Gabrielle Birkner
By Gabrielle Birkner
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Fast Forward Poway Mayor: Post-Pittsburgh Precautions Saved Lives
POWAY, California (JTA) — Poway’s mayor said preparations made in the aftermath of the massacre at a Pittsburgh synagogue “contributed to saving lives” in his hometown. On Saturday, a gunman entered Chabad of Poway, killing Lori Gilbert-Kaye, a 60-year-old congregant, and injuring three others, including Rabbi Yisroel Goldstein, the congregation’s spiritual leader. Following the October…
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Fast Forward Poway Synagogue To Hold Memorial Service Monday For Slain Congregant
POWAY, California (JTA) — Lori Gilbert-Kaye will be memorialized at the synagogue where she was shot to death during Saturday morning services in what’s being called a hate crime. The memorial will take place at 2 p.m. Monday, Pacific time, at Chabad of Poway, in this town north of San Diego. A short graveside service…
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News Marvin Hier ‘Proud’ To Be Trump’s Inauguration Rabbi
(JTA) — Rabbi Marvin Hier has known Charles and Seryl Kushner — Jared Kushner’s parents and Donald Trump’s in-laws — for decades. The Hiers and the Kushners have gone to the same kosher for Passover resort, the Arizona Biltmore, over the years. The Kushner family, prominent real estate developers, have also been generous donors to…
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Culture Transgender Man Gives Birth to Baby — Embraces Life as ‘Abba’
(JTA) — When Rafi Daugherty went to the hospital for the birth of his first child, he posted a sign on the delivery room door. “I am a single transgender man having my first baby,” it read. “I use he/him/his pronouns and will be called ‘Abba’ (Hebrew for father) by the baby. Papa, Dad, Daddy,…
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Fast Forward Unity Is Watchword for Federations After Year of Rancor
(JTA) — Think unity. On the heels of this year’s rancorous and polarizing debate over the Iran nuclear deal, organizers of this week’s General Assembly of Jewish federations wanted their annual conference to be an opportunity for reconciliation and healing in the Jewish community. At their conference in Washington, they talked about civility, touted the…
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Opinion 8 Things You Might Not Know About French Jews
(JTA) — The deadly hostage siege at a kosher supermarket in Paris has French Jews (and some non-Jews) proclaiming “Je suis juif,” or “I am Jewish,” in solidarity with the four people killed in the attack. Who are the Jews of France? Here’s a primer. 1) How many Jews are there in France? About 500,000,…
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Opinion ‘Serial’ Ends With Nod to Jewish Prof
Illustration by Lior Zaltzman (JTA) — No spoilers here about the “Serial” season finale, but I will say this much: The episode ends with … a special thanks to a certain Jewish studies professor. That would be Benjamin Schreier, the interim director of the Jewish studies program at Penn State and the husband of “Serial”…
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News As Chabad Gathers, South Dakota Is Only State Missing
(JTA) — Some 4,200 Chabad rabbis from more than 80 countries are gathering this weekend in New York for the annual conference of Chabad-Lubavitch emissaries. In the year since they all last got together to attend workshops, listen to keynote lectures from the likes of former Sen. Joseph Lieberman and pose for their “class picture”…
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