By Marshall Weiss, The Dayton Jewish Observer It’s session 11 out of 18 afterschool workshops for the 15 students in this year’s JCC Children’s Theater program. No one knows exactly what the final performance will look like. And that’s part of the plan. Instead of another book musical, JCC Children’s

By Rabbi Karen N. Bodney-Halasz, Temple Israel Special To The Dayton Jewish Observer Rabbis Phyllis and Michael Sommer have been friends of mine since we served on staff together at Goldman Union Camp Institute 15 years ago. They are down to earth, outgoing, loving, and to top it off, they

By Marshall Weiss, The Dayton Jewish Observer In the absence of bingo money, which sustained their fund raising for several years, two longtime Jewish non-profit organizations based on North Main Street will close their doors at the end of January. The Dayton Chapter of Hadassah, which has maintained an office

By Miriam Karp, Special To The Dayton Jewish Observer A moving truck rolled into Oxford, Ohio in November. Just another day at busy Miami University, where students, faculty and campus staff are often in transition? Rabbi Yossi Greenberg and his wife, Mushka, are the age of young graduate students or

Examining the complex morality of drone warfare By Rob Eshman, The Jewish Journal of Greater Los Angeles In 2009, an Israeli drone flying over the Gaza Strip transmitted back to its command station an image of a telltale rocket trail streaking toward Israeli territory. Many kilometers away, a young Israeli

  Look for The Adventures of Bark Mitzvah Boy each month in The Dayton Jewish Observer and at this site. To read the complete February 2014 Dayton Jewish Observer, click here.

By Marc Katz, Special To The Dayton Jewish Observer Two college theatre productions dealing with Holocaust themes come to area stages this month, plumbing coincidental learning experiences for both performers and audiences. In addition to training theatre students and entertaining audiences, these productions — Wright State’s The Magic Fire by

By Miriam Karp, Special To The Dayton Jewish Observer To celebrate its 45th anniversary, DCDC will present world premieres at its Feb. 8 and 9 performances from three choreographers: Donald Byrd, who received a Tony nomination for The Color Purple; Ray Mercer, who choreographed The Lion King for Broadway; and

Dr. J. Ritter Werner — an organ instructor at Wright State University and religion instructor at the University of Dayton who served as piano and organ accompanist at Temple Israel for more than 16 years — died at the age of 69 on Jan. 5 from complications due to chronic

Beth Abraham Sisterhood has announced its 2014 Women of Valor honorees: Melinda Doner, Helene Gordon, Susie Katz, Harriet Klass, Ellen Leffak, Gayle Moscowitz, and Patti Schear. The awards luncheon, to be held May 7, will also posthumously honor Carol Pavlofsky. Event chairs are Elaine Bettman and Randi Fuchsman. Cantor Jerome