As part of a First Lego Competition held at Woodmere Middle School on February 9, children were working on projects related to local buildings. In the video below you will see and hear a student relaying information about one local building which she says was “purchased by the United Hebrew Community of New York.” Without skipping a beat, one anti-Semite teacher/judge turns to the other and says “G-d (expletive removed) Jews” and carries on as though her commentary was necessary. In a statement to YWN, Dov Hikind, the Founder of Americans Against Antisemitism says they are “calling on the school to have this teacher disciplined immediately. It’s unconscionable that we would allow “educators” with such hate ready to spew around impressionable children.

A stalemate over the future of Warsaw’s landmark Jewish history museum moved closer to a resolution on Wednesday after the former director – who won a competition for a second term but whom Poland’s populist government refused to reinstate – offered to stand aside. The government had made clear that it would never allow Dariusz Stola, director of the POLIN Museum of the History of Polish Jews from 2014-2019, to resume his leadership at the acclaimed institution. That prompted museum board members, donors and other partners to agree informally on Wednesday to support Stola’s former deputy and now acting director, Zygmunt Stepinski, as his replacement. They felt the choice would be acceptable to the government and still allow the institution to maintain its independence.

A meeting with nearly 80 black pastors in Detroit. A speech before a black Democratic organization in Montgomery. A rally at a historically black university. A tour of Martin Luther King Jr.’s church. An early voting kickoff at an African American museum. All in the past two weeks. While Mike Bloomberg’s rivals battled it out in majority-white Iowa and New Hampshire, the billionaire presidential candidate aggressively courted the black voters critical to any Democrat’s chance of winning of the nomination. The effort, backed by millions of dollars in ads, has taken him across Southern states that vote on March 3, from Montgomery, Alabama, and this week Raleigh, North Carolina, and Chattanooga, Tennessee, states where African American voters can decide a Democratic primary.

A blaze inside a Louisiana refinery that turned the night sky a shade of orange and sent a large plume of smoke into the air over Baton Rouge has been extinguished, ExxonMobil officials say. The fire erupted at the facility in Baton Rouge around 11:30 p.m. Tuesday, Baton Rouge Fire Department spokesman Curt Monte told reporters. No injuries were reported, he said. “We’ve seen reports of people saying explosion. I can tell you there was no explosion,” Monte told reporters at an early morning news conference Wednesday. “We want the people to know that there has not been any off-site impact and we’re going to continue to be out here as long as it takes to make sure that that doesn’t happen,” he added.

When the factory in China that makes Romy Taormina’s anti-nausea wristbands closed for the Lunar New Year in late January, she expected production to resume by early this month. But many factories across China are still closed to try to limit the spread of the coronavirus, leaving business owners in limbo. “There’s no guarantee now when they’re going to be up and running,” says Taormina, who’s counting on a shipment of her Psi Bands to meet an increase in orders from Target stores. Many U.S. small business owners are facing a shortage of products or components because suppliers, who closed for the weeks-long New Year holiday, remain shut due to the virus that has killed more than 1,100 people.

U-Haul has an unusual wellness goal for 2020: hiring fewer smokers. The truck rental company said in January it will stop hiring people who use tobacco or nicotine products in the 21 U.S. states where it is legal to do so. Executives said the new policy, which takes effect this month, is expected to the cut company costs by improving the health of U-Haul’s 30,000-person workforce. Screening new hires for tobacco use is rare. But employers have long used financial penalties and perks to try to reduce the financial toll of tobacco-related diseases, such as cancer, heart disease and stroke. Those carrots and sticks are part of most corporate wellness programs, which also typically aim to encourage workers to exercise, lose weight and control diseases like diabetes.

Former Massachusetts Gov. Deval Patrick, the last remaining African American candidate in a Democratic presidential field once defined by its diversity, ended his 2020 campaign Wednesday after his late bid failed to catch fire or resonate with voters. “The vote in New Hampshire last night was not enough for us to create the practical win at the campaign’s back to go on to the next round of voting.” Patrick said in a statement. Patrick came in second-to-last in New Hampshire on Tuesday with just over 1,200 votes, after ignoring Iowa and focusing most of his time and resources on the first primary. His decision leaves just one other candidate of color, Hawaii Rep. Tulsi Gabbard, a Samoan American, in the Democratic contest.

A Japanese man with a sweet tooth who believes in smiles has become the world’s oldest male at 112 years and 344 days old, according to Guinness World Records. Chitetsu Watanabe, who was born in Niigata in northern Japan in 1907, received a certificate for his accomplishment on Wednesday at a nursing home in the city. The previous record holder, Masazo Nonaka, another Japanese, died last month. The oldest living person is also Japanese, Kane Tanaka, a 117-year-old woman. Until about a decade ago, Watanabe used to do bonsai, the Japanese traditional art of raising small sculpted trees, and had his work exhibited. These days, he loves desserts such as custards and cream puffs, Guinness said.

Hero.  A person who is admired or idealized for courage, outstanding achievements, or noble qualities.   Kapayim heroes.  Individuals who are admired and idealized for courage, outstanding achievements and noble qualities. Who are the Kapayim heroes? The young, and not- so – young patients who face the most excruciating pains and procedures with smiles, with strength, with determination to win.   Parents who need to relinquish their pride and reach out for help with their children, with their homes, with the most basic of needs. And the volunteers.  The most amazing, dedicated men and women.

Some 75 years later – after a series of recent serendipitous moments and intensive research – five fallen Jewish American soldiers from World War II finally will be buried beneath a Star of David. The unique re-naming ceremony is slated to take place in Manilla, Philippines, on Wednesday – coordinated by the American Battle Monuments Commission (ABMC) and the founders of Operation Benjamin. The Latin cross headstones adorning the graves of five U.S. soldiers buried in the Manila American Cemetery and Memorial will be replaced with the Star of David. “We wanted to bring truth to the historical record.