Central Florida's Independent Jewish Voice
Central Florida's Independent Jewish Voice
Sorted by date Results 26 - 50 of 116
Saving lives takes more than a 'stroke' of luck... While National Stroke Awareness month takes place in May, for my family it takes place all year-round... My mother's stroke was diagnosed by her manicurist (which was later confirmed by the ER), just about two years ago to this day. We are forever grateful that Olga noticed the changes in my mom, and reached out for emergency help. While I am not suggesting that you leave your neurologist for a consultation (or a mani-pedi) with your nail...
It's not hard to be moved by an article that shares the story of struggling families, whether they are dealing with homelessness, hunger, or underemployment. What is hard is taking that desire to help to the next step, and doing something to positively impact the very people you have read about. Since December of last year, 17-year-old Lake Mary High School junior Frances Hoffen has been doing just that. On Dec. 31, the teen-ager discovered an article by the Sentinel's Kate Santich about an...
My feet are absolutely killing me, and it's not from the 10,000 steps I have been walking daily to kick the New Year off on the right foot. The spring in my step has been hampered by the plastic-spiked gel inserts that have been stuffed into my shoes (voluntarily) during a "Virtual Dementia Tour" hosted by Watercrest Senior Living Community. Our tour was designed to enhance empathy and understanding for those who are suffering from memory loss or a dementia-related illness. I literally learned...
If there were Jewish saints, my sister would probably be one. Not because she is the devoted mother of three girls, or a busy interior designer, managing a business and a family along with community works. My sister has earned her honorary halo because she does all the above, while also managing the care of my mother, who suffered a stroke almost two years ago. I am the "long distance daughter," 1200 miles away from 'mom,' who now resides in a care facility in suburban Chicago. My long distance...
Please join the Jewish Pavilion on Sunday, Jan. 8, at 5 p.m. at Sheraton Orlando North (Maitland) for their Gems and Jeans Gala, as they honor Board members and community 'gems,' Geanne Share and Ruth Darvin, for providing exemplary volunteer assistance to Orlando's elder-care community. Slip on your favorite pair of 'dressy' jeans, and the Pavilion will provide the sparkle, with an evening of gourmet dining, live music, silent auction and a celebration of friends, with proceeds benefitting...
Despite her first name, Longwood resident Lois Silverberg, isn't married to Superman. However, at 80 years young, the active volunteer and community philanthropist is something of a superhero herself. Just ask Linda, a resident of Maitland's Savannah Court, what she thinks of the weekly volunteer visitor with the Jewish Pavilion. The answer can be found in Linda's smile, as she beams from ear to ear each week when Silverberg walks into the community room. "Linda and I connected years ago, when...
Thanksgiving in grade school was always about the same each year. We'd make a turkey by tracing the shape of our hands on brown construction paper (I can still picture the thumb as the head, with the other fingers spread out as tail feathers), then we'd go around in a circle and say something we were grateful for. I recall being thankful for my family, my bike, weekends with NO homework, and later my new Atari game. Even back then, I always wondered, what about those other 364 days a year?...
Two weeks before the rest of the country begins daylight savings time, The Jewish Pavilion turned the clock way back to the 1960s, bringing the community together with their new fall festival, Sunday in the Park. More than 400 members of the community got their groove on Sunday, Oct. 23, at Sunday in the Park at Crane's Roost Park in Uptown Altamonte, raising funds for Orlando's elder community while enjoying the Fall Fest featuring Beatle's tribute band, The British Invasion (formerly of...
Looking for a "Good Day Sunshine"? On Oct. 23, The Jewish Pavilion will turn back the clock to the 1960s, bringing the community together with their new fall festival, "Sunday in the Park," with all proceeds benefitting Orlando's elder community. Get your groove on, and save the date for the Fall Family Fest featuring Beatle's tribute band, The British Invasion (formerly of Epcot). This first time event offers an afternoon of healthful pursuits including music, socialization, and an afternoon...
Somehow, our first empty-nester travels, once again, became a "family vacation." Boarding our mini tour bus in Tel Aviv Israel, we met our traveling companions for the week, a small group, mostly from the U.S., ranging between the ages from 10 to 76, consisting of a bar-mitzvah family of six, a friendly couple from New York originally from Persia, and a mid-life Australian on "walkabout," who was eager to learn about all kinds of cultures. As was typical of late, my husband and I were...
When The Jewish Pavilion raised funds for the elder-care community with "A Walk in the Park" and then "A Taste in the Park," Pavilion annual member and volunteer, Dolores Indek, was right there, showing her support by purchasing memorial signage to honor a loved one. Indek made a yearly donation at each fundraiser, memorializing her beloved parents while helping the Pavilion with its mission to bring Jewish life and connection to residents of Orlando's senior living communities. "Dolores Indek...
Chasing after Bulbasaurs, Jigglypuffs, and Pikachus started out as a way to spend time with our 'millennial' daughter, who like many members of her generation, is preoccupied with the game, Pokémon Go. Before we knew it, my husband and I had caught 'Pokémon fever', which has swept MOST of the nation this summer. If you are not familiar with Pokémon Go, it as a game of 'augmented reality' (it incorporates your actual location into the game through GPS), that is downloaded through an app on your p...
Years later, I can recall the moment when my friend's son got his head stuck between the wooden rails on our staircase landing. While we laugh about the predicament today, at the time it wasn't so funny for the little red-faced toddler who stuck his neck out in the wrong place. (We wiggled him out unharmed, except for the mommies, who became major head-cases during the extrication.) Let's just say that when we first moved into our house 16 years ago, we had quite a bit child-proofing to do....
The Jewish Pavilion will turn back the clock to the 1960s on Oct. 23, bringing the community together with their new fall festival, promoting peace, love, and "Sunday in the Park." Get your groove on, and save the date for the Fall Family Festival featuring a Beatle's tribute band, The British Invasion (formerly of Epcot). If you're looking for an afternoon of entertainment that also provides a sense of fulfillment, then the multi-generational "Sunday in the Park" will be music to your ears....
On Friday, May 27 the second floor social hall at Spring Hills Assisted Living in Lake Mary was packed wall-to-wall with more than 40 kippot-clad residents, caretakers, and family members, for a memorial service in tribute to late resident, Charles "Dill" Hurvitz, who passed away on Sunday, May 8, 2016. He was a resident at Spring Hills for eight years, and lived to age 98. However, this was not Mr. Hurvitz's funeral. That service had already taken place graveside with a handful of mourners in h...
The Fourth Annual Pavilion Golf Society (PGS) was marked by friends, fairways, food, family, and the many fans of honoree Carol Feuerman. More than 80 golfers were in full swing at Alaqua Country Club on Sunday, May 15, for a morning round of golf to raise funds for the Jewish Pavilion and The Orlando Senior Help Desk. The Pavilion past president was celebrated by three generations of family members, from her mother, Oakmonte Village resident Shirley Meltzer, to her five adult children and...
On a typical weekday, Emily Newman, Orlando's Senior Help Desk specialist, can be found scribbling notes at her desk at the Jewish Pavilion office, phone glued to her ear. Thanks to funds raised by the Pavilion Golf Society (PGS) over the past four years, Newman has served as the Jewish Pavilion's elder resource since 2012, dedicating herself to passing on reassuring advice to older adults and their family members at no cost to the caller. On Sunday, May 15, at 7:30 a.m., the Pavilion Golf...
On Sunday, March 13, honorees and guests of The Jewish Pavilion Gala demonstrated the impact that just one person can make on an entire community. Friends Board President Faye Novick delivered opening remarks and warmly welcomed the more than 200 guests who had gathered at the Orlando Hilton North in Maitland to celebrate the event honorees, and to make a difference in the lives of residents of senior living communities served by the Pavilion. Novick commended the evening's honorees, Sammy...
Chabad of North Orlando has come a long way in the past five years, thanks to the dedication of Co-Directors Chanshy and Rabbi Yanky Majesky and members of their burgeoning community. Rabbi Majesky reflects back upon the shul's earliest days in 2011, when a handful of congregants met monthly in a local hotel, and only on Friday nights. For the last four years the growing synagogue was given space at an office park in Lake Mary known as The Chamu Jewish Center, thanks to congregants Dawn and...
The Jewish Pavilion's Black and White Gala will be held on Sunday, March 13th at the Orlando Sheraton North in Maitland. This year's honorees are two stellar volunteers who cherish the elder-care community-Carol Stein and Sammy Goldstein. The Gala will include a silent auction, gourmet meal, and the musical sounds of Paul Stenzler and his band. Register at www.jewishpavilion.org Carol Stein has literally been playing the Jewish Pavilion's song since 2014, when the acclaimed pianist, vocalist...
The Jewish Pavilion's Black and White Gala will be held on Sunday, March 13 at 5 p.m. at the Orlando Sheraton North in Maitland. This year's honorees are two stellar volunteers who cherish the elder-care community-Carol Stein and Sammy Goldstein. The gala will include a silent auction, gourmet meal, and the musical sounds of Paul Stenzler and his band. It all started with a calendar. For years Sammy Goldstein, executive director of Beth Shalom Memorial Chapel, donated Jewish calendars inscribed...
The Jewish Pavilion is going to the dogs- and the residents they serve in long-term care couldn't be happier. On Jan. 26 the Jewish Pavilion launched its new Licks and Hugs Program at Oakmonte Village in Lake Mary under the guidance of Pavilion Program Director Emily Newman, with help from Sanford's Pet Rescue by Judy. On a chilly Tuesday morning, rescue dogs Molly, Frasier, and Cookie brought the warm fuzzies to dozens of assisted living and memory care residents as part of the visiting pet...
With the average volunteer model aged 40 years plus, the Jewish Pavilion's "Spring into Fashion" held at Bloomingdales' in Orlando on Feb. 5 showcased beauty and fashions for all ages. More than 100 women gathered at the eighth annual Jewish Pavilion Fashion Show for a morning of friendship, food, fashion and fun. A handful of Pavilion volunteers, ranging from college students to retirees, graciously served as runway models as event commentator, Rachel Jensen, shared the latest seasonal fashion...
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,...
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...
