Stand-up comedian, former Israel Defense Forces “lone soldier,” and National Jewish Book Award-winning author Joel Chasnoff will present a benefit performance for Hillel Academy Jewish day school at 6:30 p.m., Sunday, Oct. 18.

A native of Evanston, Ill. who now lives in Ra’anana, Israel, Chasnoff is the author of The 188th Crybaby Brigade: A Skinny Jewish Kid from Chicago Fights Hezbollah, a 2010 memoir of his 1997-98 service in the IDF. With Benji Lovitt, he cowrote Israel 201: Your Next-Level Guide to the Magic, Mystery, and Chaos of Life in the Holy Land, which won a National Jewish Book Award in 2023.

The fundraiser will be held at Hillel Academy, 5275 Marshall Road, Washington Township, on the campus of Temple Beth Or.

Tickets are $36 for general admission, $72 for priority seating and are available at daytonhillel.org.

To read the complete October 2026 Dayton Jewish Observer, click here.