Great-grandson reflects on lives, deaths of Isidor & Ida Straus By Masada Siegel, Special To The Dayton Jewish Observer It’s one of the great love stories of modern times, filled with honor, integrity and the ultimate act of selflessness. Isidor and Ida Straus were first-class passengers on Titanic. Ida was

By Marshall Weiss, The Dayton Jewish Observer No one knows for certain how many Jewish passengers were on board Titanic, let alone how many of them died. Of the more than 1,500 people who went down with Titanic, ships later recovered only 340 bodies. A review of the list of

By Jennie Szink, Special To The Dayton Jewish Observer When Ira Segalewitz attended a Yiddish conference last spring, he didn’t expect to be enveloped by songs about the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire, which killed more than 145 workers in New York in 1911. He didn’t think he’d be so connected

Ohio-Israel connections By Marshall Weiss, The Dayton Jewish Observer Someday, when Israelis ask, ‘Where’s the beef?’ the answer could be, ‘From Ohio.’ On Feb. 1, Zvi Herman, Israel’s minister of agricultural and science affairs for North America, visited cattle operations, livestock inspection and quarantine facilities in southwest Ohio, with the

By Jennie Szink, Special To The Dayton Jewish Observer When Evan Sherbet left Capitol Hill on Sunday, Jan. 22, he felt confident in the presentation he and his peers had just given on why legislators should uphold pro-choice laws. But he stepped outside and was met by pro-life demonstrators holding

Look for The Adventures of Bark Mitzvah Boy each month in The Observer and at this site!

By Edwin Black It will come as a shock to most Americans, but no presidential candidate — nor any agency at the local, state or federal level, has developed a contingency plan in the event of a protracted oil cut-off. It is not even being discussed. Government has prepared for

Rituals in Jewish life series Jewish Family Identity Forum By Candace R. Kwiatek, The Dayton Jewish Observer “Rad ha-yom, shemesh dom, kokhavim notz’tzim bamarom (Day is done, gone the sun, stars are twinkling in the sky)” begins the summer camp lullaby for lights-out. As my husband sang it for the

By Rabbi Judy Chessin, Temple Beth Or, Washington Township, Ohio Special To The Dayton Jewish Observer Who doesn’t fondly recall those kiddie costume pageants and carnivals in celebration of the festival of Purim? Growing up, my religious school classmates and I relished dressing up as Queen Esther or King Ahashverus,

By Ethel G. Hofman, Special To The Dayton Jewish Observer Some say that hamantashen — the triangular, filled cookies we eat on Purim — remind us of the Purim villain Haman’s hat. Others say they call to mind his pockets or even his ears, symbolic of ancient times when it