Stephen Silver
Every summer, many Philadelphians, Jewish and not, head down the shore, on weekends and sometimes for even longer.
This summer, there are plenty of special events in various shore towns to look forward to.
Lucy the Elephant has finished its complex renovation, and the “World’s Greatest Elephant” is fully open all summer long for visits to Margate. Lucy was named America’s #1 Best Roadside Attraction by USA Today’s 10Best in May.
With the renovation complete, the USA Today award is “the most exciting thing to happen recently,” Lucy’s communications director, Ari Solomon, said.
The summer’s first of three Wildwood Comedy Nights will occur on June 22, at Beth Judah Temple, featuring Mike Marino, a veteran of “The Tonight Show.”
On June 23, the Shirat Hayam synagogue in Ventnor will host a brunch talk by Rabbi Chaim Respes on “Diversity and Inclusion within Judaism.” According to the website, Respes will discuss “the historical contexts of Ashkenazi, Mizrahi, Yemenite, and Sephardic communities, shedding light on their unique perspectives within Judaism.”
On June 29, Margate will celebrate Beachstock, described as “the planet’s biggest beach party.” The event features live music, cornhole and food vendors, culminating in a concert by Knox.
The Shirat Hayam synagogue will host a talk by David Bernstein, author of the book “Woke Antisemitism,” on July 10. It’s part of The Board of Jewish Education of Atlantic and Cape May Counties’ Summer Speaker Series.
If you can’t wait to see the real James Taylor at the end of the summer in Philadelphia, a tribute called “Taylor Simon King” — featuring impersonators performing the work of Taylor, Carly Simon and Carole King — will headline the Axelrod Performing Arts Center in Deal Park on July 11.
On July 18, Shirat Hayam will host its summer concert featuring two cantors from Park Avenue Synagogue in New York. Cantor Ari Schwartz and Assistant Cantor Mira Davis will both headline the concert.
Also, on July 18, the Jewish Federation of Ocean County will host an event called “A Musical Hug from Israel.” It will feature Israeli music expert Josh Shron, who will walk the audience through the music released after Oct. 7 and explain how that music helped Israel heal from the tragedy.
The summer’s second Wildwood Comedy Night is set for July 20, featuring Tammy Pescatelli, also at Beth Judah Temple in Wildwood.
On July 21, the Am Yisrael Chai Benefit Concert is scheduled at the Dominic A Potena Performing Arts Center in Margate, presented by Chabad at the Shore. Headliners include the “Singing IDF Commander” Shlomo Lipman and the Sharabi Brothers, who are credited with saving dozens of lives during the Nova Music Festival massacre. The event is described as “an uplifting evening of hope and song for our beloved Land of Israel and prayers for the return of the hostages.”
Another book talk will take place at Shirat Hayam on July 24 when Oren Schneider, author of “The Apprentice of Buchenwald: The True Story of the Teenaged Boy Who Sabotaged Hitler’s War Machine,” appears in Ventnor.
The Jewish Federation of Greater Philadelphia will host a “Summer at the Shore” event in Longport on July 24. The event will feature “cocktails, food and conversation,” along with kosher-style catering.
On Aug. 2, Margate will host the Margate World War II Memorial Lifeguard Races. The races will include the 1-mile doubles row, half-mile swim and 1,000-foot singles row.
Jewish comedian Jared Freid plays at the Borgata Music Box theater in Atlantic City on the evening of August 2.
Another Jewish comic, the Israeli-born former Yeshiva University cantorial student Modi Rosenfeld, plays the Borgata the following night, on Aug. 3.
On Aug. 4, Matt Goldich, the Jewish stand-up comedian who is also a longtime writer for “Late Night with Seth Meyers,” will appear at Shirat Hayam in Ventnor. Attendees are encouraged to bring their own (kosher) wine.
Continuing the run of Jewish comics in Atlantic City that month, Iliza Schlesinger will play Ovation Hall at Ocean Resort on Aug. 17.
Chabad in Atlantic City will host the 14th annual Jewish Summer Fest on Aug. 19, near the Ventnor Library. The event will feature an “exciting and entertaining evening of pulsating Jewish music, hands on crafts, children’s rides, games and face painting as well as a delicious kosher BBQ offering hot dogs, burgers, falafel and more,” the website said.
The summer’s third and final Wildwood Comedy Night will take place on Aug. 24. This time it will feature “Psychic Standup” with Karen Rontowski at Wildwood’s Beth Judah Temple.
The annual Duck Derby, called “a floating quack-a-palooza,” will occur on Aug. 25 at Scott’s Dock in Margate. It is, yes, a rubber duck race, where attendees can buy duck raffle tickets.
Stephen Silver is a Broomall-based freelance writer.