroke. The technology is often in the form of a patch. How does it work? • Stimulating the skin — Tiny vibrating devices, often worn on the body, gently stimulate special touch receptors in the skin. • Sending messages to the brain — The b...
(JNS) — Democratic Colorado gubernatorial hopeful Phil Weiser calls Denver home, but he returned to the city of his youth this week for a quick fundraising visit. In an interview at a wine bar on Manhattan’s Upper East Side before the private fundraiser, Weiser, who had iced tea, spoke with JNS about his Jewish identity and his successful legal efforts, as the state’s current attorney general, to win back hundreds of millions of dollars in federal money that the Trump administration had cut, including funds for healthcare, education and transpo...
(JNS) - The sanctuary at Nusach Hari B'nai Zion in suburban St. Louis contains a majestic wooden-framed aron kodesh, or "holy ark," that holds the synagogue's Torah. Less visible is a tiny metal plaque that credits Kenny Bressler for creating the ark. Bressler designed and built the ark by hand in a workshop that sits behind his house. That's where the ark magic happens. A master woodworker, he has become a specialist in synagogue arks. "I've become the go-to ark guy," said the 70-year-old....
(JNS) - The most powerful scene in the 2025 film "Nuremberg" occurs when the prosecution shows documentary footage from the liberation of Nazi concentration camps. Amid the image of unspeakable horror, a calm voice describes how prisoners were murdered at Mauthausen in Austria. The speaker is an American GI who survived the camp. Lt. Jack Taylor was an experienced agent of the Office of Strategic Services, the wartime precursor to the CIA. In late 1944, he parachuted into Austria to lead a...
“The Little Menorah” is a joyful, Chanukah album suitable for children of various ages, centered on Max the Menorah, a warm and engaging character created by educator and children’s entertainer Bonnie Charyn. Beloved initially by families for its gentle storytelling and memorable melodies, the project has been fully remastered and revived by Orlando producer Carl West. This newly re-released edition preserves the nostalgia of the original while elevating it with improved audio quality, updated production, and new supplemental content, all a...
The United States Postal Service periodically issues a commemorative Hanukkah stamp. The tradition of the USPS printing a Chanukah stamp began in 1996. Initially the same design was repeated for many years before a new issue with different artwork was introduced. However, since 2016 a newly designed Hanukkah stamp has been produced every two years. To date there have been 10 different issues celebrating the holiday, each designed by a different artist, most of whom have been Jewish. Behind each...
(JNS) - I doubt that my grandchildren would recognize the Chanukahs of my childhood. They took place amid the backdrop of my best friends' and next-door neighbors' Christmas extravaganzas. Their homes looked to me like fairy houses strung with colored lights on the outside and huge Christmas trees in the living room, with colored balls and delicate, shiny angels on top. Underneath the tree were beautifully wrapped presents in all shapes and sizes. This was long before there were Chanukah decorat...
This Italian recipe uses a potato base. I often use the donuts as dessert for a Chanukah meal with fried chicken, potato pancakes (Latkas), a green salad and a vegetarian dish. You won't find this menu on most diet plans. Make ahead. Makes 24, 2" donuts. 1 1/2 cups mashed Russet potatoes about 1 lb. or 1 large potato, microwaved in parchment 7 minutes or until soft for mashing 3/4 cup whole milk, room temperature 1 pk. yeast (1 1/4 tsp.) 1/2 cup plus 3 T. sugar for rolling 3 - 3 /1/2 cups flour...
Cobwebs! But a vacuum cleaner won’t help. Neither a Bissell nor a Hoover. Because this is brain fog — cobwebs in the brain. In my case, it’s writer’s block. My Yiddishe Kop (Jewish brain) has nearly shut down. Was it the tryptophan from too much turkey on Thanksgiving? Not likely. That was days ago, and I had no leftovers. I suspect it’s from an accumulation of factors. Last month’s time change. Preparation and planning for multiple holiday events. Trying to decide between pumpkin cheesecake...
There are certain topics that make even the boldest dinner guests squirm in their seats. Circumcision tops that list. Just saying the word makes people shift positions. Yet for Jews, it has always been more than a medical procedure — it’s a sacred act, a covenant sealed in flesh. According to the Book of Genesis, God’s command was explicit: “This is My covenant, which you shall keep, between Me and you and your descendants after you: every male among you shall be circumcised. You shall circumcise the flesh of your foreskin, and it shall be a si...
“The Little Menorah” is a joyful, Chanukah album suitable for children of various ages, centered on Max the Menorah, a warm and engaging character created by educator and children’s entertainer Bonnie Charyn. Beloved initially by families for its gentle storytelling and memorable melodies, the project has been fully remastered and revived by Orlando producer Carl West. This newly re-released edition preserves the nostalgia of the original while elevating it with improved audio quality, updated production, and new supplemental content, all a...
Mom, who was raised in Buffalo in a family of Orthodox emigrants from Eastern Europe but strayed from strict observance when she left home, and became more traditional as she aged, religiously commemorated Thanksgiving. Her parents, unfamiliar with U.S. customs, did not prepare a Thanksgiving meal when she was young. Later, living with her folks, she convinced them to make a holiday meal that day. Then, she got married and made it part of our family tradition — and of the tradition of her out-of-town children. After she left her hometown the ye...
(JNS) - The rise of Jew-hatred in America is not only under the guise of anti-Zionism, but it also promulgates the false belief that Jews have exercised too much political power in America and that this alleged power has been used to promulgate views that are not in America's interest. The fact of the matter is that American history is replete with evidence that the Jewish influence-to whatever extent it has been on American politics-has been overwhelmingly beneficial to America's interest and...
I often served this salad at Chanukah family gatherings. 12 large eggs 2 cans of asparagus stems, drained or 17 pieces of celery stalks. (I actually prefer to bake fresh asparagus sprinkled with 2T. olive oil and 1 T. lemon juice to have firmer, thicker stalks.) 1 tsp. prepared mustard 1/2 tsp. salt 2 cups crushed ice One head of greens (1 iceberg lettuce, 1 romaine, 1 butter lettuce, or 1 head of cabbage) cut in 1/4" shreds 1 small jar of pimento or 1 tomato to make flame tips. Paprika Salad...
