Irene Katz Connelly is a staff writer at the Forward. You can contact her at connelly@forward.com. Follow her on Twitter at @katz_conn.
Irene Katz Connelly
By Irene Katz Connelly
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Fast Forward Burial society running out of prayer shawls to use as shrouds, seeks donations
A chevra kadisha society serving Queens and Long Island is facing a critical shortage of tallit and soliciting donations from the community. The society was short on essential supplies “due to the pandemic and the increased number of Jewish people who have passed away in recent weeks,” wrote a volunteer on Facebook. Chevra kadisha societies…
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Fast Forward Houston brothers convert hundreds of yarmulkes into face masks for the homeless
After years of attending friends’ bar and bat mitzvahs, brothers Matthew, Jeremy, and Danny Jason had dozens of kippot stashed all over their Houston home, souvenirs they never thought they’d need again. But in the era of coronavirus, there’s a good use for any object that covers the nose and mouth. In the past several…
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Fast Forward Flatbush Jewish Journal publishes 50 pages of obituaries in most recent issue
The Flatbush Jewish Journal, a weekly Orthodox publication based in Brooklyn, published fifty pages of obituaries in its most recent issue. The obituaries painted a picture of a community devastated by coronavirus. Several pages were devoted to the Novominsker Rebbe and the Sasregener Rebbe, heads of two Hasidic dynasties who died of coronavirus in April….
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Life There are heroes all around us. Meet some of them here.
We see them on social media and in family group chats. We hear about them when we call our friends or talk with a neighbor across the street. They’re churning out homemade masks on their sewing machines or babysitting the children of emergency responders. They’re delivering groceries to neighbors or risking infection to keep soup…
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Fast Forward Not sure where on the world wide web to go for Shabbat? This website is your guide.
For some of us, the hardest part about quarantine is missing out on gabfests with friends at synagogue — IRL, not online. Others may be interested in counting the omer, but have no idea how to do it. Still more might not have had a synagogue community before the coronavirus pandemic, and now really wish…
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News Soup kitchen and Hasidic philanthropist provide free groceries to Boro Park families affected by COVID-19
Masbia Soup Kitchen has partnered with Mordy Getz, the owner of Eichler’s Judaica Bookstore, to offer free groceries to any Boro Park family which has lost a breadwinner to coronavirus. The novel coronavirus has devastated tight-knit Hasidic communities in New York. And for families, grief over a parent’s death is compounded by anxiety about fulfilling…
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News For domestic violence advocates, calls are down, but need is going up
In the weeks after Passover, the phones are usually ringing at Jewish organizations supporting domestic violence victims. For observant Jews, the eight-day festival entails a significant financial burden, an increase in household and childcare responsibilities, and long periods of time spent in the home — all factors that can exacerbate or catalyze domestic abuse. This…
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Life Everyday Heroes: She’s sourcing masks from every corner of Facebook
The Forward asked readers to tell us about the “everyday heroes” in their lives, people extraordinary things in this extraordinary time. If you know someone acting heroically right now, let us know — we’ll be adding to the collection in the coming days. Name: Rena Leinberger, artist How she started: What she’s doing: An artist…
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Fast Forward Israeli security cabinet approves ceasefire with Hezbollah, paving way for end of yearlong conflict in Israel’s north
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