יום שלישי, י״ד אב תשפ״וTuesday, July 28, 2026
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Each year International Women’s Day (IWD) is celebrated on March 8. Thousands of events occur, not only on this day but also throughout March to mark the social, economic and political accomplishments of women.
By Tamar Warga
Preparing for an ordinary Pesach is daunting enough with all of the cleaning, shopping, cooking, and preparation, but add food allergies to the mix and you could literally “go nuts.” Don’t go nuts, go nut-free and egg-free too. While Pesach poses dietary challenges, they are not insurmountable.
The Prophet Yeshayahu’s messages of Geula/ Redemption are apt answers to our present-day prayers. They are tailor made for our times. He exhorts the people of Israel to abandon their self-image as aniya soara -- a poor tempest-tossed woman ( 54:11) -- and rise as bat Tziyon -- the daughter of Zion, a nation with a sense of pride and dignity.
By Pnina Baim
I’m very passionate about Israel and it’s always been my desire to share that passion with my children. It was a sad day in our home when we missed out on the great deal to Israel earlier this year, but thankfully, my husband managed to snag an almost as good one a couple of months later.
When cooking early for Pesach I always start with foods that require patience and attention, which we have in short supply as Yom Tov gets closer.
Volunteerism is in her DNA. Juliette Samama was born in Tunis, Tunisia, daughter of Rav Ishua Shtrug, the rabbi, chazan (cantor), mohel (circumsciser) and shochet (ritual slaughterer) of the city’s Jewish community. He performed the functions of four men, yet did not draw a salary.
By Ron Ansel
A negative person may use words that are bland and lack vibrancy, like "did" and "worked" instead of words like "successfully accomplished" and "rigorously completed" which convey a more positive, powerful side.
By Sandy Eller
So there is good news and bad. Which one do you want to hear first? Me? I always want to hear the bad news first. I need to get it over with. So here goes. Purim 2013 is now something we can discuss in the past tense and that can only mean one thing. Actually two.
By Tamar Warga
Purim is a time of great celebration. Many of our traditions for this chag require food - festive meals, mishloach manos. Abundant food can mean abundant pitfalls for the food allergic. How can one navigate this maze of food allergy landmines?
In recent months I have been profoundly affected by the news of growing anti-Semitism in most European countries and in the United States, especially on college campuses. When, at the end of World War II, I emerged a living skeleton from the German concentration camps, I believed that the horror of Jew-hatred was defeated forever. And now, as I watch my grandchildren raise their young families, the news of the ancient hatred’s revival strikes fear in my heart for their safety. For the Jewish future.
Here are some wonderful dishes to share with your family and friends this coming Purim
This Purim let your wine bottles join in the fun – let them dress up too! Use them to compliment your Mishloach Manos or have them make a grand appearance at the seudah. Simple and inexpensive this is a great family project.
Unlike Chanukah’s oil and Shavuous’ dairy, Purim doesn’t specifically have any unique foods or tastes, aside from hamentashen, that one can work around from, so the best route for a stylish Purim theme is to base it around the costume.
By Ron Ansel
It is extremely important for job seekers to present themselves well in today’s social media world. This article will focus on Linkedin, the most important business-oriented social networking site for professionals.
By Sandy Eller
I am not one of those people who start cleaning for Pesach the minute the menorah gets put away and, in fact, I typically indulge in denial until the last possible moment. However, after making Pesach in my so-called Pesach kitchen for the first time, I realized just how useful a Pesach kitchen could be.
I have always been overwhelmed by the sense of responsibility the message of Har Sinai has placed upon women. The Midrash teaches that the Almighty asked Israel: “What can you give as an assurance that you will keep my covenant?”
Galut Mitzrayim -- the Egyptian Exile -- has come to epitomize exile in Judaism. It is the ultimate galut, the ultimate exile and it embraces all aspects of the later exiles: displacement, foreign subjugation, powerlessness, and exposure to extreme physical and mental torture.
Ask any child who the main heroes of the drama are and he will say, Moshe Rabbeinu and Aharon HaKohein. No need to elaborate, the Torah is clear and explicit in assigning these roles. Despite his reluctance, Moshe is singled out for his assignment and so is Aharon. The voice of the Almighty is distinct in reiterating their mission, and they, faithful servants, obey the Divine command and earn their place in the limelight.
By Sandy Eller
Goodbye humdrum. Hello, gorgeous!! With the release of CHIC Made Simple, an all new cookbook written by food stylist, columnist and recipe developer Esther Deutsch, kosher food continues to blaze new trails, offering sophisticated, appealing recipes that are, (surprise, surprise!) both delicious and deceptively easy to prepare.
By Ron Ansel
“HELP!” “I need help in choosing my career!” “How do I decide what career to pursue?” This is a common query we hear from students. Many make their first career choice based on what other people in their lives tell them, what everyone else is doing, where the money is, what’s hot in the current job market, what job a relative can get them, the “prestige factor” of being a doctor or lawyer, or some other criteria that is external to who they are as a person.
About a year ago, my husband and I joined a new synagogue in Netanya. In the women’s section a strikingly elegant lady caught my attention. Only later, did I come to know that Irene Burg’s looks were only the tip of the iceberg.
“Fill the Void” is the title of Rama Burshtein’s film that played to critical acclaim at the recent Toronto International Film Festival and earned seven Ophir Awards -- the Israeli Oscars -- including one for best film and best director, and has become Israel’s entry into the 2012 Oscars' foreign language category.
By Ron Ansel
People who are out of work will often use every means at their disposal to find employment. Career Fairs are a popular way for employees and employers to meet on a large scale. Instead of (or more likely, in addition to) sending endless resumes, a Career Fair allows the job seeker to meet with multiple employers in a short time frame.
By dvora
Among the many things we were tested with during Hurricane Sandy was the way in which we can preserve our food in the middle of a disaster.
Yad L’isha - Helping Hand for Woman is a Legal Aid Center and Hotline where free legal advice and representation is offered to women locked in marital prisons who would otherwise have nowhere to turn.
From the moment she is introduced as Avraham’s young bride (Bereshit 11: 29,30,31) till her death in this week’s Torah portion appropriately titled Chayei Sarah -- The Life of Sarah , the fascinating image of our first matriarch is the subject of many intriguing Midrashic commentaries.
A historical drama unfolds before our eyes in this week’s Torah portion. It is a dramatic confrontation whose impact has shaped Jewish history for thousands of years. Sarah and Hagar, two women – two worlds - faced each other.
In this week's Torah portion, within the majesty and mystery of creation, the woman emerges in three successive stages.
How can one fathom the depths of a mother’s pain upon the brutal loss of her child? Sherri Mendell’s first-born son was viciously murdered near their home on May 8, 2001. How does a mother cope with the news that her spirited thirteen-year-old, while hiking in the neighborhood, was bludgeoned to death by rock-yielding Arabs?
Miriam Scheinsohn was born on April 26, 1918, in Vitebsk (Belorussia), the youngest of eight children (she had three sisters and four brothers). Soon after Miriam’s birth the family moved to Kovno (Kaunas) in Lithuania, where her parents owned a textile factory.
By Sandy Eller
For some of us trying to cut corners is not just something we do to save a few cents, it is practically an obsession. While we may have our little tricks designed to shave a few dollars off our grocery bill and squeeze a penny so tight that it screams for mercy, we each have our own little indulgences, the things we absolutely refuse to do just to save a few pennies. Let’s hope that none of my immediate family members read this column because I am about to share some of my personal secrets and they just might disown me.
Her family descended from Portuguese Marranos who had sought asylum in England in the eighteenth century. Grace Aguilar was born there at the onset of the nineteenth century (1816), and her remarkable work would exercise an impact on the historiography of Jewish life in the ensuing three decades of that century.
TV producer and author Yael Nitzan’s decades’ old dream is becoming a reality. Through the generosity of the Haifa municipality, an empty 200-year-old palace, once owned by an Arab sheikh, will be turned into “The Museum of Israeli Women.” Although in other countries there are museums documenting the accomplishments of women, Israel, with the world’s highest ratio of museums per person, has none dedicated to the women who contributed to the founding of the State of Israel and to its development.
Who is Anastasia Michal Michaelevski Samuelson? Fashion model, electronics engineer, Beauty Queen, Knesset Member, devoted mother of eight, champion of the underdog, passionate Israeli, committed Jew? Would you believe that she is all of the above – and more?
As a newly certified makeup artist, I am eager to be able to share all the tips and tricks I’ve learned in beauty school. Truth be told, I’ve been pretty passionate about beauty products since I first laid eyes on a flavored lip-gloss as a preteen. I’ve amassed a sizeable collection of makeup over the years, experimented on many friends, and even earned a Bachelor’s degree in Cosmetics Marketing (as only someone who takes the beauty industry pretty seriously can do!) But despite my years of being involved with beauty products recreationally, training professionally as a makeup artist has taught me certain insider secrets I would have never discovered otherwise.
"I felt here that I was at home," remarks Agnes Keleti about her arrival in Israel in 1957. An Israeli emissary had invited this leading Hungarian Jewish female athlete to participate in the fifth Maccabiah Games that year, and that’s when she discovered that Israel was “home.”
By Ron Ansel
The elevator ride seems to take forever, and your stomach feels like it is dropping. Glancing at the mirror, you realize this may be the last opportunity to be sure you look professional. You wonder if they will notice the little wrinkle in your clothes your spouse told you to take care of before you left. You take a deep breath and try to relax, but it is no use. Your heart is racing as you walk though the elevator door, and you force yourself to remember to smile.
“I think the Holocaust is possible again. I didn’t think so before I came to the United Nations, but I think so now.” “Diplomacy regarding the Arab-Israeli conflict at the U.N. has nothing to do with peace, but is quite simply a continuation of war against Israel by other means.”
Shoshana Bluth’s telephone number is a help hotline for mothers and wives of Israeli soldiers – a hotline of faith, emunah in Hebrew.
The lecturer, a soft-spoken woman radiating sincerity and warmth was especially impressive. And so was her topic: “Proper nutrition as a bridge to health and longevity.”
By Ron Ansel
To modify a line from Winnie the Pooh, “the most frustrating things about resumes is that resumes are frustrating things.” If asked to design the best way to evaluate the top talent for a job, few people would recommend the submission of a document no one knows how to prepare and that requires a great deal of professional coaching and adjustment.
By Nina Safar
Religious Jews have been getting more than their usual share of negative press lately. The papers have been full of allegations of sexual abuse in ultra-orthodox communities, and religious authorities concurrent attempts to silence the victims while protecting the accused. When earlier this week, the Rabbi’s chose to focus on the “dangers of the internet” […]
The Middle Ages boasted a number of outstanding Jewish women. The most remarkable among them was Dulcea of Worms, wife of Rabi Eleazar Rokeach. We learn out about her remarkable character and capabilities from an elegy her loving husband composed in the form of an alphabetic acrostic fashioned after King Solomon’s “Woman of Valor" in Proverbs 31. Dulcea of Worms, however, rose above the stature of the Biblical “Eishet Chayil” both in capabilities and character.
When I first saw Hilda Pistiner I believed she was a German tourist. Later, when I met her personally and found out she was an Israeli born in Bukovina, I labored under a second mistaken assumption: I believed she had been a pioneer in pre-State Israel, her fresh youthful blond looks untouched by the Holocaust. How wrong have I been!
It’s fascinating to realize that the People of Israel growing into a mighty nation in Egypt was a reward for the heroism of the Hebrew midwives.
By Ron Ansel
We are all well aware that the economy is terrible and has been for a very long time. Things may seem better, but unemployment figures are still extremely high and it is hard to know when conditions will turn around. Looking for a job can be challenging, but it is crucial to stay upbeat and positive. How do you keep your spirits up in what could be a long and arduous job search journey?
This year International Agunah Day was observed on March 7th, the Jewish calendar date of Taanit Esther, the Fast of Esther. The date was determined by ICAR - The International Coalition for Agunah Rights. ICAR is a coalition of 27 organizations working together to abolish defiance in granting a “get” (Jewish divorce) and extortion in the divorce process within the framework of Jewish Law.
The heading of this article is the title of Angelita Valdes’ biography written by her husband, Dr. Robert Dublin. Dr. Dublin was the physician who treated and nursed the young Filipina dancer and TV starlet back to life when she became ill with tuberculosis meningitis - a life threatening disease. Angelita Valdes’ biography is an astonishing story of an amazing woman’s life.
By Ron Ansel
How important is social media to my job search? The Internet has revolutionized the job search process. As recently as 10 years ago, a job search entailed looking through newspaper ads and phonebooks to find appropriate organizations and employers, producing dozens of copies of a resume and cover letter on professional resume paper, stuffing those documents in matching envelopes and paying for postage. It is safe to say that it cost at least $1 for every resume sent, not to mention the investment in time.
Hadassa Dubrofsky, a lovely twelve-year old girl from Toronto, Canada decided to forgo bat-mitzvah presents and replace them with something even more meaningful and exciting – an act of chesed (charitable kindness).
Last year Viera Rybarova, professor of English language and literature in Bratislava, Slovakia, undertook a formidable task. Having read my Holocaust memoirs, she decided to translate one of the books into Slovak, where there is still a shortage of literature on the tragic fate of the Jews seventy years ago.
My son can never get enough of his cozy teddy bears. So, for his birthday party last year we created an "in house" build-a-bear factory.
Sister Rose's Passion is a documentary film on the life of Sister Rose Thering, a life that stood for love of Jews, for fighting prejudice, anti-Semitism and Holocaust denial.
By Ron Ansel
“I need a professional-looking resume and great interviewing skills, how long will it take to develop them?” “I’ve just been downsized, I need to update my resume and start looking again; can you help me?” “I received an offer that is lower than I expected, how do I negotiate a better salary?” “I graduated several years ago and want to change careers; where do I start?” “You say an internship in my field will put me ahead of other job seekers when I graduate, how do I get one?”
Nearly eighty-five years have passed since Sarah Aaronson shot herself in the head, putting an end to the torture her Turkish interrogators inflicted upon her for refusing to disclose information about her associates in the NILI, an anti-Turkish spying organization that supplied the British with intelligence.
July 24, 2026 
