Central Florida's Independent Jewish Voice
Central Florida's Independent Jewish Voice
Sorted by date Results 3858 - 3882 of 4518
"Ole', Ole', Ole', Ole'"... As an entertainer, I've been to Brazil (Brasilians spell it with an S) a few times to record and perform. I love the country, the people... everything! My agent, ROBERTO DRATCU, is a Brasilairo, born and raised in Sao Paulo, but has visited here in Central Florida to work with me and others. He is also Jewish. As you probably know, soccer is major in Brazil. Every time a Brazilian team wins a match somewhere in the world, the entire cities of Sao Paulo and Rio de Jane... Full story
The "Seeking Kin" column aims to help reunite long-lost relatives and friends. BALTIMORE (JTA) – Judith Mertz still recalls plenty of the Indian words she learned from her friend Miriam El-Chai when they were high school friends in Israel and embarking on teaching careers together. And when Mertz next makes one of her frequent trips to Israel, she expects to see El-Chai for the first time in a half-century. "I always tell my family about my Indian friend," she said. "I remember lots of words s... Full story
When most people think of the shtetl, images reminiscent of “Fiddler in the Roof” pop into their heads: small villages filled with poor Jews, struggling to make a living in an almost exclusively Jewish world. Yet, nothing could be further from the truth in the heyday of the shtetl. At one point, these thriving areas – whose size ranged from 2,000 to 20,000 people – were not only populated by Jews, but by a variety of ethnicities and religions. In “The Golden Age Shtetl: A New History of Jewish Life in East Europe” (Princeton University Press),... Full story
A Chinese girl forced me to confront what it means to be Jewish. “What are we waiting for?” my Chinese girlfriend asked, somewhat confused, as we sat facing each other in the privacy of my apartment. For weeks we’d been talking about the prospect of getting married. I held back. I was not supposed to marry a Gentile, I thought. It would be a betrayal of my family, my ancestors, my tradition. Yet it would sound racist if I told her that. Then I realized: It would sound racist to me as well. I was raised with a lox-and-bagels Judaism, reple... Full story
Last Friday, Eagle Scout Max A. Waldor of Orlando Troop 996 was honored at the Boy Scouts of America Central Florida Council's annual Recognition Banquet for Eagle Scouts, held at the Buena Vista Palace Hotel and Spa, as the recipient of three distinguished awards. And because he dreamed the creation of the Holocaust Memorial at SOJC, and did it, Waldor became a Disney Dreamer and Doer. Waldor received the Chester M. Vernon Memorial Eagle Scout Scholarship in May 2014. He received this award by... Full story
(JNS.org) In a section of Hillary Clinton's new memoir that was published by U.S. media over the weekend, the former secretary of state writes that the Obama administration made a tactical mistake by demanding an Israeli construction freeze that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu implemented between 2009 and 2010. Clinton in "Hard Choices" writes, "In retrospect, our early, hard line on settlements didn't work." She explains that the American stance on the settlements hardened Palestinian... Full story
The Rolling Stones played in Israel. And that’s awesome. The Stones are the world’s greatest band. They are also the world’s oldest. I am surprised that a band that’s been around as long as the Stones—and that’s toured for as long as the Stones—never made it to Israel. But that’s what 50th anniversary tours are for. The Stones aren’t just musicians. They’re insightful social commentators. Infused in their lyrics are messages of hope, despair, and a commentary on contemporary life. And if you look carefully, important Jewish lessons can be foun... Full story
Absolutely no surprise... The following comes directly from the World Jewish Congress Digest (WJC) and is very worth repeating (but no surprise). The headline read “Israel Ranked 3rd Largest Sci-tech Partner to U.S.” Here is the story that followed: “The U.S.-Israel Science & Technology Foundation (USISTF) says that Israel last year placed third out of 16 nations deemed the world’s heavyweight partners in science and technology with the United States. The foundation’s ‘innovation index’ for... Full story
Many questions surrounded the future of the Chabad-Lubavitch branch of Hasidism after the death of its seventh and final leader-"the Rebbe," Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneerson-on June 12, 1994. Schneerson had no children, and no successor was named. But 20 years later, Chabad is not only alive and well, but increasingly receiving the so-called highest form of flattery: imitation. Against the backdrop of last fall's much-discussed Pew Research Center survey of American Jews, many Jewish leaders... Full story
WILKES-BARRE, Pa. (JTA)-The Bais Menachem Youth Development program in this northeastern Pennsylvania city is no typical Chabad yeshiva. The students wear flip-flops and T-shirts, not the typical black-and-white of Hasidic seminaries. In addition to Jewish law and Bible study, the curriculum includes improv nights, poetry slams and screenings of National Geographic nature shows. The students take taekwondo classes, skiing lessons and canoe trips down the Delaware River. There's even a house... Full story
A mother will do just about anything to protect her child. Nothing could illustrate that more than the story of Arlene Feinberg, a mother who led the charge to find a bone marrow donor for her son Jay, who had been diagnosed with leukemia. She was a pioneer recruiting volunteer donors at a time when the worldwide bone marrow registry was in its infancy, finding matches for countless patients in similar circumstances as her son. Seventy percent of patients do not have a family member who is a... Full story
BALTIMORE (JTA) – While visiting Israel in 2009 to watch his son Bruce coach the U.S. basketball team to the gold medal at the Maccabiah Games, Bernie Pearl perused local phone books. He spent an hour calling people with the last name Showstack but came up empty. Unable to locate his relative during his stay, he gave up. In March, Pearl mentioned the search to "Seeking Kin." A retiree living with his wife, Barbara, in Boynton Beach, Fla., Pearl, 80, still hoped to find his third cousin, Gerry S... Full story
Take heart, anything can be overcome... To prove it, this blurb is from NBC news: FRANKFURT, Germany-"At first glance, the afternoon gathering of nearly 30 elderly people in the cozy wood-paneled room of an apartment complex could be perceived as an ordinary 'coffee klatch.' But, the women and men that gather here in Frankfurt over coffee and cake once a week all share one common experience: the horrors of the Holocaust. For many of the estimated 40,000 Jewish survivors still living in Germany,... Full story
(JNS.org) National Basketball Association (NBA) star Pau Gasol met with Israeli President Shimon Peres in Jerusalem on Sunday along with a group of Jewish and Arab basketball players. The 33-year-old Los Angeles Lakers forward/center was making his first trip to Israel, for a basketball workshop meant to promote peace and coexistence. "I am extremely happy to be here," the Spanish-born Gasol said, Reuters reported. "I believe sport is an amazing tool for bringing people together." Gasol is a... Full story
The history of the knish represents more than just the lineage of a fried, dumpling-like food. It demonstrates the often-central role of food in communities and cultural legacies. Laura Silver knows that all too well. She has consumed knishes on three different continents, and her exhaustive research on the iconic potato treat has resulted in her new book, "Knish: In Search of the Jewish Soul Food," which was released in early May. When she started her knish book project, Silver had no plans... Full story
WASHINGTON (JTA)-With their bar mitzvahs soon approaching, Sam Goldberg and Joshua Levine, embarked on a melodic act of chesed. Over the winter, Goldberg and Levine, both 13 and seventh-graders at The Moriah School in Englewood, N.J., met with their music teacher and spent a collective 75 hours in a local studio to record an album they titled "Tikun Olam." The goal of the album, they said, was to raise money for Leket Israel, an organization that serves as Israel's national food bank and food... Full story
The "Seeking Kin" column aims to help reunite long-lost relatives and friends. BALTIMORE (JTA)-On a recent visit to Manhattan, Michael Herman brought his wife and two daughters to a stone building at the corner of Canal and Orchard streets. A chiseled ribbon running across the 12-story structure's facade reads S. Jarmulowsky's Bank Est. 1873. Alexander "Sender" Jarmulowsky was Herman's great-great-grandfather and the bank's founder. The building the Hermans visited was constructed in 1912,... Full story
By Ron Kampeas WASHINGTON (JTA) – A month before her foreign policy autobiography, "Hard Choices," hits the bookstores, Hillary Rodham Clinton made an easy choice: She pitched her diplomatic credentials to a friendly Jewish audience. Clinton's speech to the American Jewish Committee on May 14 was meant to send a signal to the pro-Israel community, insiders say, that a Clinton presidency would smooth over tensions ruffled by the Obama White House. So while she broadly defended Obama a... Full story
Flying safely home (I hope)... As you read this column (written the day before I am flying to Chicago), I will have already returned to Central Florida, expecting the high heat, although I was told that Chicagoans are feeling 80 plus degree weather these days. (And I am needing to cool off a bit!) I am also trying to recover from the heart-wrenching Memorial Day weekend that just passed. This year (actually for the first time in my life) I felt the true meaning of the holiday... and I realized... Full story
The Holocaust Center honored Harris Rosen, president and COO of Rosen Hotels and Resorts at its annual Dinner of Tribute. The event raised more than $290,000 to support the Center, and its Holocaust Education and anti-bullying programs. Pam Kancher, executive director, said that honoring Rosen was a "natural fit" for the Center and its work to build a more compassionate world. "He has long supported the Holocaust Center and a number of other causes," she said. "His projects in Tangelo Park and... Full story
LOS ANGELES (JTA)-It's a sunny morning in Southern California and Lea Rosenfeld, a soft-spoken, bespectacled woman who looks like a Jewish grandmother, squares her feet, faces her target and squeezes off five shots with a handgun. All of them miss. "I never even held a gun in my hands before," she later confesses. "I'm still shaking." Still, Rosenfeld keeps shooting in the hot sun. She says she's doing it because of her parents and what they endured: Both were Holocaust survivors. "My question... Full story
Living Beyond Terrorism: Israeli Stories of Hope and Healing by Zieva Dauber Konvisser, Ph.D.; Gefen Publishing Paperback, 356 Pages; $26.95; e-book: $9.99 “So many Israeli lives have been taken by terrorism and so many families shattered. This book tells a different story: the determination and will of Israelis to rebuild and, indeed, to triumph over the terrorists, a victory of the human spirit.”—Daniel Kurtzer, Princeton University, Former United States Ambassador to Israel and Egypt “....this book is the key to unlock the inspiring complex... Full story
On May 6, the Roth Jewish Community Center of Greater Orlando hosted Israel Independence Day Festival 66. Unlike in past years, this year's event was held in the JCC's backyard on the actual date of the holiday, bringing the community together "at home" for a special celebration. Also unlike in past years, all children's activities, games, and inflatables were provided at no-cost to the community. The JCC event celebrating Israel’s 66th anniversary of independence, included performances by t... Full story
There is a community in Israel that is connected to the Jewish Orlando community through the Jewish Federation of Greater Orlando. It is our sister city Kiryat Motzkin. This beautiful city has been our sister since 2006. It is about 15 miles north of Haifa-a distance much like driving from Altamonte Springs to Sea World. Founded in 1934, its population has grown to 45,000, and was named after Leo Motzkin who was one of the organizers of the First Zionist Congress in 1897. "The story goes that... Full story
NEW YORK (JTA)-The last time New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie spoke at a venue attended by Sheldon Adelson, he alienated the Republican Party mega-donor and other hawkish pro-Israel Jews by referring to Judea and Samaria as "the occupied territories." Sunday night at a gala awards program in Manhattan honoring Adelson and hosted by Rabbi Shmuley Boteach, Christie avoided the topic of Israel altogether. But Sean Penn didn't. Held in the cathedral-like Cipriani restaurant, the dinner for Boteach's... Full story
