Central Florida's Independent Jewish Voice
Central Florida's Independent Jewish Voice
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During the June 19 vigil at Lake Eola Park, Orlando Mayor Buddy Dyer called on the Orlando community to continue to remember those who died at the Pulse nightclub at the hands of a terrorist by maintaining both the memory and the dedication "30 days from now." In response to Mayor Dyer's request, the Jewish Community Relations Council (JCRC) of the Jewish Federation of Greater Orlando has organized a Jewish communal event to take place on Sunday, July 10, to show support of the LGBT and...
It was Oct. 27, 2015, shortly after 10 a.m. Two terrorists from the Jerusalem neighborhood of Jabel Mukaber boarded an Egged bus in the East Talpiot area. One was armed with a gun, the other with a knife. They started shooting and stabbing passengers, including 76-year-old Richard Lakin, who died two weeks later from his wounds. “We spent almost two weeks at Hadassah Hospital trying to save his life,” recalls Richard’s son Micah Lakin Avni, CEO of Peninsula Group Ltd., a publicly traded Israeli commercial finance institution. “During those t...
(JTA)—Elie Wiesel, a Nobel Peace Prize laureate and activist against racism who survived the Holocaust, died on Saturday, July 2, 2016, of natural causes at the age of 87. Eliezer “Elie” Wiesel was born on Sept. 30, 1928, in the Romanian town of Sighet, to Sarah and Shlomo Wiesel. Wiesel was perhaps best known for his major role in promoting Holocaust education, and for perpetuating the memory of the Holocaust in the post-World War II era with his memoir “Night,” based on his experience as a teenager in the Auschwitz concentration camp. “Th...
A new Jewish community resident snowbird, Bill Squires of Windermere and Massachusetts, sang 'G-d Bless America' during the seventh inning stretch at the Boston Red Sox-Seattle Mariners baseball game at Fenway Park in Boston on Father's Day, June 19. A retired businessman, Squires has performed the 'Star Spangled Banner,' 'O Canada,' and 'G-d Bless America' at over 280 events throughout the east coast and Texas, including the Amway Center in Orlando; Florida spring training games for the...
(JTA)-Only a week ago, Jeremy Corbyn seemed to have survived his biggest public relations debacle as the leader of Britain's Labour Party: the proliferation of anti-Semitic rhetoric among its members. Yet this week, the British vote to leave the European Union achieved what Corbyn's opponents failed to do in their attacks against him over anti-Semitism. On Tuesday, 172 Labour lawmakers among the total 229 in the Parliament said they had no confidence in Corbyn, opening the door to a challenge...
(JNS.org) Israel and Turkey have agreed to normalize ties after a six-year rift in their diplomatic relationship. “Israel and Turkey are two major regional powers,” Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said. “The disconnect between us prevented necessary cooperation.” Turkish-Israeli relations broke down after the 2010 Gaza flotilla incident, in which nine Turkish militants were killed in clashes after they attacked Israeli commandos who boarded a ship that was trying to breach the blockade on Hamas-ruled Gaza. According to reports citing...
WASHINGTON D.C.-In the wake of the Pulse Nightclub shooting, the worst mass shooting in our nation's history, Rep. Alan Grayson (FL-09) has introduced the Freedom From Fear Act that will reinstate the 1994 Assault Weapons Ban, which Congress allowed to expire in 2004. For the Congressman this attack was close to home: many of the victims of the Pulse Nightclub shooting lived in his district. There were 49 people murdered and 53 wounded in a matter of minutes. The gunmen used a semi-automatic...
For those who may not be able to attend the Sunday evening event sponsored by the Jewish Community Relations Council, on Tuesday, July 12, the City of Winter Park will host #OrlandoUnited, A Winter Park Tribute on the one-month anniversary, from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m., in Central Park, located in downtown Winter Park. July 12 marks the one-month date (Gregorian calendar) since the tragedy at Pulse nightclub. #OrlandoUnited, A Winter Park Tribute will feature: • Live entertainment by Orlando Big Band, who have graciously donated their time and t...
Wish List To better serve the community, JFS Orlando is always in need of the following items: • AED machine • Art supplies (crayons, play-dough, paint, sand, etc.) • Board games • Can openers • Coloring/activity books • Commercial paper shredder • Diaper waste basket • Infant changing table • Kids table and chairs • Office supplies • Quiet children’s toys (new and used) • Reusable shopping bags • Rubbermaid storage bins • Storage shed • Tissues JFS Orlando is always appreciative of donations. Did you know? You can shop at JFS Orlando’s Amazo...
The entire Jewish community is invited to a Family Summer Schmooze at Congregation Ohev Shalom in Maitland on Wednesday, July 13. The event is an opportunity for COS families to reconnect over the summer, welcome COS friends and prospective members and school families to see what Ohev is all about as well as just bring the Jewish community together for a fun evening. The Schmooze will be take place at Ohev Shalom, 613 Concourse Pkwy S Maitland from 4 p.m. - 7 p.m. It will include a kosher BBQ dinner (vegetarian option available), water slide...
(JTA)—Last week Sen. Al Franken (D-Minn.) said that if Hillary Clinton asked him to be her running mate, he’d take the job. “If Hillary Clinton came to me and said, ‘Al, I really need you to be my vice president, to run with me,’ I would say yes, but I’m very happy in the job that I have right now.” Although Franken, 64, has spent seven years in the Senate and proven himself to be a conscientious lawmaker—championing decidedly unfunny issues like health insurance, mental health services in schools and net neutrality—some still find it har...
Palestinian Authority (PA) President Mahmoud Abbas must be surprised at the international outcry over his accusation this week that Israeli rabbis are plotting to poison Arab wells. After all, Abbas and his colleagues have been making similar allegations for more than 30 years, yet the international community has hardly said a word. The best-known allegation was the declaration by Yasser Arafat’s wife, Suha, at a 1999 press conference that Israel was engaged in the “daily and intensive use of poisonous gas” against Palestinians, as part of a pl...
Our flight returning from Europe occurred with the news of a multiple terror attack on the Istanbul airport, which has so far produced more than 40 deaths and 260 injuries. No organization has claimed credit, but the betting is on the Islamic State, or maybe Assad. Turkey has acquired numerous enemies domestic and foreign, including its Kurds and those living elsewhere. Experts on the subject are saying that this was not the style of the Kurds. Turkish Airlines has come into its own with lots of connections, good service, and pursuing a larger...
In a remarkable turnaround, Democratic Party activists who are known to be pro-Palestinian are calling on their party’s platform committee to condemn the Palestinian Authority (PA). Or am I misreading something? Two pro-Palestinian members of Congress, Reps. Keith Ellison of Minnesota and Luis Gutierrez of Illinois, issued their call last week on the blog of J Street. It happens that Ellison and Gutierrez are members of that same platform committee, so it may seem strange that they are taking a public position before the committee has finished...
It’s not the disputed occupation of the West Bank that convinced a 17-year-old Palestinian teenager to stab a 13-year-old Jewish girl to death while she was sleeping. Rather, it’s the corrosive and longtime occupation of Palestinian hearts and minds with vicious, genocidal Jew-hatred. “Hate has no place in the curriculum of schools, and the glorification of violence has no place in the education of children,” Sen. Hillary Clinton said in 2007, after a Senate hearing on Palestinian Authority (PA) schoolbooks and media presented by the watchdo...
Recently I visited with Christian friends from Orlando in Jerusalem. We connected some time ago and became immediate friends, sharing our respective faiths, reverence for God, and love for Israel. They are frequent visitors, know Israel well, and we are in touch often. We’ve been planning an Israel solidarity event together and spent some time discussing details of date, timing, format, and how to involve both Jews and Christians. We also spoke about our respective families, ministries, and current events in Israel and the U.S. The week they l...
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...
Mosab Hassan Yousef, the son of Hamas terrorist leader Sheikh Hassan Yousef and author of a 2011 New York Times bestseller memoir, recently re-emerged in news headlines when he spoke at the annual conference of the Jerusalem Post newspaper. The so-called "Green Prince," Yousef is a Palestinian born in Ramallah and raised by one of Hamas's most dangerous leaders. The younger Yousef was arrested by Israel, but rather than becoming further hardened in prison, he became enlightened about the...
AMSTERDAM (JTA)-In a country where 75 percent of Jews were murdered in the Holocaust, the Moszkowicz family of lawyers stood out as a unique Jewish success story. Descended from Max Moszkowicz, a steel-willed Auschwitz survivor who became Holland's first modern celebrity attorney, his four lawyer sons took the family business to new heights, turning their name into a household brand here with winning arguments in some of the country's most famous trials. Max Moszkowicz himself in 1987 obtained...
PARIS-Arab immigration to France and deep-seated anti-Semitism in that country mean French Jews have no future there, the head of the Jewish Agency for Israel said. Natan Sharansky made this declaration on Monday in the French capital, where he was attending a Jewish Agency Board of Governors meeting, held in the city for the first time as a sign of solidarity with French Jews. "We came here because there are historical processes here," Sharansky said of France, which for the past two years has...
Shades of Jack Benny... Everyone who remembers beloved comedian, JACK BENNY, remembers that he always claimed to be 39 years old. (Well mentally, maybe). Anyway, I believe that's where the Jewish Community Center's 39ers Group got its name! I attended a meeting of the 39ers last Monday afternoon. The members were all very nice and welcoming to me. I knew most of them by their faces but could not remember names. Many knew my name though, because of this column. JCC Program Director MARNI...
NEW YORK (JTA)-Eve Goldberg's son, Isaac, was in a panic. He had to get out of college. Isaac Goldberg Volkmar had been at the University of Rhode Island for less than a semester in 2009 when he called his mother desperate to escape. He had joined a fraternity, where his brothers got him to take the pain medications Percocet and OxyContin. After a few months the New York teen knew he was addicted and needed help. From there, Isaac was in and out of rehab in Pennsylvania and New York. He...
By Pamela Ruben A few days ago our youngest flew the coop, and was off to college without so much as a look back. His newly empty-nesting parents made up for his lack of nostalgia with a few tears and endless Facebook posts about his launch and arrival at college. Since he's been gone, we have received six short texts (but who's counting?) and one emoji sharing his status, which we can report is 'thumbs up.' From his cryptic messages, I have pieced together that all is well, and that, for the...
Louis Finkelstein, age 94, of Longwood, passed away on June 26, 2016, at Brookdale at Island Court in Longwood. A native of Lodz, Poland, he was born on March 11, 1922, and was a survivor of the Shoah. After immigrating to Canada, he did what was necessary to support himself and his family including driving a cab and opening grocery stores. Eventually, he established himself as a textile manufacturer. A widower, he met and ultimately married Rosamunde Block, herself a widow with a young son. For many years they wintered in South Florida before...
VENICE, Italy (JTA)-It's been more than 50 years since the Nuremberg trials, yet proving the Holocaust actually happened remains an ongoing project. Why? For one, the Nazis covered their tracks, deliberately leaving gaps in the historical record. (In the death-camp blueprints that survive, for example, gas chambers were often labeled as morgues or "undressing rooms.") As the years pass, survivors and eyewitnesses are dying or suffering dementia. Add in social media-including the rise of the...
