Jewish News

BOSTON (JTA)—Herman Wouk, the bestselling Orthodox Jewish author whose literary career spanned nearly seven decades and who helped usher Judaism into the American mainstream, died Friday, May 17 at the age of 103. Wouk was the author of two dozen novels and works of nonfiction, including the Pulitzer Prize-winning The Caine Mutiny from 1951, which [...]

Norfolk—Larry Melvin Saunders passed away at the age of 84 on Thursday, May 16, 2019 at Harbor’s Edge. Born in 1935 in Norfolk, Virginia, he was the son of Bertha and Edward Saunders, of blessed memory. He spent most of his life living in the Tidewater area, except for his four years as a University [...]

Virginia Beach—Irene Mandel Blum, 95, passed away on May 10, 2019 at Beth Sholom Village. Irene was born in Baltimore, Md., on July 12, 1923 to Joseph and Rachel (Solomon) Mandel. The family moved to Norfolk where Irene attended Maury High School. She was a life member of B’nai Brith Women, Hadassah, Beth Sholom Home, [...]

Virginia Beach—Patricia Leffew Ashkenazi, 70, passed away May 9, 2019 in Virginia Beach, surrounded by her loving family. She is survived by her husband, Avraham Ashkenazi of Virginia Beach; children Pam Zettervall, husband Chris and children Laura and Olivia; Elizabeth Dorroh and children Reese and Riley; Yaron and Orly Ashkenazi and children Yuval, Danielle, and [...]

In Vilden Vald—Aaron Tessler ft. Zemiros Choir The Holocaust’s devastation brought about not only the decimation of the Jewish people in body, but also immeasurable losses to Jewish culture. Countless and precious pieces of memory, history, and tradition disappeared with the people who guarded them. But one simple song from the alter heim (“old country”) [...]

Leon Family Gallery, Reba and Sam Sandler Family Campus May 2019 Craig Dershowitz, executive director of Artists 4 Israel, manages this group of artists from across the world who use the power of art to beautify the land, uplift people, and enhance Israel’s image. They do this through creative humanitarian projects and dynamic advocacy initiatives, [...]

Wednesday, June 19, 9 am—5 pm Holocaust education is vital to ensuring that people today know the warning signs that led to the attempted destruction of the Jewish people in Nazi Germany. “Understanding the lessons of the Holocaust makes people better citizens, indeed, better human beings. A trip to the Virginia Holocaust Museum will bring [...]

Through August 11 Temple Emanu-El, 1 East 65th Street, New York City Museum hours: Sunday–Thursday, 10 am–4 pm Traveling to New York City during the next couple of months? If so, try to include a visit to Temple Emanu-El’s Bernard Museum of Judaica to view the Barr Foundation’s yad—pointer—collection. Twenty-five years ago, Clay H. Barr began collecting [...]

Ambassador Ido Aharoni spoke at Ohef Sholom Temple as part of the Community Relations Council of the United Federation of Tidewater and community partners’ 8th annual Israel Today series on Wednesday, May 8. As a member of Israel’s Foreign Service for 25 years, and as the founder of the Brand Israel Group, Ambassador Aharoni is [...]

After a great deal of thought, discussion, planning, negotiating, shopping, cooking, and implementing—not to mention the counting, hard boiling and peeling of no fewer than 96 eggs—Temple Israel held its first Women’s Seder on April 24, 2019. TI member Shirley Cofino-Rehder had long wanted a Women’s Seder at the synagogue. She’d done several before at [...]