Family Ties
by Jill Cousins
During the 40 years that Barbara and Burt Chasnov have lived in the Orlando area, they have been passionate and generous philanthropists and volunteers in Central Florida’s Jewish community.
They also know how to host some of the most elaborate and unforgettable family reunions you’ve likely ever seen, but more on that in a bit...
Barbara was honored by the Jewish Federation of Greater Orlando (now Shalom Orlando) with the prestigious Harriet Ginsburg Woman of Choice Award in 2016 for her work as a volunteer and educator. Along with Burt, she has served on many committees at Congregation Ohev Shalom, where Burt has twice served as president.
Burt is also a trustee for the TOP Jewish Foundation, which helps philanthropists and organizations invest in gifts that benefit the Jewish community and Israel to ensure a strong Jewish future.
He is currently chairperson for the Ohev Shalom Cemetery Committee and is on the finance committee for Shalom Orlando.
Barbara is a Lion of Judah, an elite worldwide organization of philanthropic Jews. She has also been instrumental in creating a wide variety of educational programs to both help and educate schoolchildren, particularly at-risk students.
But it’s when Barbara gathers with her extended kin from across the world that the true breadth of this family’s influence can be seen.
Party Planning
It all started back in 1977, in the days before social media, email, and cellphones. Two of Barbara’s mother’s cousins – the Solomons – were concerned that so many relatives had left their homestead in the Atlanta area, and they wanted to find a way for the family to stay connected.
“I think they just felt this next generation wouldn’t know each other, because so many people had moved away,” says Barbara, who now lives with Burt in Longwood. “They just wanted the family connections to continue. So they decided to put together a reunion.”
Barbara and her daughter Beth, who was then only two-and-a-half years old, were among 90 other family members who showed up on Father’s Day weekend 45 years ago. The reunion was a huge success, and the family wanted to keep the momentum going. They decided to gather every few years, and a pattern emerged – the reunions were always held in Florida and always on Father’s Day weekend. Before the family knew it, their reunion had doubled in size.
This past June, the reunion was held for the first time in Central Florida where 145 family members gathered for the first time in four years due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
“Because of these reunions, Beth [now 48] is very close to all her cousins,” Barbara says. “They’ve all grown up together; they’ve seen each other every few years. So it worked! What the cousins wanted to happen absolutely did happen. So many generations have made friends and stayed in touch.”
The success of these family reunions is something that Barbara does not take for granted. She is one of several family members who have worked tirelessly over the years to make the reunions happen. Barbara was particularly motivated in those early years because she grew up in the tiny Georgia town of Quitman, which was about 230 miles south of Atlanta, where the majority of her family lived. Besides Barbara’s family, very few Jewish residents called Quitman home. They had to drive to Valdosta, about 17 miles east, to attend services at the nearest synagogue.
“Being raised in a small Southern town, it was hard to be Jewish,” Barbara says. “So we had to work at keeping the family connections. Not every family wants to make that effort.”
The Happiest
Place on Earth
Family members traveled to Orlando this year from as far away as Israel, as well as from about a dozen states including Georgia, Illinois, Texas, Maryland, New Jersey, and Colorado. The first official event of the reunion is always a Friday night Shabbat dinner complete with candle lightings and homemade challahs.
Saturday is the busiest day, starting with a Torah discussion and followed by the Family Olympics, where kids of all ages compete in a variety of games. After that, family members gather to share stories about Bubbe and Zayde — Barbara’s great grandparents Samuel Solomon (originally Kabatsky) and Molly (Minkovitz) Solomon.
In the evening, after dinner, there’s an always-fun talent show and a Jeopardy! game. The weekend concludes with a Sunday brunch, and then everyone heads home.
“It’s very unusual,” Barbara says of the reunions’ success, particularly in the age of Facebook, Zoom, and Instagram, where families from all over the world can easily keep in touch without the hassle and expense of traveling. “Everybody I talk to, they say, ‘You’ve got to be kidding!’ They can’t believe this family still does this after all these years. But this has become such a big part of this family. I can’t imagine the next generation not wanting to continue it.”