Meet the Egyptian-Jewish Owner of Kentucky Derby Winner American Pharaoh

May 5, 2015

Ahmed Zayat, who lives in New Jersey, once named a yearling ‘Maimonides’ to promote peace among Arabs and Jews.

On Saturday, like a tremendous machine, three-year-old bay colt American Pharaoh pushed ahead in the final furlong to take the 141st running of the Kentucky Derby. In a close second was Firing Line, followed by Dortmund.

American Pharaoh is owned by Ahmed Zayat, head of Zayat Stables, a 200-plus horse operation that competes at racetracks around the country. Zayat lives in Teaneck with his wife, two daughters, and two sons; 23-year-old, Justin, a student at NYU, currently manages the stables.

Zayat, 52, moved to the U.S. at the age of 18. He earned a graduate degree in Public Health at Boston University and founded Al Ahram Beverage Company, a distributor in Egypt, which he sold to Heineken in 2002 for $280 million. According to his bio, Zayat is also the largest shareholder in Misr Glass Manufacturing, a manufacturer of glass containers in Egypt. In 2010, the New York Times profiled Zayat and wrote about the businessman’s entry into the world of horse racing:

Zayat bought his first horses in 2005. In 2006, he paid $4.6 million for a yearling he named Maimonides, after the medieval Jewish philosopher Moses Maimonides, with the hope of promoting peace among Arabs and Jews, he said.

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Eyes to the Sky: Halley’s Comet Meteor Shower Peaks Tonight

May 5, 2015

It’s that time of year again! A stunning trail of burning debris from Halley’s Comet will illuminate the night sky tonight.

This time around, the shower is best viewed from the Southern Hemisphere, where up to 60 meteors will be visible each hour. The Northern Hemisphere could see up to 10 meteors per hour. The shower will peak between late evening on Tuesday and dawn on Wednesday.

Can’t make it outside? Online observatory Slooh will offer a live broadcast the shower from Spain’s Canary Islands, starting at 8:00 P.M. EDT.

This event is officially known as the Eta Aquarid Meteor Shower, and it occurs annually between April 21 and May 20. Halley’s Comet itself will not be visible; it can only be seen from Earth once ever 75 years.

Learn more about meteors:

7 Pains That Men Should Never Ignore

May 5, 2015

These common aches could very well be nothing. Or something far, far worse

Most of the time, it’s good that the little Vince Lombardi sitting on our shoulder tells us to shut up and play through the pain, otherwise we’d never get anything done. On the other hand, there are a few instances in which we can actually talk ourselves out of existence.

That’s what happened to NBC reporter David Bloom. While covering the war in Iraq from his specially outfitted armored vehicle, he began to feel pain behind his knee. He reportedly sought out medical advice by satellite phone, decided not to follow the advice — “Go to a doctor”—popped a few aspirin, and kept right on going. Three days later, Bloom died of a pulmonary embolism caused by deep-vein thrombosis. He was 39.

The ache that Bloom blew off is one of seven pains that no man should ever ignore. And no, this isn’t negotiable.

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Congregation Shaare Shalom’s First Yom HaShoah Program

May 1, 2015

A Screening of the Documentary Complicit

Congregation Shaare Shalom hosted an unforgettable evening commemorating Yom Hashoah, Holocaust Remembrance Day. Congregants and community members alike filled the room in anticipation of the showing of the film Complicit, directed by award winning director Robert Krakow.
Rabbi Avraham Benhamu, leader of Shaare Shalom’s youth minyan, led the crowd in a moving rendition of the Star Spangled Banner and Hatikvah. This was followed by the congregation’s high school students participating in a candle-lighting ceremony with a moment of silence commemorating those who perished in the Holocaust, those who survived, and those who aided the Jews that were able to escape.
Share Shalom’s own Rabbi Avi Harari, citing events of the Torah, spoke about the importance of memorializing past life impacting events, because they help us complete our connection to the present and to our future. His own grandfather’s experience as a concentration camp survivor only served to prove this idea true.
Salomon Cohen introduced Mr. Krakow to a rapt audience. Solomon is a prominent shul member who has spent countless hours organizing many of the synagogue’s events and was responsible for coordinating this evening.

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Mother/Daughter Brunch at MDY

May 1, 2015

By Shoshana Louzia – 04-28-15

Magen David Yeshivah High School sets aside one day, towards the end of every school year, for the 12th grade girls and their mothers, to highlight the importance of mother/daughter relationships and how they can be improved. To guarantee a girls-only event, the boys left the school to spend the day playing paint ball.

The girls had a wonderful day planned for their moms, which included a home-made video, brunch and games. Early in the day, they made beautiful challah, which were true masterpieces. When their mothers and grandmothers arrived, the girls led them to tables to watch the cute video. There were smiles all around when the mothers saw that their daughters had made the video and it contained photos of each mom with her daughter and a few of the girls reciting why they appreciate and love their mothers. Later on, brunch was served, and everyone had a great time, bonding and schmoozing.

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Let the Late Late Show’s James Corden make you the bar/bat mitzvah of your dreams

April 30, 2015

Let the Late Late Show’s James Corden make you the bar/bat mitzvah of your dreams. Watch his video on imageusa.com and send him your own video explaining why he should throw you a fabulous party. Maybe you’ll win. He came up with the idea to throw a party for one lucky boy or girl on his April 29^th show, after discussing Nicki Minaj’s appearance at a bar mitzvah recently.

Rabbi Shlomo Braun Endorses Daniel Donovan Jr. For Congress

April 28, 2015

On Sunday afternoon, April 26, Staten Island District Attorney and Republican congressional candidate, Dan Donovan campaigned at his Headquarters located at 9712 3^rd Avenue, where he thanked a group of Brooklyn Young Republican volunteers for assisting with the GOTV legwork. Donovan spent Sunday afternoon urging complacent supporters not to take the race for granted. It’s Time…Election Day is May 5th!

Dan Donovan embodies leadership, integrity and determination, and HIS PRIORITY IS YOU. Dan knows that responsibility, coupled with work ethic is what it takes to get things done in Washington, D.C. And it’s Dan’s tireless commitment to do what’s right, put PEOPLE first, and lead by example…this is what Staten Island and Brooklyn need, above all else. http://rcda.nyc.gov/index.html

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Camp Aboose,…Arts, Crafts, Outdoor Play, Swimming & More…

April 22, 2015

Keeping children safe. That should have unanimous support.

April 20, 2015

Keeping children safe. That should have unanimous support. But in government even good ideas have critics. Watch me respond at last week’s New York City Council hearing to those who DON’T want our children to be safe in our schools. – David G. Greenfield

#davidggreenfield

70 years ago Saturday, Buchenwald concentration camp was liberated by General Dwight Eisenhower

April 14, 2015

70 years ago Saturday, Buchenwald concentration camp was liberated by General Dwight Eisenhower.
He would go on to become President of the United States and a friend to Israel.

Associated Press

WEIMAR, Germany (AP) – Buchenwald survivor Henry Oster recalls thinking that a fellow inmate had “lost his sense of reality” when he said 70 years ago Saturday that the concentration camp was being liberated, bringing an end to the long ordeal of the 21,000 surviving prisoners.

Oster, 86, visited the site near the German city of Weimar for the first time since its liberation on April 11, 1945 – one of a group of survivors and veterans who came to mark the anniversary of the liberation. Buchenwald was the first major concentration camp entered by American forces at the end of World War II.

“What I see here, where the barracks used to be, at every barrack there was a pile of dead bodies, this is in your memory forever,” Oster said. “When someone asks how Buchenwald was, you immediately see the dead bodies again.”

Around 250,000 prisoners in total were held at Buchenwald from its opening in July 1937 to its liberation. An estimated 56,000 people were killed, including political prisoners, people dubbed “asocial” by the Nazis, Soviet prisoners of war, Sinti and Roma, and approximately 11,000 Jews.

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