More than 250 friends, family and supporters of Yeshiva Aish Kodesh, the Talmudical Academy of Norfolk, enjoyed a warm celebration of the area’s first and only Jewish Boy’s high school on May 20 at the school’s Tribute Dinner honoring Jordan Slone, founding president of the Yeshiva.
Held at the Sheraton Norfolk Waterside Hotel, the event recognized Slone for his commitment to Jewish education in Hampton Roads and also honored members of the Class of 2006, the first graduating class of YAK. Bentzion Dicker, Uri Feldman and Avrohom Hirtz came from New York and Maryland to Norfolk to receive a Torah high school education. The graduates took the opportunities provided by YAK to pursue careers and higher level secular and Torah education.
The evening honored Slone for his vision in 2003 to have a Jewish boys’ high school that would provide excellent Torah education and outstanding secular studies. For eight years, Slone worked tirelessly to turn this dream into a reality. Today, Yeshiva Aish Kodesh provides quality education to local and out-of-town boys and is accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools. Slone accomplished this laudable goal while running a successful international business. He is chairman and chief executive officer of Harbor Group International, a company that provides real estate investment opportunities to accredited individual and institutional investors. Harbor Group International controls more than $3.5 billion in real estate investment properties in three different countries. He also serves on the board of directors of USA Discounters, a national furniture retailer, and is a current member of the international board of directors of Shaare Zedek Hospital in Jerusalem.
Guest speaker Malcolm Hoenlein discussed Israel and Middle East affairs, terrorism, the American Jewish community, and intergroup relations. Hoenlein related that the key to survival as a people is a commitment to Jewish education. He is executive vice chairman of the Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations, the coordinating body on international and national concerns for 52 national Jewish organizations. Hoenlein taught international relations and served as a Middle East specialist at the Foreign Policy Research Institute. President George W. Bush asked Hoenlein to accompany him to Jerusalem for the celebration of the 60th anniversary of the State of Israel in May 2008.
As part of the evening’s festivities, a video about the school was shown. The video portrayed the daily life of the Yeshiva and the lives of the students it has touched. In addition, a track from an upcoming fundraising music CD was played and copies distributed to a grateful audience. Given the success of the Yeshiva in educating Jewish minds, those in attendance left with the glimmer of a warm and bright future for the Jewish people.
For more information, contact YAK at 623-6070 or visit http://www.yeshivasaishkodesh. com.
Yeshivas Aish Kodesh is a constituent agency of United Jewish Federation of Tidewater.