HAFTR High School’s College Bowl teams hosted the first Yeshiva League College Bowl meet of the year at Congregation Beth Sholom of Lawrence last Thursday. About 100 participants from HAFTR, Central, DRS, Rambam, Shalhevet, North Shore, HANC, and SKA engaged in games of academic trivia. more

A new Orthodox special needs travel camp that grew from the ashes of the World Trade Center debuted this year, forging strong bonds between the campers, mentors and counselors. The camp, Aryeh United, partly sponsored by Camp Lavi and headed by Yoni Glatt, aims to promote interaction and integration between Jewish teenage mentors and high functioning special-needs individuals throughout the course of a fully programmed ten-day trip. more

Sports, food, music, and fun combined for an enjoyable time at Davis Renov Stahler (DRS) Yeshiva High School’s 17th annual Shabbaton, held at Hotel Somerset-Bridgewater last weekend. “The purpose of the Shabbaton is to provide an enjoyable, relaxing experience for the student body to spend time with each other, as well as to promote school spirit and achdus (unity),” said Rabbi Yisroel Kaminetsky, principal of DRS in Woodmere. “The Shabbaton also provides an opportunity for the Rebbeim and students to interact in an informal way and build relationships.” more

It was a different era, a time that revered idealism yet tolerated a diversity that at times defied reality. Nevertheless, with all that was tolerated, respect for diverse opinion was laced with respect, a respect that was saturated throughout society’s opinion makers’ creed. The legacy of the brief presidency of John F. Kennedy was highlighted by image, personality, ideology and most important of all to this writer, the element of eloquence and elegance in both language and style. more

As usual I was stumped for a topic for this week’s article. Upon awakening to snow on Monday, I remembered the time I was “forced” to go white water rafting. It was 1984 and our good friend Shimmy Stein put together a white water rafting expedition to Lehigh. He had his chevra from Forest Hills (us) and his friends from everywhere else. All my friends said it would be a great experience and that I had to try it at least once. The Webers and Maels were also going and talked me into it as well. As we got close to our destination, I started to panic. I knew I was going to hate it. more

In March 2012, President Obama had a bit of an open mike gaffe. At a Nuclear Security Summit in Seoul, South Korea, he whispered to then Russian President Dmitri Medvedev that he would have “more flexibility” to deal with controversial issues such as missile defense after the 2012 elections. At the time many wondered if that would also apply to other issues, such as his dealings with Israel. In the past week we learned the answer. more

One of the most challenging experiences I had in the Israeli army had nothing to do with combat or being in the field, but transpired during a moment of relative calm, when things were looking pretty good. We were at the tail-end of a harrowing month of reserve duty in the Gaza strip in the midst of the intifada. It was my first stint as an officer in the reserves. more

Yaakov is on his return journey, homeward bound for the first time in either 22 or 36 years. His mother is dead (though he does not yet know that), and he is unsure of his status with his brother. Has he been forgiven? He sends one group of messengers to Eisav with a warm greeting, “I’ve been away for awhile. I have made a decent living. I’m coming home — I hope I’ve found favor in your eyes.” The response is that Eisav is approaching with 400 men. more

Jewish groups organized relief efforts following Typhoon Haiyan in the Philippines, one of the most powerful storms ever recorded. Authorities said it is possible that more than 10,000 people died from the storm. “We immediately activated our network of global partners and will leverage our previous experience in the region to provide immediate, strategic relief to survivors in their time of need,” Alan Gill, CEO of the American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee (JDC), said in a statement. more

THURSDAY NOV 14 LUNCH & LEARN. With Rabbi Shalom Axelrod of Young Israel of Woodmere. Traditions Restaurant, 302 Central Avenue, off Rockaway Blvd., Lawrence. 12:30-1:30 pm. Buy a $12 lunch, eat and learn. Alan Stern 516-398-3094. more