Central Florida's Independent Jewish Voice
Central Florida's Independent Jewish Voice
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(ISRAEL21c) -This year, the theme of International Women's Day is #BreakTheBias. Which is terrific news, as women every where still face discrimination and prejudice in matters big and small. In hope for a gender-equal world, we'd like to take a moment to celebrate the women who helped turn Israel into a flourishing country. According to historian Prof. Margalit Shilo, women in pre-state Israel began their pioneering, gender-expectation-renouncing work in the early 20th century. One of the...
(JNS) - If Danielle Finn had to choose between her faith and her dreams, it would have been a bummer. In her initial tryout on Zoom, the 17-year-old senior at Shalhevet High School in Los Angeles told producers of "American Idol" that she observes the Sabbath. As she progressed during in-person auditions on a Friday when she was one of 59 contestants to be judged, she and her family knew that there was a problem. "We were a little bit freaking out, that I wouldn't be able to compete," Finn told...
The Holocaust Memorial Resource & Education Center is hosting author Anna Salton Eisen at its annual Yom HaShoah commemoration of the anniversary of the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising, the largest act of resistance to Nazi aggression during the Holocaust. The event takes place on Tuesday, April 26, from 5:30 p.m. to 7 p.m. at The Roth Family JCC auditorium. The evening will include a candle lighting ceremony, live music and guest speaker Eisen, who will talk about her book "Pillar of Salt." A book...
(JNS) - Despite Israeli requests for an American-led preparation of a "Plan B" in case of failure of talks to lead to a new Iran nuclear agreement, Washington has yet to formulate such an alternative in a detailed manner, a leading Israeli expert on U.S.-Israeli relations has cautioned. Professor Eytan Gilboa of Bar-Ilan University, who is also a senior fellow at the Jerusalem Institute for Strategy and Security, also said, however, that good ties between the Israeli and American defense...
Whether you're getting rid of chametz, reorganizing that closet, or sweeping the floor, now is a good time for some spring cleaning. And if you happen to find a few "crumbs in the corner" of your soul that could be weighing you down and stopping you from shining your brightest, try vacuuming away any internal negativity or insecurities through self-care. Need some emotional spring cleaning? We're available now and all year-round to help you with "polishing your spirit." Learn more about JFS...
Summer is fast approaching and many families are starting to consider what they can do to keep their children busy. The Rosen JCC has the perfect solution, Camp J! This year Camp J offers several specialty camp options designed to fit your child’s interests. General Camp offers a wide array of activities for a fun-filled day. At the Sports Variety Camp coaches will work with children in basketball, hockey, baseball, kickball, soccer, volleyball and more. The Orlando Magic Basketball camp is run by the National Basketball Academy. The c...
The 10th annual Pavilion Golf Society golf tournament on Sunday, May 1, at the Rosen Shingle Creek Golf Club. Hosted by the Jewish Pavilion and benefiting the Orlando Senior Help Desk, this popular tournament offers golfers a grab and go breakfast followed by a round of golf on the resort's challenging Arnold Palmer-designed course. After completing the 18 holes in teams of four, participants will be treated to a gourmet luncheon and can win raffle prizes and bid on exciting gifts in a silent...
(JNS) - The first joke Gilbert Gottfried remembers making is when he was on his couch at about 4 years old. "When does the roller coaster start?" he recounts himself saying in his memoir "Rubber Balls and Liquor." It may not have seemed so funny then, but give it time. The legendary comedian had a brilliant and bumpy ride of ups and down. Gottfried was irreverent, hysterical, controversial, and if you saw his act, you'd hear big laughs mixed with murmurs by audience members wondering if he'd...
(JTA) - An Israeli astronaut made a decidedly low-tech delivery to the International Space Station: handmade matzah. Eytan Stibbe, 64, is one of three astronauts who paid for the privilege of launching into space on April 8, in an initiative of Axiom Space, a private company based in Houston. Chabad of the Space and Treasure Coasts in Florida delivered Stibbe a Passover food package, noting that he would be on the space station when Passover started on the evening of April 15, Chabad.org...
(JNS) — Iran is dangerously close to enriching uranium to 90 percent, or military-grade, Israeli Defense Minister Benny Gantz said on Monday. Addressing a policy forum hosted by the Washington Institute, Gantz said, “As we know, Iran is continuing its uranium enrichment and expanding its capabilities and they are close to 90 percent enrichment, once they decide to reach it. I understand the need for an agreement, but if an agreement [is not] reached, we must activate Plan B immediately.” On April 6, during an address to 80 ambassadors in Israe...
(JNS) — It turns out that The Atlantic magazine did a better job explaining the problem of disinformation than even those planning its recent conference on the subject held at the University of Chicago could have hoped. The magazine modestly described the event, titled “Disinformation and the Erosion of Democracy,” as “groundbreaking,” and in one sense, it was. It was hosted by an institution that is one of the pillars of the liberal Washington establishment and had a list of speakers that was filled with well-known talking heads regularly...
Putin’s war against Ukraine is far from Tehran. But if the Biden administration hopes to deter Russia in Ukraine, and its growing alliance with China and Iran, it needs to move decisively against Iran’s nuclear assets now. The war in Europe and coming threat of a nuclear-armed Iran is confronting the U.S. with a stark reality: an emerging alliance of nuclear-armed states, including Russia, China, Iran, and North Korea, whose atomic umbrella will stretch from NATO’s borders in Eastern Europe to the Asian Far East. The Biden Administration does...
Dear Volodymyr Zelenskyy, You are a master of public relations, a Churchill for your country, a true patriot. I am a Jewess, the daughter of Holocaust survivors. Indeed, your country, Ukraine, has been invaded and the reality is grim. Technology has allowed you to appear in front of countries’ parliaments and on every TV channel and the plight is clear, the Ukrainians will fight for their freedom and sovereignty provided they can get the support and help from the outside world. Before I start, I need to remind you that if Israel’s prime min...
(JNS) — The year so far finds the Western alliance at a crossroads. Unable to comprehend the Axis assembled against the American-led world order, the Biden administration is actively empowering our adversaries and rendering a new world war vastly more likely. It is just as Winston Churchill said long ago — an appeaser is someone who feeds his friends to the crocodile, hoping it will eat him last. For a moment after the shocking Russian assault on Ukraine, we almost forgot the Biden administration’s reckless abandonment of the 20-year commi...
MORNING MINYANS (Please note, because of the coronavirus, some minyans have been canceled or held virtually.) Chabad of North Orlando and Chabad of Altamonte Springs are holding in-person minyans. 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. Congr...
(JNS) — Israeli Defense Minister Benny Gantz said on Tuesday that he is advancing a plan to grant work permits to tens of thousands of additional Palestinians. Currently, an estimated 100,000 Palestinians enter Israel legally to work after being screened by the Israel Security Agency (Shin Bet) and receiving an Israeli permit. Gantz said that the measure would be advanced alongside ongoing intensified intelligence, as well as offensive and defensive steps currently being taken by security forces to quash the recent wave of deadly terrorism. ...
(JTA) - Estelle Harris, the Jewish actress who played George Costanza's mother on the sitcom "Seinfeld," died Saturday at the age of 93. Harris played the role of Estelle Costanza, the always shrill and frequently apoplectic mother to George Costanza, on the sitcom from 1992 until the show's finale in 1998. According to Deadline, the character of George's mother was named Estelle before Harris landed the part - but her name wasn't the only thing Harris shared with her onscreen character. "I'm...
(JTA) - A new Boston-based foundation dedicated to Holocaust memory plans to build the city's first Holocaust museum. The Holocaust Legacy Foundation, which couple Jody Kipnis and Todd Ruderman founded after a 2018 March of the Living trip to Auschwitz, announced Thursday that it had purchased a 15,000-square-foot building near Boston Common, on the city's American Independence-themed series of historical markers known as the Freedom Trail. The couple intends to turn it into a museum devoted to...
(JTA) - While the Oscars had a moment of silence for Ukraine and various onscreen messages, Sunday night's Grammy Awards went further - with a video address from Ukraine's Jewish president, Volodymyr Zelensky. "What is more opposite to music? The silence of ruined cities and killed people," he said in the prerecorded video. "Our musicians wear body armor instead of tuxedos. "They sing to the wounded. In hospitals," he added. It was a dramatic highlight of the music industry's biggest night and...
(JNS) — The Abraham Accords have led to a host of programs to bring together Jews and Muslims. One new project, the Mukhayriq Initiative, is named after a Jewish rabbi who gave his life fighting to defend the Prophet Muhammad at the legendary Battle of Uhud in 625 C.E. The story of the rabbi’s sacrifice—and his close friendship with Muhammed—is known mainly to Islamic scholars, but the founders of the initiative say it reflects a positive, if suppressed, aspect of Muslim-Jewish history. To underscore the importance of the story, coming as it d...
Networking is a great way to expand your business and meet new friends. To this end, the Jewish Chamber was created by Bree and Joel Goldstein for business and social purposes. Twenty-five people (mostly young adults) gathered to enjoy a pre-Passover breakfast at Toojays Deli on Colonial on April 13. In addition to enjoying a great breakfast, participants had the opportunity to speak about their businesses and forge new contacts. To learn more about the Jewish Chamber of Commerce, visit...
Getting extra support at home can be a terrific source of relief. Agencies offer companion care such as CNA’s (certified nurse’s assistants or HHA’s Home health aides.) Normally, these individuals take a brief course on how to care for someone. Another option is skilled health care providers who have had years of schooling such as nurses and physical therapists. Normally, Medicare and Medicaid pay for some home care after a hospital visit. Most home care providers will assist with transportation, cleaning, cooking, bathing, toiletry, perso...
What a total surprise ... Just from hearing the names, I would have never guessed these talented performers were Jewish. For instance, would you think that someone with the last name of Abdul would be Jewish? Does she even look Jewish? (However that look is deemed to be.) Well, PAULA JULIE ABDUL was born in California, but her dark features throw people off. Many assume she is a Black woman. But, her parents, father Harry Abdul is of Syrian Jewish heritage. He was born in Syria, raised in...
(JTA) - The United States Postal Service released a new series of Forever stamps Friday in honor of Shel Silverstein, the Jewish author and illustrator who died in 1999. The stamps commemorate what is perhaps Silverstein's most famous book, "The Giving Tree," which tells the story of the relationship between a boy and a tree. The stamps feature an image of the boy from the story catching an apple with Silverstein's name written below. "The issuance honors the extraordinarily versatile Shel...
(JTA) - With Allied forces swiftly approaching during the liberation of the concentration camps, Nazis barricaded Gerda Weissmann Klein and other Jewish survivors inside a barn, planting a time bomb outside. A sudden rainstorm disconnected the bomb's wiring, and American forces found the barn and unlocked the door. Weissmann Klein told the first rescuer she saw that she was Jewish. He responded that he was, too. Then he held the door open for her. A few years later, the two - the survivor and...
