H eadlines
NEWSBRIEFS Longtime Jewish Federation Employee Dies
FORMER JEWISH FEDERATION of Greater
Philadelphia employee Joe Polidoro, who spent 38
years with the organization, died Jan. 26, according
to his family.

Polidoro, 70, of Philadelphia, retired in 2013 as
Jewish Federation’s senior database analyst.

“Joe was beloved by all at the [Jewish] Federation,
and he was seen as the go-to guy who could always
help,” said Michelle Wetzel, who was the information
technology director there from 2004-08. “He was
never subpar and always gave 200 percent.”
Kosher Hotel Proposed in Florida
Kosher patrons of the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel &
Casino in Hollywood, Fla., will have a nearby lodg-
ing option if a proposed kosher hotel comes to pass,
according to JNS.org.

The Kosher House — to be built across the street
from the casino — would feature synagogue space
and a kosher restaurant, as well as automatic ele-
vators operating on the Sabbath, developer Sharon
Sharaby said in an interview with the South Florida
Business Journal.

The six-story, 100-room hotel would have 87,124
square feet of space, 104 parking spots and a pool
on the roof. Sharaby said room rates would be in the
$125 to $150 range.

The City of Hollywood Technical Advisory
Committee will hear Sharaby’s proposal in the weeks
ahead. Sharaby’s firm, the Shoppes of Hard Rock
LLC, holds a 99-year lease on the two-acre site, which
is also home to a McDonald’s.

Anti-Semitism Soars in France
French Interior Minister Christophe Castaner said
Feb. 11 that the number of anti-Semitic acts com-
mitted in the nation increased by 74 percent in 2018,
JTA reported.

There were 541 anti-Semitic acts in 2018, com-
pared to 311 a year earlier.

Castaner said that “anti-Semitism is spreading
like poison” and called it “an attack against hope.” He
pledged that the government would fight it.

The same day Castaner spoke, a tree planted near
Paris in memory of Ilan Halimi — a man kidnapped
and tortured in 2006 by a gang that thought his
Jewish family would pay ransom — was chopped
down. In addition, swastikas and anti-Semitic epi-
thets were recently painted around the city.

JFNA Supports Security Grant Approval
The Jewish Federations of North America (JFNA)
said it was appreciative of Congress for approving
$60 million for FEMA’s Nonprofit Security Grant
Program on Feb. 14. President Trump is expected to
approve the measure.

“Since Sept. 11, nonprofits generally, and Jewish
communal institutions specifically, have been the
victim of an alarming number of threats and attacks,”
said William Daroff, vice president for public pol-
icy and director of the Washington, D.C., office of
Jewish Federations.

JFNA said those risks prompted the creation and
continuation of a strong security program so at-risk
nonprofits can respond to threats by hardening their
facilities and improving preparations to deter, detect,
mitigate and recover from potential attacks.

“We witnessed the deadliest act of anti-Semi-
tism in North American history just a few months
ago — the attack at the Tree of Life synagogue in
Pittsburgh,” said David Golder, JFNA’s Domestic
Policy and Government Affairs Committee. “This
and other recent episodes underscore that Violent
Homegrown Extremists across the ideological spec-
trum continue to target our institutions.” l
NAME: DIGNITY MEMORIAL; WIDTH: 9.25 IN; DEPTH: 5.5 IN; COLOR: BLACK PLUS ONE; AD NUMBER: 00083380
FOREST HILLS / SHALOM
MEMORIAL PARK
ROOSEVELT MEMORIAL PARK
Limited Availability
CALL TODAY!
Introducing Our New Exclusive Off erings
Come see our newly constructed:
Mausoleum, Gardens, Private Estates, Columbarium,
Distinctive Cremation Memorialization
Options, New Monument Sections
Call today to schedule an appointment
with a Family Service Counselor
PRIVATE ESTATES
& COLUMBARIUM
At 1-888-970-2622.

Personal home appointments
ELLIPSE GARDEN
MASADA V MAUSOLEUM
Forest Hills/Shalom Memorial Park
Roosevelt Memorial Park
25 Byberry Road
Huntingdon Valley, PA 19006
215-673-5800 10
FEBRUARY 21, 2019
2701 Old Lincoln Hwy.

Trevose, PA 19053
215-673-7500 JEWISH EXPONENT
JEWISHEXPONENT.COM