Robert Gluck, JNS.org As musicians who frequently perform at Jewish summer camps, Rick Recht and Josh Nelson know how to create memories that last a lifetime. The top-touring musician in Jewish music, Recht plays more than 150 concerts a year in the United States and abroad and is widely recognized for his appeal to youth and family audiences. When he’s not on the road, Recht is the national spokesperson for Jewish literacy nonprofit PJ Library and the executive director of Songleader Boot Camp, a …More

The deaths of a Toronto Jewish couple found in their winter home in south Florida are being investigated as a double homicide. David Pichosky, 71, and Rochelle Wise, 66, who spent the winters in their Hallandale Beach townhouse, were found dead on the night of Jan. 10. Their deaths are not believed to be a murder-suicide. "We have few details on how they were killed, but this is definitely a double homicide," Capt. Sonia Quinones, a spokeswoman for the Hallandale Beach Police, told the Miami Herald. The two …More

Within hours of Israel's assassination of a top Hamas commander, the situation room sprang into action, anticipating retaliatory attacks and preparing instructions to keep civilians out of harm's way. No, the room wasn't deep in a bunker beneath Jerusalem, but thousands of miles away -- and at a seemingly safe remove from the violence on the ground -- in London. It was the situation room of the Community Security Trust, British Jewry’s security agency, which was open for business within hours of Israel's …More

Dorina Pilipovsky has been cooking since she was a little girl. She learned about Jewish food from her Russian Babushka, and has modernized the kosher classics just for you. Stay tuned for more recipes for the Jewish kitchen. What is Cholent? Cholent is a traditional Jewish stew. It is usually simmered overnight, for 12 hours or more, and eaten for lunch on Shabbat. There are tons of variations of this dish, which is standard in both the Ashkenazi and Sephardi kitchens. The basic ingredients of Cholent are …More

A group of Jewish and Muslim volunteers put their differences aside in the days leading up to Thanksgiving to work together to help those in need. While the tense political situation between Israel and Hamas still looms heavy in the minds of many, volunteers brought together by New York-based Foundation for Ethnic Understanding focused not on the fighting, but instead on helping to improve the lives of others and forging new friendships. “In this time of warfare it was a beautiful experience to see the two …More

Founded in 1989, the Abraham Fund has spent the better part of a quarter-century working to build bridges between Israel’s Jewish and Arabic communities. That goal, which is lofty in and of itself, has seen the group reach for change on a grassroots level, as well as within government. Using a technique described as “advocacy through action,” the Abraham Fund disseminates information in an aim to generate a necessary dialogue. “We’re focused on creating within Israel’s borders …More

Jo Aleh, the New Zealand Jewish Olympian who won gold in the sailing regatta, said part of her medal “belongs to Israel.” Aleh, the New Zealand-born daughter of dual Israeli and Kiwi citizens Shuki Shukrun and Daniella Aleh, clinched gold last week in the women’s 470 sailing event with her partner Olivia “Polly” Powrie. Her parents were on hand to witness the triumph. The new Olympic champion -- whose father lives in Moshav Yinon near Kiryat Malachi and whose mother served in the …More

Filmmaker Laurence Gavron is on a journey to document lost Jewish tribes in Africa. The French-born Gavron, who has made Senegal her home since 1989, says she was immediately taken by the project, which she says combines her passion for Africa with the mystery of rediscovering Judaism. The film, titled “Black Jews, Juifs noir en Afrique,” focuses on a dozen African tribes -- in Nigeria, Ghana, Cameroon and other countries -- each with a Jewish story. Some claim to be descendants of the Bible’s …More

The New Jewish Theater Residency is an initiative of LABA, New York’s National Laboratory for New Jewish Culture. Centered at the 14th Street Y, the program is featuring five plays as part of its residency series, which will be performed starting this weekend through July 1. Jspace recently caught up with a few of the selected playwrights, whose work ranges from firsthand reflections of the Israeli Defense Forces to dealing with metaphorical, and literal, ghosts from the Holocaust. Zohar Tirosh-Polk, …More

Writer and psychologist Irvin Yalom publishes a new book that puts him in touch with his Jewish roots. [Israel Hayom] Israeli leaders called for international action to be taken to stop the massacre occurring in Syria. [Israel Hayom] The plans for Kulturfest: The First Chana Mlotek International Festival of Jewish Performing Arts will be announced Tuesday at a gala honoring Neil Sedaka and others at Town Hall in Manhattan. [The New York Times] Sex abuse victims in Brooklyn often do not come forward. [The …More

Mitt Romney's campaign tells The Washington Post that it has a test to determine if an article about the candidate's Mormonism has crossed the line: “Our test to see if a similar story would be written about others’ religion is to substitute ‘Jew’ or ‘Jewish,’ ” Romney campaign spokeswoman Andrea Saul said. Jews could use the same test when writing not just about Jews, but Muslims and Islam. When writing about objections to the application of Islamic Shariah law in …More

The author of the popular Jewish children's title "Tasty Bible Stories" has a new book. Israeli author Tami Lehman-Wilzig recently published "Green Bible Stories for Children." Aimed at children ages five to nine, the author uses familiar Torah tales to help teach about environmental issues. In a chapter titled, “Greener Pastures: Abraham and Sustainable Herding” Lehman-Wilzig explains, “Abraham understood that because the land and its nutrients must constantly be renewed, herds must give it a …More