Founding RJFS gave Federation a way to change lives by Masada Siegel November 12, 2010When Rockland Jewish Family Services began in 1987, it was as a committee of the Jewish Federation of Rockland County. Forming it was a way to help meet community needs, which at that time focused on resettling Jewish immigrants from the […]
When my daughter and her friends were setting up for a Students for Israel event at Hunter College, they brought enthusiasm, informational materials and a very thick skin. That’s because for some students at CUNY, if you’re a Zionist, you’re a murderer. And you definitely do not belong at the City University of New York. A […]
We’re visiting my mother’s cousin Reba, and I’m pretty excited because I get to play with her daughter’s Barbie. Shari is in high school, and uninterested in her Barbie, which is the real deal original. She has blond hair, swept into a curly ponytail, her face framed by curly bangs. Heavily lined eyes cast an […]
Is protesting the East Ramapo School Board a Jewish cause? Andrew Mandel jokes that he grew up attending the “Cadillac schools” of the East Ramapo Central School District. By that, he means Fleetwood and El Dorado elementary schools — two institutions that either by happenstance or design bear the names signature vehicles produced by […]
I recently spoke about JWB Jewish Chaplains Council and the work that it does as a program of JCC Association, where I work, at New City Jewish Center. I’ve adapted the text from the Shabbat d’var, which took place on Saturday, May 23, 2015, two days before yizkor for Shavuot coincided with our Memorial Day. […]
The Munch 11 may finally get what’s due to them — 44 years after being murdered at the 1972 Olympics. Kidnapped by Palestinians terrorists, then killed during a botched rescue mission, the 11 Israelis to this day remain unmemorialized by the organization that oversees the very games in which they came to participate. But that […]
Recently my husband I visited our daughter, Lily, in Israel, where she is studying and volunteering in Tel Aviv. Before we left New York, though, we had decided we would spend our one Shabbat in Israel in Jerusalem, but that meant figuring out what to do for Friday night dinner. The rabbinate doesn’t allow kosher […]
When I was growing up, Temple Emanu El in Dallas would hold an annual art show and sale we would attend. There was work by local, national and Israeli artists and I it always seemed very sophisticated and special to get to attend. Sometimes, my parents would even buy prints, and we acquired a series […]
The woman walked into my office at the Jewish Federation, a little breathless. I had no idea who she was; but she seemed excited to tell me something. I was used to this. As editor of the local Jewish newspaper, people frequently came into my office to give me story tips, to share their thoughts, […]
This spring, I was writing an article and I wanted to look up some background from something I had written when I was editing the Rockland Jewish Reporter. I went to the Jewish Federation of Rockland County’s website, where I had always been able to reliably search for these things, only to find that at […]
