Central Florida's Independent Jewish Voice
Central Florida's Independent Jewish Voice
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ORLANDO-At a time when young people are socializing more online and interacting less in person, thousands of teens converged on Orlando Thursday, Feb. 15 for the BBYO International Convention, which goes through Monday, Feb. 19. With over 3,000 teens from 36 countries, and thousands of educators, thought and business leaders, celebrities, political figures and philanthropists coming together for BBYO International Convention over Presidents Weekend, this epic event will offer opportunities for...
The Orlando Chapter of Hadassah presents "An afternoon in Paris," the annual Bunny Rosen Women's Heart Health Luncheon and Fashion Show, on Sunday, March 4, 2018. The Bunny Rosen Women's Heart Health Endowment was established to honor the memory of Bunny Rosen for her tireless efforts on behalf of Orlando Hadassah. This annual charity event is a permanent memorial to Rosen and her endeavors in support of Hadassah's good works for Jews in Israel and worldwide and in particular all women at home...
Twenty months after the terrorist attack at Pulse Nightclub, three courageous women-a Muslim reformer, a Jewish feminist and an ex-Muslim-each of whom have first-hand experience with the trauma resulting from these attacks, will hold an honest, responsible and long overdue discussion about the causes of bigotry and terrorism. This Women's interfaith panel discussion-titled Three women, One world, One peace-will be held Sunday, Feb. 18, at the American Legion Post 53, 2874 Sanford Ave in...
On March 14, The Roth Family JCC will host the biggest party of the year-its annual JBall. Rock the night away from 6:30-9:30 p.m. to the music of Michael Andrew and the J Life Magazine Swing Band at the Orlando Science. This year's honoree to receive the Harriet Weiss JCC Legacy Award is Carol McNally, who has inspired countless children as the director of the Richard S. Adler Early Childhood Learning Center for 29 years. While tripping the light fantastic, chomp on heavy hors d'oeuvres,...
Beginning Monday, Feb. 12, The Roth Family JCC’s preschool entrance was permanently relocated to within the JCC, no longer allowing for direct access from the parking lot. The exterior facing preschool doors that open to the parking lot will become emergency exit only doors for the preschool. The new preschool entrance is across from the sports and fitness hallway. It will be the only entrance and exit from the preschool. With nearly 300 children in the school, this will create additional foot (and stroller) traffic and possible logjams t...
The Holocaust Memorial Resource & Education Center of Florida, in partnership with the Florida Holocaust Museum, will sponsor a conversation with Mossad agent Avner Avraham on Wednesday, Feb. 21, at 6 p.m. Avraham curated the exhibit titled Operation Finale: The Capture & Trial of Adolf Eichmann, which is on exhibit at the Florida Holocaust Museum in St. Petersburg, Fla. His talk will feature "behind the scenes" stories of the capture of Adolph Eichmann and the importance of his trial....
Congregation Sinai, a nonprofit organization serving the community in and around Clermont, often holds food drives to help those in need and interfaith services and activities to promote better understanding among different cultures. The annual golf tournament helps grow the congregation and further community activities. Open to all golfers, the tournament will be held at Green Valley Golf Course in Clermont on Saturday, March 3. Registration is at 8 a.m.; shotgun start is 8:30 a.m.; and lunch and award will follow the game. The tournament will...
The Jewish Studies Program at Rollins College is pleased to announce a lecture by Professor Laura Levitt of Temple University titled "Jewish Women, American Feminism: Political, Religious, and Cultural Legacies." The lecture is in honor of Dr. Rita Bornstein, President Emerita, Rollins College and will be held Wednesday, March 7 at 7 p.m. in the Galloway Room, Mills Building. Laura Levitt is professor of Religion, Jewish Studies and Gender at Temple University where she has chaired the religion...
Jewish children from across Orlando are joining together with the task of mixing, kneading and making blessings at Orlando’s first-ever Mega Babka-llah Bake on Sunday, Feb. 18, at 2 p.m., at the Chabad of Greater Orlando, lcated at 708 Lake Howell Rd., Maitland. Organized by Chabad of Greater Orlando, participants will learn how to mix, knead and shape their own traditional challah and twist together delicious chocolate babka, a traditional Eastern-European Jewish sweet cake. Challah, considered one of the most famous Jewish foods, often r...
Join Cantor Nina Fine as she leads a Tot Shabbat and Family Shabbat service on Friday, Feb. 23, at Congregation Beth Am in Longwood. The Tot Shabbat begins at 5:30 p.m. and is followed by dinner at 6 p.m. The evening then continues with a Family Shabbat service for all at 7 p.m. All are invited to attend Shabbat services Saturday at 9:30 am. Dinner is only $5 per person with no charge for children 5 and under. Contact the CBA office at 407-862-3505 or shalom@congbetham.org to make payment or...
(JTA)-Polish President Andrzej Duda signed and finalized a law limiting rhetoric about the Holocaust, leading to a rebuke from U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson. The United States is "disappointed," Tillerson said Tuesday, following Duda's final approval of a law introduced on Jan 26 in the Polish parliament. It prescribes up to six years in prison to anyone who blames the Polish state or nation for crimes the law says were perpetrated exclusively by Nazi Germany during World War II. The...
WARSAW, Poland (JTA)-Debate over a Polish law that proposes to outlaw rhetoric blaming Poland for Nazi crimes has prompted a wave of anti-Semitic comments in the Polish media. RMF, one of the largest Polish commercial radio stations, suspended a journalist who wrote about the "war with the Jews." Poland's state-owned television station apologized to the Israeli ambassador for a tweet alleging that the Jewish opposition to the law was part of an attempt to seize Polish property. Also, a former...
Israeli native Alon Day was recognized by The Algemeiner newspaper as among "The Top 100 People Positively Influencing Jewish Life, 2017." The accolade caps an incredible year for Day, which included being named "Israel's Athlete of the Year"; debuting as a driver for BK Racing against the world's top stock car drivers in NASCAR's highest level, the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series; and earning the title champion of the NASCAR Whelen Euro Series. Day shares the Top 100 list with luminaries that...
(JTA)—The American-Israeli man charged with making hundreds of bomb threats to Jewish community centers in the United States, including The Roth Family JCC in Maitland, and elsewhere briefly escaped from police custody in Israel. The computer hacker, 19, from Ashkelon in southern Israel, attended a hearing in Jerusalem District Court on Monday. Following the hearing, Michael Kadar was taken to an interrogation and detention center in Jerusalem before being transferred to the Nitzan Prison and Detention Center in Ramla, where he is being h...
A decade ago, Israelis gave little thought to the issue of illegal immigration. In 2006, there were 2,766 illegal migrants in Israel, nearly all of them from Eritrea and Sudan, who had entered Israel through its then-open, 150-mile border with Egypt. In 2007, the dam of illegal immigration burst. According to Israel’s Immigration and Population Authority, 5,179 African migrants—predominantly from Eritrea and Sudan—entered Israel from Egypt in 2007. The illegal migration reached its peak in 2011, when 17,281 arrived. When you consider that...
By Mel Pearlman Not everyone in the Jewish community is happy with two recent announcements concerning respectively, the Jewish Academy of Orlando and the Holocaust Memorial Resource and Education Center. I participated in the organizational meetings back in the 1970s for what was then designated to be the Hebrew Day School of Central Florida. I also served on the board for a number of years. The original intention of the school was to furnish a learning institution of excellence in both secular and Judaic studies. It was built with Jewish...
There’s a question mark alongside the title of this note, insofar as the issues involved in assessing what is described as Palestine raise a host of questions and few clear answers. The problems are normative, i.e., what should be, as well as practical, i.e., what is and what is likely. Even what is, with respect to Palestine, opens us to arguments on several points. The history of Palestinians is as confused as that of any people. And while the designation of Palestinians is problematic, so is that of any nationality. Jews are as much of a m...
(JNS)—Justice was finally done last week for a Jewish activist organization. After nearly eight years of stalling, disingenuous excuses and outright lies, the Internal Revenue Service finally admitted wrongdoing in preventing Z Street—a pro-Israel group—from obtaining nonprofit status when it applied for it back in 2010. Z Street’s story is unique in some ways in that it ended in the group’s vindication. Its founder, lawyer and journalist Lori Lowenthal Marcus, proved that contrary to the old saying, you can fight city hall and win. But there...
It’s like the beginning of a bad Polish joke: A group of Polish politicians go into a room to debate their role in the Holocaust... The problem is there’s no funny punch line, except to underscore all the other funny punch lines of many more Polish jokes before. The bill that was approved by the Polish lower house of parliament this past week (giving new meaning to the term “lower house”), and now this week by the Polish Senate, makes it a criminal offense to mention Polish complicity in crimes committed during the Holocaust. If enacted...
MORNING AND EVENING MINYANS (Call synagogue to confirm time.) Chabad of South Orlando—Monday - Friday, 8 a.m. and 10 minutes before sunset; Saturday, 9:30 a.m.; Sunday, 8:15 a.m., 407-354-3660. Congregation Ahavas Yisrael—Monday - Friday, 7:30 a.m.; Saturday, 9:30 a.m.; Sunday, 9 a.m., 407-644-2500. Congregation Chabad Lubavitch of Greater Daytona—Monday, 8 a.m.; Thursday, 8 a.m., 904-672-9300. Congregation Ohev Shalom—Sunday, 9 a.m., 407-298-4650. GOBOR Community Minyan at Jewish Academy of Orlando—Monday—Friday, 7:45 a.m.—8:30 a.m. Temple I...
(JTA)-L'Oréal made history last week when it became the first major cosmetics firm to feature a Muslim woman wearing a head covering in a mainstream international ad campaign for hair products. The signing of Amena Khan, a British blogger on beauty, as the newest face of L'Oréal Paris generated a lot of positive publicity for the French firm, with CNN lauding the company for "breaking barriers" and "becoming more diverse" in an article that also flattered Khan for "empowering women." But the r...
(JTA)—An event marking Israel’s 70th year will be held at President Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago Club in Palm Beach, Florida. The event scheduled for late March is organized by the International Fellowship of Christians and Jews, which is selling tickets for $1,000 per table, Haaretz first reported. Speakers at the event will include the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, Nikki Haley; Israel’s ambassador to the U.N., Danny Danon; and former Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper. In August, nine groups canceled planned galas at the Florida...
Just after Passover last year, Fellowship Church in Winter Springs began fundraising for its annual work trip to Israel. Since 2006, members of the congregation have spent a week or more each year working on a nature park in Samaria while staying in the homes of Israeli families. Working and living together for a week at a time each year has served to bring down some of the traditional barriers between Christians and Jews and, because of those barriers, has not been without its challenges. As...
The Kinneret Council on Aging is in final preparation for the 2018 8 over 80 Gala to be held on Sunday, Feb. 25th, 2018. Committee members Lynn Fenster, Carol Feuerman, Phyllis Kamanoff, Mollie Savage and Geanne Share along with Kinneret Director of Programming and Development Sharon Weil are hard at work finalizing what will be a grand evening. The event recognizes active, inspiring people who continue to make a difference through volunteerism and philanthropy to their community and family. The honorees for the 2018 event are: Lillian...
Rebecca Hayaliah Kira, daughter of Debra and Sef Kira of Longwood, will be called to the Torah as a bat mitzvah on Saturday, Feb. 17, 2018, at Congregation Beth Am in Longwood. Rebecca is in the seventh grade at Milwee Middle School where she is a member of Mathletes, the Nation Beta Club and the Yearbook staff. Her hobbies and interests include theater, piano, singing, art and astronomy. She is also a member of the Starlight Stage Theater and the Jewish Academy of Orlando musical theater. Sharing in the family’s simcha will be Rebecca’s gra...
