This year’s public health emergency has been difficult on everyone. But for those who suffered through the Holocaust, it can be especially problematic. Holocaust survivors face issues of isolation and depression that can add to an already full plate...

Have you ever noticed that, no matter how you spell the holiday known as The Festival of Lights, you need eight letters? I like to think of it as one letter per night, whether you prefer Chanukah or Hanukkah. The pandemic puts a different sort of spin...

Thanksgiving arrives at a perfect time each year, just as the myriad of world religions gear up for their respective winter celebrations. Many consider it the perfect intersection of all great religious traditions; and depending on the topics in which...

Henry Rosenblum followed what is now a family tradition: a bar mitzvah abroad. Henry’s eldest brother, Myles, became a bar mitzvah in Jerusalem, joined by extended family on both sides. Then Spencer, the middle son, traveled with his family to Budapest,...

Lindsay and Adam Brandvein of St. Louis would like to announce the birth of their son, Austin Micah Brandvein, on May 15, 2020, weighing 7 pounds, 4 ounces. Austin is the grandson of Teri and Harvey Brandvein, Sherri Waxman and Brent Waxman, all of St....

Ben and Meredith Cherry of St. Louis would like to announce the birth of their daughter, Lila Kate Cherry, on  June 30, 2020 in Chesterfield, weighing 5 pounds, 14 ounces. Lila is the granddaughter of Don and Robyn Cherry of St. Louis, and Scott and...

When the COVID-19 pandemic began, 15-year-old Samantha Renzulli immediately thought about how it would affect her elderly friends at Jewish Senior Services, a long-term care facility in Bridgeport, Conn.Renzulli had met some of the residents through Better...

Jason Morse, the son of Sheri Recoon and Howard Morse of Chesterfield, became a bar mitzvah on Nov. 30, 2019 at Congregation B’nai Amoona. Jason is the grandson of Laura and Phillip Recoon of Sarasota, Fla. and Buffalo, N.Y., and Martha and Joseph...

Two new services for cancer patients and survivors will soon be available through the Jewish Community Center. “So much of a cancer journey is dictated by the medical community but these are two complementary services they can control and they can...

A few months ago, Michelle Goldstein and her husband were preparing for a trip to Portugal. They planned a lot of walking, knowing they’d encounter countless stairs. There was just one problem: Michelle’s knee began hurting weeks before the trip.“I...

Hope ZeldinHope celebrated her bat mitzvah in Israel, surrounded by her parents and three sisters, with the ceremony at Yemin Moshe by the famous windmill in Jerusalem. During her two years of bat mitzvah study with her father, she learned that tzedakah...

Maxwell Banashek will become a bar mitzvah Jan. 25, 2020 at United Hebrew Congregation.Max is the son of Cheryl and Michael Banashek of St. Louis and the grandson of Elaine and Edmund Banashek of St. Louis and Steven and the late Cynthia Perrone...