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To address feelings of isolation and loneliness among older adults, NY group creates innovative approach
PLAINVIEW, N.Y. — Nora Leeds had lived alone for many years in her Long Island home, but it wasn’t until the pandemic that she started to feel isolated.
She was used to working in a large office with coworkers, but then her work went fully remote. For four months, Leeds, now 69, could not see her daughter. She became increasingly depressed.
“I felt like my whole world was falling apart, like I no longer had the skills to interact with people because we were told to stay at home,” Leeds said.
Leeds hardly represents a unique case. While the pandemic exacerbated the social isolation of older adults, even before Covid-19 older Americans were experiencing an epidemic of loneliness and social isolation. Nearly one-quarter of American adults age 65 and older are considered to be “socially isolated” — a circumstance in which a person has few social relationships and infrequent social contact with others. Feelings of loneliness — a subjective state that someone may feel regardless of their social contacts — are rising among older adults, too.
Both social isolation and loneliness are correlated with negative health outcomes, and older adults tend to face these challenges more acutely because they’re more likely to have their social interaction impaired by hearing loss, not working, mobility problems, chronic illness or the death of a spouse or friends.
It’s a growing problem nationwide but in particular in New York, where the share of older adults is surging. Between 2011 and 2021, the number of New Yorkers over age 65 grew by 31 percent, and the number of older adults in the state living in poverty increased by a staggering 37 percent, according to the Center for an Urban Future.
This is the challenge that UJA-Federation of New York sought to address when it launched a pioneering program in April 2021 called Isolation to Connection, which aims to identify isolated older adults and connect them to social activities, community programs and services. Now operating in all the JCCs on Long Island and one in Westchester County, Isolation to Connection helps people over age 65 connect with each other and with resources either at the JCC or at their home. The program coordinates social outings, local community programs, exercise classes, support groups, transportation and psychotherapy sessions, among other things.
When Leeds reached out to her local JCC, the Mid-Island Y Jewish Community Center, for help dealing with her isolation, staffers with the program swung into action.
“I was at a very low point when I called the Y JCC. I told them I needed help,” Leeds said.
A “connection specialist” from Isolation to Connection quickly put Leeds in touch with a social worker, who helped Leeds by encouraging her to focus on things to look forward to — anything from a trip to the supermarket to a dream trip to Ireland. Last March, Leeds finally went on her long-awaited Ireland trip, and she recently attended her first in-person connection event at the JCC.
“The pandemic laid bare the issue of loneliness across our community, particularly among older adults,” said Eric S. Goldstein, CEO of UJA-Federation. “Now we’re leading the way in creating a sense of belonging and connection for people who may otherwise feel unseen and forgotten. When we see an emerging communal need, we look for opportunities to leverage our partners and offer a scalable solution — that’s always been UJA’s unique role.”
One of the most important elements of the program is the connection specialists at each JCC, whose role is to connect the older adults to resources based on their individual needs.
Saralee Baim, a Long Islander in her late 70s who recently had lost her husband, went looking for help to work through her grief and deal with a troubling medical diagnosis. (Bonnie Azoulay)
“The smiles and conversation make a significant impact on the health of this vulnerable population. This program really allows the participants to get life-altering services,” said Rick Lewis, CEO of the Mid-Island Y JCC. “UJA-Federation’s support of our JCCs has empowered us to serve our community on a deeper level in combatting loneliness.”
When Saralee Baim, a Long Islander in her late 70s who recently had lost her husband, was diagnosed with Parkinson’s in 2022, she went looking for a program to work through her grief and deal with her new illness. Her daughter called the Mid-Island Y JCC and put her in touch with the Isolation to Connection specialist there, Puja Malhotra, who connected Baim to a support group for people with Parkinson’s.
Baim began coming to the JCC four days a week and soon joined its bereavement group, a swim class for people with movement disorders and a support group for those with early-stage memory loss. Malhotra also helped Baim find a dentist and therapist.
“I needed support,” Baim said. “I really tried to focus on the help I can gather here. The JCC is the focus of my help. It’s provided me with opportunities I’d generally hold back from based on my personality.”
Even though Baim, now 79, lives with her daughter and a grandchild, she felt she needed to be with people who understood what she was going through. Once a month she attends a JCC dinner at a nearby diner with other people from the Parkinson’s group.
Healthcare experts say that addressing the isolation of older adults is critical to their health and wellbeing. Just as a physician might offer a medical prescription to someone in need of one, Isolation to Connection aims to give older adults a “social prescription” — a way for them to connect to other people, activities, and services that address their social, practical and emotional needs.
“Social prescribing is a way that many lonely, depressed, anxious people can find local solutions to feel better,” said Dan Morse, the Cofounder of Social Prescribing USA, which encourages doctors to “prescribe” activities such as art, nature activities and volunteering to isolated patients as a way of bolstering their health.
Northwell Health, which is New York State’s largest healthcare provider, is now referring patients to Isolation to Connection. Northwell doctors who see older adults at their clinics have told UJA that while they can address their patients’ medical issues, they need programs like Isolation to Connection to deal with patients’ feelings of isolation — which sometimes are the main reason for their visit to a health clinic.
Ultimately, UJA hopes it can make Isolation to Connection into a statewide program, expanding the social prescribing movement in New York in partnership with other funders.
“There’s a significant demand for the Isolation to Connection program, indicating just how endemic loneliness is among the older population. We want to bring connection specialists to every neighborhood and community around New York,” said Sepi Djavaheri, UJA senior community mobilizer. “We’re just getting started.”
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Radio-Canada Suspends Journalist After Antisemitic Comments Spark Outrage
Radio-Canada reporter Élisa Serret. Photo: Screenshot
A journalist at Canada’s national public broadcaster, Radio-Canada, has been suspended after using antisemitic language during a Monday television broadcast, prompting an official apology from the network.
On the news program “Sur le terrain,” correspondent Élisa Serret, reporting from Washington on US Secretary of State Marco Rubio’s visit to Israel, was asked why the US continues to support Jerusalem despite its recent military offensive in Gaza.
Serret responded, saying in French, “The Israelis, in fact the Jews, finance a lot of American politics” and control a “big machine.”
The journalist then went on to claim that the largest US cities and Hollywood are “run by Jews,” echoing long-standing antisemitic stereotypes and hateful rhetoric about supposedly outsized and nefarious Jewish power.
After Serret’s comments went viral, sparking outrage from political leaders and the local Jewish community, Radio-Canada issued an apology, describing her remarks as “”stereotypical, antisemitic, erroneous, and prejudicial allegations against Jewish communities.”
“These unacceptable comments violate Radio-Canada’s Journalistic Standards and Practices and do not reflect the views of the public broadcaster,” the statement read.
“As a result, the news department has decided to relieve the journalist of her duties until further notice,” it continued. “We are aware that these comments have offended many viewers. We sincerely apologize and regret this.”
The Center for Israel and Jewish Affairs (CIJA), a Canadian Jewish advocacy group, strongly condemned Serret’s comments, accusing Radio-Canada of spreading “antisemitic lies.”
Eta Yudin, CIJA’s vice-president for Quebec, called on the public broadcaster to take concrete measures to keep antisemitic content out of Canadian homes.
“This incident cannot be allowed to pass without serious internal reflection on the damage such hateful rhetoric inflicts on our democratic values,” Yudin said in a statement. “Antisemitism is corroding the fabric of our society.”
Canadian Identity and Culture Minister Steven Guilbeault, who is responsible for overseeing the public broadcaster, also condemned the incident, saying that “antisemitism has no place in Canada” and describing Serret’s remarks as “pernicious antisemitic tropes.”
“When antisemitic language is used by journalists, or anyone in a position of trust, it risks normalizing hatred in deeply dangerous ways,” Guilbeault said.
Anthony Housefather, the government’s special adviser on Jewish community relations and antisemitism, denounced the incident, saying Serret’s remarks echoed “textbook tropes that are antisemitic under the IHRA definition,” referring to the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA) definition of antisemitism, which was adopted by the government in 2020.
Melissa Lantsman, a member of the opposition Conservative Party, criticized the public broadcaster for failing to “uphold the values of this country” by airing what she described as an “antisemitic rant.”
“Overt antisemitism on TV is part of the deep systemic rot corroding our society, and it flourishes when tax-funded institutions provide it with a platform,” Lantsman said in a statement.
“Canadians deserve better than excuses and carefully worded apologies,” she continued.
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Israeli Culture Minister Cuts Funding for Film Awards After Palestinian Drama Wins Top Prize, Chosen for Oscars Submission
A scene from “The Sea.” Photo: The Israeli Academy of Film and Television
Israeli Minister of Culture and Sports Miki Zohar said his ministry will pull state funding for Israel’s Ophir Awards, which is the Israeli equivalent to the Oscars, after it awarded a top honor to a film that “defames” Israel’s “heroic soldiers,” he announced on Wednesday.
At this year’s Ophir Awards ceremony on Tuesday night, “The Sea” won best picture, which automatically makes the film Israel’s submission for the 2026 Oscars in the category of best international feature film. The drama, directed and written by Shai Carmeli-Pollak and produced by Baher Agbariya, also won best screenplay, best actor for the 13-year-old Palestinian Muhammad Gazawi, best supporting actor for Khalifa Natour, and best original score. The movie, filmed in Arabic and Hebrew, marks Gazawi’s first acting role.
The Ophir Awards are voted on by the Israeli Academy of Film and Television, a nonprofit organization that is the Israeli version of the US-based Academy of Television Arts & Sciences. It has more than 1,000 members, including filmmakers, producers, content creators, and actors.
“The Sea” follows a 12-year-old Palestinian boy named Khaled, from a village near Ramallah, who gets the opportunity to go the beach for the first time in his life on a class trip to Tel Aviv. When he is forced to return home at a military checkpoint, while his classmates continue on to the beach, Khaled decides to risk his life and dodge Israeli authorities on his solo journey to reach the ocean. “The Sea” premiered at the Jerusalem Film Festival this summer and received support from the Israeli Film Fund.
In a statement on X, Zohar said that after the “pro-Palestinian” film, “which defames our heroic soldiers while they fight to protect us,” won the award for best film at the “shameful” Ophir Awards on Tuesday night, he decided to discontinue funding for the ceremony.
“During my tenure – the citizens of Israel will not pay out of their pockets for a disgraceful ceremony that spits on the heroic IDF soldiers,” he added. “This great absurdity, that Israeli citizens are still paying out of their pockets for the disgraceful Ophir Awards ceremony, which represents less than one percent of the Israeli people – is over. Starting from the 2026 budget, this pathetic ceremony will no longer be funded by taxpayers’ money. The citizens of Israel deserve for their tax money to go to more important and valuable places.”
Several winners on stage at the Ophir Awards ceremony, including Carmeli-Pollak and Agbariya, sported a black T-shirt with a message that called for an end to the Israel-Hamas war and said in Hebrew and Arabic “a child is a child.” Others wore shirts that called for the return of the hostages abducted by Hamas-led terrorists from Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, and talked about the devastation taking place in Gaza during the ongoing war. Acclaimed Israeli director Uri Barbash received a lifetime achievement award at the ceremony, and in his acceptance speech, he condemned actions of the Israeli government and Zohar, pleaded for an end to the war, and called for solidarity between Jews and Arabs.
“It is our sacred duty to bring all the hostages back to their families immediately,” he said. “To end the accursed war and replace the ‘divide and rule’ regime that has declared war on Israeli society!”
Other movies that competed alongside “The Sea” for best film at this year’s Ophir Awards included Nadav Lapid’s “Yes,” “Dead Language – which made its world premiere at the 2025 Tribeca Film Festival and is an expanded version of the Oscar-nominated short film “Aya” – and Natali Braun’s “Oxygen,” which is about a single mother fighting to pull her son out of military service and his deployment to Lebanon.
Israel has had 10 nominations in the category of best international feature film at the Oscars but has yet to win. The Academy of Television Arts & Sciences will announce on Dec. 16 a shortlist of 15 contenders for the 2026 Oscar for best international feature film. The final list of nominations will be announced on Jan. 22, 2026, and the 98th Academy Awards will take place on March 15, 2026.
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HBO Max Acquires US Rights to Scripted Series ‘One Day in October’ About Hamas Attack
Bartender and survivor of the Nova Festival, May Hayat, takes cover as rocket sirens sound, during her first visit to the scene of the attack, on the one-month anniversary of the attack by the Palestinian terrorist group Hamas on Oct. 7, near Re’im, Israel, Nov. 6, 2023. Photo: REUTERS/Evelyn Hockstein
HBO Max has acquired exclusive rights in the United States to “One Day in October,” a scripted series based on real-life, first-hand accounts from the deadly Hamas-led terrorist attack in Israel on Oct. 7, 2023.
“One Day in October” is the first real-time scripted portrayal of personal stories from the massacre in southern Israel, where Palestinians terrorists murdered 1,200 people and kidnapped 251 hostages. The attack was the deadliest single-day slaughter of Jews since the Holocaust.
“One Day in October” will debut on HBO Max in the US on Oct. 7, the two-year anniversary of the attack, FOX Entertainment announced on Monday. Filmed on location in Israel, the four-episode series is co-produced by FOX Entertainment Studios in partnership with Israel’s yes TV, the New York-based production company Sparks Go, and Israel’s ZOA Films, in association with Moriah Media.
The series “presents seven emotionally gripping and artistically interwoven narratives of love, courage, sacrifice and survival,” according to a description provided by HBO Max. “From families torn apart to moments of hope emerging in the face of unspeakable tragedy to incredible bravery against the odds, each episode reveals the human cost and resilience born out of chaos. The series portrays the victims’ and survivors’ experiences of that day and is brought to life by a distinguished cast and acclaimed creative team.”
“One Day in October” is created by Daniel Finkelman, founder of the New York-based production company Sparks Go, and Oded Davidoff, who is also the director and writer on the series. Sparks Go helped co-produce the series.
“The tragic events on Oct. 7 had a profound impact on all of us,” said Fernando Szew, president of FOX Entertainment Studios. “From the very beginning, we approached this series with the utmost care, sensitivity, and urgency to ensure that the stories were told with authenticity and respect and paying homage to the victims and the heroic survivors. Oded and the incredible cast, crew and teams at Sparks Go, ZOA, and yes TV have truly created compelling storytelling that we are proud to showcase.”
The cast includes Swell Ariel Or, Noa Kedar, Naomi Levov, Hisham Suliman, Wael Hamdoun, Yuval Semo, Avi Azulay, Naveh Tzur, Yael Abecassis, Moran Rosenblatt, Michael Aloni, Neta Roth, Sean Softi, Lior Ashkenazi, and Uri Perelman. The series features writing by Liron Ben-Shlush, Davidoff, Amir Hasfari, Keren Weissman, Orit Dabush, and Yona Rozenkier. Jim Berk and Sheldon Rabinowitz with Moriah Media are also executive producers on the series.
“For me, film and television have always been more than entertainment, they are a way to bear witness,” said Finkelman. “These are stories of ordinary people facing extraordinary moments. In a time when truth is fragile, the most powerful thing we can do is to appeal to humanity itself. My hope is that these stories will open hearts and spark meaningful conversation.”