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A nonprofit, independent news source to inform, inspire, educate and connect the St. Louis Jewish community.

St. Louis Jewish Light

A nonprofit, independent news source to inform, inspire, educate and connect the St. Louis Jewish community.

St. Louis Jewish Light

A nonprofit, independent news source to inform, inspire, educate and connect the St. Louis Jewish community.

St. Louis Jewish Light

Burton Wice and Rona

Jewish St. Louisan’s bird dog is a national field champ

By Bill Motchan, Special to the Jewish LightPublished June 30, 2025

In 2019, the Jewish Light introduced Burton Wice along with “Daisee,”  his American Brittany (formerly Brittany spaniels) field champions. Wice, a retired research endocrinologist from Washington University School of Medicine, is one of the few amateurs...

Jordan Palmer and Jewish Light Editor-in-Chief Ellen Futterman

Jewish Light wins five Rockower Awards for excellence in Jewish journalism

By Bill Motchan, Special to the Jewish LightPublished June 24, 2025

The St. Louis Jewish Light received five awards for excellence in journalism during the American Jewish Press Association’s annual conference in Pittsburgh, Penn. The 44th annual Simon Rockower Awards for work completed in 2024 were presented on June...

Shel Chesky and his daughter Lindsey Hermes

From St. Louis with soy: Jewish family mixes faith and science to fix our roads

BY BILL MOTCHAN, SPECIAL TO THE JEWISH LIGHTPublished June 4, 2025

Shel Chesky and his daughter Lindsey Hermes will celebrate Father’s Day on June 15th discussing their favorite topic: road sealants. Hermes, a member of Congregation Shaare Emeth, is the chief operating officer of BioSpan, an environmentally friendly...

How a rabbi and a bishop built a lasting St. Louis interfaith legacy

How a rabbi and a bishop built a lasting St. Louis interfaith legacy

By Bill Motchan, Special to the Jewish LightPublished May 20, 2025

A set of ornate hand-carved oak doors lead to the baptistry at Christ Church Cathedral in downtown St. Louis. The doors were added to the 155-year-old Episcopal cathedral in 1942. They are inscribed with a commandment from Deuteronomy 6:5 in Hebrew and...

Andy Katzman spent decades coaching baseball — now his name is on the field

Andy Katzman spent decades coaching baseball — now his name is on the field

By Bill Motchan, Special to the Jewish LightPublished May 20, 2025

Andy Katzman has spent a good portion of his career as a baseball coach at John Burroughs School on the team’s home ballfield. On Saturday, May 17, he stepped out on the field again, but this time it felt different. The spacious field is now known as...

The outside of Florentin on Delmar.

St. Louis chef Ben Poremba’s restaurants hit by tornado — here’s how you can help

By Bill Motchan, Special to the Jewish LightPublished May 18, 2025

Esca and Bar Florentin, two of the eateries owned by Jewish restauranteur Ben Poremba, sustained significant damage when a powerful storm and tornado hit St. Louis on Friday, May 16. Both restaurants are closed while repair crews assess the damage and...

Lifestyle choices can help keep memory exercised, functioning

Lifestyle choices can help keep memory exercised, functioning

By Bill Motchan, Special to the Jewish LightPublished May 7, 2025

If you periodically misplace your car keys but can have no problem calling up random bits of trivia, that is one of the nuances of your hippocampus. Located deep within the temporal lobe, it is the part of the brain that handles memory. It holds short-term...

Tab Cohen and his Pontiac

Hot rods and heart: Jewish car lovers rev up memories and medals in Chesterfield

By Bill Motchan, Special to the Jewish LightPublished May 6, 2025

The phrase “active aging” didn’t just apply to the competitors in the 2025 St. Louis Senior Olympics. During the opening ceremonies at The Hub STL at The District in Chesterfield on Sunday, May 4, a special exhibition featured vintage cars. Two...

David Cohen

New JCRC leader addresses antisemitism in Affton and outlines bold vision for community ties

By Bill Motchan, Special to the Jewish LightPublished May 4, 2025

David Cohen, who assumed the role executive director of the Jewish Community Relations Council (JCRC) of St. Louis, officially stepped into his new position on March 31 and he has already become fully engaged in the St. Louis Jewish community. Cohen...

Yael Sabin

Ladue lacrosse standout Yael Sabin to join Team Israel after record-breaking high school career

By Bill Motchan, Special to the Jewish LightPublished May 4, 2025

When an opposing goalie sees Yael Sabin approaching, it’s usually too late to react. The Jewish star midfielder for the Ladue Horton Watkins High School Rams will seize the opportunity to score yet another goal. Sabin, 18, has already amassed...

Rallies and social posts are great, but here’s how you can really stand with Israel right now

Rallies and social posts are great, but here’s how you can really stand with Israel right now

By Bill Motchan, Special to the Jewish LightPublished April 28, 2025

When the St. Louis Jewish community gathers to show support for Israel and call for the release of hostages, those events do more than create a bond among those who attend. They are also noticed—and appreciated—in Israel. That was one of the revelations...

Erika Schwartz

Born in a ghetto, one day before it was sealed: Her story moved St. Louis to tears

By Bill Motchan, Special to the Jewish LightPublished April 27, 2025

“I was born Erika Hornstein on April 23, 1944, in the Nyíregyháza, Hungary ghetto. Two weeks later, all of the women and children in my family were transported to Auschwitz to be murdered.” – Erika Schwartz The St. Louis Yom HaShoah (Holocaust...

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