Jewish News September 8, 2025 Edition

Trump on Israel: ‘They’re not winning the world of public relations’

Grace Gilson

(JTA) — President Donald Trump said that backing for Israel in Congress had declined during the country’s military campaign in Gaza, telling The Daily Caller that Washington’s pro-Israel lobby no longer has the hold on Capitol Hill it once did.

“Israel had the strongest lobby in Congress of anything or body, or of any company or corporation or state that I’ve ever seen. Israel was the strongest. Today, it doesn’t have that strong a lobby,” Trump said. “It’s amazing.”

He attributed the decline to a public perception problem driven by the war in Gaza, emphasizing as he has before that he would like to see Israel bring the war to a close.

“They’re going to have to get that war over with. But it is hurting Israel. There’s no question about it,” Trump told Daily Caller White House correspondent Reagan Reese in an appearance on Monday, Sept. 1. “They may be winning the war, but they’re not winning the world of public relations, you know, and it is hurting them.”

Trump’s comments come as a record number of Senate Democrats have supported legislation to block U.S. arms sales to Israel, and dozens of Democrats in the House have signed onto a similar bill. Support for Israel among Republicans remains high but is also on the decline, polls show.

Trump also said that there was a time in American politics when speaking badly of Israel was widely frowned upon, but he believes that times have changed as progressive voices have gained greater influence.

“There was a time where you couldn’t speak bad, if you wanted to be a politician, you couldn’t speak badly. But today, you have, you know, AOC plus three, and you have all these lunatics, and they’ve really, they’ve changed it,” he said, referring to Democratic Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez.

Recent reports of a hunger crisis, the killings of journalists and plans to widen operations in Gaza have also drawn increasing criticism of Israel from lawmakers and the public alike. Among Democratic voters, support for Israel’s actions in Gaza has fallen to just 8% while approval among Republicans remains at 71%, according to a recent Gallup poll.

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Issue

Deadline September 22 Yom Kippur September 5 October 13 Legal September 19 October 27 Business/Investments October 10 November 10 Mazel Tov October 24

About the cover: Photograph of billboard on Military Highway in Norfolk by Steve Budman.

BRIEFS

US Postal Service stamp honors Holocaust survivor and humanitarian Elie Wiesel

The United States Postal Service announced a new series of stamps honoring Nobel Peace Prize winner and Holocaust survivor Elie Wiesel.

Wiesel, who died in 2016 at the age of 87, is the 18th person to be honored in the USPS’ Distinguished Americans stamp series.

“The 18th stamp in the Distinguished Americans series honors humanitarian Elie Wiesel (1928-2016), a survivor of Nazi concentration camps whose dozens of works bore witness to the Holocaust and whose resilience and compassion continue to be a source of inspiration,” a description for the stamp on the USPS website reads.

As a teenager, Wiesel was sent with his father, Shlomo, to the Buna Werke labor camp in the Auschwitz complex. He went on to become an international human rights advocate, publishing several books, essays and educational projects, including Night, a 1960 memoir about his experience during the Holocaust.

West Bank, in a move that both its backers and its many critics say would undercut Palestinian ambitions to control the region.

The E1 project would expand Jewish settlements on a stretch of land east of Jerusalem, effectively bisecting the West Bank and limiting Palestinian neighborhoods of Jerusalem from growing,

Proposed decades ago, but never finalized, the plan was abruptly moved forward last month by Israel’s far-right finance minister, Bezalel Smotrich, and it received final approval from a Defense Ministry planning committee.

Wiesel was also awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the Congressional Gold Medal, the National Humanities Medal, and the Medal of Liberty in the United States.

Wiesel joins several other notable Jews featured in the Distinguished Americans series, including Jonas Salk, who developed the first influenza and polio vaccines, Pulitzer Prize-winning novelist and playwright Edna Ferber, and Albert Sabin, who developed the oral polio vaccine. Jewish author and illustrator Shel Silverstein and Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg have also been featured on stamps, and the postal service has issued several stamps marking Hanukkah.

The Wiesel stamp, which is set to be released on Sept. 17, features a 1999 black-and-white photo of Wiesel by Sergey Bermeniev along with his name and the word “Humanitarian.” It will be used for a less common category of mail, two-ounce mail, and will always be valid for the rate printed on it, according to USPS. A sheet of 20 stamps is available for pre-order for $21.40. (JTA)

Israel approves vast West Bank settlement plan that far-right minister said ‘practically erases the two-state delusion’

Israel has approved a long-delayed settlement project that would build 3,400 housing units for Jews in the

Smotrich described the plan as a “significant step that practically erases the two-state delusion,” in an apparent rebuke of plans by some countries to recognize Palestinian statehood.

“The Palestinian state is being erased from the table not with slogans but with actions,” Smotrich continued. “Every settlement, every neighborhood, every housing unit is another nail in the coffin of this dangerous idea.”

The settlement plan has drawn widespread condemnation, including from the United Nations, the European Union, and several Arab countries which decried the plan for breaching international law. Liberal Jewish groups in the United States and Israel have also denounced it.

But a crucial roadblock — discouragement from the United States — was lifted last month when Ambassador Mike Huckabee said the United States would not oppose E1. Huckabee is a longtime supporter of Israeli settlements in the West Bank.

The plan’s approval comes amid a sharp increase in violence against Palestinians in the West Bank by Israeli settlers. (JTA)

Most Americans believe UN members — including the US — should recognize Palestinian statehood

Most Americans — 58% — believe that countries in the United Nations should recognize a Palestinian state, according to a new Reuters/Ipsos poll.

The poll surveyed U.S. adults August 13 through August 18, as several world powers announced plans to recognize a Palestinian state at this month’s U.N. General Assembly in New York City.

The leaders of Australia, France, the United Kingdom, and Canada have all said they would take the step nearly two years into the war in Gaza and amid sharp concerns about Israel’s prosecution of its offensive

against Hamas in the Palestinian enclave.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has long opposed recognition of a Palestinian state. Israel’s allies had until recently supported recognition only in the context of a negotiated peace. Last month, U.S. Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee told Al Arabiya English that a Palestinian state was not a priority for the Trump administration and urged European leaders to “reassess their actions” on recognizing Palestinian statehood.

Polling on the issue has been limited, but a poll by the Arab-American Institute, which advocates for a Palestinian state, ahead of last year’s presidential election found that half of Americans supported U.S. recognition of a Palestinian state.

The new poll comes amid mounting indicators of diminishing support for Israel among Americans. It also found a partisan divide, with 78% of Democrats and 41% of Republicans supporting the idea that U.N. members should recognize a Palestinian state. A majority of Republicans, 53%, opposed the idea.

The poll, taken at a peak of concerns about a humanitarian crisis in Gaza, found that 65% of U.S. adults believe the United States should help people who are facing starvation in Gaza. And it found that 59% of Americans believe that Israel’s military response in Gaza has been “excessive,” up 9 points since last year.

Opinions between Democrats and Republicans were also split over those questions. It found that 55% of Republicans believed the United States should help people facing starvation in Gaza, compared to 83% of Democrats. Just 38% of Republicans believed that Israel’s military response in Gaza is excessive, compared to 82% of Democrats.

The Reuters/Ipsos poll gathered online responses from 4,446 U.S. adults nationwide and had a margin of error of about 2 percentage points. (JTA)

New York governor signed legislation to confront campus antisemitism

New York Governor Kathy Hochul signed legislation on Tuesday, August 26 that enhances civil rights protections that will help Jewish students at colleges and universities throughout the state. The new law requires all higher education institutions in New York to appoint a Title VI civil rights coordinator to oversee these protections.

“This law is a meaningful tool to make our campuses places where students can learn without fear of discrimination. We thank New York Governor Kathy Hochul, Assemblywoman Nily Rozic, and Senator Toby Ann Stavisky for their leadership in passing the new Title VI Coordinator law in New York State,” said AJC CEO Ted Deutch. “Every NY college will now have a trained official responsible for addressing discrimination and antisemitism, sending a clear, bipartisan message: discrimination will not be tolerated on our campuses. AJC is proud to have supported this landmark step for student safety.” (AJC)

JEWISH TIDEWATER

SAFETY TIPS

In these trying times, advice from a security professional can go a long way to assuring personal and community safety in public, as well as, in private spaces. Here, Mike Goldsmith, SCN regional security advisor, offers a couple of easy-to-follow tips.

Cybersecurity

There is no escaping the online world, says Goldsmith. “Most of the business we used to conduct in person (banking, shopping, etc.) has moved onto the internet. While this allows us to be efficient and conduct business without leaving our house, it also opens us up to risk from cyber criminals,” he says. These individuals (or groups of individuals) use various methods to attempt to steal identities or lure people into scams that drain bank accounts. Fortunately, there are ways to increase online safety.

Goldsmith suggests these easy to implement tips to prevent falling victim to scams and cyber theft:

• Keep accounts secure by using complex passwords or pass phrases. Use both upper- and lower-case characters, as well as special characters such as %,$,&. Do not share passwords! Additionally, a password manager can help with this task. Do not use passwords tied to personal information such as birthdates or initials.

• Be wary of suspicious emails. Think before clicking on any link in an email, especially if you don’t recognize the sender or did not expect the message. If you receive an unexpected email for what appears to be a legitimate source, go to the company’s website and make contact through their customer service system.

• Enable multi-factor authentication on your accounts.

• Make sure your software is up to date.

• Back up all important files on a secure external storage device or a secure cloudbased platform.

“We can all be more secure online by using these methods,” says Goldsmith.

See something wrong? Report it!

Report an antisemitic incident at www.Federation.JewishVA.org/IncidentReporting

In an emergency, always call 9-1-1 first. If online reporting is not practical, contact local law enforcement and/or the relevant suspicious activity reporting authority. Also contact Mike Goldsmith, Tidewater’s SCN Regional Security Advisor, at MGoldsmith@ujft.org or 844-SCN-DESK.

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TIDEWATER

Christian Broadcasting Network, CBN Israel, and Regent University partner with JewBelong for Antisemitism Awareness Campaign

Campaign features three billboards in Tidewater and four billboards near Ivy League universities

In response to the alarming rise in antisemitic incidents in the Commonwealth of Virginia and across the nation, the Christian Broadcasting Network (CBN), CBN Israel, and Regent University have partnered with JewBelong, a national nonprofit organization that fights antisemitism and makes Judaism accessible, for a major multimedia awareness initiative.

Gordon Robertson, CEO of CBN/CBN Israel and chancellor of Regent University, announced the partnership just before the campaign’s launch on August 11, when three bold pink-and-white billboards went up across Tidewater, home to CBN and Regent University.

Featuring the message, “Standing against antisemitism is standing with America,” the billboards are located on I-64 near Tidewater Drive, on I-64 near Bainbridge Blvd., and 1001 N. Military Hwy near Virginia Beach Blvd. The billboards will remain up through September 29.

The Tidewater billboard campaign is the start of a broader effort by these organizations that includes placing similar billboards near four Ivy League universities – Harvard, Yale, Brown, and University of Pennsylvania –as well as social media and web advertising led by Regent University

that will reach students at Southeastern Conference (SEC) universities. The goal is to encourage students, alumni, and campus communities across those schools to speak up against antisemitism and stand in allyship with Jewish students. CBN will cover the initiative on its TV programming and web platforms, reaching audiences nationwide.

Antisemitism is not just a Jewish issue— it is a human issue and a spiritual one.

This partnership comes at a time of growing concern.

According to the Anti-Defamation League’s 2024 Audit of Antisemitic Incidents, Virginia ranks among the top 10 states for antisemitic activity, with 266 recorded incidents—a 19% increase from 2023.

Nationally, incidents of antisemitism are up 893% in the last decade, marking the highest number since ADL began tracking some 46 years ago. Robertson, who also serves as host

of the newly-launched weekly TV show, 700 Club Israel, emphasizes the Christian responsibility to respond: “It is vital that Christians in Virginia—and across the country—stand in solidarity with the Jewish community.

“Antisemitism is not just a Jewish issue—it is a human issue and a spiritual one. We are called to stand against hatred, to defend our neighbors, and to reflect God’s love through our actions. This campaign is one important step in that direction,” says Robertson.”

“It’s a terrifying time to be Jewish,” says Archie Gottesman, JewBelong co-founder. “Jews are just 2% of the U.S. population, and we can’t fight the hate alone. We are so grateful to the Christian Broadcasting Network for their support. Their allyship helps ensure a safe future for the Jewish community.”

JewBelong has previously launched similar billboard campaigns in major cities including New York, Los Angeles, and Las Vegas, as well as near Ivy League universities such as Harvard, University of Pennsylvania, Princeton and Yale.

For more information on the initiative, visit the CBN Israel blog.

Billboard on Mitary Highway.

VIRGINIA

Attorney General Miyares publishes new Virginia Rules Resources to combat antisemitism

RICHMOND, Va. — Attorney General Jason S. Miyares announced the publication of a new Virginia Rules lesson focused on combating antisemitism. The announcement was made in August. This new module will be added to the broader Virginia Rules program, which provides law-related education to students, parents, teachers, and communities across the Commonwealth.

“Antisemitism is the world’s oldest form of bigotry. Despite making up only 2.4% of the population, Jewish-Americans were the target of 56% of all religiously motivated hate crime in the U.S. before the October 7th massacre. In the three months following October 7th, that number spiked to 75%,” says Attorney General Jason Miyares. “I am grateful to the OAG Antisemitism Task Force for their instrumental contributions designing this new Virginia Rules lesson on antisemitism. Religious freedom is the hallmark of what it means to be a Virginian. By being vigilant today and teaching our youth, we help ensure that future generations keep the promise to never let antisemitism take root in the land of Thomas Jefferson.”

The new lesson explains how Virginia laws on discrimination and hate crimes protect Jewish Virginians. The latest FBI Hate Crime Statistics show an alarming spike in an already historic number of incidents targeting Jewish Americans. In addition, the curriculum offers students a primer on Jewish religion, culture, and history. Like all Americans, Jewish Americans deserve to be treated as individuals who contribute their rich traditions and efforts to the American fabric, not defined by the evil that opposes them.

Virginia Rules is Virginia’s state-specific, law-related education program for elementary, middle, and high schoolers. The goal of the program is to educate Virginia’s youth about state laws to empower them in becoming active citizens of their communities, while allowing students to form community bonds with the law enforcement in their area. The program is composed of lesson plans tackling various aspects of juvenile law issues such as bullying, internet safety, dating violence, gun and gang violence, substance abuse, human trafficking, and fentanyl-laced counterfeit drugs. These resources are also available online for students, parents, and instructors alike to access at any point in time.

We can’t ensure this Rosh HaShanah will usher in a peaceful year. But with your support, Magen David Adom can continue to be a source of light, hope, and lifesaving care to all Israelis — no matter what 5786 brings.

NATION

Will federal security grants require synagogues to cooperate with ICE? Concerns are running high.

Asaf Elia-Shalev (JTA) — With $274 million in federal security grants about to go up for grabs, dozens of progressive Jewish groups and several synagogues say they are boycotting the program.

In an open letter launched last month, they said they can’t accept the strings attached to the money, despite the risk of being targeted with violence. The letter comes in response to new requirements that grantees support federal immigration enforcement and avoid programs advancing diversity introduced earlier this year by the Department of Homeland Security.

“We are committed to upholding our communal values and will not comply with these repressive conditions,” reads the letter.

The letter arrives as some Jewish

leaders press those in need of funds to apply, arguing that objections may be settled before recipients must formally agree to the conditions.

Many of the signatories are progressive groups, including Bend the Arc: Jewish Action and pro-Palestinian groups such as IfNotNow and Jewish Voice for Peace.

But they also include a handful of nonpartisan synagogues. Other synagogues independently have also decided to boycott the program as long as the controversial conditions are in place.

“Jewish safety requires inclusive democracy, and inclusive democracy requires Jewish safety. We do not comply so we will not apply,” Jill Maderer, the senior rabbi at Rodeph Shalom in Philadelphia, posted on Facebook. She declined to be interviewed.

Meanwhile, one rabbi, facing what he described as a choice between his congregation’s safety and his sacred obligations, says he wishes to speak out. But he agreed to discuss the matter only anonymously, fearing that public protest could endanger two community members who are refugees.

“Money is being given to us on condition that we violate a specific mitzvah,” the rabbi says, referring to the religious commandment to welcome strangers. “I don’t see how we can possibly accept that money.”

Anxiety over the Nonprofit Security Grant Program, which Jewish groups have long sought to expand, represents the latest instance of some American Jews saying that Trump administration policies force their priorities and values into conflict. The

unease is heightened by the administration’s chaotic rollout with mainstream Jewish organizations working intensely behind the scenes to shape the policies while offering a limited public response.

“Jewish Federations of North America strongly encourage institutions in our communities to apply for critical, life-saving Nonprofit Security Grant Program funds,”

JFNA’s CEO, Eric Fingerhut, says. “We are working closely with DHS and stand ready to provide guidance to any institution seeking support around this process and raise any issues that come up along the way.”

A spokesperson for the organization, which represents 141 local Jewish federations, says officials there had come away from meetings with DHS optimistic that Jewish institutions would not need to

NATION

compromise on their values to secure the security grants.

JFNA was a leading force in building the grant program, which is run by the Federal Emergency Management Agency under DHS. Created in 2004 and expanded after the Tree of Life synagogue shooting in 2018, it is the main federal source of money for houses of worship and nonprofits to bolster protection against terrorism and hatemotivated violence. Rising concerns about antisemitic attacks have sharply increased demand for the grants, for which Jewish groups have also encouraged other houses of worship to apply.

rules still apply.

DHS had unveiled conditions that were said to apply to all DHS funding, part of a broader Trump administration effort to wield the federal bureaucracy for political purposes.

Our communities desperately rely on this security funding — and they need clarity that what they are agreeing to

The grants can cover things like cameras, alarm and alert systems, hired guards, fencing and barriers, or screening tools such as metal detectors. They are meant to help nonprofits deemed at high risk of terrorist or extremist violence strengthen both physical and digital security.

Amy Spitalnick, CEO of the Jewish Council for Public Affairs, shares many of the concerns raised by groups to her left but is still urging congregational rabbis and lay leaders to apply. Submitting applications now, she says, gives communities time before deciding whether to accept the funds — time in which the Trump administration could yet rescind the controversial conditions.

“There is a deadline by which they have to apply, and the terms and conditions only kick in if you accept the funding, so there is still time,” she says.

On the conditions concerning immigration enforcement, the Trump administration might have already retreated, a development that isn’t yet widely understood in part because of confusing and contradictory messaging by the administration.

Since April, those closely observing the DHS communications have been whiplashed by conflicting directives, first exempting synagogues from immigration enforcement rules, then suggesting those

Soon after, 20 states filed a lawsuit arguing that it is illegal to condition government funding on assisting with federal immigration enforcement, handled through the agency known as ICE. One immediate impetus for the lawsuit was the worry that the Trump administration would withhold disaster recovery funds from victims of the devastating wildfires in Los Angeles earlier this year.

In a June 6 filing, federal lawyers defended the immigration-related conditions by saying they wouldn’t be applied to a range of grant programs including the one for securing nonprofits. Then, in late July, DHS appeared to confirm the exception when it gave official notice for this year’s nonprofit security grants.

The relief was short-lived because about two weeks later, on August 13, DHS released another notice featuring new language that seemed to contradict the earlier exemption. The notice said the immigration conditions “may be material to the Department of Homeland Security’s decision to make this grant award, and the Department of Homeland Security may take any remedy for noncompliance.”

Spitalnick, whose team has been tracking the issue for months, communicating regularly with federal and state officials, says she was told the latest language is a mistake that will be corrected in a forthcoming notice.

She acknowledges how dizzying the bureaucracy can be for prospective applicants.

“We have heard extensive confusion and concern from national, state, and local Jewish and interfaith partners,” she says.

To clear things up — and because

rules against diversity and inclusion work are firmly in place — Spitalnick sent a letter pleading with DHS Secretary Kristi Noem.

“The Jewish community is incredibly diverse — from LGBTQ+ Jews, to Jews of Color, to immigrant and refugee Jews,” she wrote to Noem. “Many synagogues and Jewish institutions host programs and services to engage and support these vital parts of our community, as well as to support and advance core Jewish values of justice, charity, and equity with our neighbors and in our broader communities and society.”

The letter continues, “Our communities desperately rely on this security funding — and they need clarity that what they are agreeing to in accepting these funds won’t force them to override their deeply held religious values and beliefs.”

It wouldn’t be the first time the Trump administration retreated after placing controversial conditions on government money. Earlier this year, the Trump administration floated a requirement that applicants for disaster relief funds pledge not to support boycotts of Israel. While that provision

was withdrawn after legal and political pushback, vague language against “discriminatory prohibited boycott” still appears in broader DHS rules, leaving some uncertainty about enforcement.

DHS didn’t respond to specific questions from the Jewish Telegraphic Agency, instead releasing a statement saying the department “will no longer fund grant projects that don’t align with President Trump’s priorities.”

“Unlike the previous administration, grants will no longer be used to support DEI agendas, and illegal aliens in our country,” the statement says. “These Biden focused initiatives don’t serve the interest of the American People.”

Beyond Spitalnick and JCPA, many national Jewish organizations are not publicly engaging with the concern that, for some congregations, the Trump administration’s terms force the dilemma of choosing between security and conviction. Two groups that have long championed the grant program, the Anti-Defamation League and Secure Community Network, didn’t respond to questions from JTA.

Major Jewish groups urge synagogues to seek federal security grants despite Trump’s terms

JTA Staff

(JTA) — Six major Jewish organizations that have pushed to expand federal funding for synagogue security are urging Jewish institutions to apply again for the grants despite any concerns about the Trump administration and its terms for grantees.

In an unusual joint statement, the groups say they are confident that receiving funds from the Nonprofit Security Grant Program will not require compromising religious values.

The statement does not name any particular concerns but comes shortly after some synagogues and Jewish groups said they would not apply this year because of terms requiring grantees to support federal immigration enforcement at a time when the Trump administration is mounting a major campaign against immigrants.

“While we are aware that questions have arisen on the part of certain religious institutions regarding the current year’s program criteria, our organizations strongly urge all eligible institutions to apply for this critical resource,” the major organizations said in their statement. “We are in regular contact with government officials who have affirmed their continued commitment to protecting the safety of all faith-based institutions and the values they hold.”

The statement was issued Tuesday, September 2 by Jewish Federations of North America, the Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations, the AntiDefamation League, and three groups that focus solely on Jewish security issues: the Secure Community Network, Community Security Initiative NY, and Community Security Service.

This year, $274 million is on the table.

ISRAEL

80 Modern Orthodox rabbis call for ‘moral clarity’ in the face of Gaza humanitarian crisis

Philissa Cramer

(JTA) — Dozens of Orthodox rabbis have issued “A Call for Moral Clarity, Responsibility, and a Jewish Orthodox Response in the Face of the Gaza Humanitarian Crisis,” in an addition to a recent cascade of open letters from Jewish voices responding to a hunger crisis in the Palestinian enclave nearly two years into the Israel-Hamas war there.

Unlike some of the other letters, the new letter stresses condemnation of Hamas and does not call for Israel to end the war in Gaza. Instead, the rabbis write, “Hamas’s sins and crimes do not relieve the government of Israel of its obligations to make whatever efforts are necessary to prevent mass starvation.”

The Orthodox rabbis also lament the ascendance of extremist voices in Israel, the hardening of sentiments about Palestinians, and the explosion of settler violence in the West Bank — which they refer to using the Hebrew name for the region that conveys a historic Jewish connection to the land.

“The justified anger toward Hamas has dangerously expanded by some extremists into blanket suspicion of the entire population of Gaza — children included — tarnished as future terrorists,” they write. “Meanwhile, in Yehuda and Shomron (the West Bank), extremist settler violence has resulted in the murder of civilians and has forced Palestinian villagers from their homes, further destabilizing the region.”

The signatories are largely drawn from the liberal edge of Modern Orthodoxy, and relatively few hold congregational roles.

Still, their letter is notable because Orthodox communities tend to be more politically right wing and avowedly Zionist in orientation, with young adults more often joining the Israeli army after high school or making aliyah than in non-Orthodox denominations. Some politically liberal Orthodox Jews have expressed frustration about the hardline positions being taken in their communities on Gaza and other issues.

“Orthodox Jewry, as some of Israel’s most devoted supporters, bears a unique moral responsibility,” the letter says. “We must affirm that Judaism’s vision of justice and compassion extends to all human beings.”

The letter was spearheaded by Rabbi Yosef Blau, a longtime leading rabbi at Yeshiva University’s Rabbi Isaac Elchanan Theological Seminary who retired and moved to Israel this year.

“My support of Israel and Zionism stems from my commitment to Judaism. A non-critical loyalty is contradictory to the introspection fundamental to Judaism,” Blau said in a statement. “When religion is used to justify a worship of power, it distorts basic morality.”

Other signatories to the letter include the head of Yeshivat Maale Gilboa, a seminary in Israel; the chief rabbis of Poland, Denmark, and Norway, as well as the former chief rabbi of Ireland; and the senior rabbis of prominent Orthodox congregations in Los Angeles and Washington, D.C.

JEWISH TIDEWATER

Virtual Super Sunday…

How will it work? What will be the impact? Sunday, September 14

Amy Zelenka

United Jewish Federation of Tidewater will host its first all-virtual Super Sunday on Sunday, Sept. 14. In a multi-pronged approach to fundraising, volunteers will mail, text, email, and yes, call members of the Tidewater Jewish community to talk about Campaign and the impacts of the efforts for those at home and for the Jewish People around the world.

Where Campaign dollars go

It’s important to recognize the impact of combined Campaign dollars around the community. The funds raised on Super Sunday, and throughout the Campaign, impact the programs and services the community relies on at Jewish Family Service; that ensure top-quality programs the Simon Family JCC brings to the entire Hampton Roads community – through speakers, books, films, and other art media; and that ensure access to a full spectrum of Jewish education – from early childhood to tween and teen youth groups, to Hillels, to adult education and Jewish book clubs.

The combined Campaign dollars help ensure that Jewish Tidewater is prepared for potential threats against it and that it can act swiftly in the face of antisemitism. Campaign dollars ensure that Jewish Tidewater’s voices and concerns are heard at the highest levels of state

and federal government.

Overseas, the Campaign supports the most vulnerable Jews around the world – including those who’ve endured more than three years of a brutal war in Ukraine and Israelis who’ve experienced nearly two years of ongoing trauma following the horrific events of October 7th.

communication from their assigned solicitor (looking to get a jump on Super Sunday… or soliciting in advance, because they won’t be available on Super Sunday).

Other donors may get a pledge card and return envelop in the mail, encouraging them to give right

away, so that their gifts can be counted in the Super Sunday total… and ultimately the Super Sunday impact.

Excited about stepping into these newer technologies, Campaign staff and volunteers anticipate excellent results and look forward to reaching the community and beyond to maximize Tidewater’s impact here at home and around the Jewish world.

Amy Zelenka is chief development officer for United Jewish Federation of Tidewater. She may be reached at azelenka@ujft.org.

Super Sunday allows each community member to touch many lives.

What’s new about Super Sunday this year

Traditionally, Super Sunday volunteer callers have gathered on the Sandler Family Campus equipped with cell phones and chargers to make calls. This year, when volunteers sign up, they’ll receive a calling sheet with the names of donor prospects, their contact information, and suggested “ask amount.” Then, volunteers can decide how best to make contact.

The combined Campaign dollars help ensure that Jewish Tidewater is prepared for potential threats against it and that it can act swiftly

Several campaign leaders will be recording video messages that can be shared via text.

A link in the text will allow donors to pledge or donate, right from their phones.

In the days leading up to Super Sunday, some donors may receive a phone call or other

Employment Opportunity

Next Gen Engagement Coordinator

United Jewish Federation of Tidewater is seeking an energetic and relationship-driven Next Gen Engagement Coordinator to connect Jewish young adults (ages 22–40) with meaningful community experiences, Jewish life, leadership opportunities, and philanthropy. This role may be structured as one full-time or two part-time positions.

Responsibilities include

•Building authentic relationships with young adults

•Planning and leading social, cultural, and service programs

•Developing young adult leadership opportunities

•Growing participation in Federation campaigns

Qualifications include Bachelor’s degree preferred; experience in community engagement, Jewish programming, or young adult initiatives a plus. Must be a strong communicator, creative planner, and available some evenings/weekends.

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NATION

Jerry Nadler, Congress’ most senior Jewish member, says he will not seek reelection

Philissa Cramer (JTA) — Jerrold Nadler, the New York congressman who once came armed with a Zabar’s bag to a presidential impeachment hearing, will not run for reelection, he announced on Monday, Sept. 2.

The Jewish representative also told The New York Times, where he revealed his decision to retire, that he planned to join the rapidly growing number of Democrats in voting against the continued sale of offensive weapons to Israel, citing what he said were “without question” war crimes in Gaza.

democracy. “Watching the Biden thing really said something about the necessity for generational change in the party, and I think I want to respect that,” he told The New York Times, referring to the former president who was pushed to end his reelection bid last year amid allegations of infirmity.

A babka and the constitution, what else?

“I don’t know what to say at this point,” Nadler, a longtime pro-Israel stalwart, told the newspaper. “I can’t defend what Israel is doing.”

Nadler’s retirement will deprive Congress of its most senior Jewish member, and the only one to have received an Orthodox Jewish education. He was first elected in 1992 and will exit after 34 years representing one of the most Jewish districts in the United States, covering parts of Manhattan that include the Upper West Side of Manhattan.

Nadler, 78, had previously signaled that he planned to run for another term representing the 12th Congressional District. He had already drawn a challenger, a 26-year-old Jewish Rhodes Scholar and social entrepreneur named Liam Elkind who said in his launch video that Democrats needed to “confront the gerontocracy.”

Nadler said he had grown convinced by the idea that older members of Congress should step aside to make way for younger legislators at a pivotal time for American

TRUNK

Nadler declined to comment on his potential successors to The New York Times, which reported that sources close to him said he favors his protege Micah Lasher, a state Assembly member from his district, to replace him. Lasher, who is Jewish, has not announced a bid for Congress. At least two other candidates are also planning to enter the race, City & State reported in the wake of Nadler’s announcement; the two it named are not Jewish.

Nadler maintained a reliably liberal record throughout his career, playing a role in legislation on gun control, same-sex marriage, and immigration reform. He also broke with other Jewish lawmakers from New York in voting to support the Iran nuclear deal in 2015 after withholding his backing for weeks, citing his support for Israel and its security.

His star turn came near the end of President Donald Trump’s first term, when Nadler helmed the House Judiciary Committee. There, he served as manager for two separate impeachments of Trump, one over election interference in Ukraine and one over Trump’s role in the Jan. 6, 2021, riot at the U.S. Capitol that made Trump the first president to be impeached twice.

During the second impeachment trial, C-SPAN caught Nadler carrying a trademark bag from Zabar’s, the appetizing shop in his district, into Congress. After news

organizations asked Nadler what the bag contained, the response came from Julian Gerson, his deputy press secretary: “A babka and the constitution, what else?”

Gerson is now a lead communications staffer on the mayoral campaign of Zohran Mamdani, the 33-year-old democratic socialist. Nadler made waves by being one of the first establishment Democrats to endorse Mamdani after he won the party’s primary in June.

Nadler told The New York Times that he was “not terribly optimistic” about the future of democracy in the United States, with Trump at the helm again.

The day after Trump’s reelection, he had

been among a crowd of Jews to congregate at Congregation B’nai Jeshurun, the Upper West Side synagogue where he is a member, for what one rabbi said was akin to “sitting shiva,” the Jewish communal grief ritual.

There, Nadler drew upon the Jewish education he received at the Crown Heights Yeshiva in Brooklyn, which he attended prior to being admitted to Stuyvesant High School, the elite public school.

“‘By the rivers of Babylon, we sat and wept when we remembered Zion. How shall we sing a song to the Lord in a strange land?’” Nadler said, quoting Psalm 137 and a spiritual frequently sung in American synagogues.

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On Shabbat morning in my Jerusalem synagogue, I began to see our complex world anew

Jon Polin

(JTA) —When I walked into the small, ramshackle gymnasium that is our humble synagogue on Shabbat morning this past week, pictures of the 14 children from the congregation who would be starting first grade on Monday decorated the walls. It must have been one of their parents who thought to surround the photos with quotes from my favorite Mishnah, Avot 4:1.

One drawing of “Who is wise?

The one who learns from everyone.”

One drawing of “Who is mighty?

The one who subdues their evil inclination.”

One drawing of “Who is rich?

The one who rejoices in what they have.”

One drawing of “Who is honored? The one who honors their fellow human beings.”

These are beautiful blessings for children, for all of us, including our decision-makers. It was uplifting to see.

The decorations show that what is really special about our synagogue in a corner of southeast Jerusalem is what happens when the community gathers. Every attempt to decorate the space for a bar or bat mitzvah or any other occasion is an exercise in creativity and connection.

During my year of mourning since our son Hersh was killed in captivity in Gaza, I accepted the custom to not lead prayer services as the shaliach tzibbur on Shabbat or holidays. I’m not a particularly good shaliach tzibbur anyway, but I am generally willing. When Aharon the gabbai (who organizes the services) approached me as I was absorbing the photos and teachings on the wall and asked me if I would lead the opening part of the service, the Psukei D’zimra, I was thrown momentarily. I hadn’t performed any formal task at my synagogue since the cursed morning of Oct. 7, 2023, when I was in the role that Aharon is in today, gabbai. Was I now ready to take this step out of formal mourning? “OK,” I said, and I got up and started. “Rabbi Yishmael says on 13 principles the Torah is interpreted…”

The photos of these children about to begin their educational journeys, the teachings on the wall, and my small personal step in the transition out of the community of mourners (is there ever really a way out from this group?) and back into the broader community led me to see my morning in synagogue in a sharpened light. Perhaps those few hours in my wonderful synagogue

Hostage poster for Hersh Goldberg-Polin. His body was recovered from a tunnel in Gaza on August 31, 2024.

was a microcosm of the realities, the emotional complexities, of our world today.

As every week for far too many weeks, when Torah reading began, cards with the name, photo and brief biography of each hostage were circulated. It’s so important that we know the hostages as real people, individuals with dreams and families and passions. This week, I got Eitan Horn’s card. I already knew that Eitan was visiting his brother Iair on Kibbutz Nir Oz and that he’s a Hapoel Beer Sheva fan and an informal educator who served as an emissary in Peru and is a beloved uncle and brother and son, but all the hostages’ personal stories must be continuously read and reinforced.

The Torah portion, Parashat Shoftim, contains so many lessons on national ethics and moral governance, perhaps most famously, the phrase “Tzedek Tzedek Tirdof” (justice, justice shall you pursue). Of the thousands of explanations to explain the repetitive “Tzedek Tzedek,” the one I find most compelling and relevant for us today is that one Tzedek implores us to have just goals and one Tzedek is there to ensure that the path to achieve those just goals must also be rooted in justice.

of Torah reading, for the 97th straight week, our community stood together to recite a prayer for the safe return of our beloved hostages, followed by the soulful song that has become the anthem for the hostages.

“Our brothers and sisters, the whole house of Israel, who are given over to trouble or captivity, whether they abide on the sea or on the dry land: May the All-present have mercy upon them, and bring them forth from trouble to relief, from darkness to light, and from subjugation to redemption, now speedily and at a near time. Now let us say, Amen.”

One Tzedek implores us to have just goals and one Tzedek is to ensure that the path to achieve those just goals must be rooted in justice.

We moved on to the Haftarah. A young man began the blessings in a beautiful but uncommon tune, the traditional Italian (but not Roman, as Rome has its own melody) version. I couldn’t help but to look around the room and notice, in addition to the native Israeli Sabra majority, immigrants hailing from Australia, Belgium, Canada, France, Ireland, Italy, Russia, Switzerland, the United Kingdom, the United States and elsewhere. Kibbutz Galuyot (the ingathering of the exiles) is alive and thriving — Jews from all over the world in one synagogue, united to strengthen Israel and giving all we have to make it better.

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Later in the Torah reading, friends of ours, a couple much younger than us, came up to the bimah to name their newborn daughter, a baby born into this complicated reality that must get better — a baby whose father, a doctor, performed hundreds of days of reserve duty in this ongoing war. How fitting, therefore, that they named her Roni Tzion. Roni means “sing” or “rejoice,” but it’s in the feminine command form, as if to instruct this innocent baby that she must find it in her to rejoice. Tzion is a biblical reference (first appearing in Samuel 2) to Jerusalem and subsequently used in Jewish liturgy and poetry to convey our national longing (Zionism). It’s as if, as a community, we are manifesting our national longing for something better, a reason to rejoice, in this adorable baby.

Between the sixth and seventh aliyot

As the prayers concluded, the 14 children starting first grade were seated in front of the room. In a uniquely Israeli ceremony, the grownups serenaded these children with songs about the beauty of the Aleph-Bet and the treasure trove that is education. The children ate cookies in the shape of Hebrew letters, dipped in honey. How sweet is education, Jewish education in the land of Israel. How promising is the potential of what these children will be empowered to do with this treasure trove. And how Israeli, that in their “What I wish for” notes, so many of these kids wrote, “That all our hostages will come home soon.”

With 48 hostages still held in captivity in Gaza, our Shabbat morning work would be incomplete without the 3-minute walk to a main intersection, the Oranim Junction, to join the weekly Shabbat-observant (no

MEET: Jonathan Muhlendorf, CFP® PD-ad-3eighthsV-C-Jewish News-ENVISION-121924b.indd 1 12/19/24 3:48 PM

microphones, no cameras) vigil for the hostages. Hundreds of people from southeast Jerusalem’s diverse community — men with kippot, men with uncovered heads, women in skirts, women in pants, elderly in wheelchairs, babies in strollers — joined together beseeching the Creator of the Universe, yet again, to hasten the return of our loved ones.

As I headed to Shabbat lunch, I found myself digesting the intersection of the personal and the communal, the balance between finding joy and not slowing down on the critical work to save our hostages. I find myself hoping that the small step I took in leading Psukei D’zimra may lead to

another small step for me, for my family, for our country, for Am Yisrael. Most of all, I think of our young people and of baby Roni Tzion, and I pray that soon we all find a reason, and a way, to manifest a level of sweetness and joy as we embrace the return of our 48.

Jon Polin is the father of Hersh Goldberg-Polin, who was murdered while in captivity by Hamas.

The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of JTA or its parent company, 70 Faces Media.

GAZA

International Association of Genocide Scholars says Israel’s war in Gaza constitutes genocide Former member of the board calls vote tally misleading

Philissa Cramer (JTA)

— A major association of genocide scholars has passed a resolution saying that Israel’s two-year military campaign in Gaza constitutes genocide.

Israel’s Foreign Ministry immediately rejected the determination, accusing the scholars of having been swayed by “Hamas’ campaign of lies,” and a Jewish former member of the association’s advisory board raised questions about the process leading up to the resolution.

Still, the resolution by the International Association of Genocide Scholars, announced on Monday, Sept. 2, represents a potent addition to an increasingly intense debate over Israel’s conduct in Gaza, where it has been waging war since Hamas attacked Israel from the enclave on Oct. 7, 2023.

The resolution calls Hamas’ attack “horrific” and says it constituted “international crimes” but cites casualty figures, statements of Israeli government officials, the determination of human rights groups including one in Israel and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s apparent support for relocating Gazans to conclude “that Israel’s policies and actions in Gaza meet the legal definition of genocide.”

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has scoffed at the genocide allegation, saying last month, “If we wanted to commit genocide, it would have taken exactly one afternoon.” Gaza’s Hamas-run health ministry says 63,000 people there have died in the war, out of a population of more than 2 million.

But genocide scholars say the wholesale murder of a group is not required for genocide to occur. They use a definition devised in the wake of the Holocaust and adopted by the United Nations in 1948, the same year Israel gained independence. Under the definition, genocide has occurred if some members of a group are killed or injured or the “group conditions of life” are deliberately harmed with the intent to destroy the group.

In recent months, a growing number of genocide scholars, including Jewish and Israeli ones, have said they have become convinced that Israel’s campaign meets the standard, though there remain some dissenters.

According to the scholars’ association, 86% of those voting on the resolution supported it.

A former member of the association’s advisory board, Sara Brown, who is now a regional director of the American Jewish

Committee in California, says the vote tally was misleading because most members did not vote and dissent was quashed.

“The process was a disaster from start to finish. Those of us against the resolution tried to submit our concerns for discussion but were blocked by the leadership,” Brown says. “We were promised a town hall, which is a common practice for controversial resolutions, but the president of the association reversed that. The association has also refused to disclose who were the

authors of the resolution. Anyone who considers themself a genocide scholar should feel embarrassed by this vote.”

The Times of Israel reviewed emails validating Brown’s claim that a town hall meeting had been promised and then not held, the Israeli news organization reported.

The association’s resolution came as details were emerging from a White House meeting about postwar planning for Gaza that took place last month. According to The Washington Post, the meeting focused on a proposal, developed in part by Israelis involved in a troubled U.S.-run humanitarian aid effort, to pay Gazans to leave and redevelop the territory as a resort and technology hub.

Grace Gilson (JTA) — Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced Friday, August 29 that he is “denying and revoking” the visas of Palestinian officials ahead of the United Nations General Assembly this month.

The unprecedented move will prevent members of the Palestine Liberation Organization and the Palestinian Authority from attending the General Debate where several countries, including Australia, Canada, France, the United Kingdom, and Belgium have announced plans to recognize Palestinian statehood.

“The Trump Administration has been clear: it is in our national security interests to hold the PLO and PA accountable for not complying with their commitments, and for undermining the prospects for peace,” Rubio said in a statement.

The move represents a major break with precedent. The United States typically allows foreign leaders to attend U.N. meetings even if they are on the outs with the U.S. government. Iranian officials and Russian officials have regularly attended meetings at the U.N., for example.

But the Trump administration has shown unusual willingness to use its visa-granting authority to advance an ideological agenda, including by revoking

the visas of students who participated in pro-Palestinian protests at their universities.

PA President Mahmoud Abbas said the revocation “stands in clear contradiction to international law” in a statement urging the United States to reconsider the move. Abbas was recommended to be included in the ban, according to an internal State Department memo obtained by the New York Post.

Abbas was also expected to attend a high-level meeting on Sept. 22 co-chaired by France and Saudi Arabia about brokering a two-state solution.

Abbas, 89, is widely seen as essential to developing any plan for postwar governance in Gaza. He has shown willingness to have PA security forces cooperate with the Israeli security forces and, in June, condemned Hamas’ Oct. 7, 2023, attack on Israel for the first time.

In his statement, Rubio called on the PA to “end its attempts to bypass negotiations through international lawfare campaigns, including appeals to the ICC and ICJ, and efforts to secure the unilateral recognition of a conjectural Palestinian state.”

The Palestinian ambassador to the U.N., Riyad Mansour, told reporters that

he was assessing how the move would apply to his delegation, adding that they would “respond accordingly.”

Israel’s foreign minister, Gideon Saar, applauded the move. Israel opposes any efforts to create a Palestinian state.

“Thank you @SecRubio for holding the ‘PLO’ and PA accountable for rewarding terrorism, incitement and efforts to use legal warfare against Israel,” he tweeted. “We thank @POTUS and the Administration for this bold step and for standing by Israel once again.”

Rubio’s move did not immediately ignite widespread reactions from Jewish

groups. But it drew strong condemnation from Hadar Susskind, the president and CEO of New Jewish Narrative, a progressive Zionist organization.

“The Trump administration is doing more than just shooting itself in the foot. It is playing into the hands of Hamas,” said Susskind in a statement. “A better future for Israelis and Palestinians depends on the establishment of a Palestinian state. We want that state to be led by political factions that recognize Israel. That’s who governs the Palestinian Authority. That’s who the Trump administration is denying entry to.”

JEWISH TIDEWATER

Why I believe in Tidewater’s Jewish tomorrow

Eddie Kramer

A year ago, I became chair of Tidewater Jewish Foundation. I am extremely honored to be in this position, especially considering all of those who have previously served in this role. I only hope to fill their shoes while trying to help guide this amazing organization in ways I hope they approve. I am also extremely grateful for our donors and partners, and this wonderful community I try my best to serve. We are truly blessed by each one of you. We are a small and vibrant community that truly understands the necessity of planning and building for our future.

I became active at TJF because I believe in our community and its future, and I want to help us preserve our Jewish community. We have the opportunity and obligation to strengthen our organizations

by building on the foundations that will keep them running for years to come and making sure they will be around to serve our children and grandchildren.

This legacy commitment is one I hope every member of our great community can endorse. Our goal is to triple our current assets under management from $160,000,000 to $500,000,000 – and those aren’t just numbers. This is our promise to each other: that every child will have access to a Jewish education; that every Jewish organization will have the best available security so that their practice can go on uninterrupted; that every family in need will have that support available, that every institution we cherish will have the resources to not just survive, but thrive.

This tripling of our assets under management represents the combination

of what we have today, and what promises have been made for tomorrow. It’s a longterm strategy built on short-term trust.

That is trust you have placed in our Tidewater Jewish Foundation and in some respects, your trust in me. Our Foundation has the most incredible professionals.

Naomi Limor Sedek, Randy Parrish, Amy Weinstein, Craig Bailey, Ann Swindell, and Kim King tirelessly endeavor to make our community stronger and help us reach these lofty goals. Our board of directors are some of the

best, brightest, and finest of our incredible community. I get the honor of serving with Paul Peck, Sandra Porter Leon, Richard Saunders, Neil Rose, Jay Klebanoff, Kim Fink, Byron Harrell, and Charlie Nusbaum as my executive committee, to name just a few.

As a Foundation, our focus this year has been crystal clear: be the best possible stewards of this community’s generosity. That means smarter investing. Stronger partnerships with our agencies and congregations. Deeper relationships with our donors. And a renewed commitment to education, helping families and advisors alike understand how legacy giving can turn private values into public good.

We’re also thinking about the future in new ways, creating tools and conversations that speak to the next generation of philanthropists. We’re helping young people understand that giving isn’t something you wait to do when you’re older. It’s something you grow into, and we’re showing them how.

Our job isn’t just to manage money. It’s to inspire movement and to build bridges between generations. We need to make sure that when the torch is passed, it’s burning even brighter. One thing my Eagle Scout father, Pete Kramer, inculcated in me was to leave everything behind in better shape than you found it.

On behalf of TJF’s board, thank you. Thank you for your trust, your partnership, and your belief in what we’re building together.

Let’s keep going.

Let’s keep giving.

Let’s keep growing.

Eddie Kramer is Tidewater Jewish Foundation’s board chair.

Eddie Kramer.

At the Tidewater Jewish Foundation, we believe legacy is one of the most powerful ways to shape a meaningful future.

Through the Life & Legacy Program, your gift of any size can help sustain the organizations, values, and traditions that define Jewish Tidewater

Let the coming year be a time of intention and action. A time to listen for what matters most. A time to answer the call to build something that lasts.

Learn more at foundation.jewishva .org /legacy or contact: Amy Weinstein at 757-965-6114 or aweinstein@tjf va .org

Rosh Hashanah

Dear Readers,

It’s true, the High Holidays are arriving, and this year, they feel “just on time.” The humidity is gone, leaves are falling, and plans are underway for festive dinner and lunch gatherings. With Erev Rosh Hashanah on Monday, September 22, the Jewish New Year, 5786, is just weeks away.

Like so many of the recent holiday seasons, this one is set up to be like none other. The joke about getting three Jews in a room and having at least four opinions isn’t as funny as it once was as those diverse opinions are resulting in fractions between families, friends, congregations, and literally all communities.

To grab a phrase from the Beach Boys, “wouldn’t it be nice” if we all entered the holidays putting down our differences and focusing not on the war in Gaza or on U.S. politics, but rather on those we love, the prayers we read, the melodies of the season, and the privilege of being able to gather to observe and celebrate a new year? An editor can only hope.

May we all find ample peace and sweetness on Rosh Hashanah to sustain us throughout the year.

L’Shana Tovah,

Terri Denison Editor

Rosh Hashanah Honey’s sweetness at Rosh Hashanah

Stephanie Peck

Honey is an integral ingredient for Rosh Hashanah, as Jews worldwide dip both challah and apples into this golden, syrupy liquid as part of their New Year traditions. But honey comes from a bee, an insect that stings and creates pain. Why isn’t the sweet apple enough to celebrate Rosh Hashanah?

According to Sweet Stings, an article on Chabad.org, two types of sweetness are experienced throughout one’s life.

Family celebrations, career success, and other joyous moments are sweet like an apple.

Yet another, different type of sweetness comes from times of challenge, when life throws an unexpected curveball and a person’s spirit is tested. These moments sting like a bee. But when the unfortunate struggles can be overcome, the sweetness symbolized by honey is a special sort of experience.

While there are many ways to dispense honey, many families own a honey pot or honey jar which features prominently during the High Holidays. Whether a wedding gift, a family heirloom, or handmade object, the honey pots described here have special meaning and provenance to these community members who share their stories.

celebrate the holiday, is one of Bonnie Brand’s favorite times. Along with this honey pot, purchased on Amazon after her ceramic one broke, she adorns her table with fruitfilled branches from her pomegranate tree.

Betsy Karotkin’s hand-made honey pot honors brother-in-law

This ceramic honey pot was created by Betsy Karotkin for the High Holidays during her years as a potter. The inscription, “Fred’s Honey,” refers to her brother-in-law, Fred Karotkin, a veterinarian who also raised bees and tended their hive.

An expanding collection for Darcy and Robert Bloch

When Darcy and Robert Bloch got married 38 years ago, they received three glass honey jars as wedding gifts. They’ve used them all (only one broke). When hosting family and friends for Rosh Hashanah, they received four more honey pots as gifts.

The Blochs fill them all with honey and put them out, so everyone has easy access when they dip the apple into honey and to spread it on challah at the meal.

Bonnie Brand’s honey pot is part of her festive spread

Hosting a festive dinner erev Rosh Hashanah, when some of her adult children travel to Virginia Beach to

Each year, Karotkin and her husband, Ed, would receive the fruits of this bee labor and enjoy Fred’s honey in his eponymous ceramic honey jar.

served him his meal along with a honey bear that said, “I only want to bee Mr. Kahn’s honey.”

The honey bear is long gone, but Kaufman is fortunate to be the keeper of the honey pot that sat on the table in her grandparents’ home for as long as she can remember. It traveled with them wherever they moved and always found a place on their table. It’s now 90 years old, and she treasures it for the memories it brings of special times and loving family.

Nancy Peck’s heirloom honey pot

This bee honey pot is an heirloom handed down by Nancy Peck’s grandmother, Eva Botnick Davis of Nashville, Tennessee. The bee currently resides in Boca Raton, Florida, with Janet Peck, her daughter, and the fourth generation to use this now antique honey pot.

Memories of grandparents for Alene Jo Kaufman with

her honey pot

Alene Jo Kaufman's paternal grandfather, Allen R. Kahn, was a unique individual, she says. Born in Mikado Michigan, and one of 10 children, his father owned the local, rural, general store. With no more than an eighthgrade education, Kahn became a successful businessman who traveled the world.

He believed in the healing nature of honey, she says. In fact, Kaufman thinks he ate honey at most meals – and everyone knew it. The restaurant where he ate his ‘businessman’s lunch’ daily,

Rona

and Cantor David Proser’s favorite honey pots

Rona and Cantor David Proser have various honey containers that they use for Rosh Hashanah. Of them all, two stand out for special memories.

One was purchased in the late 1980s on Rodeo Drive in Beverly Hills during a trip to visit family. The Prosers spotted it in a store window. Not only was it unique, but it was also the only item in that store that they could afford at the time. It is a glass and metal representation of a honeybee, with wings that close as a lid. The Prosers always pair it with a Rosh Hashanah mat created by their younger daughter, Maura, in first grade at Hebrew Academy.

The other object is a moretraditional ceramic honey jar with an apple plate by Israeli artist Renee Vichinsky. This set was purchased at a Certificates in Advanced Jewish Educations (CAJE) conference where Proser was recognized as one of the Jewish Educators of the Year, along with all the principals of Jewish supplementary schools, by the Jewish Education Council of UJFT in May of 2000.

Betsy Karotkin’s honey pot.

Alene Jo Kaufman’s honey pot.

Darcy and Robert Bloch’s honey pots.

Nancy Peck’s honey pot.

Bonnie Brand’s honey pot.

Rona and David Proser’s honey pot.

Please join Temple Israel for the 2019/5780 holidays!

Please join Temple Israel for the 2025/5786 holidays!

Please join Temple Israelforthe 2019/5780 holidays!

Celebrate the fullness ofJewish worship with us as togetherwe find spiritual meaning in the words of our sages. Youwill finda heartygreetingfroma warm congregationthatembracesboththetimelessandtheinnovative.

Come join us and let us welcome you home.

Rosh Hashanah

Celebrate the fullness of Jewish worship with us as together we find spiritual meaning in the words of our sages. You will find a hearty greeting from a warm congregation that embraces both the timeless and the innovative. Come join us and let us welcome you home.

Celebrate the fullness ofJewish worship with us as togetherwe find spiritual meaning in the words of our sages. Youwill finda heartygreetingfroma warm congregationthatembracesboththetimelessandtheinnovative.

Come join us and let us welcome you home.

Area Jewish college students celebrate and observe holidays away from home

Sam Nossen

Each year, more than 200,000 Jewish students leave home to attend institutions of higher learning in the United States and Canada. Most of these teenagers have celebrated the High Holidays with their families their entire lives – never apart from them.

Still, these university students have found ways to observe and celebrate the holidays... and to enjoy them.

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We wish you and your family a happy, healthy, and prosperous New Year!

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Casey Barkan

University of Virginia

Going into college, I was nervous about how I was going to keep my family traditions throughout the High Holidays. But I found new communities and traditions through the Hillel and Chabad that kept the high holidays meaningful for me.

Tufts

I typically go to the Conservative services offered at Tufts Hillel.

Tulane

During the year for Shabbat, I either go to Chabad or Hillel. Generally, for the High Holidays, I go to Hillel so I can celebrate the holidays with fellow Jewish students. Not only is it a great way to practice our religion but also an opportunity to meet other Jewish students.

I would say being at school is arguably better than being at home because it provides me with an opportunity to meet new people and gain new perspectives of how people practice Judaism. However, nothing beats sitting around a table eating a homemade Rosh Hashanah meal with family and friends.

I am further from home than a lot of people so I can’t really go home during the High Holidays, but it’s a welcoming place that honestly offers as good an experience as I can get away from home.

Sam Nossen

William and Mary

For me, celebrating Rosh Hashanah at school is very similar to celebrating it at home; I attend dinner at Chabad in the evening and then services in the morning. The rabbi and rebbetzin make being away from home for the holidays easier by providing me with an opportunity to eat a homecooked meal, connect with fellow Jews, and participate in something that gives me a sense of normality.

While being at school for Rosh Hashanah can’t beat being at home, having a place to go and feel welcome is nice.

Jack Gross

Micah Baum

Rosh Hashanah

THIS SEPHARDI ROSH HASHANAH SOUP IS STEEPED IN SYMBOLISM

My mother’s simanim soup is full of blessings for the new year.

Sharon Gomperts and Rachel Sheff

This story originally appeared on The Nosher.

Every Rosh Hashanah, my mother Rica made a special and delicious simanim soup, which contained all the “simanim” (signs), symbolic vegetables that are used in the Sephardic Rosh Hashanah seder. Rooted in Kabbalah and with a clever play on the Aramaic names of the vegetables, at the seder, Sephardim say blessings over these vegetables, which include butternut squash, zucchini, and Swiss chard.

My mother and father were born in Larache, an ancient port city founded by the Phoenicians on the northwestern coast of Morocco. Providentially located where the Loukkos River meets the Atlantic Ocean, Larache is the most important city in the Tetouan-Tanger region of Morocco. Larache is also where my ancestors found refuge after the Expulsion from Spain in 1492.

My paternal grandfather Salomon Emquies was the proprietor of a spice shop (so appropriate that Sharon and I are the Sephardic Spice Girls). My maternal grandfather Moshe Bensabat was the chief Rabbi of Larache. He was the mohel, the shochet and conducted all the weddings.

One of the last wedding ceremonies that he performed before he made aliyah (emigrated to Israel) was that of my parents. Soon after, my parents moved to Casablanca, where my two older brothers and I were born.

When we emigrated to Los Angeles, my parents brought the jewelry that both sets of grandparents gifted my mother. They brought the menorah they had received as a wedding gift from her parents. And

they brought with them the rich religious traditions of their childhood homes.

A treasured Spanish Moroccan custom, this recipe has been handed down over generations. This soup includes apples for a “sweet year,” as well as beef cheek meat or beef neck bones, which symbolize the ram’s head and the fervent wish that we should be “the head and not the tail.”

In making this soup, my mother would soak the leeks and Swiss chard. She would peel the apple, carrots, sweet potatoes, and turnip. She would patiently chop all the vegetables. Then everything would slowly simmer with the meat in a big pot.

After the brachot (blessings), my mother would serve this nutritious, flavorful soup as the first course of our meal, a tasty connection to the many generations that came before us, passing down the faith and the Mesorah (Oral Torah).

Over time, as more and more of my family became vegetarian, my mother started making this soup without meat. This year, I want to go back and make my mother’s original recipe. To accommodate all my guests, I will cook the meat cheeks separately in my pressure cooker, then the

meat eaters can add it to their bowl of soup.

Notes:

• This recipe makes a very large pot, so you should have enough to serve this soup for two meals.

• Store soup in a tightly sealed container in the refrigerator for 5-7 days.

• Total Time: 3 hours 35 minutes

• Yield: A lot!

Ingredients

For the meat:

• 3–4 lbs beef cheek meat

• ¼ cup olive oil

• 1 large onion, finely diced

• 2 bay leaves

• 1 tsp salt

• ½ tsp white pepper

• pinch of saffron (optional)

• 1 cup water

For the soup:

• ¼ cup olive oil

• 4 leeks, washed thoroughly and sliced thinly

• 1 bunch Swiss chard, with stem removed and chopped thinly

• 2 cups butternut squash, cubed (or acorn or Delicata squash)

• 1 large green apple or quince, peeled, and cubed

• 2 large zucchini, peeled and diced

• 2 small sweet potatoes, peeled and cubed

• 4 medium Yukon gold potatoes, peeled and cubed

• 1 large turnip, peeled and cubed

• 4 celery stalks, diced

• 3 large carrots, peeled and diced

• 2 parsnip, peeled and diced

• ½ small cabbage, thinly sliced

• 2 Tbsp chicken consommé powder

• ½ tsp white pepper

• 1 tsp turmeric

• salt, to taste

Instructions

1. For the meat: In a pressure cooker or large pot, add oil and warm over medium heat. Add onion and sauté for 5 minutes. Add meat, bay leaf and spices. Cook for 1 hour in a pressure cooker or until tender in the pot.

2. For the soup: In a very large pot warm oil over medium heat, then add sliced leeks. Sauté for 5 minutes until they start to soften.

3. Add all the ingredients, except Swiss chard, zucchini, and butternut squash (set them aside).

4. Pour enough water to cover the top of the vegetables. Bring to a boil, cover the pot then lower heat to medium and simmer vegetables for 1 hour.

5. Add the zucchini and butternut squash. Simmer for another 30 minutes.

6. Add the Swiss chard, continue to cook on a simmer for an additional 30 minutes. Taste and adjust seasoning.

Rosh Hashanah

A Sephardic Rosh Hashanah

Stephanie Peck

Ashkenazi traditions are so pervasive in Jewish American communities, that many – Jews and non-Jews – think that those traditions are THE Jewish ways to observe and celebrate holidays. Those of Sephardic and Mizrahi heritage would most likely disagree.

In fact, a new report commissioned by JIMENA (Jews Indigenous to the Middle East and North Africa) estimates that Sephardic and Mizrahi Jews in the United States comprise 10 percent of the American Jewish population and that these denominations have higher rates of Jewish communal participation, a stronger connection to Israel, and the lowest intermarriage rates. Sephardim and Mizrahim say that being Jewish is somewhat or very much a part of their daily life compared to Ashkenazi Jews.

called simanim, represent positive outcomes for the year ahead. Each carries a special significance: dates for peace, green beans for prosperity, and a pomegranate for mitzvot, among others. As participants go through the foods on the seder plate, members bless each food and connect it to a wish for the year ahead.

And, from those groups stem unique traditions.

For the Jewish New Year, for example, Sephardic Jews, who observe Jewish customs from Spain, and Mizrahi Jews, who observe customs of the Middle East and North Africa, often host a Rosh Hashanah seder, which includes a series of special foods eaten as symbols of positive omens for a good new year.

Jewish Tidewater’s Jackie Dratch, Avidan Itzak, and Dinah Halioua share some of their families’ traditions here.

Jackie Dratch, whose family is Israeli with a Mizrahi background, says she loves turning to Jewish traditions to help ground her into the current season and moment in time. She explains that the symbolic foods of Rosh Hashanah,

Avidan Itzak’s family prepares a customary seder, where they eat roasted leeks and choose to feature a fish head on the table to represent Rosh Hashanah, or the head of the year. Itzak adds that his paternal grandparents in Israel include a sheep’s head at their meal, which symbolizes the ram that spared Isaac.

Originally from Tunisia and France, Dinah Halioua (pronounced al-ee-wah), finds preparing for the Rosh Hashanah seder far more time-consuming than the Passover seder. In advance of the holiday, she purchases the “feuilles de miel,” (honey leaves), a document which provides a stepby-step guide to observing the holiday, including the calendar dates to visit the cemetery, the days during which you cannot marry, and all of the brachot

or blessings for the Rosh Hashanah holiday.

She then travels to seven or eight stores to gather the ingredients for her meals: a Lebanese store for fava beans, an Asian shop for dates, and a Korean supplier for fish. Her Rosh Hashanah meal typically consists of four or five salads, a quiche, spicy fish, and pkaila, a dish of beans, meat, sausage, and spinach that accompanies every celebration, including a bris. “Yoyo,” or fried donut, serves as dessert, accompanied by debla, or thin, fried dough that is cut into strips, shaped into a rose and dipped in honey. “We make everything round,” Halioua adds.

explains how her mother-in-law cooked a soup of seven vegetables and meat in place of the salads, and spinach was served as a separate dish.

Not until arriving in the United States had Halioua seen the custom of baking challah with apples and honey.

For the motzi, or blessing over the challah, Halioua and her family dip the bread into sugar.

Two blessings are offered for the apple: one dipped in honey and the other dipped in honey and sesame seeds, to signify the multiplying of the Jewish population.

Halioua’s husband of 55 years, Raphael, is from Morocco, and while both spouses are Sephardic, his traditions differ slightly from her customs. Halioua

“I do it with love,” Halioua says about all of the prep in advance of the holiday. “It’s a lot of work but you have to remember your parents. That’s what my mother taught me.”

Avidan and Andie Itzak and their daughter, Liel.

Jackie and Ben Dratch with their son, Ari Zvi, and daughter, Noa Hanna.

Aaron and Maurice Levy, Matt and Bellamy Baldwin, Dinah Halioua, Gabrielle Baldwin, Raphaël Halioua, Rebecca and Nessim Halioua, and Cora Baldwin in the center at Pesach 2022.

Sweet savings

Rosh Hashanah

Not to Mt. Moriah

In the Wetzlar, Germany, D.P. Camp, Late 1940’s, my Grandpa Tzvi would Take me, a toddler, on long daily walks, Gratefully never ending at Mt. Moriah,

To placate the God of Death who Consumed so many, too many,

Of my family members,

But his lech-lecha calling was

To bring his prized possession, A consolation prize, if there is such,

To the davening minyan of weeping Survivors bowed in indescribable

Grief-scaring a little child to no end–

As I became the found Sefer Torah

To be fondled by disillusioned though Praying Jews, enticing them to yet

Believe that the God of Life returned

To their shaken midst the desecrated, Defiled Torah to be cleansed and fit Again to lead!

Rabbi Dr. Israel Bobrov Zoberman is founding rabbi of Temple Lev Tikvah, and Honorary Senior Rabbi Scholar at Eastern Shore Chapel Episcopal Church, both in Virginia Beach.

Rosh Hashanah

A BISSEL of YIDDISH

A combination of High German and Hebrew, Yiddish is a language historically spoken by Ashkenazi Jews. Efforts are underway to keep the language alive through clubs, Youtube videos, classes, books, and performances.

In Tidewater, the Yiddish Club is making a comeback. Attendees at the monthly meetings are embracing Yiddish culture, language, and history with music, film, poetry, and literature. For information, go to www.Jewishva.org/YiddishClub.

A bissel of Yiddish for Rosh Hashanah Community High Holidays events

Through A Bissel of Yiddish, Jewish News hopes to introduce and remind readers of a few Yiddish words and phrases. Bissel is Yiddish for ‘little,’ by the way.

Harry Graber is researching and compiling each installment.

YIDDISH

WORD FOR THE HOLIDAY

Good Yontif

Ashkenazi Jews traditionally say “Good Yontif” before or during a holiday.

From Chabad.org: In biblical Hebrew, a holiday is known as a chag. In later years, this term was joined by yom tov, which literally means “good day.” Among Yiddish speaking Jews, this was often contracted into something sounding more like yontif. And when

one wanted to wish his fellow a good yom tov, they would say gut yontif, which was often contracted into guchontif.

As Yiddish speakers poured into the U.S. at the end of the 19th and start of the 20th centuries, gut yontif was anglicized into “Good Yontif.”

YIDDISH PHRASES FOR THE HOLIDAY

Mir Vintshen eich a gut yor, a zis yor un a gebentsht yor. We wish you a good year, a sweet year, and a blessed year.

Ir zolt zeine farshraybed aun tsetsliptin in der bukh fun leyben fa a yuhr fun. Gezunt, simkhe aun shalom. May you be inscribed and sealed in the Book of Life for a year of health, happiness, and peace.

Ir zult namen eyerer kinder mit zich tzi dem yam odder taykh far avekh varfen dayn aveirahs beshas zogn der Tashlikh tefillah.

You should take your children with you to the river or ocean to throw away your sins during the saying of the Tashlich prayer.

Celebrate Rosh Hashanah with a little extra fun when some congregations in Tidewater provide offerings that extend beyond traditional services.

Chabad of Tidewater

Pre Rosh Hashanah Apple Babka Bake. Mix, knead, and roll your own apple babka. Create unique Shana Tova cards and enjoy dinner, too.

Sunday, September 14, 4:30 - 6:30 pm $15/person

RSVP: 757-616-0770

Rosh Hashanah Community Dinner. A delicious Rosh Hashanah dinner available both nights of Rosh Hashanah.

5786 - 2025

Monday and Tuesday, September 22 and 23, 8:30 pm

RSVP required by Wednesday September 17, 12 pm: 757-616-0770.

Jewish Virginia Beach

Challah bake. Learn, braid, and bake your own challah. Say Lechayim to a sweet and blessed New Year.

Thursday, September 11, 6:30 - 8:30 pm

$25/person

Location TBD

RSVP: 757-208-3696

Temple Emanuel

Rosh Hashanah Dinner.

Kosher dinner in the social hall after services. The main dish is salmon or vegetarian option. September 23, 7:15 - 9 pm

$25 ages 13+, $7.50 ages 6-12, free ages five and under. $30 nonmembers ages 13+,

$12.50 nonmembers ages 6-12

Reservations required by September 15: contact the office to pay by check 757-428-2591 or office@tevb.org.

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Chris Sisler, Vice President, Member of Ohef Sholom Temple, Board member of the Berger-Goldrich Home at Beth Sholom Village, James E. Altmeyer, Jr., President, James E. Altmeyer, Sr., Owner

Rosh Hashanah

These easy Israeli honey cookies are iconic

It isn’t Rosh Hashanah without duvshaniyot.

Vered Guttman

This story originally appeared on The Nosher.

Apples dipped in honey and honey cakes are popular across the Jewish world around Rosh Hashanah. But if you grew up in Israel, you most likely came across a unique variation of honey treats: duvshaniyot. These dense, dark, round honey cookies are a must in many families’ High Holidays nosh rotation.

The modest duvshaniyot (their name derives from the Hebrew word dvash, meaning honey) seem to have been part of the Israeli repertoire forever and you can find them on the cookie shelves in every supermarket in the country. They are cheap, pareve, and last forever, so no wonder they have become a regular for Rosh Hashanah afternoon tea, for breaking the fast on Yom Kippur, and for dipping in a cold glass of milk in the sukkah. But these unassuming cookies hold a long history, as most Jewish and Israeli dishes do.

People sometimes confuse pryaniki with German lebkuchen (aka gingerbread cookies), but it is rare to see ginger added to these classic Russian cookies, and even lebkuchen don’t always have ginger in them. Traditionally, pryaniki were spiced with cinnamon, nutmeg, cardamom, coriander, and even black pepper and cumin. In fact, their name, pryaniki, comes from the Russian word for spiced, pryanik. Different versions of pryaniki can be found around Eastern Europe, like piernik in Poland and lect cookies in Slovenia, which are heartshaped, painted red, and artfully decorated with colorful icing. These Eastern European versions were traditionally served around Christmas, but were adapted by Jews for their own holidays, mainly Rosh Hashanah, for the use of the symbolic honey.

States. But maybe because duvshaniyot are readily available in every supermarket, most Israelis do not prepare them at home. That’s a shame, because as is the case with most baked goods, homemade is better. And when the recipe is as easy as the one below, there’s no reason not to.

You can add any of the classic gingerbread cookie spices (cinnamon, nutmeg, cardamom, coriander, clove, and even black pepper and cumin) as well as cocoa powder, strong coffee or chopped chocolate. Candied citrus peel or any tart candied fruit, as well as citrus zest. You can try to replace some of the flour with rye flour to be closer to the original Russian version or replace some of the flour with almond meal and make it closer to the German lebkuchen. It’s up to you.

Some recipes, including centuries-old recipes, suggest letting the dough rest for a few hours and up to a week before baking the cookies. This will deepen its flavors and will make rolling the dough easier. But even if you bake it right away, the cookies will improve with time, so I suggest baking them at least two days before serving. You can easily prepare them the week before Rosh Hashanah and then serve them for break the fast on Yom Kippur.

• 1/8 tsp black pepper

• 2 large eggs, at room temperature

• 1 tsp lemon or orange zest

• 1 tsp baking powder

• ¼ tsp baking soda

• 2 ½ cups all-purpose flour (you can substitute half with rye flour)

For the sugar glaze:

• 2 cups powdered sugar

• 1 tsp lemon juice

• 2–3 Tbsp water

Instructions

1. Place a saucepan with ½ inch water on a burner and turn to medium heat. Put a large metal or glass bowl over the saucepan and bring water to simmer. Once the water boils, add honey, sugar, butter and spices to the bowl and mix until butter melts and all the ingredients incorporate. Remove bowl from the heat and let cool for about 30 minutes.

2. Add eggs and lemon zest to the bowl and mix.

3. Add baking powder, baking soda and flour to the mixture and mix with a wooden spoon or a spatula until smooth. Cover bowl and place in the fridge for 4 hours and up to overnight.

Duvshaniyot are the Israeli adaptation of a popular Russian cookie called pryaniki. Dating back to medieval Russia, pryaniki were made with honey, rye flour, and berry juice, and were known simply as “honey bread.” Starting around the 12th or 13th centuries, when Russia started opening up to imports from the Middle East and India, spices and dried fruit were added to the cookie. In different regions throughout Russia, people experimented with new additions to this cookie, from jam filling to a later invention of sweetened condensed milk. Some versions were imprinted using delicate wooden forms, and some were simply rolled by hand and dipped in sugar glaze — the same version that’s still popular in Israel today.

From Eastern Europe, the little honey cookie made its way to Israel and the United States. The Settlement Cook Book, a classic 1901 American Jewish cookbook by Lizzie Black Kander, includes two versions of lebkuchen, both with citrus and almonds, but no ginger. Even more interesting, is that neither include honey, but instead call for brown sugar or molasses.

An early Israeli cookbook, “Folklore Cookbook” by Molly Bar-David, has recipes for honey cookies that are similar to pryaniki and for lebkuchen. Bar-David suggests adding ginger to the honey cookies and calls for margarine instead of butter, maybe to keep the cookies pareve.

Today, Israeli manufacturers of duvshaniyot must be doing a good job, as I notice the same Israeli brand cookies at many Russian stores in the United

Notes:

• The cookie dough needs to chill in the refrigerator, or up to overnight.

• The cookies will improve with time, so I suggest baking them at least two days before serving, though you can keep them in a sealed container at room temperature up to a month.

• Total Time: 4 hours 35 minutes

• Yield: 30 cookies

Ingredients

For the cookies:

• ¾ cup honey

• ¼ cup light or dark brown sugar

• ½ cup butter

• 1 tsp cinnamon

• ½ tsp each cardamom, ginger, nutmeg, allspice

4. When you’re ready to bake, turn the oven to 350°F. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.

5. Use your hands to roll 1-inch-round cookies and place them 2 inches apart on the baking sheet.

6. Bake for 13-15 minutes, switching between baking sheets after 7 minutes, until cookies are just golden at the bottom. Do not over-bake, as the cookies will become too hard. Transfer to a cooling rack until completely cold.

7. To make the sugar glaze, mix powdered sugar, lemon juice, and 2 Tbsp water with a spoon in a medium bowl. If the mixture seems too dry, add up to 1 Tbsp more water and keep on mixing until a smooth glaze is formed.

8. Dip the cookie tops in the glaze and put back on the cooling rack to set.

Rosh Hashanah

The Art of the High Holidays: A Jewish Art Education virtual presentation

Sunday, September 21, 7 pm $9 (half a chai*) - $36

Rosh Hashanah (Head of the Year) and Yom Kippur (Day of Atonement) will come to life through 1,500 years of Jewish art with the virtual presentation, The Art of the High Holidays.

Presented by Jewish Art Education, Joanna Homrighausen, Ph.D will offer a chronological and topical overview of visual art objects and their symbolism related to these two holidays. Powerful art will be included in a slideshow along with an in-depth narration.

Joanna Homrighausen writes and teaches at the intersection of sacred text, lettering arts, and scribal crafts. She earned her PhD in Religion (Hebrew Bible) at Duke University and now teaches Religious Studies at the College of William & Mary, where she has taught the biblical Hebrew sequence, the history of ancient Israel, and first-year writing seminars. Homrighausen is the author of Planting Letters and Weaving Lines: Calligraphy, the Song of Songs, and The Saint John’s Bible (Liturgical Press, 2022). She also co-leads, with poet Fred Levy, a monthly Torah study for Temple Sinai in Newport News, Va.

For more information and to register, go to www.jarted.org.

L’Shanah Tovah! Best wishes for a sweet year in S5786.

Rosh Hashanah

Here's how to turn ‘epic fails’ into fresh starts

Rabbi Elana Zelony RICHARDSON, Texas (JTA) -- Urbandictionary.com is an opensource site where the average citizen contributes definitions to new and old words and slang. As the High Holidays approach, I’ve been contemplating the phrase “epic fail.” According to one entry on Urbandictionary.com, epic fail means “complete and total failure when success should have been reasonably easy to attain.”

Epic fail defines most of the sins I contemplate during the High Holidays. I should have been able to succeed, but I didn’t because I’m human and I have weaknesses. I spend the period that begins with the Hebrew month of Elul and culminates with Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur thinking of the many times when I

easily could have been more kind, patient, and optimistic.

It’s not that I’m incapable of those behaviors; I have a normal psyche and can be a good person. However, as a human I failed to be my best self during the past year on numerous occasions.

I know I’m not alone in my epic fail. Look at the stories we’re told about the Jewish people in the Torah.

The epic fail of the Jewish people was worshipping the Golden Calf, and the epic fail of Moses was smashing the Ten Commandments carved with God’s own finger. All the people had to do was wait until Moses returned with God’s law, but they panicked during their leader’s absence and sought security in a golden image. All Moses had to do was reprimand the people. Instead he flies

into a rage and smashes the holy tablets. They were capable of doing better.

Here’s the good news. Elul, the month leading up to the High Holidays, is one of contemplation. According to the midrash, on the first day of Elul, Moses began carving a second set of tablets with his own hands.

Carving the second set of tablets is about starting over again after failure.

The High Holidays cycle demands that we examine the ways we have failed, but it also gives us the strength to start anew. On the first of Elul (August 25 this year), we began re-carving our own smashed tablets. It’s hard work to hew meaning out of stone, but the effort leads to renewed relationship and hope for the future.

Some choose to gather in small

groups before the holidays, using the time to spiritually prepare. If local Elul classes aren’t possible, check out websites to help with your preparation for the High Holidays during Elul, including Jewels of Elul and Ritual Well.

On Rosh Hashanah, if I see the blisters on my friends and family’s hands, I’ll point to my own. We’ll nod knowingly and smile at one another. We’ll affirm the hard work that went into re-carving ourselves. Together, we’ll celebrate the New Year as an opportunity to start all over again.

Rabbi Elana Zelony, the spiritual leader of Congregation Beth Torah in Richardson, Texas, and is a member of Rabbis Without Borders, a network that emphasizes pluralism, innovation, and service in the rabbinate.

5 7 8 6

TIDEWATER’S SAUL BRODSKY BECOMES A SCRIBE IN ISRAEL

Stephanie Peck

Saul Brodsky credits his Jewish faith to his mother, Wendy Einhorn Brodsky. “My mom is genuine about her Jewish identity and practice,” he says when describing the trajectory of his Jewish journey beginning in Norfolk attending Temple Israel to studying at a yeshiva and becoming an observant Jew.

At 33 years old, Brodsky now works as a Sofer, or scribe, in Israel, handwriting Jewish text and prayers that are found in tefillin, mezuzahs, Torahs, and other religious objects.

The road to becoming a Sofer was not a direct route for Brodsky. During his junior year at University of Virginia, Brodsky travelled with a group to Israel for 17 days with orthodox Rabbi Benzion Klatzko and Olami, an organization aimed at revitalizing Jewish engagement among young adults. During this trip, Brodsky says, he was “exposed to themes and concepts of Judaism” that had seemed lofty to him but then became practical and real. The experience made him want to study in Israel. Still, he returned to school, graduated, and accepted a position with Credit Suisse in New York City. He felt strongly, however, the call to return to Israel and study at a yeshiva. So, he made the move for two years studying at Machon Yaakov. Upon returning to the United States, he studied for LSAT and applied to law schools.

Even with multiple acceptances, Brodsky opted to return to Israel, met and married his wife, Adina, a clinical social worker, and ultimately completed six years of yeshiva education. Today, he continues his study with Kollel at The Wall.

For Brodsky, becoming a scribe offered flexibility to study Torah, work from home, and create his own schedule. Studying under a private tutor, Brodsky first learned the complicated laws of the profession and the technical skills of crafting the Hebrew letters. He completed three Megillat Esther, the Scroll of Esther for the holiday of Purim, and closed on his first sale this past January. In addition, he’s working on his first Torah, which he estimates will take approximately 10 months.

Brodsky explains that the ingredients used by a scribe occur in nature, and, therefore, are halachically valid by Jewish law. He completes a mezuzah on a piece of hide from an unborn calf, measuring about 5” square. The ink has been cooked to reach a certain consistency, and Brodsky works at a slanted desk with a humidifier system that provides vapor

to keep the hide malleable. “There are a lot of nuances that a scribe needs to be aware of,” he says, including the potential for an inked letter to crack under the strain of being rolling into a mezuzah or Torah.

Every Hebrew letter has its own qualifications, and a document will be invalidated if a letter is drawn incorrectly. Corrections can be made in certain circumstances, often by a third-party magia’h, who is certified to “proofread” the document and who understands the complex laws in more detail.

“If you’re selling something that you will say a blessing on, it needs to be correct,” Brodsky says.

Separate laws apply to writing mezuzahs and tefillin, as well as to writing God’s name, says Brodsky. All 713 letters of the mezuzah, for example, must be written in order. In certain cases, if a correction needs to be made to one letter, the subsequent letters become invalid since the order has been upset. Because Megillat Esther for Purim does not include God’s name and does not need to be written “in order,” it is often the first text that a new scribe attempts.

Brodsky describes two camps of scribes, those who charge $100 per mezuzah scroll and others who can charge $250. The more expensive scroll looks nicer and is considered ‘a beautification of the mitzvah.’ However, there is a market for both religious objects. Often, he says, a buyer will rely on another’s expertise to know the true value of a scribe’s work.

Brodsky says he is pleased with his success so far and notes that perseverance is key. He observes many beginners who quit the profession after a mistake or two.

Adina Brodsky adds, “I’m proud of him.”

Saul and Adina Brodsky with their daughter, Tehila Malka.

Saul Brodsky.

Hebrew alphabet.

Amy Milligan helps make a difference for students across the country

Sam Nossen

The Israel on Campus Coalition’s (ICC) National Leadership Summit (NLS) is a three-day conference open to Jewish college students across the country, with the aim to “address today’s critical issues and inspire student leaders.”

This year, the largest gathering of pro-Israel students took place July 27 - July 29 in Washington, DC, and hosted more than 1,000 Jewish students, faculty, and activists. Participants listened to leading Jewish figures in law, business, and activism while strengthening their advocacy skills and enhancing their understanding of the challenges that Israel and Jews face.

Dr. Amy Milligan, associate professor of Jewish Studies and Women’s and Gender Studies at Old Dominion University and member of the Academic Engagement Network, served as part of the first-ever AEN faculty delegation sent to the ICC’s National Leadership Summit. Milligan was one of 50 AEN delegates.

“I can’t speak for all the faculty present, but I think it is fair to say that for most of us, it reinforced our ‘why,’” Milligan says.

AEN seeks to empower and educate university faculty so they can help “oppose the denigration of Jewish and Zionist identities, promote academic freedom, and advance education about Israel.”

Milligan says she became involved in AEN prior to October 7 but got more involved after a weeklong workshop with approximately 25 other fellows in January 2025. Working closely together since, she says they provide each other with support and advice.

Although AEN does not directly support students, Milligan says, “there is a ripple effect of their investment

September 12 - October 5th

as it directly impacts students through the education and leadership of faculty.” AEN provides faculty with education and resources, but more than anything, AEN gives faculty a network of peers that “lessen the feeling of isolation so many of us experience.”

“The Summit reminded me that I’m not alone, and that we have both the responsibility and the power to make a difference. My advice to others who want to get involved in advocating against antisemitism and anti-Zionism is to start by educating yourself about the diverse experiences of Jews globally, the history of Zionism, and the nuances of the Israeli Palestinian conflict,” says Milligan.

Bagels & Balance: A positive parenting series

Sierra Lautman

Over three warm and engaging Thursday mornings this summer, the Simon Family JCC became a hub of reflection and connection for parents. Led by Rabbi Aryeh Kravetz, the “Bagels & Balance” series invited participants to explore the art of positive parents, focusing on self-reflection, long term goals, and relationship building.

At the heart of the series was the question: How do we develop strong, healthy, and enduring relationships with our children? Rabbi Kravetz encouraged participants to consider parenting as a lifelong learning journey, one that deserves the same commitment to growth and education as any professional pursuit.

Topics ranged from creative approaches to discipline to reframing the parent-child relationship considering Jewish values. The sessions emphasized the importance of modeling behavior, cultivating empathy, and embracing the challenges of parenting with grace.

The course also sparked broader conversations about how Jewish learning can support families. In related committee meetings, ideas emerged for future programming, including a future series focused specifically on raising children through a Jewish lens.

To learn more about upcoming courses offered through the Konikoff Center for Learning of the United Jewish Federation of Tidewater, visit JewishVA.org/KCL or contact Sierra Lautman at SLautman@ujft.org.

Rabbi Aryen Kravetz.

Amy Milligan.

Dr. Sara Glass inspires at UJFT’s first Pride Month event

Hunter Thomas

United Jewish Federation of Tidewater hosted its first event marking LGBTQ+ Pride Month in partnership with Ohef Sholom Temple, Hampton Roads Pride, and the LGBT Life Center. The event, held on June 25 at The Rainbow Cactus in Virginia Beach, featured Dr. Sara Glass, therapist, author, and LGBTQ+ advocate, and was deemed a powerful celebration of identity, resilience, and community.

Author of the memoir Kissing Girls on Shabbat, Glass captivated a packed room with her story of growing up in a Hasidic enclave in Brooklyn while quietly navigating her queer identity. Her talk touched on everything from spiritual exile to the healing power of chosen family.

The event drew a diverse crowd of more than 75 people, including members of the Jewish, LGBTQ+, and interfaith communities. Many arrived early to enjoy dinner and drinks and stayed late to meet Glass during a book signing.

Audience members described the event as “transformative,” “courageous,” and “exactly what our community needed.” One attendee shared how meaningful it was that the event was hosted in an explicitly queer space, given so many audience members were not part of the LGBTQ+ community themselves.

Ohef Sholom Temple included the event as part of their Pride Month programming, with its book club choosing the book as their May read. Book club facilitator, Nili Belkin, calls the memoir “a book I will encourage my daughters and granddaughters to read.”

This event was funded in part by the citizens of Virginia Beach through a grant from the City of Virginia Beach Arts & Humanities Commission and held in coordination with the Jewish Book Council.

Hunter Thomas is director of Arts + Ideas at the United Jewish Federation of Tidewater. For more programming information, visit www.JewishVA.org or email HThomas@UJFT.org.

Dr. Sara Glass.

Dr. Sara Glass with Rabbi David Bockman.

Nili Belkin and Bonnie Gordon Rabinowitz.

CAMP JCC 2025: A SUMMER OF TREMENDOUS GROWTH

Dave Flagler

The phrase that best describes the recently completed Camp JCC Summer 2025 is “tremendous growth.” In addition to the number of campers this past summer, “tremendous growth” refers to the growth of the Camp JCC program over the past five years.

In summer 2025, more than 270 campers attended Camp JCC, which is the highest total since reopening after the pandemic. Campers attended from Hampton Roads, California, Maryland, Pennsylvania, Washington DC, and Richmond.

Camp JCC camper weeks grew nearly 20% higher from 2024, resulting in the need of an additional group.

This year, Camp JCC employed its largest seasonal staff with excellent counselors, multiple activity specialists, and fully staffed camper care and leadership teams. More than half of this large staff have worked at Camp JCC for three summers or more. An additional demonstration of continuity was the promotion of former Camp JCC unit head Kate-Lynn Cipolla to the role of assistant camp director, in part to help promote and manage the tremendous growth of the Camp JCC program.

Activity offerings also grew this summer. Beyond the favorite camp classics such as lip sync, boat building, surfing with Sababa, and the color run, new weekly themes and special events were added to an already robust summer calendar. Camp JCC had a STEM (Science, Tech, Engineering, and Mathematics) specialist in addition to arts, fishing, sports, and Israeli culture specialties. Each specialist added fun, meaningful, and hidden educational content to special events throughout the summer. STEM contributed greatly to the inaugural Camp JCC “Shark Week” and “Watermelon Day,” the Shinshinim added a lot to Israel Day and the visit from the Israeli Scouts Friendship Caravan, and everyone played a role in making the “Summer Superbowl” and halftime show memorable and impactful.

Camp JCC was the place where children could experience many options, while being a part of a summer of tremendous growth.

To learn more about Camp JCC or to hear about yearround opportunities for teens in the community, contact Dave Flagler, director of Camp and Teen Engagement, at DFlagler@UJFT.org or 757-452-3182.

3 Tiberias goes Wicked in the finale of their lip sync performance. Isabella Brent is raised high as Elphaba in Emerald City.

2 The wedding party moments before walking down the

Cipolla, Donkey Clone 2, and Lizz Hughes. Second Row: Alien 1, Alien 2, Donkey Clone 1, Bryan Hooks. Top Row: Benjamin Martin, Danielle Hartman, and Riley Salway.

4 What is better than being with old friends in the JCC pool? Isla Cutrell, Avery Goldstein, Emerson Branham, Harper Warranch, Quinn Schulz, and Hadley Kaprielian.

5 Bryon Johnson, Carter Lipton, and their counselor Mr. Jack (Poorman) reel in fish and fun at Lake Sandler.

6 Campers from “Golan” perform their hearts out during the Camp JCC Lip Sync: Joseph Anderson, Makinley Rayner, Harris Nizhnikov, Gracelyn Olson, Lawson Strantz, and Anne-Marie Hiesel.

7 Scarlett St. Pierre and Noa Glaser reel in more than just big smiles while fishing.

8 Remembering the 70’s with Tie Dye during “Eras Week.” William Salyer and Dhani Richardson.

9 Colin Cutrell.

1 Sixth through eighth graders enjoy a special trip to the Adventure Park at the Viriginia Aquarium. Laney Radloff, Emily Patyuk, Sophia Shultz, Abby Walker, and Emma Belman.

aisle at the “Donkey Wedding.” Front Row: Camp JCC Assistant Director Kate-Lynn

JEWISH TIDEWATER IN ISRAEL

FIRST PERSON:

Pride in resilience: My experience in Israel demonstrated the importance of the work of Jewish Federations

Hunter Thomas

This past June, I participated in the Jewish Federation of North America’s 2025 LGBTQ+ Pride Month mission to Israel, the first trip of its kind in nearly a decade. I joined nearly 100 LGBTQ+ Jewish leaders representing 26 Jewish Federations from across North America. It was a tense time to go, but it was more impactful than nearly anything I have ever done in my life.

Navigating the world as a Jewish gay individual means carrying two complex identities, each with its own set of joys and hardships. Many of my fellow participants shared stories of how their support for Israel, or simply their connection to Jewish heritage, had been weaponized, resulting in ostracization within their local LGBTQ+ circles. The simplistic narrative that advocacy for a Jewish state and for Palestinian human rights are mutually exclusive misses the nuance so necessary for understanding. For many, the mission to Israel was an act of reclaiming space at this intersection.

In the taxi from the airport to my hotel in Tel Aviv, I realized that while I visited Israel in 2023, before October 7, the country felt both familiar and wholly different. This time, yellow ribbons adorned flagpoles and images of hostages appeared on buildings, bus stops, light poles, and storefronts, yet daily life continued.

On a trip to the south to visit the areas most impacted by the attacks on October 7, our guide taught us the Hebrew word for resilience, chosen. This word ended up being one of the major themes of the trip.

When I met former Tidewater ShinShin Alma Ben Chorin for coffee, she shared her post-October 7 experience in the IDF working with Lone Soldiers, brave individuals who moved to Israel to join the IDF with no family connections in the country. She spoke of their bravery and the spike in volunteers making aliyah following the attacks.

At Kibbutz Nir Oz, a mile-and-a-half from the

Gaza border, residents have always lived under the threat of missiles. While the completion of Israel’s Iron Dome decreased the threat, residents still have less time to get to bomb shelters than it takes to tie a shoe. Many of these residents, despite this constant threat and serving as an example of Israeli resilience, strived for peace. They fought to end discrimination and drove sick Gazan children to Israeli hospitals for cancer treatments. On October 7, 2023, 380 Nir Oz residents were home. More than 40 were killed, and 76 were forcefully dragged into captivity in Gaza.

We visited Oded and Yocheved Lifshitz’s cactus garden, where I cried as we learned about their peace activism. Yochaved

was taken hostage without her husband and feared he was dead. They were reunited briefly in Gaza before Yochaved was released, later hearing that Oded was killed in captivity a year later.

“Don’t cry, it’s going to be okay,” the Nir Oz survivor and guide told me. “The community is still striving for peace, and it will come.”

Later, I met Oded and Yocheved’s grandson at the Hostages and Missing Families Forum, as well as Gili Roman, whose sister Yarden was taken hostage. Roman shared the painful experience of being ostracized from an international gay sports group for publicly advocating for his sister’s release.

Following Nir Oz, we visited the site of the Nova music festival, where 364 people were killed, and 40 kidnapped to Gaza. Given the trip’s theme, I could not help but find a connection to the 2016 Pulse Nightclub massacre in Orlando. Young people dancing, taken from their loved ones in acts of radical terror. But I was reminded of chosen as I walked through the streets of Tel Aviv later that night, as people danced and hugged and laughed outside of bars and restaurants.

(Continued)

The full delegation at the Kotel.

Hunter Thomas and Alma Ben Chorin.

JEWISH TIDEWATER IN ISRAEL

The next morning, we received a briefing from JFNA staff. Of the $1.2 billion raised annually by 146 Jewish federations across the US and Canada, 20-25% supports Israel and overseas needs. Since Oct. 7, JFNA has coordinated $225 million in emergency aid on top of what local federations raised. These funds helped launch trauma centers, distribute care packages, support mental health, aid small businesses, and provide resources for vulnerable groups, including LGBTQ+ Israelis.

Various Israeli organizations provide those resources. Ogen LGBTQ+ Life Center is transforming queer healthcare by connecting LGBTQ+ religious Jews and Muslims to affirming doctors through an innovative app, expanding access to medication, building supportive community, and more. “There are no politics in health,” their CEO said.

We heard from staff at the Agudah, a historic hub for Israel’s queer community, which was controversially ousted last year by an international gay rights group. Chavruta works with queer religious

Jews, supporting gay men in heterosexual marriages and fighting conversion therapy, while Bat Kol provides support for religious lesbians. The Jerusalem Open House continues to advocate for LGBTQ+ rights in one of the world’s holiest cities.

Israel has made meaningful progress in LGBTQ+ rights, much of it through Supreme Court rulings, but these gains remain fragile amid ongoing judicial reform debates. While the state recognizes gay marriages that take place outside of Israel,

there is not an option for civil marriage in Israel. LGBTQ+ youth face widespread discrimination: 92% report exposure to slurs, and one in three experiences harassment. Since 2024, there have been 22 reported violent incidents linked to a popular queer dating app. These challenges have only intensified since October 7, raising urgent questions around military service for queer families, the recognition of same-sex partnerships in cases of loss, and a troubling 50% spike in substance abuse within the LGBTQ+ community. We were reminded, though, that so many Israelis support LGBTQ+ rights and the queer community.

At a meeting with President Isaac Herzog and First Lady Michal Herzog, who had recently

—Andrew H. Hook President of Hook Law Center

made history by attending Jerusalem’s Pride parade, President Herzog said, “Acceptance and equality are central to the DNA of Israeli society.”

At dinner one night, a Houthi missile was intercepted over Tel Aviv. Taking cover in a bomb shelter, the Israelis among us chatted as if nothing was wrong. I was reminded again of chosen. But that was forgotten by our last day. That evening, as the mission ended, we danced: for those taken at Nova; for those who danced at Pulse; for those who perished in the Holocaust; for queer people lost to violence and bigotry; for all who can’t dance anymore.

Only about a dozen of us left Israel that night. Most of the nearly 100 mission participants planned to attend Tel Aviv Pride the following day. My flight departed a little after 1 am local time. By 3 am, sirens were blaring across Israel, and my fellow mission participants were scrambling to shelters as I flew over the Atlantic on one of the last planes out of Ben Gurion International Airport, following Israel’s attacks on Iran. It was only because I was returning home to celebrate my adult b’nei mitzvah at Ohef Sholom Temple that I left when I did.

JFNA immediately acted, helping the participants and keeping everyone together and accounted for. They arranged travel through Jordan, and then Egypt, to get everyone home. For some mission members whose passports and outward gender identity were at odds, they coordinated with Birthright, securing passage through Cyprus.

We went to Israel to celebrate pride in a community that understood, loved, and accepted us as Jewish Zionists. We left with a keen understanding of the chosen, the resilience of the Israeli people. The work that Jewish Federations do to support the Jewish homeland is essential in building that resilience.

Hunter Thomas is director of Arts + Ideas at United Jewish Federation of Tidewater. He can be reached at 757-965-6137 or HThomas@ UJFT.org. To contribute to UJFT’s annual campaign, visit www.JewishVA.org/Campaign. For more information on the campaign, or how to can get involved, contact Amy Zelenka, chief development officer, at AZelenka@UJFT. org or 757-965-6139.

Mission members with President and First Lady Herzog.

IT’S A WRAP

Team VB goes to Maccabi

Sam Nossen

For five hot days, July 27 - August 1, TeamVB’s four-person squad competed against delegations from across the country, plus Ukrainian, Israeli, and Canadian delegations at the JCC Maccabi–Access Games in Tucson, Arizona.

Returning athletes from Tidewater joined athletes from various regions of the United States to field teams in boys’ 3v3 basketball and girls’ soccer, while one local athlete continued to dominate in Access, for Jewish athletes ages 12-22 with intellectual and developmental disabilities.

The teen delegation from Virginia Beach was led by Tom Edwards, Simon Family JCC athletics director and accompanied by supportive family members including Tal, Tamir, and Hila Zach, as well as Lauren Karp Scolnick and Brigitte Bryant Gottlieb.

of the stage. After, the tired teens left the venue and went home with their host families, with pleas from organizers to get good sleep and hydrate.

Ashten Konikoff and Leo Gottlieb opened day one play in 3v3 17U boys’ basketball with three games, ultimately losing all three but fighting hard throughout. Simultaneously, Shanny Zach and her mixed 17U girls’ soccer team from Carolina/Cleveland/Tucson/Miami Beach/ Long Beach/San Antonio/ San Diego played their first couple of games. The team ultimately lost both games, but Shanny made multiple jaw-dropping saves to keep them close.

The weeklong Olympic-style games kicked off with an opening ceremony that featured comedian Eitan Levine, Israeli DJ Artifex, and speakers such as Israeli Olympian Judoka Ori Sasson and U.S. Rep. Juan Ciscomani. The almost 1,300 Jewish 13- 17-year-olds sang and danced at one point, creating a mosh pit in front

On day two things really started to heat up; 14-yearold Oliver Scolnick medaled twice, a bronze medal in bowling and a gold in the 25-meter swim. #TeamVB also experienced a first when Tamir Zach, a #TeamVB alumnus and spectator, was bestowed a Midot Medal for his spontaneous volunteering as a soccer coach and as a united swimmer in the pool for the Access swim races.

Ashten and Leo’s team also found their groove, going 2-1, including pulling a huge upset over Indianapolis. After which, the boys’ basketball teams did their JCC Cares project, creating boxes of snacks and hygiene products for local teens in need.

That same evening, participants had a chance to destress and let loose with a big night out at a huge arcade and movie complex in downtown Tucson.

The Access Games came to a close with a luscious closing ceremony breakfast, which graciously acknowledged all the amazing people involved in lifting the inclusive program to ever greater heights. This was also the first day of the playoff bracket for Leo and Ashten’s squad, who earned the number four seed, facing Colorado/Vancouver/Memphis/Kentucky. After a tight game, the squad suffered a crushing defeat.

Shanny’s team put up a valiant effort against the number one team from Philadelphia/Boston in the bronze medal match later that day. Sadly, they were unable to come away with a medal, but their persistence, sportsmanship, and camaraderie were extremely commendable. The closing party in Tucson concluded a week of passion, competition, and teambuilding, giving competitors the opportunity to hang out, talk, and eat with fellow athletes from other delegations.

Onward to the 2026 JCC Maccabi Games & Access in Kansas City, Kansas.

Tamir Zach, Tal Zach, Hila Zach, Shanny Zach, Lauren Karp Scolnick, Oliver Scolnick, Brigitte Bryant Gottlieb, Tom Edwards, Leo Gottlieb, Ashten Konikoff.

Oliver Scolnick.

New Jewish Community Services Manager for Jewish Family Service

Kelly Burroughs

Jewish Family Service of Tidewater recently announced the appointment of Julie Kievit as its new Jewish community services manager.

Originally from New York, Jewish life played a central role in Kievit’s upbringing — especially during summers spent at a Jewish camp owned by United Jewish Federation of New York. Those formative years, she says, instilled in her a lifelong passion for building and strengthening Jewish community.

After graduating from University of Maryland, Kievit began her career in

event planning at the Museum of Modern Art in New York, working with renowned restaurateur Danny Meyer. She then moved to Washington, D.C., where she coordinated the popular jazz concert series at the National Gallery of Art’s Sculpture Garden, combining her love for the arts with her talent for creating meaningful experiences. Also in D.C., she met her husband, Ken. In 2020, the Kievits, now a family with two daughters – Alexandra and Ruby– moved to Virginia Beach, quickly becoming active members of Tidewater’s Jewish community. Members at Ohef Sholom Temple, she says the family enjoys participating in

congregational life. Professionally, Kievit joined United Jewish Federation of Tidewater’s programs department before transitioning into her new role at JFS.

“I’m excited to connect with our community members in meaningful ways and continue JFS’s tradition of care, compassion, and engagement,” Kievit says. “This community has been so welcoming, and I’m honored to give back.”

In her new position, Kievit oversees programs and outreach that strengthen connections within the Jewish community, support seniors, and promote JFS’s mission to enhance lives.

New hires at UJFT

Shyanne Southern joined United Jewish Federation of Tidewater as coordinator of arts and lifelong learning.

Originally from California, Southern moved to Virginia Beach three years ago when the Navy relocated her family – her spouse and two boys.

Southern is currently enrolled at Old Dominion University, working towards her master’s degree in special education, adaptive curriculum.

A former UJFT volunteer, her new position allows her to use her gallery experience and Bachelor of Arts degree in studio art and communications. Southern says she is excited to “join an amazing team of professionals at UJFT and work with our active adult community.” She will oversee programs such as Book Club, Roundtable Conversations, Senior’s Club, and Yiddish Club.

Kyleigh Eyl is the new coordinator of advocacy and community engagement, working with the Holocaust Commission and Jewish Community Relations Council.

Originally from North Carolina, she holds a bachelor’s degree in Holocaust and Genocide Studies and a master’s degree in Genocide Prevention and Human Security.

Eyl recently returned from a fourmonth stay in Israel and says she “is excited to be working with the Jewish Federation of Tidewater.”

Contact Shyanne Southern at ssouthern@ujft.org. Contact Kyleigh Eyl at keyl@ujft.org.

Julie Kievit with her family: Ken, Alexandra, and Ruby.

Shyanne Southern

Kyleigh Eyl

WHAT’S HAPPENING

Hebrew Ladies Charity of Tidewater: Honoring a legacy Luncheon slated for January

Brooke Rush

Jewish Family Service has long been the safety net of Tidewater’s Jewish community—but it all began with a group of determined women.

In March 1902, the Hebrew Ladies Charity Society was formed when Fannie Brenner gathered a small group of Jewish women to create a society dedicated to helping the less fortunate. It takes a village, and Jewish Tidewater’s foundation was built by these women.

Fannie Brenner served as president for an extraordinary 25 years. Other founding members included: Bertha Siegel, Mrs. Glasser, Mrs. Ray Cohen, Rosa Brener, Sara Legum, Rebecca Goodman, Hennye Shaeffer, Annie Spensky, and Frieda Shapiro.

At the time, annual dues were $3, with an additional 25 cents collected each month. These modest amounts funded generous acts of kindness. The women visited the sick, fed the hungry, comforted the lonely, and raised funds for those in need. Long before Jewish communal institutions were established, it was these women who quietly and compassionately laid the foundation. Today, much of Tidewater’s Jewish communal life rests on the groundwork they built. Eventually, Jewish Family Service formed, and the Hebrew Ladies Charity Society dismantled. The money remaining from the Hebrew Ladies Charity Society was set up in a fund to continue carrying out their efforts and is still utilized by JFS to help people in need.

Many of the descendants of these remarkable women reside in Tidewater today. Through her own family research, Ellen Hundley discovered that her greatgreat grandmother, Fannie Brenner, was the founding president of the Hebrew Ladies.

“Learning that my great-great grand mother Fannie Brenner helped start this organization has been deeply meaningful. Her work not only supported those in need at the time but also planted the roots of Jewish communal life in Tidewater. The values she and the other women lived by continue to this day through Jewish Family Service and the many ways our community cares for one another,” says Hundley.

As Jewish Family Service prepares to celebrate the lasting impact of Hebrew Ladies Charity, it asks community members to look through old photos and search for familiar names to learn what personal connections exist with this extraordinary story. Those who are descendants of any of these remarkable founding members are asked to contact JFS at the email below.

Save the date for a special Hebrew Ladies Kosher Luncheon on Sunday, January 11, 2026, at Ohef Sholom Temple, where the legacy of these pioneering women will be honored, remembered, and celebrated. After all, these women built the heart of Jewish Tidewater—one act of kindness at a time.

To share a personal story about Hebrew Ladies Charity or to get involved, contact: Brooke Rush at brush@jfshamptonroads.org.

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Dr. Gary Moss Dr. Greg Pendell Dr. Craig Koenig Dr. Marguerite Lengkeek

Partners in Jewish Life comes to Tidewater: A night of connection and learning

Monday, Oct. 27

7 pm, Sandler Family Campus

United Jewish Federation of Tidewater will host its first Partners in Jewish Life program – an evening that promises to be a meaningful opportunity for Jewish community members of all backgrounds to gather in learning and connection. The event is presented by the Konikoff Center for Learning. Partners in Jewish Life is a national initiative designed to unite Jewish communities through shared heritage and values. Rooted in the teachings of Rabbi Lord Jonathan Sacks, PJL fosters relationships across diverse Jewish identities by encouraging face-to-face encounters and thoughtful dialogue. The program has already made a powerful impact in cities such as Boca Raton, Baltimore, and Toronto.

The first session will feature curated materials from PJL, including booklets and discussion guides that explore timeless Jewish themes. Participants will engage in paired conversations that transcend denominational lines, creating space for Orthodox, Reform, Conservative, and unaffiliated Jews to learn from one another and build lasting bonds.

This event is free and marks the beginning of a series of PJL gatherings in Tidewater, with future dates scheduled for December, January, and March. Each session will offer a new theme and fresh opportunities for learning.

To learn more about Partners in Jewish Life or to register for the October 27 program, visit JewishVA.org/KCL or contact Sierra Lautman at SLautman@UJFT.org.

From Sinai to Seinfeld: Jews and their Jokes returns Course begins:

Monday, Nov. 3

6:45 pm,

online

Taught by Dr. Amy K. Milligan, From Sinai to Seinfeld: Jews and Their Jokes, a Melton course presented by United Jewish Federation of Tidewater’s Konikoff Center for Learning, is back by popular demand.

Originally launched in 2021, the course quickly became a community favorite, drawing participants from across Tidewater and beyond. The 10-week series explores Jewish humor as a lens into Jewish history, identity, and values. From biblical times to contemporary pop culture, students examine how jokes reflect the rhythms, concerns, and spirit of the Jewish people.

“Jewish humor is more than just laughter. It’s a way of surviving, connecting, and understanding ourselves,” says Dr. Amy K. Milligan, Batten Endowed Associate Professor of Jewish Studies and Women’s and Gender Studies at Old Dominion University. “This course opens conversations about humor that allow us to better understand the motivations and contexts in which the jokes were written, through which we not only better understand our history but ourselves.”

Melton classes are known for their warm, inclusive environment and intellectually rich content. They offer an opportunity to engage with Jewish ideas in a way that is both accessible and meaningful. There are no tests or grades, just thoughtful conversation and personal growth. Whether new to Jewish learning or a seasoned student, Melton courses meet students where they are.

Participants will explore the comedic contributions of legends such as Fanny Brice, Lenny Bruce, Mel Brooks, Jerry Seinfeld, and Sarah Silverman, while also exploring lesser-known gems that have shaped Jewish humor across generations.

Register at JewishVA.org/Melton, with a special discount code JOKE50 available for early registrants before October 20. Scholarships are available.

For more information, contact Sierra Lautman at slautman@ ujft.org or 757-965-6107.

Artist in Residence weekend planned at Temple Israel

Saturday, Nov. 15

9:30 am and 7 pm

Sunday, Nov. 16, 10 am

Get ready for a super weekend as Temple Israel hosts Jordan Gorfinkel, or “Gorf,” for its Artist in Residence weekend.

Gorf, a former editor of the Batman comics series and author of the Passover Haggadah Graphic Novel, will demonstrate – through words, film clips, and art –how to “Make Judaism Your Superpower.”

He will speak at the Shabbat morning service, Saturday, Nov. 15 about the connection between superheroes in comic books and the Torah.

That evening, Gorf will offer a multimedia presentation, using Marvel and other film clips, on how pop culture icons affirm Jewish values. The event will begin with Havdalah.

The weekend culminates with a cartooning workshop, Sunday Nov. 16, in which participants will create their own Jewishthemed cartoons under Gorf’s guidance. Brunch will follow. The workshop is open to all ages, and no drawing skill is required. Admission is $5 (cash or check at the door). RSVP to 757-489-4550 or templeisraelva1954@gmail.com.

Sierra Lautman

WHAT’S HAPPENING WHAT’S HAPPENING

Photographer and survivor of the Oct. 7 NOVA Musical Festival massacre to speak at ODU

Thursday, Sept. 18, 7 pm Webb Center, Old Dominion University

Old Dominion University’s Institute for Jewish Studies and Interfaith Understanding and ODU Hillel will welcome Shye Klein, a photographer and NOVA survivor of October 7, whose work documents the tragedy and aftermath of the attack.

Through his lens, Klein shares a deeply personal perspective on grief, resilience, and memory.

The program is presented in partnership with the Academic Engagement Network and the Jewish Community Relations Council of the United Jewish Federation of Tidewater, Simon Family JCC, and Community Partners’ 15th Annual Israel Today Series.

This event is free and open to the public. Parking is available in the 49th Street Stadium Garage. For more information, visit ijiu@odu.edu or contact Dr. Amy Milligan at amilliga@odu.edu.

Read along with

BeAR:

One hour each week can change a child’s life

Robin

Ford

Be A Reader (BeAR) Literacy Project pairs caring adults with second graders in under-resourced schools for one-on-one reading time. For many of these children, the attention, encouragement, and joy the mentors bring during that single hour a week is more than just reading practice—it’s a boost in confidence, a belief in themselves, and a reminder that someone cares.

BeAR is a project of United Jewish Federation of Tidewater’s Jewish Community Relations Council.

Volunteer mentors are needed for the 2025-26 school year in these schools:

Norfolk: Chesterfield Academy Elementary, Larrymore Elementary, Suburban Park Elementary (new this year), and Willard Model Elementary.

Virginia Beach: Birdneck Elementary (almost full!), College Park Elementary, Newtown Elementary (new this year), Tallwood Elementary (student-led via Tallwood High), and Thalia Elementary.

The commitment is simple: BeAR mentors meet with the same student once a week during the school day, read together, talk, laugh, and inspire a love of books. No teaching experience is required – just a warm heart and a willingness to participate.

To a child, volunteers are more than a mentor – the person who listens, encourages, and helps open the door to a brighter future.

An hour a week may not seem like much, but to many of these students, it’s everything.

To learn more about BeAR or to sign up as a mentor, contact Robin Ford at 757-321-2304 or rford@ujft.org.

Israel’s blind spot: Underestimating Hamas A conversation with Yaakov Katz, former Jerusalem Post editor-in-chief

Thursday, Oct. 23 7:30 pm

Sandler Family Campus

Acclaimed author and former Jerusalem Post editor-inchief Yaakov Katz will be in town to discuss his new book, While Israel Slept. In the book, Katz delivers a gripping account of how years of complacency, flawed intelligence, and misguided policies allowed Hamas, once viewed as Israel’s weakest enemy, to launch the surprise October 7 attack.

In a review of the book, Matti Friedman, author of Spies of No Country and Pumpkinflowers, and a former Israel Today speaker, writes, “A shocking, detailed, and gripping investigation of the Israeli catastrophe of Oct. 7, 2023, by two of the country’s best journalists. A necessary book for anyone hoping to begin figuring out what happened and how to ensure it doesn’t happen again.”

For more information or to register, visit JewishVA.org/ IsraelToday or contact Nofar Trem at NTrem@UJFT.org.

Presented as part of the Jewish Community Relations Council of the United Jewish Federation of Tidewater, Simon Family JCC, and Community Partners’ 15th Annual Israel Today Series and the United Jewish Federation of Tidewater and Simon Family JCC’s Lee and Bernard Jaffe Family Jewish Book Festival.

This event is supported in part by the citizens of Virginia Beach through a grant from the City of Virginia Beach Arts and Humanities Commission and is held in coordination with the Jewish Book Council, the longest-running organization devoted exclusively to the support and celebration of Jewish literature.

Yaakov Katz.

WHAT’S HAPPENING

Dinner and mushroom art workshop with artist and author Bill Wurtzel

Tuesday, Sept. 16, 6 pm, Sandler Family Campus

Hunter Thomas

Award-winning artist Bill Wurtzel is set to share his remarkable journey from a playful breakfast to international acclaim. What began 64 years ago as a funny meal for his wife, Claire, has blossomed into seven books, global art exhibits, and healthy eating workshops that have inspired thousands of children and adults alike.

Wurtzel’s latest creation, FUNGI, celebrates the fascinating world of mushrooms through imaginative food art. During this engaging program, attendees will discover surprising facts about the kingdom of fungi, marvel at Wurtzel’s whimsical “mushroom art like nothing on Earth,” and even create their own mushroom masterpiece.

Known for blending humor, creativity, and

One God, many meanings: A journey through Jewish monotheism

10-week course begins

Thursday, Sept. 11, 11 am Sandler Family Campus

What does it mean to say, “God is One?” This simple phrase, central to Jewish belief, opens the door to a rich tradition of interpretation. From the biblical declaration of the Shema to the philosophical writings of Maimonides and the mystical teachings of the Kabbalists, Jewish thinkers have explored the idea of monotheism in ways that reflect the intellectual and spiritual climates of their times.

United Jewish Federation of Tidewater’s Konikoff Center for Learning presents an opportunity to explore these many interpretations in a 10-week course titled God: Many Ideas of “One.” Taught by Rabbi Michael Panitz, a scholar of Jewish intellectual history and a beloved teacher in Tidewater’s adult education programs, the class will meet on Thursdays at 11 am, Sept. 11 through Nov. 20 (class will not be held on Oct. 2).

Whether a seasoned learner or new to Jewish study, this course offers an opportunity to deepen one’s understanding of one of Judaism’s most profound teachings.

To register or learn more, visit JewishVA.org/KCL or contact Sierra Lautman, senior director of Jewish Innovation, at SLautman@UJFT.org. Course cost: $60 for JCC members, $72 for JCC guests.

education, Wurtzel’s work reflects a joyful approach to art and healthy living. This is an opportunity for all ages to laugh, learn, and unleash their inner artist.

For registration and cost information, go to www.JewishVA.org/Fungi or contact Shyanne Southern at SSouthern@UJFT.org or 757-452-3184.

Wurtzel’s FUNGI collection will be on display in the Leon Family Gallery at the Simon Family Jewish Community Center through September.

This event is supported in part by the citizens of Virginia Beach through a grant from the City of Virginia Beach Arts and Humanities Commission and is held in coordination with the Jewish Book Council, the longestrunning organization devoted exclusively to the support and celebration of Jewish literature.

Virginia Beach election system presentation planned

Monday, September 22 6 – 8 pm

Princess Anne High School

Virginia Beach City Councilmember Joash Schulman will hold a District 9 community meeting to explain and discuss the local election system referendum. Representatives from the Virginia Beach City Attorney’s Office will provide an educational presentation.

Princess Anne High School is located at 4400 Virginia Beach Blvd. The event is open to the public. To learn more, go to virginiabeach. gov/referendum.

Sierra Lautman

CALENDAR

SEPTEMBER 14, SUNDAY

Mini-Golf Tournament. Open to all ages. Free Kona Ice for all players and their families. Hosted by PJ Library of Tidewater and UJFT’s Konikoff Center for Learning. Suggested donation: $18/player or bring non-perishable food items to support JFS Food Pantry. All proceeds benefit the JFS Food Pantry. 1 – 3 pm. Sandler Family Campus. Information: Sierra Lautman at 757-965-6107 or SLautman@UJFT.org.

Super Sunday. A virtual event using various communication platforms to reach donors. Information: JewishVA.org/SuperSunday. See page 11.

SEPTEMBER 15, MONDAY

JCC Book Club discusses The Man Who Sold Air to the Holy Land. Book Club meets the third Monday of each month. Free. 1:30 – 3 pm. In-person or via Zoom. Sandler Family Campus. Information: Hunter Thomas at 757-965-6137 or HThomas@UJFT.org

SEPTEMBER 16, TUESDAY

An Afternoon with Fun-Guy, Bill Wurtzel, food artist and author of FUNGI. Awardwinning artist Bill Wurtzel shares his journey from a playful breakfast to global acclaim. Discover mushroom facts, create mushroom art in this hands-on experience. 6 pm. Sandler Family Campus. Information and registration: visit JewishVA.org/Fungi. See page 42.

SEPTEMBER 17, WEDNESDAY

JCC Senior's Club - Online Safety with Mike Goldsmith. Meets the third Wednesday of each month and is for adults 55+. $15 annual membership. Information: Shyanne Southern at 757-452-3184 or ssouthern@ujft.org.

SEPTEMBER 18, THURSDAY

JCC Roundtable Discussions. The United Jewish Federation of Tidewater and Simon Family JCC invite members to discuss timely topics. Free. 1 – 3 pm. Sandler Family Campus. Information: Shyanne Southern at 757-452-3184 or ssouthern@ujft.org.

SEPTEMBER 21, SUNDAY

The Art of the High Holidays brings Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur to life through 1,500 years of Jewish art. Presented by Jewish Art Education. $9/person. 7 - 8:30 pm. Virtual. Information and registration: https://www.jarted.org/event-details/the-art-of-thehigh-holidays-38. See page 29.

OCTOBER 12, SUNDAY

Pizza in The Hut with Tidewater’s Shinshinim. Celebrate Sukkot with Tidewater’s newest Shinshinim in the sukkah. Pizza, holiday-themed games, Sukkot crafts, and Israeli music. $5/person, $18/family. 1 - 3 pm. Sandler Family Campus. Information and to purchase tick ets: JewishVA.org/Shinshinim or contact Nofar Trem at NTrem@UJFT.org.

BEGINNING OCTOBER 19, SUNDAYS

Shinshinim-led Israeli Youth Movement. Noga and Yarden, Tidewater’s newest Shinshinim, lead a brand-new youth movement inspired by the spirit and excitement of the Israeli Scouts (Tzofim). October through May, the group will meet to play games, build team work and leadership skills, explore Israeli culture, and make new friends. 3rd–5th graders. $60/JCC members, $75/potential members. 1-3 pm. Sandler Family Campus. Information and to reserve a spot: JewishVA.org/Shinshinim or contact Nofar Trem at NTrem@UJFT.org.

MAZEL TOV

Ilana Peck and Meir Leibler were married on August 5 at Luciana Restaurant in the Mamilla Mall, in an intimate outdoor chuppah overlooking the walls of the Old City of Jerusalem. An earlier wedding had been planned for June, but the war with Iran forced a postponement.

The couple met when they were called back into the army after October 7, 2023. Meir, born and raised in Israel, is a mechanical engineer. Ilana, born and raised in Norfolk, Va., works as a project manager for Syneos.

Ilana is the daughter of Marcy and Michael Mostofsky and Larry and Melina Peck. Meir is the son of Popsy and Romy Leibler of Har Nof, Jerusalem.

ISRAELI ISRAELI

MOVEMENT MOVEMENT

CALLING ALL 3RD–5TH GRADERS!

Monthly Sundays @ 1pm |Reba and Sam Sandler Family Campus

This exciting new event series brings the spirit of the Israeli Scouts to life right here in Tidewater! Each session is packed with fun, friendship, and discovery.

Play High-Energy Games

Build Teamwork & Leade

Explore Israeli Culture

Make New Friends

9 sessions begins October 1

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William Jeremy Baughan

NAGS HEAD, N.C. - William Jeremy Baughan, known as Billy, passed away on August 14, 2025, surrounded by family and loved ones. He was 50 years old.

Billy was the beloved son of Michele Baughan Robbins and Perry Robbins. He is survived by his cherished daughter, Michaela Baughan; his sister, Jodi Robbins; and his brother, Adam Robbins. He was the grandson of Alvin and Ruth Wishneff and Robert and Lenora Baughan, and is also lovingly remembered by many aunts, uncles, cousins, and close friends.

Born and raised in Virginia Beach, Billy attended Kempsville High School before relocating to the Outer Banks, a place he came to love and call home. He proudly served in the United States Navy as an Aviation Ordnanceman (AO) with squadrons VF-143 and VF-11. After his service, he worked briefly for Northrop Grumman before following his entrepreneurial spirit to open his own business, B and B Tile.

Billy later completed his associate

degree in information technology from Strayer University, a milestone he was proud to achieve.

A devoted father, Billy never missed one of Michaela’s baseball games and was always on the sidelines as her coach and biggest supporter. He was an avid saltwater fisherman who found peace and joy on the water. Billy was also a long-standing and proud member of Alcoholics Anonymous, where he both gave and received immense support and friendship.

Billy will be deeply missed for his loyalty, humor, and the love he had for his family and community.

Susan Margolin Brewer

NORFOLK - Susan Margolin Brewer, 88, passed away peacefully on August 5, 2025.

Born on September 30, 1936, in Baltimore, Maryland, Susan was the daughter of Ellis and Hilda Margolin. She pursued her education at the University of Maryland, laying the foundation for a life marked by creativity, devotion to family, and enduring

friendships.

Susan shared a long and loving marriage with her husband, Herbert Brewer. Together they built a family that brought her immense pride and joy. She is lovingly remembered by her son, Laurence Brewer, and his wife Laurie Holloway; her daughter, Wendi Fisch, and her husband Paul Fisch; as well as her cherished grandchildren: Elena Brewer, Joshua Brewer, Heather Fisch, and Samuel Fisch. Susan also leaves behind her sister, Linda Robinson.

A woman of many talents and passions, Susan was an accomplished painter whose artistic spirit enriched the lives of those around her. She was a passionate fan of UVA basketball and watched every game. She enjoyed traveling with her dear friends and family—adventures that created lasting memories and deepened lifelong bonds. At home, she delighted in playing Gin Rummy with her family, where laughter and connection were always at the heart of every game.

Susan was a loyal friend whose warmth touched many lives. She was a proud mother and grandmother who celebrated every milestone with love and enthusiasm. Above all else, she was a devoted wife to Herbert through 60 years of marriage—a partnership that stood as a testament to enduring love and mutual respect.

May Susan’s memory bring comfort to those who knew and loved her. A graveside service was held at Chevra Thelim/Gomley Chesed Cemetery in Portsmouth, Va.

Julie Wendy Comess

VIRGINIA BEACH - EJulie Wendy Comess, passed away on August 18, 2025.

She was born on September 29, 1967, to Sonya C. and Alan B. Comess, and lived a life dedicated to the service of caregiving, education, and advocacy.

She graduated from Norfolk State University with a degree in special education and served as a teaching assistant at Princess Anne High School. During the summers she worked as a caregiver, helping disabled individuals in their homes. Throughout her work she advocated for increased understanding of conditions such as Turner Syndrome, as well as for the needs of her students and individuals in her care.

During her free time, Julie enjoyed cooking, a wide variety of music, and movies, especially musicals. She had a

beautiful singing voice, and in her youth, she performed in many productions at school and at Kempsville Recreation Center. As an adult Julie enjoyed teaching others about Jewish heritage and learning about the religions and holidays of others in order to celebrate along with them. She attended India Fest nearly every year in Norfolk and regularly traveled to conferences on Turner Syndrome. Her enthusiasm, talents and dedication will be sorely missed.

Julie was preceded in death by her parents and her stepmother, Bobbie Comess, and is survived by her siblings, Bradley S. (Carla) Comess, Craig J. (Mary) Comess, and Tracye L. “Willow” (Michael) Boudell, and her nieces, Desiree Baskerville, Sophia Papelino and Judea Comess.

A graveside service was conducted by Rabbi Israel Zoberman at Forest Lawn Cemetery. Donations to the Turner Syndrome Society of the United States.

Timothy Cooper

NORFOLK - On July 23, Timothy Cooper lost his battle with a series of overwhelming illnesses, leaving a multitude of friends, relatives, and former members of the Naro Expanded Video to fondly remember this extraordinary man.

With highly developed interests that encompassed film, music, literature, and modernist art, Tim’s critical columns for Portfolio, Ghent, and City magazines were not just readable, but enlightening and delightful, especially when his humor blended with sarcasm in reviews.

But he found his sweet spot when he and Linda McGreevy reopened the video store in 1996, which eventually contained 42,000 titles curated by Cooper over the years until its closure (by streaming’s siren call) as a non-profit in 2019. The collection now resides in the Perry Library at Old Dominion University, available as always—but, alas, without Tim’s presence on the floor, “schmoozing” and engaging its membership day after day.

Tim had an exceptional education, from its beginnings at the Williams School, where he first learned French, to Norfolk Academy, at the time an all-boys institution. He excelled at Latin and composition, both of which helped fuel his strengths in writing, editing, and the acquisition of other languages from German to Spanish. After the first of two summers at the

OBITUARIES

Mount Herman school his undergraduate years were spent in Washington, D.C. at Georgetown University, where he majored in French, spending two summers at the Mount Herman School in Massachusetts in its intensive programs, one summer with a family in Dijon, and his junior year in the university’s program in Fribourg, Switzerland.

After graduation in 1968, he continued his French studies at the University of Virginia, returning to Norfolk to work with his father, Mervyn, in his optometry office on Church Street, where he was fondly known among locals as “My Man Smooth.” In 1979, Tim and Linda McGreevy, newly hired to teach modernist art history at ODU, met after an incident involving a dog (fully explained in the 2019 documentary, I Found It at the Video Store), beginning a 45-year (37 of them married) joyous and supportive life together. They traveled extensively and often in Europe, seeking art, patisseries, gregarious locals, and odd destinations, so long as there was a movie to be seen after nightfall. In this country, they attended Telluride’s film festival (far more interesting than their experience in the Cannes version), and for Linda’s articles and catalogue essays, repeatedly to New York, and occasionally farther afield in California.

His family is thankful to the staff at Maimonides Health Center for their care of Tim during much of his final year, and to the “gal pals,” Barbara, Susan, Linda, and Mary Lou, who gathered around him every day to exchange quips and feed him candy.

Tim was predeceased by his father, Mervyn Cooper, and mother, Ruth Cooper, friends John Tucker and William Laderberg, among others. He leaves to remember him, his wife, Linda McGreevy, brother William Cooper, nephews Bruce and Jason Cooper and their families, and relatives in the Cooper family in Norfolk. Graveside services were private.

Donations to the Naro Expanded Video Collection at the Perry Library at Old Dominion University will ensure that Timothy Cooper’s legacy will continue to engage film buffs. Online condolences may be offered to the family at hdoliver.com.

Dorothy

Stavin

Goldman

VIRGINIA BEACH - Dorothy Stavin Goldman, known by most as “Dottie,” passed away peacefully on August 10, 2025, surrounded by her loving family. She courageously battled cancer since

2019. She fiercely fought with strength, bravery, determination, and plenty of humor along the way. She always lifted the spirits of everyone around her and reassured family and friends often with comforting words.

She is survived by her loving husband, Dr. Charles J. Goldman, her children, David Goldman, and Laura (Marc) Wingett and grandchildren, Harrison and Brendan Wingett, who brought her immense joy. She is also survived by her brother, Richard Stavin (Dea) of California, niece, and nephew, Danielle and Justin Stavin. She was the daughter of Irwin and Gertrude Stavin of blessed memory and was born on March 3, 1944.

Dottie grew up in New York and graduated from Hofstra University with a major in Spanish. During her post graduate studies in Spanish, she attended a weekend retreat at Grossinger’s in the Catskills with close friends. That is where she met the love of her life, Dr. Charles J. Goldman, and four weeks later they became engaged. They were married on March 29,1969 and celebrated 56 wonderful years together.

She worked for Eastern Airlines at JFK Airport as a Ground Hostess assisting non-English- speaking passengers and taught Spanish in Merrick, New York. Dottie also volunteered at Maimonides Medical Center in Brooklyn, New York and served as an interpreter. After she got married, she chose to stay at home to raise her children. When her children were older, she obtained her real estate license. She had a highly successful career in real estate and achieved numerous awards.

Throughout her life, she surrounded herself with books. She was an avid reader and always read multiple books at a time. She attended many book clubs, Mah jong and canasta groups through the years. Although she was a self-proclaimed introvert, she loved that time with her friends. The New York Times crossword puzzle was a breeze for her, and she frequently displayed her knowledge by watching Jeopardy- her information retrieval was unmatched. Whenever there was a vocabulary word we did not know, even the most obscure word, she knew it. The scrabble board was her domain.

She was a lifelong learner, valued education, research, and the arts. Dottie set goals for herself and in her 50s completed the requirements to become a certified yoga teacher and learned to play golf. Her husband had been a long-time golfer, and they enjoyed

• Family owned and operated since 1917

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• Advance funeral planning

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• Flexible burial options

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Approved by all area Rabbis and Chevrah Kadisha

spending time with each other on the golf course. Dottie also enjoyed playing golf with a women's group at Bayville Golf Club. She loved music and attended Symphonicity regularly. Whether she was listening to meditation music or The Rolling Stones, music always grounded her. Listening to her grandson perform made her so proud. She would always say, “He’s definitely an Ephraim” (The side of her family with extraordinary musical talent.)

Community involvement was particularly important to her. She was the recipient of the United Jewish Federation of Tidewater Leonard Strelitz Young Leadership Award, UJFT

co-chair of Super Sunday, UJFT Women's Division chair, president of The National Council of Jewish Women, UJFT executive committee, Hebrew Academy of Tidewater board member, Cape Henry Collegiate board of trustees, Tidewater Children's Foundation board member, Jewish Film Festival committee, Life Time Hadassah member, and Virginia Stage Company task force.

She was a loving wife, mother, grandmother, sister, aunt, and friend to many. She will be remembered for her wisdom, strength, and courage. If there is one thing she taught us throughout her battle, it is “don't put off until tomorrow, what you can do today.”

Chris Sisler, Vice President, Member of Ohef Sholom Temple, Board member of the Berger-Goldrich Home at Beth Sholom Village, James E. Altmeyer, Jr., President, James E. Altmeyer, Sr., Owner

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A graveside service was held at Forest Lawn Cemetery with Rabbi Jacob Herber officiating.

Donations to The American Cancer Society, or charity of choice. Condolences may be left at www.altmeyerfh.com.

Abe Goldstein

EDMONTON, ALBERTA - It is with deep sorrow, enduring love, and immense gratitude for the time we had together, that we announce the passing of our beloved husband, father, Zaidie, and friend, Abe Goldstein.

Abe passed away surrounded by the love of his family — his devoted wife of 60 years, Joan; his children Leanelle (Denny), Marci (Daniel), and Michael (Sharna).

He will be deeply missed by his grandchildren: Jordan, Matthew, Sarah, Jack, Ethan, Tory, Hudson, and Weston.

Abe was one of the most loving, kind, and decent human beings anyone could hope to know. He was an accomplished businessman, an outstanding athlete, and a nearly unbeatable cribbage player — something his grandchildren can attest to.

Quietly intellectual and a keen observer of the world around him, Abe was thoughtful, wise, and deeply principled. He instilled in his children a strong sense of family, the value of education, resilience in the face of adversity, and the importance of independence. Abe survived the Holocaust as an orphan, yet he always saw his life as a blessing. He passed on to his children and grandchildren a belief in kindness and a commitment to never hate.

He was profoundly proud of his Jewish identity and maintained a lifelong commitment to Israel. Yet above all else, Abe’s greatest devotion was to his family. His wife Joan, his children, and his grandchildren were his purpose, his pride and his joy.

Donations to the Jewish National Fund by contacting Jay Cairns at 780-481-7881.

Dr. Howard Kesser

NORFOLK - Dr. Howard Kesser, beloved father, grandfather, great-grandfather, and devoted husband, passed away peacefully at the age of 91 on August 26, 2025. Born on May 9, 1934, to Leah Salsbury Kesser and Clifford Kesser, Howard lived a life marked by dedication—to his family, his community, and his profession. He was predeceased by his loving wife, Arlene Berman Kesser, his daughter, Laura Ilene

Kesser and his brother, Edward Kesser.

Howard is survived by his daughter Sharon Kesser Laderberg; his grandchildren Jodi (David), Kevin (Sarah), and Danny (Melissa); and his great-grandchildren JP, Sean, Harrison, and Emma.

A proud graduate and Valedictorian of Maury High School, Howard went on to attend the University of Virginia and Medical College of Virginia (MCV), earning his dental degree before establishing a thriving private practice. He worked as a dentist with care and integrity until the age of 82 –evidence of both his passion and stamina.

Howard’s life was rich not only in professional accomplishment, but also in love and family. He and his beloved Arlene, whom he met in middle school, shared a lifelong partnership that served as an enduring example of devotion. Together, they built a family legacy filled with warmth, generosity, and deep connection.

He will be remembered as a man of quiet strength, unwavering loyalty, and endless love.

A memorial service was held at Ohef Sholom Temple. Donations to Ohef Sholom Temple, Temple Israel, or Alzheimer's Association Southeastern Virginia Chapter.

Phillip Morton Levy

COCOA BEACH, FLA. - Phillip Morton Levy passed away on August 26, 2025, at the age of 94, surrounded by the love of his family and memories of a well-lived life.

Born in Newport News to Nathan and Sara (Sassi) Levy, Phil’s generous spirit, unwavering integrity, humor, and kindness touched everyone he met. He was a devoted son, husband, father, grandfather, and greatgrandfather, loved his family deeply, and was always there for them. As a beloved role model, family and friends looked to Phil for advice and support throughout his life.

Phil cherished his time with his family and friends, enjoying boating, water sports, fishing, camping, theme park trips, cruises, watching movies, attending musical productions, and playing the always competitive Phase 10 card games, where he reigned supreme.

Phil graduated as Valedictorian from Newport News High School, received his B.A. from University of Pennsylvania, and his M.D. from University of Virginia School of Medicine. After his internship at University of Maryland Hospital, he served as a flight surgeon in the U.S. Navy and

deployed with the VMF531 Marine Air Squadron to the Far East.

After ophthalmology residency at the Wills Eye Hospital, he returned to practice ophthalmology in Newport News at Riverside Hampton General and Mary Immaculate Hospitals. He served on many of the hospitals’ committees and as president of the Riverside medical staff.

For over 54 years, Phil was a member of the Newport News Lions Club, where he served as president. He especially enjoyed many summers when he and his wife, Jan, volunteered with Remote Area Medical (RAM) to assist Appalachian Mountain residents.

On May 19, 1964, Phil was appointed as Chief Resident of Wills Eye Hospital, and on March 1, 1987, Phil was inducted into the Newport News track Hall of Fame. From 1975 to 1977, Phil was an instructor in ophthalmology for the Department of Surgery.

As a member of Rodef Sholom Temple, Phil participated in various activities and served on the board. He was active on committees with the Jewish Federation and served a term as president of the Jewish Community Center. In Florida, Phil was a member of Temple Beth Sholom. Leading a joyous Passover Seder with his family and many friends was an annual ritual he particularly enjoyed.

He is survived by his daughters and their spouses, Shelly Levy Cooper (Eric), Eileen Bild (Trevor); his six grandchildren, Evan and Ellie, David II, James, Samuel, and Natalie; his greatgrandchildren, Sophia, Ethan, and Tzipporah; his brother, Mayer Levy (Susan), and many close in-laws, cousins, nieces, and nephews.

He was predeceased by his wife, Janice Portnoy Levy, the love of his life, with whom he shared love, laughter, and a passion for family, friends, and community.

A memorial service was held at Rodef Sholom Temple, Newport News, followed by interment at the Jewish Cemetery of the Virginia Peninsula.

Donations to a favorite charity. Weymouth Funeral Home.

Babette Odessky Lustig

VIRGINIA BEACH - Babette Odessky Lustig, beloved mother, grandmother, and great-grandmother, passed away peacefully on August 18, 2025, at the age of 98, surrounded by her family.

She was born on December 9, 1926,

in Reading, Pennsylvania, to Alice and Bernard Lustig. Independent and resourceful from a young age, she began her career as a stenographer with the United States Office of Price Administration. After World War II, she moved to Miami Beach to live with her beloved grandmother, Rose Sutker. It was there she met Morris Odessky, with whom she shared a love filled 25-year marriage. Together they raised three children. Soon after the birth of her second child her mother and sister moved to Miami and family became the center of her world.

Babette is survived by her children, Carol Pariser (David), Jay Odessky (Eddie), and Neil Odessky (Connie); four grandchildren, Michael Pariser, Jana Maser (Gabriel), Jared Odessky, Josh Odessky (Brennan), brother-in-law Charles Brown and two greatgrandchildren, Ayla and Sophie. She was predeceased by her husband, Morris, and her sister, Linda Brown.

Widowed at 48, Babette showed remarkable courage and resilience. She built a meaningful career as registrar for the University of Miami’s Nassau program, while also creating a life full of joy, friendships, and adventure.

Babette’s openness to love brought her two cherished later-life relationships. With Harvey Goodman, she traveled the world, embracing new experiences. Later, with Richard Fast, she discovered a renewed sense of joy — as if she were a schoolgirl in love once again.

Creative, energetic, and generous, Babette infused her days with art and connection. She painted, danced, bowled, and filled her home with beauty through countless creative projects. She valued laughter over ceremony, connection over convention, and relationships over possessions — a philosophy that shaped every part of her life.

When she could no longer live alone, Babette moved to Virginia Beach, where she spent six years lovingly cared for by Carol and David.

Babette’s resilience and compassion touched everyone she met. She will be remembered for her devotion to family and friends, her zest for life, and her gift for finding joy in both the everyday and the extraordinary.

Donations to the Alzheimer’s Association or Primeplus Adult Care.

Tidewater Jewish Foundation is proud to partner with Jewish Future Promise, a worldwide movement to secure a vibrant Jewish future for generations to come. We call on Jews and allies to make the moral, non-binding promise that, upon passing, at least half of your charitable contributions will support Jewish causes or the State of Israel. Help secure the Jewish future by making the promise now!

“L’dor v’dor, from generation to generation, the Jewish community has remained strong and vital through acts of compassion, tzedakah and tikkun olam. By signing this pledge, we hope to encourage our children to follow the example of their parents and grandparents in working on behalf of the Jewish community at home and in Israel.”

Jay and Jodi Klebanoff

Signers of the Jewish Future Promise

For more information, contact Amy Weinstein aweinstein@tjfva.org | 757-965-6114 foundation.jewishva.org/jewish-future-promise

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