Central Florida's Independent Jewish Voice
Central Florida's Independent Jewish Voice
Sorted by date Results 1876 - 1900 of 4419
Sylvia Stein has celebrated the high holidays for the past 80 years at synagogue. After services, she joined her adult children and grandchildren for a traditional meal. When Sylvia fell this year and needed rehabilitation, she became concerned that a lifetime of Jewish continuity might be disrupted. Fortunately, she can count on the Jewish Pavilion to bring her companionship along with shofar blowing, a meaningful service, and a festive holiday meal. At the Jewish Pavilion, we are there to... Full story
The Jewish month of Elul is a time for personal reflection and spiritual preparation. We are called to use Elul to take a cheshbon hanefesh-an accounting of the soul, at the end of which we will be prepared for Rosh HaShanah and the Days of Atonement. It's kind of a lot. At the same time it's essential. We as Jews take a moment to pause, reflect, draw the line in the sand, and decide if we are standing where we want to be... and I find it incredibly poetic that it coincides with the start of... Full story
The High Holidays are a special time, but it is even more special when family—and a little romance—are part of the season. In 1951, Larry’s father, Ernie, a World War II veteran, was called back into the U.S. Army. Larry’s mother, Doris, along with Larry and Larry’s older sister, Anita, moved from Schuylerville, New York, to Syracuse, her hometown, to live with her mother, Rose, and brother, Asher, during Ernie’s deployment. Larry, who turned three shortly after their move, remembers riding the family coal truck with Asher and tagging along wit... Full story
As we look to the start of the Jewish New year 5780, we always ask ourselves "How can we change for the better?" It's not a coincidence that in Hebrew, the word for the holiday-Rosh Hashanah-shares the same root for the word meaning "to change." Yet, this annual ritual, which focuses us to examine ways to change, confronts the reality that we know how hard it is to do so. So, here are a few tips to guide you to a year of renewal: • Don't be motivated by negative emotions like shame, fear, or g... Full story
I never planned to be a disability advocate. I just wanted to get through the day. Now it’s my calling. I have been chronically ill since day one. At 18 months of age, I underwent major surgery for a life-threatening abnormality in my renal system. The surgery saved my life, but consequently left me a medical mess. Over the years, I became accustomed to spending more time in doctors’ offices than in school classrooms. College was no different. A few months after I enrolled at the University of Central Florida in fall 2016, I was rushed to the... Full story
By Beata Abraham (JTA via Kveller)-I can't help but wonder why Hallmark and the retail world at large haven't co-opted the Jewish New Year. True, while there may "only" be some 5 million to 7 million Jews in the U.S. (depending on who's counting), Rosh Hashanah is a particularly important holiday on the Jewish calendar. Many Jews spend Rosh Hashanah at synagogue immersed in prayer, self-reflection, repentance, kicking off 10 days of "awe." But it's a family holiday, too, usually celebrated at... Full story
Match-It is a game that is pretty self-explanatory. There are a set number of tiles that each have a picture on them with each tile having a match. You flip them over, scramble them, set them into rows, then get to trying to match them. If there is only one player, then it's a free for all and you can play to your hearts content by flipping them over and seeing where each matching tile is without fear of another person getting the match. If there is more than one player, then you take turns... Full story
This recipe appeared originally on The Nosher. As a kid in Hebrew school, I learned that my classmates would have apples and honey and round challah at Rosh Hashanah to bring in the Jewish New Year, and that was pretty much it when it came to food traditions. But at home it was a different story. As an Iranian Jew, Rosh Hashanah was an elaborate affair. We’d gather the extended family for the first two nights of the holiday, the first at my parents’ house, the second at my aunt’s. Dining table... Full story
AMSTERDAM (JTA)—Following a protracted legal fight, the family of Irma Klein last year finally got Dutch restitution officials to recognize that the Nazi occupation forced Klein to sell her Wassily Kandinsky painting to this city’s municipal Stedelijk Museum for a fraction of its worth. That was in 1940, several months into the Nazi occupation of the Netherlands, when Klein and her husband sold “Painting with Houses” for the modern-day equivalent of about $1,600 because they needed money t... Full story
An idol and a landsman... I'm referring to Ella Fitzgerald, a long time idol of mine and Sammy Davis Jr., a friend and also a fellow Jew. While watching the Ed Sullivan show on television recently, (Yes, I watch Ed Sullivan and even watch Johnny Carson so I will recognize the guests. I'm elderly, remember?) I had the pleasure of seeing these two talents perform together. What a treat! (Just thought I'd mention.) It's long overdue... I read this in the World Jewry Digest recently and pass it alon... Full story
(JNS)-Universities have long been one of the toughest environments for pro-Israel students. They have battled stilted curriculums when it comes to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, and more recently, grappled with on-campus pressure in the face of growing BDS activity. Combined with a general uptick in anti-Semitism, including the deadly shootings in Pittsburgh and Poway, many Jewish and pro-Israel students have increasingly felt under siege. To that end, students from more than 80 campuses gath... Full story
(JTA)-Theater folk in England are debating a recent revival of the musical "Falsettos," asking whether non-Jews should be playing its Jewish characters. In an open letter, critics of the religion-blind casting complain that non-Jewish actors can at best portray only a "secondary understanding" of Jewish mannerisms but have no awareness of the "psychology, geography, culture and history that have framed these outward signifiers of Judaism." To the perennial debate over whether non-Jewish actors... Full story
(JTA)-Lee Eisenberg and Gene Stupnitsky have careers that many people in Hollywood dream of. Not long after graduating from college and moving to Los Angeles, the duo joined the writing staff of "The Office" on the strength of a TV script they wrote together. After contributing to the show for several seasons, they co-created the HBO comedy series "Hello Ladies" with Stephen Merchant (the co-creator of the original British "The Office"). The pair also worked with Harold Ramis on the prehistoric... Full story
Don't you dare!... Change Emma Lazarus poem on the Statue of Liberty? NO WAY! That poem (as it is) is part of our beloved country's history. Please let your feelings be known about this. Write to your congressman or congress woman or senator! Israel is in the news a lot these days... (And not all positive.) I read this in the World Jewish Congress digest and pass it along to you: "As Israel attempted to become the fourth country in the world to land a spacecraft on the moon, WJC President... Full story
Israeli couscous, known in Israel as ptitim, which means "flakes" in Hebrew, is a pearl-shaped, pasta-like product with a delicious toasted wheat flavor. It was invented in Israel's early years as an inexpensive starch that was more affordable than pricey rice. Nowadays it's a nostalgic comfort food in the Israeli kitchen, but has also grown in popularity abroad and among chefs in the past 30 years. It's easily found in the U.S., where it's marketed as Israeli or pearl couscous. In this recipe,... Full story
This recipe originally appeared on The Nosher. Pita bread is often stuffed with spiced, shaved shwarma meat or crunchy, deep-fried falafel. But my version of a pita sandwich is a hearty vegetarian alternative to a meat-stuffed pita, inspired by the anything-but-ordinary stuffed pita sandwiches of Miznon from iconic Israeli chef Eyal Shani. Eggplant is a common ingredient in Israeli and Middle Eastern cooking. After all, it is meaty, delicious, versatile and can cook up quickly-ideal for... Full story
Dedicated to those whose loved ones perished in El Paso and Dayton... Ever so close in mind and heart No further away than a picture, a smile of remembered phrase, Our loved ones live in memory so close in many ways. For how often does a sunset bring nostalgic thought to mind, Of moments that loved ones shared in days now left behind. How often has a flower or a crystal autumn sky Brought golden recollections of happy days gone by. Yes, memory has a magic way of keeping loved ones near, Ever so... Full story
Many people in the Jewish community know Bethanne Weiss as an accomplished physical fitness guru and author of the book "Move Your Assets: From the Chair, Not the Bank," which garnered her the nickname the Asset Queen. Now she is moving her assets from the bank to take on the role of executive producer of the short film "Resemblance," which is in production in Oviedo and directed by writer, producer Kevin O'Neill. Last March, Heritage wrote about the upcoming movie, which is about Dachua... Full story
(JTA)-Out of all of the unrealistic scenes in "The Red Sea Diving Resort," the most absurd one might be when Ben Kingsley, playing a supposedly gritty Mossad agent, shows up in the desert wearing a suit and a jaunty ascot around his neck. "The Red Sea Diving Resort"-about how a crew of Israeli spies smuggled thousands of Ethiopian Jewish refugees out of Sudan while running a beachfront hotel-could have been a good movie. But at a time when Israeli commando thrillers are the new fad ("7 Days in E... Full story
(JNS)-A new memoir written by Bob Dylan's best friend gives readers a glimpse into parts of the music icon's Jewish side that have previously fallen under the radar. In "Dylan & Me: 50 Years of Adventures" (written with musician Kinky Friedman), Louie Kemp, who met Dylan at summer camp in 1953 and also produced his "Rolling Thunder Revue" tour, details his friendship with the singer from the time that they grew up in middle-class Jewish families in northern Minnesota, the Jewish Journal... Full story
BUDAPEST (JTA)-When journalists ask Agnes Keleti about her health, she gently smiles and slowly extends her right hand in apparent gratitude for the question. Keleti yanks anyone who is foolish enough to grasp her hand with enough force to throw them off their balance. Then she replies: "I'm fine, thanks. Yourself?" Such agility, defiance and humor are traits that helped Keleti, 98, survive the Holocaust in hiding and become Hungary's most successful living athlete. She has no fewer than 10... Full story
Pashtida (a crustless quiche) is beloved and common in Israel, where it is enjoyed at everything from potlucks, school events, shivas and everything in between. It's also commonly prepared for Shavuot and Sukkot. The versatile dish transports well, and there is no right or wrong way to make one. Israelis make pashtida all year long, but it's a dish especially perfect for warmer climates and seasons, when it's just too hot to spend hours in an overheated kitchen. Plus, during warmer months,... Full story
Back in 1959, Stephen Tyng Mather High School was built in the West Rogers Park neighborhood of Chicago, Ill. The student population, at that time, was 95 percent Jewish. Some of the Mather alumni women would get together for a luncheon reunion three or four times a year. This year, they had a surprise guest—Risa Posner Dombrosky, wife of Gil Dombrosky, a Heritage employee. Risa was amazed to see friends and classmates she hasn’t seen since graduation. The three-hour lunch was filled with so... Full story
Isabelle (Buddye) Laub does volunteer work at Cascade Heights running their little store. She is always busy crocheting gifts for family and friends. Often people forget that the senior residents at assisted-living facilities had exciting lives in their earlier years. They each have a story to tell. Here is Buddye’s story. Buddye was born in Newark, New Jersey, but spent most of her life in Baltimore and Orlando. Her father was an engineer. Her mother passed when Buddye was only seven years old, and she “raised herself.” Her mother called her B... Full story
"Getting old is not for Sissies"... (Betty Davis quote) Despite what you may have seen on the streets, the following combinations DO NOT go together: A nose ring and bifocals. Spiked hair and bald spots. A pierced tongue and dentures. Miniskirts and support hose. Ankle bracelets and corn pads. Speedos and cellulite. A belly button ring and a gail bladder surgery scar. Unbuttoned disco shirt and a heart monitor. Midriff shirts and a midriff bulge. Bikinis and liver spots. Short shorts and... Full story
