Shemitta Inspiration Comes to Los Angeles Yehudis Litvak The Los Angeles Jewish community received a dose of Eretz Yisrael shemitta inspiration with the visit of Rabbi Yosef Zvi Rimon and an American Israeli couple, Sue and Tzvi Muslow, who keep shemitta on their family farm…
We Can Always Return Sarah Pachter “Making returns is a major part of my job description.” – A mother When I try to return merchandise from Amazon, there are three options available: UPS drop off, UPS pick up, and Kohl’s drop off. Similarly, Hashem offers…
Dear Readers, One of the lessons of the Chinese virus is that intended solutions need to be matched to results and weighed against the effects of them. Pointing out a problem or highlighting an area of concern doesn’t automatically give us the right to present…
Feldheim Publishers 400 pages Reviewed by Devorie Kreiman Is it Ever Enough? answers a question that every human asks in one form or another: How can I be happy? The book reads like an intense conversation with a wise and dear friend. Right at the…
Abuse Prevention, Part 2: How to Recognize Abuse Yehudis Litvak Whenever another heartbreaking case of abuse comes to light, we wonder how the abuser managed to get away with it for so long. Why didn’t anyone notice? Weren’t there warning signs? In this article, we…
Torah from Our Seder Table to Yours Sarah Pachter The following Torah thoughts were shared at our Seder table last year. Please enjoy these insights, from our Seder table to yours. Tefila Rav Elimelech Biderman shares that Passover night is a powerful time for Tefila.…
Dear Readers, Much has been spoken about the serious conversations we need to have with our children. “They need to know there are people who do terrible things.” “They can’t continue to live under a rock.” “They can handle it!” Without weighing in on the…
Book Review: Two New Kids’ Books Educate and Entertain Here I Am: The Story of Rebbetzin Esther Jungreis By Carol UngarIllustrated by Dena AckermanMenucha Publishers38 pp. Reviewed by Devorah Talia Gordon Hineni, “Here I am,” was said by Avraham Avinu and Moshe Rabbeinu when…
How I Wrote Two Books with Five Kids Sarah Pachter When friends of mine hear that I published two books in the span of five years (some of which were during a pandemic!) while simultaneously raising five children, they are often curious to hear how…
JWOW! LAUNCHES WEBSITE TO REACH EVEN MORE WOMEN 50+ Devorah Talia Gordon A few years ago, Sara Brejt heard Faigie Horowitz and Miriam Liebermann speaking about the empty nest on a Chazaq internet radio program. She was inspired; the subject was one near and dear…
Dear Readers, Much has been written about the allegations of abuse by a person the community had given their trust, support and respect. It’s important to discuss and analyze each angle on its own so that we learn, apply and implement the correct lessons going…
Abuse Prevention: How to Deal with Abuse Allegations or Suspicions Yehudis Litvak The recent allegations of abuse against a prolific Israeli writer of children’s books, and the events that followed, have shaken up our community. Our thoughts are with all victims of abuse, current and…
Am Yisrael Chai Sarah Pachter Who Can I Carry? Rav Fischel Schachter once made a shidduch for his daughter. He asked his mother, “Don’t you know the girl’s grandmother?” She answered, “Yes, we were in the war together.” At the time of the l’chaim, Mrs.…
Maor: Opening the Door to Special Education Devorah Talia Gordon THE JOURNEY BEGINSWhen Iva R’Bibo was born nine years ago, her mother Sarah didn’t know right away that she had special needs. But soon she saw Iva wasn’t reaching the same milestones as her three…
Dear Readers, A common cause of headaches for me is when my glasses are dirty. Everything I’m looking at is in order, but since there’s a smudge on the glasses, reality looks off. In Shir Hama’alos of Tehillim, golus is referred to as a dream.…
Our Big Kitchen Los Angeles Brings the Jewish Community Together in Helping the Poor Yehudis Litvak Diverse groups of volunteers gather regularly at Our Big Kitchen LA (OBKLA) to prepare strictly kosher meals for the needy members of the Los Angeles Jewish community. With Israeli…
Are You Feeling Lucky? Sarah Pachter “Are you feeling lucky?” the dealer calls out as he rolls the dice. We often ask ourselves this question in the casino of life, too. But luck may be very different from what we perceive. In his book Eyes…
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