Central Florida's Independent Jewish Voice
Central Florida's Independent Jewish Voice
Sorted by date Results 2528 - 2552 of 3682
On Tuesday, Jan. 26, The Jewish Academy of Orlando, and two other Florida schools—the Meyer Academy in Palm Beach Gardens (as well as the Mandel Jewish Community Center there) and the Chabad of Tampa Bay school—received bomb threats. There were no bombs found at all the locations. However, the schools were closed for the rest of the day and the children and parents were shaken that this could happen here. One parent, Rona Weiss, took action, turning what could have developed into a deeper fear into positive action. “I saw a lot of passion and e... Full story
Sunday, Jan. 24, was a busy day at Temple Israel. In celebration of Tu B'shvat, the students in the Meitin Religious School planted cedar and oak trees on the Temple grounds. Rabbi Neely conducted a book burial ceremony and explained how sacred our texts are and should be discarded with dignity. TI Tots had a fun-filled morning learning about trees, hearing the Giving Tree story and making their own tzedakah trees as their craft activity. Is addition to all this fun, TI had a special visit from Blue Box Bob!... Full story
LAKELAND—The Temple Emanuel Archive and Florida Southern College are joining together to present “Our Jewish Communion: Religious Identity and Growing Up Jewish in Polk County” on Sunday, Feb. 21, from 2 to 3:30 p.m. at Florida Southern College’s Annie Pfeiffer Chapel. The panel presentation, which is free and open to the public, will examine the joys, struggles, and long-term effects of growing up Jewish in a predominantly Christian area. Dr. Catherine Eskin, associate professor of English at Florida Southern College has organized the present... Full story
Congregation Beth Sholom’s Board of Directors will be honored as Rabbi Karen Allen leads the congregation in Friday evening services at 7 p.m. on Feb. 12. Board members include Linda Bork Kost, president; Burt Kraft, vice-president; Diane Weinbaum, secretary; Dave Englander, treasurer, members Phylis Berger and Marnell LaRoe Hayes, and new board member Fred Jacobs. An Oneg Shabbat with refreshments will follow. The synagogue is located at 315 North 13th Street in Leesburg, with the entrance on Center Street. Guests are always welcome at ... Full story
On Tuesday, Jan. 19, the second grade students from Jewish Academy of Orlando got the lesson of a lifetime, and it was not in the classroom. They were able to visit a Habitat for Humanity Winter Park-Maitland construction site at 507 S. Capen Ave., Orlando, to bring to life the lessons they have been learning at school during their Social Studies unit on economics. At Habitat for Humanity, the students conducted mock inspections of a home under construction, putting mathematical (measurement, money) and Social Studies (what does safe, decent... Full story
The Jewish Academy of Orlando and the JCC were evacuated Tuesday, Jan. 26, at 10 a.m. because of a bomb threat. According to the police, a threatening call was made to the JAO by a man who said he wanted to "hurt as many children as possible." The person at the school who reported the threat told police the man's voice sounded robotic, like he was using a device to disguise his voice. As a result, the entire campus-the school, Early Childhood Learning Center, JCC, gym, and Federation-was evacuated. Parents were called and informed there was an... Full story
After nine years of serving the Jewish students and faculty at UCF, as well as at Valencia and Rollins Colleges, Chabad at University of Central Florida will have a permanent home near the UCF campus. Rabbi Chaim and Rivkie Lipskier, who live in Oviedo with their five children aged 8, 7, 6, 3, and 1 month, serve as co-directors of Chabad at UCF. They purchased a two-acre lot on Alafaya Trail, next door to University House. The couple plans to build a nearly 15,000 square-foot new home for the Chabad on Campus Center that will serve UCF's 6,000... Full story
On Jan. 20, JFS Orlando was awarded a $40,000 grant from the Orlando Magic Youth Foundation, a McCormick Foundation Fund, for its Family Stabilization Program during a surprise ceremony held at the Amway Center. The OMYF All-Star team was announced in the spirit of the NBA Draft. In all, 18 nonprofit organizations were recognized and $1 million in donations awarded. The Family Stabilization Program strives to improve a family's overall stability and self-sufficiency through financial education workshops, employability workshops, mental health... Full story
Zionistas are pleased to present "To Israel with Love" on Tuesday, Feb. 9, at 7 p.m. The program will take place at the Eastmonte Civic Center, 830 Magnolia Drive, Altamonte Springs. There is no admission charge. The evening will start with a presentation by Diana Scimone titled "You didn't just say that, did you? A Christian response to anti-Semitism." This will be followed by Uri Argov who will present "Israel's modern–day contributions to the world: Technology, medicine, agricultures and more." Scimone is one of four co-founders of Z... Full story
Congregation Beth Am is collaborating with Stephen Halpin, certified life coach, to offer a 3-part series titled "Tough Conversations." The first program is Sunday, Feb. 7, from 10 a.m. to 11:30 p.m. at Beth Am, 3899 Sand Lake Road in Longwood. Seven years ago Halpin lost his mother after a long illness. Since then he has watched his father go from never being sick a day in his life to a nursing home. It happened quickly and unexpectedly. Halpin will share his story and the lessons he learned from his own story and the experiences of his... Full story
It's a highly contested and complicated region, one where the entanglement of history, religion and politics causes most students to shy away from learning more about it. But University of Central Florida freshman Jared Dipsiner isn't daunted by the challenge. He's even taken his interest in the Middle East a step further, making it his responsibility to relay the hard facts to both local and distant communities. "I feel like the Middle East is, in [some] people's minds, a primitive and barbaric area, but in reality, it's not at all," Dipsiner... Full story
Join the Jewish Genealogical Society of Greater Orlando for its Februrary program at the Family History Center (FHC) in North Orlando, 45 East Par Street. The meeting is Tuesday, Feb. 2, 2016 from 7 p.m.-9 p.m. The Family History Center is a great place to do genealogical research, because of its access to numerous databases that are essential to your research. The center has volunteers who are available to help you use these tools, and it's free! The volunteers can also help you overcome the many challenges of finding information from decades... Full story
On Tuesday, Feb. 2, at Ohev Shalom at 11:30 a.m., The Orlando Chapter of Hadassah will present a program that is essential to the wellbeing of every person living in this community. No one should miss this presentation. Your safety may depend on it! In today’s stressful and often frightening environment, you may feel overwhelmed about your personal safety when out in public. Laura Lang, the senior advocate officer of the Orange County Sheriff’s Department, will discuss the many dangerous situations you may encounter and how to best protect you... Full story
Sheriff Jerry Demings recently visited with the students of the Orlando Jewish Day School for Hour of Code during National Computer Science Week. "I can't believe an 8-year-old just taught me how to code," said the surprised sheriff.... Full story
Choices 2016, the Jewish Federation of Greater Orlando's annual women's philanthropy event, is focused primarily on giving. But some who attend will be receiving, going home with a valuable piece of art, jewelry or other prize from the popular Choices Raffle. Women purchase Choices Raffle tickets for $25 each (or 5 tickets for $100), then get to choose which item(s) they would like to win and deposit their ticket in the appropriate ticket bowl during the event on Feb. 9 at Congregation Ohev Shalom in Maitland. Drawings are held for all of the r... Full story
When the Holocaust Center decided to sponsor a trip centered around European Jewish Heritage July 10-20, they found the ideal travel agent in Oren Lotringer. As the director of Group Operations for Tourico Holidays, America's largest travel wholesaler, he had the right credentials for planning a complex, memorable trip. More important, perhaps, he has a deep personal interest in the history the group will be exploring. Like many of his generation, he learned about the Holocaust through books, and occasionally from grandparents who were often he... Full story
The following are the events that will be held at various temples sponsored by the Endowment of the Jewish Federation of Volusia & Flagler counties. These events are free and open to the public. No Solicitation. Community Shabbat service tonight Everyone is cordially invited to attend the 33rd annual community-wide Shabbat Service to be held at Temple Beth-El, 579 N. Nova Road, Ormond Beach, Fla., 32174 on Friday, Jan. 29, 2016 at 7:30 p.m. This is the once a year event that most temples will be closed to come together and pray as one.... Full story
The Orlando Ballet and Ballet School put on a gem of a performance at the Jewish Pavilion Pearl Luncheon on Tuesday, Jan. 12. The intimate, one-of-a-kind performance was the brainchild of event sponsor, Geanne Share, who has served on the board of both organizations. Share thanked attendees for their support of the Pavilion and noted, "The Orlando Ballet has a fantastic performance for you today. Thank you to Robert Hill, artistic director, Orlando Ballet and Dierdre Miles Burger, director,... Full story
The Festival of Trees,Tu B'Shevat, was celebrated at Brookdale Dr. Phillips-Clare Bridge this week. Jewish Pavilion program pirector for West Orange County, Gloria Green, presented a Tu B'Shevat Seder to the 12 guests who attended. Featured was a seder plate with five different fruits, plus olives, nuts and fig newton pieces. Also, there was a challah representing wheat, and a demonstration plate of peelable fruits, including Clementine oranges, a pomegranate, pear, apple, and lime. After being asked to guess the name of each one, sampling... Full story
On Friday, Jan. 15, the student's of the Jewish Academy of Orlando, in honor of National Train Your Dog Month, participated in a very special Shabbat. The Elementary School Knesset (student council) sponsored a mitzvah fundraiser. In return for a donation, the students were able to bring in stuffed animals to keep them company in school. Then at Mitzvah Shabbat, Donna Neff with Assist with Daily Living Service Training and Rescue, a nonprofit corporation whose mission is to provide service dog training to assist with therapy, PTSD, wheelchair a... Full story
The Jewish Pavilion (JP) recognizes someone with a flair for giving back to the community every year at its annual fashion show. This year the JP is honoring Friends Board member Marci Gaeser at its "Spring into Fashion" show at Bloomingdales in Orlando on Thursday, Feb. 4. Gaeser hit the ground running when she joined the JP Friend's Board in the fall of 2014. Within months of joining, she had agreed to co-chair two of the Pavilion's most impactful fundraisers, its annual gala and fashion... Full story
As the turmoil in the Middle East continues to increase; as states like Syria, Iraq, Libya and Yemen fall apart in a bloodshed; as millions of people from the Middle East become refugees in western countries; as a global superpower like Russia takes part in the Syrian civil war and as the role of the U.S. in the Middle East politics is minimal, it is ever more confusing to understand who everyone is and what they want. On Thursday, Feb. 4 at 7:30 p.m., Dr. Mordechai Kedar (PhD. Bar-Ilan U.), an expert on the political discourse of the Middle Ea... Full story
On Sunday, Jan. 24, 2016, Congregation Beth Am in Longwood will host a unique interfaith dialogue—The Jewish Jesus in Text and Context—in collaboration with 10 ministers and leaders of diverse faith communities. Starting at 2 p.m. in the Congregation Beth Am Social Hall, 3899 Sand Lake Road, Longwood Rabbi Rick Sherwin will moderate an extensive Question and Answer session responding to a video presentation by Dr. Amy-Jill Levine. Dr. Levine is professor of New Testament and Jewish Studies, E. Rhodes and Leona B. Carpenter professor of New Test... Full story
Hate crimes targeting Muslim Americans and mosques across the United States tripled in the month after the terrorist attacks in Paris and San Bernardino, Calif. In light of this sobering development, the Jewish Community Relations Council (JCRC) of the Jewish Federation of Greater Orlando voted to express solidarity with those who repudiate hateful interpretations of Islam. In letters sent to local Islamic leaders this month, the Federation and JCRC stated the following: "We write today to share with you our empathy and support during a time wh... Full story
The American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) is hosting its Annual Orlando Event on Tuesday, Feb. 2, at The Alfond Inn, 300 East New England Avenue, Winter Park. The evening will begin with a cocktail and dessert reception at 7 p.m., followed by the main program, titled "Courage & Heroism: Stories from the Middle East," at 7:30 p.m. The program will feature two speakers with incredible stories: Staff Sgt. Robert Bartlett, an Iraq War Veteran, and Mosab Hassan Yousef, a former Shin Bet (Israel's internal security service) informant and... Full story
