By MARILYN SHAPIRO May 28, 1993, was graduation day at the Capital District Educational Opportunity Center, a division of Hudson Valley Community College, which offers a range of programs and educationally and economically disadvantaged adults. During and after the ceremony, there was laughter, tears, and the inevitable thanks that we teachers receive from our students on such occasions. Students want to […]

Rabbi Scott Shpeen will lead the Beth Emeth Lunch and Learn series in March and April. The first session will be a Jewish/Catholic dialogue at the Academy Road synagogue between the rabbi and  Bishop Scharfenberger from Noon to 1:30 p.m. on March 21 to discuss their recent joint trip to East Europe. The following four lunch and learn sessions will […]

By MARILYN SHAPIRO In May 2016, my husband Larry and I purchased tickets for a Flores de Mayo celebration sponsored by our community’s Filipino Club. I had met several of its members through my cardio ballroom dancing class, and they had hyped up the event for several weeks. “Lots of fun! Great music,” one of the organizers told me. “Just […]

By BOB MICHAELS “Telling True Stories in an Age of Fake News” was Journalist Paul Grondahl’s topic at the CGOH Brotherhood Breakfast-and-A-Speaker Program on Sunday, Feb 11.  “The free press,” Grondahl told those attending, “is the core of our democracy.”  Grondahl is the director of the NYS Writers institute. He had visited Turkey, where Tayyip Erdogan shut down 185 news […]

ALBANY– The University at Albany Performing Arts Center, operating under the auspices of the College of Arts and Sciences, will present the Big Galut(e) quintet on Thursday, Feb. 22, at 7:30 p.m. The quintet includes Robin Seletsky, Sasha Margolis, Michael Leopold, Mark Rubinstein and Richard Sosinsky who met during summer stints at the Glimmerglass Opera Festival. The program will feature traditional Yiddish tunes, […]

TROY–Congregation Beth Tephilah has announced a mystery dinner theater program to be held at the synagogue, 82 River St., Troy on Sunday evening, Feb. 18. “The Mysterious Megillah Robbery Mystery Dinner,” will begin at 5:30 p.m. and will feature a story, guaranteed by Congregation Beth Tephilah President Leible Morrison to set the mood for the upcoming Purim holiday (March 1). […]

ALBANY–“Temple Israel has announced a series of innovative steps to better serve the needs of the congregation and Albany Jewish community at large,” said Acting Executive Director Ken Dymond. These steps include the creation of a new “Program Development Office” within the congregation’s main office. The office will focus on generating and implementing new Judaic and secular programs, events, and […]

BY SUE WOLLNER When Andrew Abramowitz joined Congregation Beth Emeth in Albany a few years ago it became clear as he looked around the sanctuary during services that he, a young man in his early 20s, was in the minority. A recent graduate of the University at Albany he was not surprised, knowing that his demographic group was the least […]

By LISA GALLY Imagine only leaving your house for medical-related visits. Some compare it to being a prisoner in your own home. This is the case for many Jewish senior citizens right here in the Albany, Schenectady and Rensselaer areas. Many individuals are not affiliated with a synagogue or other organization. They feel isolated and lonely. Even if they are […]

SCHENECTADY–The Schenectady Jewish Community Center (SJCC) will host the annual Robert J. Ludwig Community Service Awards Gala on Saturday, Dec. 2, at 7 p.m. It will be held, for the first time, at the Robert and Dorothy Ludwig SJCC on the Golub Family Campus, 2565 Balltown Rd. The program will feature cocktails, kosher food stations, the awards presentation, and entertainment.  For the […]