יום שלישי, כ״ג חשוון תשפ״זTuesday, November 3, 2026
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In yet another sign of how popular kosher products have become, a symposium on kosher food production and certification recently took place in what may seem a most unlikely location: Hawaii.
The Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors has appointed attorney Andrew Friedman to the Commission on Local Government Services. L.A. County Supervisor Michael D. Antonovich presented the motion of appointment.
Due to current circumstances in the Middle East, I am featuring my usual Thanksgiving column. Once again Israel is engaged in a futile round of “peace talks” with an enemy that seeks its demise. The cast may change, but the premise of the misguided script remains the same. When will we ever learn?
NCSY, the International Youth movement of the Orthodox Union, held its annual Jewish Unity Mentoring Program (JUMP) Conference and Challenge recently at the Hilton Huntington Hotel in Melville, New York.
The Torah Academy of Boca Raton held its 7th annual Golf Tournament and BBQ at Boca Lago Country Club on October 21. More than 80 golfers enjoyed a fabulous day of golf, food and fun.
Janos Ader made West Coast history last week by becoming the first sitting president of the Republic of Hungary to visit a synagogue. Ader was accompanied at Congregation Bais Naftoli by his wife and a 14-member high-level delegation. Bais Naftoli president and attorney Andrew Friedman hosted a breakfast in the president’s honor.
Last week, Israel’s Habayit Hayehudi Party spearheaded a new nationwide marriage registration bill into law. The bill, the Tzohar Law, was passed in a 54-17 vote.
It is really very hard for me to honestly believe that my oldest grandson, Jack Benveniste-Plitt, is about to become bar mitzvah. How is it possible that the same child whose infant socks slipped from his too-small feet is now almost as tall as me and wearing men’s size sneakers?
The RASG Hebrew Academy has always had much to be proud of. The school offers students the finest of both Judaic and secular curriculum. The faculty, student body, parents and leadership are top notch. The atmosphere is upbeat and inspirational.
The 34th annual South Florida Chassidic Chanukah Festival will be held on December 1 at Gulfstream Park in Hallandale Beach. The star-studded program promises to be the best ever. The unique celebration has become the highlight of South Florida’s Chanukah holiday.
Rebbetzin Hanna Tennenhaus, a”h, passed away on Simchas Torah, 23 Tishrei, 5774/Sept. 27, 2013. She was 89. A shloshim was held in her honor at Chabad of South Broward Headquarters,1295 East Hallendale Beach Blvd, on October 29.
Touro College South, in cooperation with The Shul of Bal Harbour, will present a series of three workshops on new teaching technologies for educators in Jewish schools.
“We’ve had a relationship with the LAPD senior leadership for many years,” said Rabbi Alan Kalinsky, director of the OU West Coast Region. “And it is vitally important that we keep that alive as we show the Police Department that we care about them and the work they do.”
Deborah Raskin, principal at Or HaChaim Academy, an Orthodox elementary school for girls and boys with a middle school for boys in North Hollywood, is one of four recipients of the Milken Jewish Educator Awards.
A horrific case of cyber-bullying apparently led to the suicide of a Lakeland, Florida girl named Rebecca Sedwick. A month ago Rebecca jumped to her death from an abandoned building. She was 12 years old. The child had been tormented by online postings. One told her “to drink bleach and die.”
A body can be locked up. The soul can still soar. Life-changing moments can happen in the most unexpected circumstances.
Slated to run in some 150 locations around the world, A Reason to Celebrate is a meaningful, personal and spiritual journey through special days on the Jewish calendar. Through exploring the deeper, mystical significance of these days, they become lenses through which we gain insight into our relationships and our identities as Jewish women, and catalysts that empower us to implement positive change in our lives.
“What I find most exciting about the Hahn Family Ultra Weekend is the diversity among the teens,” said Todd Cohn, Southern NCSY’s executive director. “The teens from all different schools and backgrounds will come together for one inspirational, empowerment weekend.”
On Sunday, Oct. 6 Etta Israel’s 4th group home, the Aaron Bloom Home in North Hollywood, officially opened.
With more than 150 alumni establishing themselves in an array of professional and communal careers and 15 new graduates this fall, Yeshiva University’s Presidential Fellowship in University and Community Leadership is celebrating its 10th anniversary. Yitzy Frankel of Los Angeles has been selected for this year’s cohort.
During Chol HaMoed Sukkot, The Orthodox Jewish Chaplaincy Board (OJCB) conducted holiday programs for Jewish inmates at Los Angeles County Men’s Central Jail and Twin Tower Correctional Facility.
The holidays are over. The busy swirl of frenzied activity has passed. The Jewish world has caught its collective breath, the kids have gone back to school, adults have returned to work. and we’re all getting on with the usual rhythm of their lives.
Skylake Synagogue, located at 1850 NE 183rd Street in North Miami Beach, has introduced a unique enterprise – The Closet – to South Florida. The project is housed in a small building, next to the shul, and has been renovated to look like a boutique shop.
The Rohr Jewish Learning Institute (JLI) will present Life in the Balance: Jewish Perspectives on Everyday Medical Dilemmas, the institute’s new six-session Fall 2013 course that will begin during the week of Tuesday, October 29.
South Florida’s Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport has good news for hungry travelers. Kosher food is now available to passengers at JetBlue’s Terminal 3, Concourse F. Chef Allen’s 2 Go Kosher refrigerated kiosk opened on September 30. It is a welcomed accommodation to the many kosher consumers who stream through the busy airport.
As a result of more than 15 inches of rainfall over a matter of days in Boulder, Colorado and surrounding areas last month – killing seven people, causing damage to more than 15,000 others, and destroying nearly 2,000 homes – synagogues and its scheduled services took a major blow.
This past summer, Yeshiva University’s Center for the Jewish Future Certificate Program in Experiential Jewish Education graduated its second group of students and inaugurated a third. The program is one of the few to focus on the unique role experiential Jewish education plays in the transmission of Jewish values and traditions. It arms practitioners with research, methodology and skills in order to increase their effectiveness on the job.
Modern life can keep us isolated from reality. Our homes are well lit, temperature controlled, sound proofed and sealed off from our environment. We never sweat or shiver. We sleep soundly through the greatest of storms. We neither feel nor hear the wind or rain.
South Florida’s Mitzvah Chapter of Hadassah recently held a meet and greet at The Mexico Bravo restaurant, located at 16850 Collins Avenue, Sunny Isles.
Southern NCSY announced the appointment of Josh Geller, of Hollywood, Florida, as the new South Florida NCSY director of institutional advancement. Geller, an NCSY alumnus, will serve as an integral member of Southern NCSY development department. His focus will be to reach out to the thousands of alumni who participated in Southern NCSY as far back as the 1950s and reconnect them with the organization and its mission.
Students at the RASG Hebrew Academy in Miami Beach started off the school year with a great mitzvah project with a fun-filled theme. The school’s annual food drive was dedicated to the Miami Dolphins football team and dubbed “The Fins Frenzy and Food Drive Day.”
After several years of negotiations, Yeshivas Bais Toras Menachem of Los Angeles and ORT-College of Los Angeles are joining forces in an educational endeavor.
Last week, Diana Nyad emerged from the Atlantic Ocean off the coast of Key West and walked to the beach. Onlookers cheered and blew conch shells. Nyad had finally fulfilled her dream. She was the first person to swim from Cuba to Florida without the aid of a shark cage. It had been a long struggle.
Dave Crystal is a vibrant young man who is used to working hard. Crystal grew up in Staten Island and attended Yeshivah of Flatbush and Poly Prep High School. He is a graduate of Penn with degrees in philosophy, politics and economics. He has an MBA in finance and marketing. He has worked as a Wall Street analyst, a licensed financial adviser, an entrepreneur, and is the founder of Crystal Clear Tutors.
Ohev Shalom Congregation of Miami Beach held a Selichot night melavah malka on Saturday, August 31. A delicious dairy buffet was served. Pizzas, salads, tuna, chips, dips and ice cream made up the perfect menu.
Hebrew Academy (RASG) high school faculty member Mrs. Tirtza Schapiro has been named as one of the winners of the thirteenth annual Grinspoon-Steinhardt Awards for Excellence in Jewish Education.
By Andrew Friedman and Tova Friedman
Alex Shloime Friedman, 93, departed from this world on August 18, 2013 (13 Elul 5773) to meet his Creator.
During the past few years Los Angeles has experienced a changing landscape in the area of Jewish education. Older institutions changed formats, such as Shalhevet – which expanded its doors to include a lower school and then reformatted back to a high school. Recently, educators experimented with new models; Yeshiva High Tech and Chabad of South La Cinega each have their own Jewish Montessori preschool. And the latest challenger to L.A.’s educational paradigm is Darko, a Jewish Montessori elementary school.
A dreadful local incident has made national and even international news. A South Miami man finally obtained the attention that he so feverishly sought. The event has caused shock waves and led to a serious examination of the phenomenon of social media.
The summer is over. The kids are back in school and the high-holiday season is upon us. Rosh Hashanah is a week away
Chabad of South Broward will be hosting an inspiring Selichot service featuring world-renowned chazzan Rabbi Yossi Lebovics on Saturday night, August 31 (September 1) at 1:15 a.m. The rabbi will be joined by the talented Lebovics Boys Choir.
Ron Dermer, set to replace Michael Oren as Israeli ambassador to Washington, was born and raised in Miami Beach. He attended the local RASG Hebrew Academy. His father, Jay Dermer, was mayor of Miami Beach in the late 1960s. His brother, David, won that post in 1984.
After many Los Angeles high school graduates choose to spend a year studying in seminary or yeshiva in Israel, some return home confused about their next step in life. Some find jobs; others focus on continued education.
By dvora
Earlier this month the Jewish Family Services, Los Angeles City Councilman Paul Koretz, the Los Angeles Museum of the Holocaust and numerous L.A. political and community leaders hosted the rededication of the Raoul Wallenberg Statue.
Ohel Sara, a new seminary for women who’ve just completed high school or learning in Israel, will open in October. The program, to be housed at the Young Israel of Los Angeles, already has an enrollment of 19 students from outside L.A. – in addition to local students.
The Jewish king is required to always have a Torah scroll by his side.
RASG Hebrew Academy, located at 2400 Pine Tree Drive in Miami Beach, will hold a grand opening of the school’s new gymnasium on October 4. The community-wide event will mark the official opening of the multistory center, designed by noted architect Koby Karp.
Children at Camp Gan Israel at The Shul of Bal Harbour enjoyed a fun-filled summer. The campers were treated to seven weeks of sports, swimming, trips, crafts, theme weeks, dress up days and much more.
A select group of Jewish leaders from various segments of the Jewish community recently gathered in Los Angeles to hear from visiting U.S. Sen. James E. Risch (R-ID).
The yom tovim come early this year. Rosh Hashanah is just a month away. The Jewish New Year is traditionally observed as a time of both introspection and anticipation. It is the quintessential opportunity for reflection on what has been, and the perfect time to think about what will be.
More than eighty local Jewish teenagers experienced an incredible summer as they traveled with NCSY on twelve different summer programs to Europe, Israel and all over the United States. They were part of a group of more than a thousand Jewish teenagers from all over America who dedicated their summers to Jewish experiential learning and leadership training through social action, Israel advocacy and holocaust education.
The Shul of Bal Harbour, located at 9540 Collins Avenue, Surfside, offers a popular Senior Torah Academy for Men and Women. The classes are held during the week on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday. All lectures are followed by a complimentary lunch.
Chabad of South Broward in Hallendale has experienced another incredible summer. They recently ran Camp Gan Israel, a seven-week day camp for boys and girls. The camp hosted three hundred children who rated the program a fun-filled success.
Rabbi Moshe Dear, headmaster of Yavneh Academy in Los Angeles since 1999, was selected to represent private schools as a 2013 National Distinguished Principal. This is the 30th year that the National Association of Elementary School Principals (NAESP) has presented this prestigious award. Rabbi Dear is one of only six private school principals from across the country, and the fourth yeshiva principal ever, to receive this award.
The recent Tisha B’Av commemoration brings another very different Tisha B’Av to mind. It was a time of celebration in Jerusalem and for Jews all over the world. Tisha B’Av in 1967 occurred shortly after the Six-Day War. Some said there was no need to fast – after all, the Jewish nation had returned from exile.
The Orthodox Union Job Board will host two “Resume Checkup Days” in South Florida for students and professionals. The events are open by reservation only at www.oujobs.org on a first come, first served basis.
Young Israel of Deerfield Beach is sponsoring a sit-down kiddush/luncheon after morning services, Saturday, July 20. The event will celebrate Shabbos Nachamu, which follows the fast of Tisha B’Av.
October 30, 2026 
