Central Florida's Independent Jewish Voice
Central Florida's Independent Jewish Voice
Sorted by date Results 1479 - 1503 of 3602
Everyone knows that dogs make great companions. But they also make great visitors, as seniors living at the Oakmont Village in Lake Mary are pleased to discover month after month. As part of the "Licks and Hugs" program sponsored by The Jewish Pavilion, dogs provided by Pet Rescue by Judy visit residents monthly. "It's a wonderful program," noted Karen Teixeira, the activities director at Oakmonte's Sienna Memory Care community. "The seniors really enjoy the unconditional love from the... Full story
The Jewish Community Relations Council closed out Jewish American Heritage Month by hosting the first annual Jewish Trivia Night on May 31, at The Roth Family Jewish Community Center in Maitland. Five teams competed for the "Avodet Tzevet" (teamwork) trophy. JCRC Co-chairs Dori Gerber and Michelle Zaltsberg organized the evening, which featured multiple rounds of trivia and even more laughs. "Our goal for trivia night was two-fold: to celebrate Jewish American Heritage Month and to provide an... Full story
On May 22, the Orange County commissioners approved $1.2 million in tourist-tax grants that were recommended by Orange County's Arts & Cultural Affairs Advisory Council, to the Orlando Science Center, the Orlando Ballet and the Holocaust Memorial Resource and Education Center. The Holocaust Memorial Resource and Education Center of Florida received $500,000 to help with the costs of the first phase of renovations, which is estimated to cost $1 million. "We are honored to have the support of the... Full story
Since 2014, Orlando has been excluded from the list of cities that receive federal funding for security protection against terrorism-even after the Pulse Night Club terror attack and the numerous Jewish day school and JCC bomb threats. That has now changed with the Department of Homeland Security's Urban Area Security Initiative grant for the fiscal year 2018. Orlando nonprofits can now apply for security grants through the $50 million program, in addition to $1.5 million in guaranteed funds... Full story
It is that time of year once again when Heritage Florida Jewish News is putting out feelers for one outstanding person in the Jewish community who has given his or her time or talent or monetary gifts to better the Orlando Jewish community. Nominations for the 2018 Heritage Human Service Award are now being accepted and the award will be presented at the annual meeting of the Jewish Federation of Greater Orlando on Aug. 7. “For more than 28 years, individuals who have made major, voluntary contributions of their talent, time, energy and e... Full story
The Jewish Genealogy Society of Greater Orlando is holding its meeting at the Roth Jewish Community Center Senior Lounge in Maitland, on Tuesday, June 5 at 7 p.m. Three presentations will summarize Y-DNA, mtDNA and autosomal DNA, their strengths and pitfalls. These will be followed by an open forum taking questions from attendees submitted in advance or from the floor. Panel members are Elaine Hatfield Powell, Barry Sieger, Diane Jacobs, and Chuck Goehring. Powell is president of the Central Florida Genealogical Society. She has been a genealog... Full story
Members of the Flagler Palm Coast Amateur Radio Club, Daytona Beach Amateur Radio Association, St. Augustine Amateur Radio Society, Flagler Emergency Communications Association, American Legion Amateur Radio Club 5th District and Flagler County Assist REACT Team 4800 will be participating in the national Amateur Radio Field Day exercise, June 23-24 for 24 hours beginning at 2 p.m. at Hammock Community Center, 69 MalaCompra Road, Palm Coast, Florida 32137. All are welcome to visit the station site during the 24 hour event and, under the... Full story
The Jewish Federation of Greater Orlando has announced the fifth year of the Jewish Teen Education grant program and is accepting grant requests for the 2018-19 academic year. Through its JTEN (Jewish Teen Education Network) program, the Federation offers grants to synagogues and community agencies that provide Jewish educational opportunities for middle school and high school students in Central Florida. JTEN also sponsors Community-wide Teen Education Days and provides resources and networking opportunities for Jewish educators. The previous... Full story
This summer, a delegation from the Orlando community will be joining Rabbi Yanky and Chanshy Majesky of Chabad North Orlando at the National Jewish Retreat in Providence, Rhode Island. The annual event, coordinated by the Rohr Jewish Learning Institute, headquartered in Brooklyn, New York, will run from July 31 to Aug. 5 at the Rhode Island Convention Center. The Retreat offers a luxurious vacation experience in a five-star hotel with a remarkable 180 options of lectures, workshops, and entertainment to choose from and gourmet kosher cuisine.... Full story
Local Orlando scholars will share their knowledge in a three-part lecture series, titled Hot Talks, at The Roth Family JCC this summer. Hot Talks Lecture Series dates are June 6, June 20, and July 11 and commence at 6:30 p.m. "These three lectures by members of our local Orlando community will broadly encompass the idea of being a 'hero,' from exploring the history of Jewish identity in superhero comics, to understanding the physics behind superpowers, and implementing strategies to make our... Full story
Group donations, like this one from a local Mahjong group who donated their team's winnings, really made an impact on this year's JFS Orlando Pantry Restock Challenge. Shown here (l-r): JFS Executive Director Eric Geboff, Es Cohen, Delores Indek, Linda Wallerstein, Debbie Bellinkoff, Judy Kahan-Davis and Lila Tinkoff. Thanks to many generous monetary and food donations, as well as a $10,000 match from The Weiner Family and The Winter Park Wealth Group, JFS Orlando raised over $22,000 and nearly... Full story
In honor of the Yartzeit of the Rebbe on the 3rd of Tamuz, Chabad of North Orlando, will be hosting a unique multimedia concert that tells the story of the Hassidic melodies taught by the Lubavitcher Rebbe, of blessed memory. Known far more for his written and spoken word, the Rebbe also left a legacy of melodies, each accompanied with a story, an anecdote and message he would share as he taught them. Six of these melodies, together with their stories, are brought to life by a life performance by a local string quartet, which is interspersed wi... Full story
Special thanks to William (Bill) Frigen, veteran of the Korean War, for serving his country. Frigen served for four years in the air force followed by four years as a corpsman in the reserve. Following his work as a corpsman, he graduated nursing school, became a psychotherapist and later a professor. He now resides at Brookdale Lake Orienta where he is adored by Jewish Pavilion staff and volunteers.... Full story
Celebrate Shabbat with the Synagogue that feels like family. Congregation Beth Sholom’s Shabbat evening service will be led by Rabbi Karen Allen on Friday, June 8 at 7p.m. There will be an Oneg Shabbat following the service. The Rabbi’s Torah Roundtable Discussion Group with Rabbi Karen Allen of Congregation Beth Sholom will be held on Thursday, June 14 at 1p.m. at the Sumter County Administration and Library Building (with the golden dome) at 7375 Powell Rd. (near Pinellas Plaza and 466A), Wildwood. The Rabbi’s Roundtable series explo... Full story
As about 40 Jewish residents of Oakmonte Village's independent living building sat expectantly on a recent Friday evening, Jewish Pavilion volunteer Susan Bernstein strapped a thin, boxy "travel guitar" around her neck. Since she was filling in for their regular twice-monthly Shabbat service leader, Cathy Swerdlow, Bernstein first introduced herself to her "congregation," mentioning her Long Island, NY, origins and bantering easily with the residents as some called out where they're from. She... Full story
It is that time of year once again when Heritage Florida Jewish News is putting out feelers for one outstanding person in the Jewish community who has given his or her time or talent or monetary gifts to better the Orlando Jewish community. Nominations for the 2018 Heritage Human Service Award are now being accepted and the award will be presented at the annual meeting of the Jewish Federation of Greater Orlando on Aug. 7. “For more than 28 years, individuals who have made major, voluntary contributions of their talent, time, energy and e... Full story
Members of Congregation Ohev Shalom resoundingly approved the Board of Trustees' recommendation to make Rabbi David Kay their religious leader, in a vote at the COS annual meeting. Rabbi Kay, who came to COS as assistant rabbi in 2004, had been serving as interim rabbi since Rabbi Aaron D. Rubinger decided last fall to semi-retire as Rabbi Emeritus. The April vote confirmed the congregation's support for Rabbi Kay's continuing as rabbi of COS. Rabbi Kay began his rabbinical training when he was... Full story
Evan Dvorchik, son of Keith and Alison Dvorchik, has committed to the University of Central Florida's Knights football team as a long snapper center. In January 2017, Heritage ran an article about Dvorchik being named a top performer at the Rubio Long Snapping Camp in Georgia. Dvorchik was a junior in high school. His trainer, Chris Rubio, stated at that time that Evan was "snapping with a ton of confidence as his ball hits under .77 consistently." A long snapper is not a large alligator. The te... Full story
Oh, what a night! Jewish Academy of Orlando's Spring Family Learning Night focused on Art Education, and families from its community joined us for a myriad of activities. The event started with a pizza picnic on the playground, where everyone made new friends. Then, it was off to learn why art is such an important part of learning-- it teaches motor skills, builds confidence, fosters creativity, teaches perseverance, and so much more! Whether it was creating clay bugs to identify the sections... Full story
The New York-based Touro College and University System is pleased to announce a yearlong lecture series it is bringing to Orlando in partnership with The Roth Family JCC of Greater Orlando. The inaugural lecture, "Hope in the Midst of Despair," will be delivered on Thursday, May 24, by Rabbi Alan G. Ciner, vice president of Community Engagement at TCUS. It will be held at The Roth Family JCC, located at 851 N. Maitland Ave. in Maitland, Fla., starting at 7 p.m. "This lecture series and other... Full story
Leonard Stein of the University of Toronto's Centre for Comparative Literature and president of the Society for Crypto-Judaic Studies has announced the awarding of a 2018 "Mini-Conference" to the St. Augustine (FL) Jewish Historical Society. The one day Conference, to be held on Sunday, Dec. 9, at the World Golf Village Renaissance St. Augustine Resort will focus on "Telling the Story of Crypto-Jews in the Southeast US." Scholars from many disciplines are expected to share in their research to... Full story
Judy and Robert "Bob" Rosenblum, former residents of Latham, New York, celebrated their 60th anniversary by renewing their vows at Congregation Shalom Aleichem, Kissimmee, Florida, on Friday, April 20. Rabbi Karen Allen conducted the service. Betty and Steve Schoenberg served as witnesses. The Rosenblum were married on April 12, 1958, at Temple Beth El in Troy, New York. They later joined Berith Sholom, where Bob served on the board, including time as president, and Judy taught Sunday school.... Full story
Jewish Pavilion strives to match volunteers with elderly individuals residing in senior living communities. Why offer such a service when people live amongst others with daily activities and community dining, you ask? Without individual attention and meaningful stimulation that social interaction and friendship provide, an isolated elder can experience poor health, a lack of strength and energy, depression, and other physical, emotional, and mental health problems. Visits from the Jewish Pavilio... Full story
More than 100 players hit the greens at Rosen Shingle Creek Golf Club on Sunday, May 6, for the Pavilion Golf Society's annual golf tournament. The event raised more than $18,000 to benefit the Orlando Senior Help Desk, a service of The Jewish Pavilion that offers free advice on services and living options for seniors. The morning began with a light breakfast, after which golfers took to their carts and positioned themselves for the shotgun start. A luncheon and live auction followed the... Full story
JFS Orlando's 40th Anniversary Gala was held on Sunday April 29th at Rosen Plaza. Guests enjoyed a harpist during the cocktail reception and a Frank Sinatra impersonator during dinner as part of the evening's program. The George Wolly Community Leadership Award was presented posthumously to Barry Goodman and was accepted by Craig Pearlman. Pictured here are (l-r) Madeline Wolly, Esther Vassar, Marty Sherman, Marian Sherman, JFS Orlando Executive Director Eric Geboff, and Betty Ann... Full story
