Central Florida's Independent Jewish Voice
Central Florida's Independent Jewish Voice
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There are some people who just can’t say no to a challenge. Nina Oppenheim, the Heritage Human Service Award winner for 2013, is one of them. The Heritage Human Service Award, says Jeff Gaeser, editor and publisher of the Heritage Florida Jewish News, is awarded to those in Central Florida’s Jewish community who perform acts of tikun olam—making the world a better place—selflessly and without thought of reward or recognition. Gaeser will present her with the award at 7 p.m. Aug. 21 at the Jew... Full story
WASHINGTON—Hillel: The Foundation for Jewish Campus Life announced that Eric Fingerhut will serve as its president and CEO. The appointment was approved unanimously on Sunday by the Hillel Board of Directors, who met in New York. “Eric is an ideal fit for Hillel at this important time in our history,” said Sidney Pertnoy, Chairman of Hillel’s Board of Directors. “He has a passion for Hillel’s mission and a proven innovative record of successes in both the public and private arena. We are conf... Full story
WASHINGTON (JTA)—“I was with him when” Ron Dermer laced his address to the 2009 American Israel Public Affairs Committee conference. Dermer used the phrase five times in the first five minutes of the speech—the “him” being Benjamin Netanyahu. “I can shed a little insight into the mind of the Israeli prime minister,” Dermer told the crowd, “because on that I’m something of an expert.” Two elements of the address, made just weeks after Netanyahu assumed office, explain Dermer’s ascension la... Full story
By Abigail Klein ISRAEL21c The New York Times recently went shopping with the Israeli-American architect Michael Arad, revealing how this designer of the National September 11 Memorial scours Manhattan toy stores for unusual building-block sets to construct miniature villages with his three young children. The devoted dad last fall completed a “green roof” on his oldest child’s school building. In May, he was back in Israel to speak about his main area of expertise—urban archite... Full story
JERUSALEM (JTA)—No praying. No kneeling. No bowing. No prostrating. No dancing. No singing. No ripping clothes. These are the rules that Jews must abide by when visiting the Temple Mount, the site where the First and Second Holy Temples once stood, located above and behind the Western Wall in the heart of Jerusalem’s Old City. Although the area is under Israeli sovereignty, the mount—known to Muslims as Haram al-Sharif—is controlled by the Islamic Wakf, a joint Palestinian-Jordanian religio... Full story
With his attention focused on a situation that is stable, relative to its immediate surroundings, U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry has left many in Israel wondering if the U.S. has its foreign policy priorities straight—particularly in the Middle East. Kerry has visited Israel and the Palestinian territories five times since he started his new post in February (with the sixth, scheduled for July 11, expected to be canceled because of his wife’s health) in an effort to restart peace neg... Full story
(JTA)—As his mother read to him, Levi Davishoff puckered and moved his lips in the universal sign indicating that something is sour. He then pointed to the lemon pictured in the library book. His mother, Marla, was thrilled. It was the first time that Levi, then 18 months old, had communicated with the baby sign language he had been learning. He had been in therapy for developmental and cognitive delays since was 2 months old. Davishoff rushed out to buy the book, “Joseph Had a Little Overcoat,... Full story
At the Jewish Pavilion, volunteering is a family affair. Volunteering offers spouses an opportunity to interact with loved ones, young families an opportunity to learn compassion and teens the opportunity to interact with grandparents. Elizabeth and Emma Bookspan are in the back row and Asa Bookspan and Bea Rozen are sitting in fron... Full story
Abrams & Kaplan Foundation has offered a match up to $25,000 for the school supply project of the Jewish Federation of Volusia & Flagler Counties (FEDVF). For the past 17 years, the Federation has given quality backpacks filled with supplies to more than 65,000 local elementary, middle and high school students in Volusia and Flagler Counties appropriate for their age group. One hundred percent of the donated money goes to purchase this merchandise. FEDVF is now looking for people to meet this match. Only the neediest students receive these... Full story
Leonard Nimoy says there is a “strong strain of Judaism” in everything he does—including his famous on-screen hand gestures. Best known for his character Mr. Spock in the “Star Trek” television show and movies, most recently in his cameo as Spock Prime in this year’s blockbuster “Star Trek Into Darkness,” Nimoy’s Vulcan hand gesture comes from an experience he had at synagogue when he was 8 years old. Nimoy’s father told him not to look as worshippers averted their eyes during blessings recited... Full story
By Ed Ziegler By searching the Internet it is easy to confirm that a very large number of Muslims continue to generate murderous terrorist attacks. The vast majority of these attacks are perpetrated on infidels (non-Muslims) who are peaceful and unarmed. It is not uncommon that these fanatics state a reason for the attack that has nothing to do with the victims. A typical example was on June 23 the BBC.co.UK reported that gunmen killed 10 Chinese and Ukrainian tourists, at a base camp The tourists were preparing to climb Nanga Parbat Mountain... Full story
Is the American Jewish community about to go over “the leadership cliff?” That phrase, which appears in a sober new study by the Jewish People Policy Institute, an independent think tank, reflects a growing sense that at a time when as many as 90 percent of the top executives of our largest national Jewish organizations, major seminaries, big-city federations and JCCs will retire in the next few years, there is a serious lack of preparation for the transition, with potentially dire consequences for the communal future. The 26-page JPPI rep... Full story
(JTA)—Secretary of State John Kerry’s recent four days of meetings in Jerusalem and Amman yielded no breakthrough and no Israeli-Palestinian negotiations. One hurdle he must overcome: 42 of the 120 members of the Israeli Knesset vehemently oppose a two-state solution. Though those 42 members comprise only one-third of the Knesset, they hold nearly every important position in the government and the Knesset, and have a stranglehold on the actions of the government. They are strongly committed to settlements and occupation. (Prime Minister Ben... Full story
NEW YORK (JTA)—After two months of Jewish communal squabbling following the disclosure of a flubbed opportunity to detect a massive fraud scheme at the Claims Conference years before it was stopped, the Claims Conference appears to be moving on. At its annual meeting this week, the organization’s board of directors debated for more than six hours the circumstances surrounding an anonymous letter sent to the conference in 2001 alleging that multiple false claims had been approved for restitution payments. Despite two investigations that yea... Full story
Words can do much harm. Words such as two-state solution, land for peace, occupy, occupation, divestment, sanctions, boycott, have done much harm to Israel. Everyone gets on the bandwagon, including Jews, to put those words into action. On the other hand, lack of words, Islamic terrorism, radical Islam, mutilation, honor killings, can hide the true nature of dangerous forces we are all up against, but many of us have no clue. We do not see or hear about the danger to our country and Israel in the media. Those dangerous words have been stifled,... Full story
It’s tempting to see the chaos in Egypt right now, with President Morsi ousted and his Muslim Brotherhood party discredited, as just another failure of government. But there’s another aspect to this failure—and that is religion. It’s conceivable that if human beings didn’t have to eat, the holy clerics who have been running Egypt into the ground over the past year would still be in power. But if they want to ever regain their credibility with the people who soured on them, they will have to learn a lesson that every religion needs to learn: God... Full story
MORNING AND EVENING MINYANS (Call synagogue to confirm time.) Chabad of South Orlando—Monday and Thursday, 8 a.m. 407-354-3660. Congregation Ahavas Yisrael—Monday - Friday, 7 a.m.; Sunday, 8 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 Israel—Sunday, 9 a.m., 407-647-3055. FRIDAY, JULY 19 Light Shabbat candles at 8:06... Full story
Recent outbreaks of salmonella and other instances of food contamination and poisoning have left people questioning the safety of our food supply. Critics of the food industry are also concerned about misleading labels, particularly the use of such words as “natural” or “healthy” to describe processed food. Could these problems be solved by stricter governmental regulation? Can private certification prevent fraud or increase food safety? In order to answer these questions, Timothy D. Lytton, the Albert and Angela Farone Distinguished Profess... Full story
If you click on the Israeli army’s new Hezbollah website, you will see a red and black logo that reads, “Hezbollah, Army of Terror.” The site is a combination of graphics, text and videos, all focusing on the Lebanese-based, Iran-proxy terrorist organization and its leader, Sheikh Hassan Na’srallah. One link refers back to what Israelis call the Second Lebanon War of 2006, and in fact, the site was launched on the seventh anniversary of that 34-day war between Hezbollah and Israel that was triggered by a cross-border raid by Hezbollah fighter... Full story
ied on Monday, July 8. He was 55 years old. Mr. Misek was born in Cincinnati on Sept 30, 1957, to Bernard and Myra Flaum Misek. He was an Eagle Scout and received his bachelor’s degree from SUNY-Albany. On Aug. 19, 1994, in Charleston, S.C., he married the former Terri Shayne. Mr. Misek was a salesman and specialized in housewares. He and his family lived in Longwood and are members of Congregation of Reform Judaism. Mr. Misek is survived by his wife; his parents, of Raleigh, N.C.; his daughters, Samantha of Lakeland and Sari of Longwood; h... Full story
Dorothy Yesser of Deltona died Thursday, July 11. She was 89 years old. Born in New Haven, Conn., on Sept. 26, 1923, to the late Jack and Shirley Greenberg Small, she was the widow of the late Hyman Yesser to whom she was married for more than 57 years when he passed away in 2003. A loving wife, mother and grandmother, she was a Florida winter resident from Harrisburg, Pa., for more than 40 years, moving to the Deltona area in 2004. She was a longtime member of Beth El Temple in Harrisburg. Mrs. Yesser is survived by her sons, Alan Yesser of... Full story
When fans picture Rick Moranis, the first things that probably come to mind are comedy and scenes from science fiction movies such as “Honey, I Shrunk the Kids,” “Ghostbusters,” “Little Shop of Horrors,” or “Spaceballs.” But Moranis’s latest project conjures up an image much closer to home. Moranis recalls that the smell of his Jewish mother’s home “would get you from five blocks away.” “The whole place smelled like Friday at 6 p.m., and that was 24 hours a day, seven days a week, 365 days of... Full story
Margery and Bruce Swiren of Orlando are pleased to announce the engagement of their son, Aaron, to Chelle Bernstein, daughter of Mark and Nadine Bernstein of St. Augustine. The groom-elect received his bachelor’s degree from the University of Florida and his law degree from the University of Florida School of Law. He practices law in Orlando. The bride-elect received her bachelor’s degree from the University of Florida, her master’s from the University of North Florida and is currently worki... Full story
GAZIANTEP, Turkey—Dr. Waja Muharram studied the tibia bone closely. The Syrian internist’s eyes darted back and forth as an American cardiovascular surgeon inserted and removed needles at a rapid pace, explaining how to provide trauma patients with intravenous fluids by tapping into the bone marrow. “We see so many victims who suffer from trauma,” noted the 41-year old Dr. Muharram. “This technique will be of great use to us in the field.” As Syria’s civil war, now in its third year, grows deadlier by the week, the country’s understaffed an... Full story
In Memoriam… This tribute comes directly from the World Jewish Congress Digest: “The World lost a lovely lady… and a wonderful leader of the Jewish Community Council of Cairo, Egypt.” (With Egypt in the news every night, I thought it would be appropriate to write about her.) “Carmen Weinstein, 82, president of the Jewish Community Council of Cairo, passed away this past April. “In the face of a dwindling population of Jews…from over 80,000 60 years ago to a few dozen senior citizens toda... Full story
