By Marc Gronich
Displaying reverence to veterans and showing appreciation for their service, both on and off the battlefield, is one of the time-honored traditions in American politics.
By Marc Gronich
It was widely expressed by state lawmakers that the buffer zone is just a first step. “A buffer zone wasn’t just necessary but imperative. We were pleased that we were able to increase the distance that was originally 25 feet to 50 feet,” said Stern.
By Marc Gronich
How is it possible that when we’re living in a world where you need police protection to observe your faith, for Yom Kippur, for Rosh Hashanah, for any of the holy days, that’s not a scandal?
By Marc Gronich
Six Democratic hopefuls have emerged as contenders for the seat, which Nadler described to The Jewish Press as the safest Democratic seat in the country. “If my district ever went Republican then there isn’t a congressional district in the country that would be safe,” Nadler said.
By Marc Gronich
Both Lancman and his opponent, Jake Blumencranz, will focus their campaign rhetoric on antisemitism, being pro-Zionist and the perennial issue of fighting crime.
By Marc Gronich
Grid Strategies recently issued a report stating that preventing the nation’s coal plants from retiring over the next three years could cost consumers at least $3 billion per year.
By Met Council
Behind the scenes, Met Council leverages AI-powered tools to optimize warehouse operations and direct food to partner agencies and pantries based on real-time data and community demand. This approach ensures resources are distributed more efficiently and equitably.
By Marc Gronich
“I remember seeing pictures of teenagers who looked a lot like I did and realizing that if I had simply been born at a different time, that would very likely have been me and my family,” she recounted.
By Jason Maoz
“It gave us a tremendous amount of pleasure,” said Welz, “especially in these economic times, to know that parents didn’t need to dig deep into their pockets or add to their credit card debt in order to give their families a joyful and memorable experience.”
By Marc Gronich
In the spirit of the proclamations highlighting 124 days of education in New York state in recognition of what would have been the Rebbe’s 124th birthday, Rabbi Silber connected the two points in his remarks.
By Marc Gronich
ADL organizers, which spent a significant amount of money to pull off this extraordinary effort also raised an equal amount of funds from sponsorships and loyal supporters.
By Marc Gronich
Larry was the epitome of chesed, Moshe Zakheim, president of COJO Flatbush, told The Jewish Press. …The community has lost a remarkable individual in Larry, whose contributions and positive influence will be deeply missed...
By Marc Gronich
Rabbi Arthur Schneier, a Holocaust survivor said, I'm counting on every city and state official to establish the rule, not abolishing freedom of speech but protection of every house of worship. Every house of worship, be it a synagogue, be it a church, be it a mosque, whatever.
By Marc Gronich
Probably the most significant election result for the Jewish community was that Julie Menin, 58, was chosen unanimously by her colleagues to be the first Jewish speaker of the 51-member New York City Council.
I learned by listening to the rabbis that the light dispels darkness. By lighting the light for Chanukah, we push back darkness. We push back evil, Walsh said.
By Marc Gronich
The message of the menorah, as the Rebbe said, is a multiple message but first and foremost, it’s a universal message. We live in a world of darkness. Never more than today do we see the darkness. The menorah comes along and tells every human being, regardless of race, color, or creed, the answer is do not fight it, illuminate it.
By Marc Gronich
The memorial will include works of art for the public to view. The artist selection process will be led by the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs’ “Percent for Art” program in consultation with artists, historians, and Holocaust survivors. The Public Design Commission will also be involved in the initiative.w
By Marc Gronich
Delgado has made clear that he has many differences with Hochul on the issues including housing, energy, education, childcare, utility monopolies, tax credits for businesses, and style of governing.
By Marc Gronich
The emotional scars are still felt throughout the Jewish community, which remains on guard to prevent copycat shooters from mounting a similar attack. The synagogue is in shambles and is in the midst of a $22 million rebuilding effort.
By Marc Gronich
The impact of the shooting still creates a lingering uneasy feeling at other nearby houses of worship. Located a few blocks from the Tree of Life Synagogue is the Chabad of Squirrel Hill. The rabbi there is doing his best not to have his prayer services interrupted by gunfire.
State-of-the-art campus in Chicago inspires hundreds of students at Lubavitch Girls High School to learn deeply and live with purpose.
By Marc Gronich
Earlier this year, Lawler decided not to run for governor against Hochul, but he didn’t hold back from attacking her.
By Marc Gronich
The new street sign is under a beautiful tree on the corner ready for someone to look up and get some shade and think about what Rabbi Halpern did for the shul, Rabbi Perelson added.
By Marc Gronich
The event was emceed by Assemblyman Kalman Yeger (D - Midwood), who spoke strongly about antisemitism in government, singling out New York City Comptroller Brad Lander, among others.
By Marc Gronich
I’m not bottling it up. I’ve cried many times. I cry every single day. Someone said I have a heart of metal. That’s not correct.
In an unrelated case which was settled with the New Jersey Education Department in August, parents of special education students secured the right to “stay put” in private school settings while they fight their claims that public schools are not providing them with a free and appropriate education (FAPE) under the Individuals with Disabilities Act (IDEA).
By Jason Maoz
Our commitment to helping our neighbors is well-served by events like this, which involve a collaboration between private businesses and not-for-profit agencies, said COJO Flatbush CEO Louis Welz.
By Marc Gronich
There is a clear nexus between cell phone use and a decline in students’ mental health and academic success due to a decreased ability to focus, diminished social interaction and emotional stress, said Senator Shelley Mayer (D – Yonkers, Westchester County), chairwoman of the Senate Education Committee.
By Marc Gronich
The message is about tolerance, anti-hate, anti-bias, anti-discrimination. It’s not just that we need to be more tolerant, because students understand that but we really get to focus on how I can be more tolerant. What actions can I take?
By Marc Gronich
The DSA isn’t going to get into a fight over the design of a Holocaust memorial. The DSA would probably want to put up a memorial to the Nakba...
By Marc Gronich
There is a reason why the American Medical Association reiterates their opposition to this bill, because doctors are in the business of saving lives. When a doctor takes an oath it says ‘First, do no harm,’ said Senator George Borrello (R - Sunset Bay, Chautauqua County).
By Jason Maoz
Expectations were sky-high, and the event – presented by COJO Flatbush in partnership with the Boro Park Y and sponsored by the New York City Department for the Aging – drew more than 300 seniors to Brooklyn’s historic and picturesque Dyker Beach Golf Course.
By Baruch Lytle
When asked about what concerns her most about her challenger, Vernikov pointed out Kagan has run for office several times as a Democrat and had in the past voted with Democrats on progressive issues.
By Marc Gronich
Perhaps the most concerning part [as to his] stance on Israel is his comparison of Israel’s actions to apartheid and genocide. His opposition to U.S. financial support for Israel demonstrates a level of ignorance that distorts the realities of the Israeli–Palestinian conflict..., Assemblyman Ari Brown (R – Cedarhurst, Nassau County), told The Jewish Press.
By Jason Maoz
COJO’s senior clients schmoozed with friends; played competitive rounds of Bingo; enjoyed a delicious dairy meal provided by the school; and sang, danced, and chatted with BLOPPY high school and elementary-grade students.
By Marc Gronich
One of the bills Cohen wants to see voted for would require that when drivers pass bicyclists, they have to give the bicyclists a minimum of three feet so they can have a fair share of the road.
By Jason Maoz
A Hallmark of every COJO Legislative Breakfast is the air of expectation – the palpable buzz – that begins as soon as the first guests arrive and doesn’t end until the last guests leave hours later.
By Marc Gronich
The annual COJO Breakfast began 46 years ago. Last year, the organization served 30,000 clients and did performed more than 60,000 services, according to its president, Moshe Zakheim. COJO Flatbush offers more than a dozen services to the community at-large.
By Marc Gronich
Too often crime victims watch in horror as their assailants walk free, not because they’re innocent but because of procedural technicalities. It’s my job to fight for those victims – many of whom are domestic violence victims – and that’s exactly what I did.
By Marc Gronich
Rabbi Raitport had a unique connection to the Lubavitcher Rebbe. When we were students in yeshiva, in the mid-1980s, he felt blessed that the Rebbe instructed him to write a weekly or biweekly update and report to the Rebbe, Rabbi Butman recalled.
By Marc Gronich
Felder is beginning his second stint on the New York City Council, where he served for eight years from January 2002 to February 2010. Last month, on March 25, he won the seat with more than 81 percent of the vote.
By Jason Maoz
An event like this brings the families of our community so much happiness – without any worries about the cost of an afternoon filled with entertainment, and with the convenience of being smack in the middle of their own neighborhood, sparing them a long Chol HaMoed schlep.
By Marc Gronich
With Homan in the Capitol building, Democrats hastily rallied together, leaving debates behind in the Senate and Assembly chambers to show their disdain toward the Trump administration and Homan in particular.
By Marc Gronich
For many years this event was highlighted with remarks from Rabbi Shmuel Butman, z”l from the Assembly rostrum in Albany. However, Rabbi Butman passed away last July at the age of 81, due to a heart attack. This year, his son, Rabbi Velvl Butman, 57, took the reins and delivered remarks directed towards the life and legacy of the Lubavitcher Rebbe.
By Marc Gronich
The strong showing of advocates in Albany as well as the clear message Agudah presented was met with praise from dozens of state legislators.
By Marc Gronich
Cuomo announced his mayoral bid on Saturday, March 1. The following day, he received the endorsements of the New York City and Vicinity District Council of Carpenters, which represents more than 20,000 of skilled tradespeople in New York.
By Jason Maoz
COJO Flatbush CEO Louis Welz added, The camaraderie we see at every one of these parties is immensely gratifying, and a real treat for our seniors. We just wish we could do it even more frequently.
Seeing the anger and hostility towards Israel and Jewish people around the globe blew my mind. It was maddening trying to explain why Hamas was evil to so many companies and individuals. I was in shock.
By Marc Gronich
While the governor offers highlights of her budget plan, the devil is always in the details, which are contained in a 142-page budget book.
By Jason Maoz
It’s quick and convenient – and, most important, accurate, with tax-return forms carefully worked on by certified tax preparers whose goal is maximizing earned-income tax credits and refunds.
By Marc Gronich
What Lester Chang did [to win his assembly seat in 2022] was good old-fashioned retail politics. He got young men, young women of high school age and college age out there. He went door-to-door.
By Jason Maoz
The interaction between seniors and students has become the highlight of these luncheons, guaranteed to lift spirits and create wide smiles.
By Marc Gronich
Assembly Republican Leader Will Barclay (R - Pulaski, Oswego County) began by skewering Hochul for taking from one hand and putting it another.
By Marc Gronich
A popular topic at the legislative reception was how a $20 million deficit in the town of East Ramapo School District turned into a $30 million surplus.
By Marc Gronich
Last week Hochul vetoed one of Weprin’s bills that he had high hopes of being signed into law. It was a bill capping co-payments on physical therapy, which is usually prescribed post-surgery and generally not covered by insurance, Weprin said.
By Jason Maoz
COJO Flatbush is dedicated to making it easy and convenient for anyone to earn their GED diploma. You can even do so by applying any previous passing Regents exam scores – no matter how many years ago you earned them – toward your equivalency diploma.
By Marc Gronich
Governor Kathy Hochul has been touring the state, crowing about $300 rebates New York residents will receive in the fall of 2025. As much as she can, Hochul is also avoiding questions about her low poll numbers.
By dvora
Tischler knows firsthand the unique challenges the disabled and their families face, and he is passionate about ensuring that they receive the support and services they need.
By Marc Gronich
When it comes to Israel, Matisyahu is not shy about stating his opinion. He performed for the IDF and for AIPAC and supported Israeli settlers in Judea and Samaria. He voiced support for Israel in the current war.
By Marc Gronich
While Congress and the White House will reflect the trifecta of Republican victories, New York’s government is controlled by Democrats from the governor’s office to both houses of the legislature – the Senate and the Assembly chambers.
By Marc Gronich
One of the reasons we lost the Senate [in 2018] was because we really didn’t have a strong farm team in the Assembly, Straniere said.
By Marc Gronich
Giffords, 54, was raised in a mixed religious environment, as her mother was a Christian Scientist and her father was Jewish. Her paternal grandfather, Akiba Hornstein, was a Jewish emigrant from Lithuania who changed his name to Giffords to avoid antisemitism in the United States.
By Marc Gronich
It is not easy to explain why the court system is set up the way it is, and most people don’t care unless they get into the system as an employee or a defendant, which is why people hire lawyers who understand the system better than the average person.
The time to act is now. Will you answer the call? Will you stand with Amudim and declare that in our community, no one fights alone?
By Marc Gronich
New York probably has one of the biggest Jewish populations in the country and [an Israel tent] would make a lot of sense, State Senator Rachel May (D - Syracuse) told The Jewish Press.
By Marc Gronich
We found that the number of hate crimes reported in New York State are at the highest level since hate crimes were mandated to be reported in 2000 with the hate crimes legislation, DiNapoli told The Jewish Press.
By Jason Maoz
It is our great pleasure to participate in the Giveaway, said COJO Flatbush CEO Louis Welz. Our commitment to helping our neighbors is well-served by events like this, involving a collaboration between private businesses and not-for-profit agencies.
By Marc Gronich
You get near [the campers] and you see their joy. Some of them articulate it in different ways and some of them can’t necessarily, but if you are in their presence, you can feel it, Yeger continued.
By Marc Gronich
On July 25, 2024, Rabbi Levi Slonim was the guest Chaplain offering the opening prayer in Congress, the House of Representatives. His invitation was spurred on by freshman Congressman Marcus Molinaro (R – Catskill, Greene County).
By Marc Gronich
He was a fierce defender of the Lubavitcher Rebbe’s legacy. Even if someone didn’t think they offended the Rebbe’s reputation, if he thought the person did, you received a phone call explaining the situation from his point of view.
Shortly after 2:00 a.m. on Friday morning, July 26, the overnight crew at Zadies Kosher Bake Shop felt an unusual amount of heat and smelled smoke. Upon exiting the building into the rear parking lot, they saw smoke coming from the rear of Green Dragon Asian Cuisine, a non-kosher restaurant at the far end of the shopping center. They quickly called 911.
By Marc Gronich
The Torah is the portable homeland of the Jew, Weil said, drawing on the words of Rabbi Jonathan Sacks, of blessed memory.
By Marc Gronich
While pointing out that [t]he responsibility for this act is that deranged, demonic shooter who did not have the benefit of a good upbringing, New York State Senate Deputy Minority Leader Andrew Lanza said it is important to understand what may have contributed to this moment.
The importance of voter registration is underscored by recent election data. In the Westchester race between the notoriously anti-Israel Rep. Jamaal Bowman and George Latimer, the Jewish vote played a decisive role.
By Marc Gronich
If congestion pricing is successful, it would push motorists off the road and into the subways where, even at rush-hour, riders are already packed like sardines into silver-colored transports.
By Marc Gronich
The land of the cemetery is so valuable and sacred now we have to focus our energies on restoring the tranquility and the sanctity to that land, Schultz told The Jewish Press.
By Marc Gronich
By the end of the session (June 7 for the Senate and June 8 for the Assembly), when the air was sucked out of the room by Hochul’s last-minute surprise, lawmakers had no desire to continue their debates and all the talking that still needs to happen now.
By Jason Maoz
Judging from the wide smiles, deep laughter, and excited buzz that resonated throughout the afternoon, this year’s Garden Party – held once again at the ultra-elegant Club House reception hall of Brooklyn’s historic and picturesque Dyker Beach Golf Course – more than met the sky-high expectations raised by last year’s event.
By Jason Maoz
The bond between generations is always palpable to everyone in the room, and it never fails to lift spirits and create warm smiles.
By Marc Gronich
The leader of the House Democrats, Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D – Crown Heights, Brooklyn), also addressed the crowd. This is a challenging and searing time for the Jewish community where we will be able to defeat antisemitism, bury it in the ground and ensure it can never rise up again, he said.
By Marc Gronich
New York should be a refuge. We should be a sanctuary for Jews who live here, who are New Yorkers, who pay taxes, who call this home. We are quickly not becoming that. That is a shameful thing and that is what this conference stands against, said Senate Republican Leader Rob Ortt.
By Marc Gronich
It has been 26 years since the New York State Senate honored its first group of women with the Women of Distinction award. This is a senate-only event and does not include any honorees from the New York State Assembly.
By Marc Gronich
Civics is about life in our democracy, said Dr. Lester Young, chancellor of the state education department. We are at an incredible moral moment. It is critically important that our young people have access to knowledge skills.
By Jason Maoz
Sponsored by Assemblyman Simcha Eichenstein, along with Citizens Bank, the Extravaganza was held on the first day of Chol HaMoed Pesach, which turned out to be the perfect day for outdoor fun – clear and sunny with a cool breeze.
By Marc Gronich
The budget fails to do anything to protect the safety of New Yorkers. Governor Hochul’s strategy to tackle retail theft is to establish a task force and throw money at the problem, Ortt said.
By Marc Gronich
We can tell Chuck Schumer that he can take his pledge and move his offices over to the minority leader's office because there is a Republican majority coming to the Senate to make sure that our ideas are being implemented.
Digitizing the system through Market also allows for Met Council to communicate with clients about availability of certain items in the warehouse and hours of operation on a given day, as well as to keep accurate inventory to ensure that when an item is listed as available, it actually is.
By Marc Gronich
I’ve been watching politics for many years. We always see you [Weber] here. As far as I’m concerned, you, Michael Lawler and you, Mr. McGowan, are the most active politicians here. We always see you and you’re always close to the community and we appreciate that very much, Lichter told the lawmakers.
By Jason Maoz
Welz set the tone for the tributes that were to follow for Rabbi Pikus, describing him as a true giant in delivering chesed to our community and declaring that everything we build stands on the foundation he helped create.
By Marc Gronich
This effort is a token of appreciation to give back to worthy individuals. Every family gets a list of more than 100 items to order from. Everything is pre-ordered. This location assists 3,000 families.
The diversity and creativity of the topics that were covered and the speakers from all over the world were nothing short of mind-boggling.
By Marc Gronich
To my colleagues in government, including our United States Senator [Charles Schumer], we have an obligation to support the state of Israel and its government. We cannot and should not ever tell the Israeli people what to do with their government. We don’t want others interfering in our elections and we should never interfere in theirs.
By Marc Gronich
The way state aid works, students are entitled to aid, not schools. Schools in New York state do not get state aid from the state. Students are entitled to certain aid based on choices parents make.
By Marc Gronich
We have elected leaders who have stood with a terror network. We have elected leaders who have called the elected government of Israel to step down while allowing a terror network to remain in place. … It’s a growing threat.
By Marc Gronich
Most people who are coming are open to growing. That’s why they’re here. We haven’t had a situation yet where someone refused to wear a yarmulke, said Rebbetzin Rochie Kremer.
By Jason Maoz
Larry would remain close with Rabbi Trenk for the rest of his beloved teacher’s life, and credits him with imparting the most important life lessons to his students, chief among them the beauty of living a life filled with empathy for others.
By Marc Gronich
To make progress, we must engage to eliminate the evil, outmaneuver the opportunists, and educate the ignorant. To start, the Jewish people must be understood, not just by others but by ourselves.
By Ahuva Lamm
The Fair Lawn, N.J., Jewish community recently went on a solidarity mission to Israel in conjunction with World Mizrachi and I was unbelievably lucky to have been able to join the mission.
Experts will be on hand to answer questions and provide valuable information on when and how to get a colonoscopy, risk factors, prevention strategies, and available treatment options.
By Marc Gronich
Among all this turmoil on college campuses, King predicts the possibility of a one-billion-dollar deficit over ten years if the state does not come to the rescue. As a result, to make up for the deficit, tuition may have to rise, King said.