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  • Wishing you a sweet and meaningful High Holiday season

    Sep 12, 2025

    As we welcome the High Holidays, we at Jewish Pavilion Senior Services reflect with gratitude on a year of meaningful connection, growth, and community impact. With heartfelt appreciation, we share the joy and success of our work over the past year. Jewish Pavilion proudly served the cultural and spiritual needs of over 400 Jewish seniors, bringing them joy, tradition, and a continued connection to Jewish life. In addition, hundreds of non-Jewish residents have joined us in embracing the warmth...

  • Remembering our Jewish elders and caregivers in the new year

    Sep 12, 2025

    As the shofar sounds and we welcome 5786, the S'firot Foundation extends heartfelt wishes for a sweet, healthy, and meaningful New Year to our Jewish community across Central Florida. Our mission is to support Jewish older adults and their caregivers, and in the coming months we will be sharing results from our Older Adults Needs Assessment Survey along with updates on the Foundation's strategic priorities for funding. We invite you to learn more and stay connected at www.sfirotfoundation.org....

  • Insights from The Orlando Senior Help Desk Navigating the hospitalization of a loved one

    Sep 5, 2025

    As a caregiver, one of the most stressful things you may experience is the hospitalization of your loved one, especially if the hospitalization is in an intensive care unit. Here are some tips to consider when navigating this difficult situation: • Be prepared. Keep a list of your loved one’s medications and allergies handy at all times. Include the name of the medication, the dosage, the number of doses taken daily and the times at which they are taken. Make multiple copies on a copy machine or your computer. That way you can give a copy to...

  • Marilyn Shapiro won a first-place award from the Florida Press Association for the following story: Thank you, Eppy, for today's women swimmers

    Marilyn Shapiro|Sep 5, 2025

    O mermaid bold, long may you hold the wreath you've won by swimming, And spoil for gents their arguments Regarding Votes for Wimmen! - "To a Lady Swimmer," William F. Kirk 1914. I love to swim. So, it is no surprise that I spent much of the first week of the 2024 Paris Olympics watching the swim competition. I cheered on Team USA as they won 25 medals in the 39 events in the Paris La Défense Arena. As I yelled "Go! Go! Go!" at the screen during the 1500 freestyle, Katie Ledecky's last race, my...

  • Israeli baseball chief eyes 2028 Olympics with homegrown talent

    Oren Aharoni|Sep 5, 2025

    (Israel Hayom via JNS) - Ari Varon, president of the Israel Association of Baseball, believes children currently playing locally will represent Israel at the 2028 Los Angeles Olympic Games, as he spearheads an ambitious transformation of the sport from its American immigrant roots into a distinctly Israeli athletic culture. Varon entered his role with passionate determination to expand the sport's reach beyond its traditional base among North American immigrants. A Tel Aviv resident, married...

  • Breakthrough in Israel's plant conservation efforts

    Sep 5, 2025

    (JNS) - One of Israel's rarest plants - the spear-leaved dogbane - is currently blooming in the Jerusalem Botanical Gardens after its extinction from the Negev Desert. The species, which now survives only in isolated areas along the Carmel coast and in the Acre Valley, was once far more widespread, including in En Avdat National Park in the Negev. The plants currently blooming in the Botanical Gardens originate from specimens collected decades ago at En Avdat by Atai Yoffe, director of the...

  • Asian Chicken Salad, a no-cook dish for Shabbat

    Myrna Ossin|Sep 5, 2025

    Serves 4 2 cups shredded cooked chicken, about 2 medium chicken breasts 4 cups combination of Napa cabbage, purple cabbage or romaine lettuce, thinly sliced 1 cup shredded carrots, 1 large carrot (You can substitute a package of prepared cole slaw for the cabbage and carrots.) 1 bell pepper seeded and thinly sliced 1/2 cup green onions, sliced in small rounds 1/2 cup toasted almonds or peanuts 1/2 cup crispy fried chow mein noodles or shredded colorful tortilla chips available in grocery store...

  • Trained minds: A Jewish path to cognitive excellence

    Aug 29, 2025

    By Gloria Green What kind of 13-year-old memorizes and chants in a foreign language, interprets ancient texts in front of a crowd, and stands poised on a bimah with confidence beyond their years? The answer: One whose brain has been trained — not just in faith, but in focus. In Jewish life, that training often begins long before the Bar or Bat Mitzvah. It’s not just preparation for a single moment; it’s mental infrastructure that lasts a lifetime. Memory, discipline, bilingual agility, moral reasoning, public speaking — this is cognitive cross-...

  • Insights from The Orlando Senior Help Desk Color therapy for dementia

    Aug 29, 2025

    Color therapy can be beneficial for those with memory loss. Dementia specialists recommend using different colors to provide contrast in spaces and to help distinguish different objects. Read below for some helpful tips about implementing different colors in different situations: PINK can reduce combative behavior, according to some research studies. The “pink effect” may reduce feelings of aggression and anger. BLACK is recommended by some therapists for individuals with Alzheimer’s. If wandering is an issue, some therapists recommend placi...

  • 20 years since Gush Katif explusion: 'The expulsion from Gaza was a miracle'

    Orit Arfa, Part 5 of a series|Aug 29, 2025

    In recognition of 20 years since the Gaza pullout, JNS is featuring a five-part series of articles reflecting Israel's disengagement, speaking with an array of former Gush Katif residents to find out how they perceive the Hamas-led terrorist attacks in southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, the Trump plan for the Gaza Strip and the prospect of returning. Many former Gush Katif residents believe that the massacre in southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, which killed more than 1,200 Israelis, would have neve...

  • 'Living Dangerously' and the path to salvation

    Atara Beck|Aug 29, 2025

    I must admit that while reading the first several chapters of “Living Dangerously: My Struggle to Get Rich Without Losing My Soul”(Beverly House Press, June 2025) by Irwin Gabriel Katsof, I didn’t like it or the author at all. I was even sorry that I agreed to review it. But to say it got better is an understatement. In the end, I loved both the book and the author; there is so much to learn from it. So if, like me, you have no patience with people who only seem to care about status and mater...

  • Loehmann's department store, a Jewish shopping staple, makes a comeback

    Jackie Hajdenberg|Aug 29, 2025

    Loehmann's, the New York City-based discount department store that had a devoted - and deeply Jewish - fan base, is set to make a return later this month. Now under new ownership after closing for good in 2014, Loehmann's will relaunch as a series of pop-up stores, beginning with a warehouse sale at Tanger Outlets at Deer Park on Long Island on Aug. 22, the New York Post reports. Future pop-ups are planned in Florida and New York City. The iconic brand, founded by former department store buyer F...

  • Earliest evidence of mating between Homo sapiens and Neanderthals found in Israel

    Etgar Lefkovits|Aug 29, 2025

    (JNS) — Israeli and French researchers have discovered in Israel the earliest scientific evidence of interbreeding between Homo sapiens and Neanderthals, Tel Aviv University announced on Wednesday. The skeleton of a five-year-old child who lived 140,000 years ago, that was found in a prehistoric cave on Mount Carmel, features a combination of Neanderthal and Homo sapiens traits, according to the university. Neanderthals vs Homo sapiens While closely related, Neanderthals and Homo sapiens were distinct human species with different physical chara...

  • Fourth century Spanish church thought to have been synagogue

    Aug 29, 2025

    (JNS) — A building long thought to be a fourth-century church in the Ibero-Roman city of Castulo may be one of the oldest synagogues discovered on the Iberian Peninsula, National Geographic reported on Monday, citing an archaeological study published last month. Near modern-day Linares, in the province of Jaén, about 160 miles south of Madrid, archaeologists digging in Castulo encountered several ritual objects that they associated with Jewish worship. Some researchers believe that the Synagoga Mayor in Barcelona is the oldest synagogue in Ib...

  • Movie review: 'Anne Frank, Superstar'? A satirical musical reimagines the Holocaust victim as a symbol of wokeness.

    Aug 29, 2025

    By Joseph Strauss What exactly is "Slam Frank," the purported hip-hop musical that reimagines the Holocaust's most famous victim as a pansexual Latinx girl today? Is it a real show with real actors and real songs constructing a real story for real audiences? Or is it an elaborate social media prank designed to pillory the left and rage-bait the right? Or could it be both? The show's Instagram account, its primary engine of promotion, has stoked the confusion. Co-creator Andrew Fox posts...

  • Insights from The Orlando Senior Help DeskP: Finding the right home health care for you

    Aug 22, 2025

    Before starting your search for home health care, consider the level of assistance you need and how long you’ll require it. There are three main types of caregivers: • Personal Care Aides: These non-licensed caregivers assist with tasks like shopping, cooking, light housekeeping, transportation, and companionship. • Home Health Aides: In addition to personal care tasks, these aides monitor health and assist with daily activities like bathing and dressing. They must undergo state-specific training. • Certified Nursing Assistants: CNAs provide...

  • Jews in the Land of Disney: Harrison Shames is a man on a mission

    Ed Borowsky|Aug 22, 2025

    "Together We're Stronger!" As the director of the Jewish National Fund-USA in Orlando, and in his role as the president of the growing Orlando Jewish Chamber of Commerce, he has a fervent belief that together we are stronger. With the rise in antisemitism and the tragedy that occurred on Oct. 7th, Shames believes that today, more than ever, we must come together in our Jewish community for this one important common-sense reason. That's why Shames is working diligently to coordinate the...

  • 20 years since Gush Katif explusion: Gaza must be 'continuation' of the Western Negev

    Orit Arfa, Part 4 in a series|Aug 22, 2025

    In recognition of 20 years since the Gaza pullout, JNS is featuring a five-part series of articles reflecting Israel's disengagement, speaking with an array of former Gush Katif residents to find out how they perceive the Hamas-led terrorist attacks in southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, the Trump plan for the Gaza Strip and the prospect of returning. Sitting in his backyard in the crisp nighttime air at Mount Hebron, overlooking the holy city of Hebron, Meir Dana-Picard, 45, feels at home. After...

  • Give a listen ... Baseball fan and member of The Tribe

    Steven Cardonick|Aug 22, 2025

    Oh, give me a home. So I don’t have to roam. Where the Astros, the Mets or Cubs play. Maybe Dodgers or Rays, or Toronto Blue Jays. Just as long as it’s somewhere to stay. The month of July was a momentous one for Major League Baseball. The 95th all-star game was scheduled to be played in Atlanta, Georgia. Fans, players and family members traveled from around the nation. Among the events was the Home Run Derby, which promised a top prize of $1 million to the winning slugger. Truist Park was fil...

  • Jewish baseball fans have created an exhaustive list of Jewish players. They missed Monte Pfeiffer.

    Scott Barancik|Aug 22, 2025

    For the first time in decades, a long forgotten major league baseball player has been posthumously identified as Jewish. Monte Pfeiffer, who played a single game for the Philadelphia Athletics some 112 years ago, had vanished into baseball obscurity - until a sharp-eyed Yankees fan uncovered a surprising truth written in Hebrew. The discovery, rooted in dusty box scores, old newspaper articles and genealogical detective work, adds Pfeiffer to the rarest of rosters: Jewish major leaguers. "It's...

  • Gene Wilder and Gilda Radner's romance is rekindled in a new off-Broadway play

    Lisa Keys|Aug 22, 2025

    For those who miss the very funny, very Jewish presence of the late comedy icons Gene Wilder and Gilda Radner, a new off-Broadway play that tells the story of their eight-year relationship practically brings the legends back to life. "Gene & Gilda," written by Cary Gitter and directed by Joe Brancato, is playing at 59E59 Theater on the Upper East Side through Sept. 7. Touted as "heartfelt and hilarious," the 80-minute new play takes the audience through the entirety of Radner's and Wilder's...

  • Insights from The Orlando Senior Help Desk: Become a monotasker: The power of focusing on one task at a time 

    Aug 15, 2025

    In today’s fast-paced world, multitasking is often seen as a skill, but it can reduce productivity and cause mental fatigue. At Jewish Pavilion Senior Services, we encourage seniors to embrace monotasking — focusing on one task at a time for better results. What Is monotasking? Monotasking is the opposite of multitasking. It involves giving your full attention to one activity, which helps the brain function more efficiently. Switching between tasks can cause mental fatigue and mistakes due to “cognitive switching,” where the brain needs time to...

  • Heritage FPA winners' articles

    Aug 15, 2025

    Berger Family gift to Chabad: The Torah that escaped destruction twice By Stan Roberts When Jacquelyn Berger, Ph.D., along with her son Jeffrey and his family and daughter Marni Stahlman and her family, expressed a desire to acquire a Torah with a history of Jewish survival for Chabad of Greater Orlando, little did they dream their search would uncover a Torah buried by a rabbi to prevent its inevitable destruction by Nazis in the darkest days of the Holocaust. Dr. Berger feels that donating...

  • 20 years since Gush Katif expulsion: Former Gush Katif resident Bryna Hilburg: 'You don't look around for a new cemetery'

    Orit Arfa|Aug 15, 2025

    Part 3 of a series In recognition of 20 years since the Gaza pullout, JNS is featuring a five-part series of articles reflecting Israel's disengagement, speaking with an array of former Gush Katif residents to find out how they perceive the Hamas-led terrorist attacks in southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, the Trump plan for the Gaza Strip and the prospect of returning. Bryna Hilburg, a symbol of the bereaved families of Gush Katif, talked to JNS about the attacks in Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, and...

  • Oatmeal cookies bring memories of home

    Aug 15, 2025

    Mix by hand. 3 cups old fashioned oats, not quick or steel oats, 1 cup flour, 3/4 tsp. salt 1/2 tsp. baking soda 4 T. butter melted and slightly browned watch carefully. This add a caramel flavor to the cookie. 1/4 cup oil 1/4 tsp. cinnamon 3/4 cup dark brown sugar 1/2 cup white sugar 1 egg 1 yolk 1 tsp. vanilla This makes a stiff dough. Mix all of the above. 1/2 cup raisins and 1 cup chopped nuts are optional. Line two baking sheets with parchment. Mound 3 T. per cookie. Flatten cookies with...

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