When the leader of Houston’s Chabad Teen Network (CTeen) was forced from her home by floodwaters, she took shelter with friends who happened to live near the local Chabad house, Chabad of Uptown. Naomi Bier, a 28-year-old Houston resident, has been volunteering there ever since, and created an Amazon Wishlist to gather donations of food…
(JTA) — As Hurricane Harvey bore down on Houston Friday, Vicki Samuels Levy dashed over to the offices of the Houston Jewish Herald-Voice, took the proofs of this week’s newspaper and went to her mother Jeanne’s house. Then mother and daughter spent all night editing the paper. And as the waters rose and they had…
This morning I took a break from clearing my yard of the tree limbs and debris to google the name of the storm that caused the damage, along with the adjective “biblical”. The number of links that appeared—nearly seven million—rivaled the magnitude of the event. No doubt, many have nothing to do with the event…
Ari Fleischer, press secretary under President George W. Bush, told Fox News last night that Trump’s visit to Houston amid the catastrophic flooding crippling the city lacked a certain something: empathy. “There was something missing from what President Trump said ― I hope he’ll say it later today ― but that’s the empathy for the…
For Houston’s devastated synagogues, government funds to rebuild after Hurricane Harvey may not come. The historic flooding that has brought death and terror to parts of Texas this week has damaged an untold number of houses of worship, including at least two synagogues. Government rules could bar those holy sites from receiving government rebuilding grants…
(JTA) — Three weeks ago, Lauren Laderman left Camp Young Judaea-Texas after serving as the unit head for 14-year-olds this summer. Then Hurricane Harvey hit the Texas coast, and Laderman was back at camp, this time preparing the cabins for evacuees in need of a place to live. On Tuesday, families began moving into the…
A notice on the Houston Food Bank’s website says the organization is closed due to flooding, but will reopen as soon as possible to help provide disaster relief to the community. It will surely have its work cut out for it, as will the other food-relief organizations and disaster-relief agencies offering assistance to those affected…
Adam Buchsbaum had been preparing for his bar mitzvah for months. But with Hurricane Harvey lashing his hometown of Houston last Saturday, the boy’s temple closed its building and cancelled all services — including his coming-of-age ceremony. The Buchsbaum family was devastated when they found out Congregation Beth Israel had closed — and resigned themselves to…
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