Israel has a bobsled team, and it wants to compete in the Olympics

Dave Nicholls, seated, rides in the bobsled. (Courtesy of Nicholls)
December 13, 2018 / Josefin Dolsten, JTA

NEW YORK (JTA) — In the span of just a couple days, Chaim Raice went from never having been on a bobsled to being a contender to represent Israel in the 2022 Winter Olympics. And it all started with a Facebook post. Raice, a house builder based in Pomona, New York, was browsing the social media site in November… Read more »

This Santa Claus is an Orthodox Jew

Rick Rosenthal is a professional, year-round Santa who also attends Congregation Young Israel of Toco Hills in Atlanta. (Courtesy of Rosenthal)
December 10, 2018 / Ben Sales, JTA

(JTA) — Just like any other Santa Claus, Santa Rick will spend much of the next couple of weeks sitting children on his knee, asking whether they’ve been good and listening to their Christmas wishes. (JTA) — Just like any other Santa Claus, Santa Rick will spend much of… Read more »

The latest poll on anti-Semitism in Europe looks bad. Trust me: It’s true.

Danish soldiers guard the Jewish Synagogue in Copenhagen, Denmark, Sept. 29, 2017. (Mads Claus Rasmussen/AFP/Getty Images)
December 10, 2018 / Cnaan Liphshiz, JTA

AMSTERDAM (JTA) — The last time that a stranger directed an anti-Semitic insult at me, I was carrying supplies for my son’s birthday party. It was on a Sunday afternoon on Dam Square. Carrying Star of David party decorations in a see-through bag, I paused to snap some pictures… Read more »

Soviet immigration, once a bane of Germany’s Jews, has become their salvation

Children stick white roses into a Star of David sculpture at the construction site of a new synagogue in Potsdam, Germany, Nov. 9, 2018, the 80th anniversary of the Nazi Kristallnacht pogrom. (Bernd Settnik/AFP/Getty Images)
December 10, 2018 / Cnaan Liphshiz, JTA

MUNICH (JTA) — Weeks after they emigrated from Russia and moved to Germany, the Nedlin family sought to join the local Jewish community. Registering for membership in a Jewish community — a practice common in European countries — was a significant step for the Nedlins, who before emigrating in 1992… Read more »

JFSA-NW rebrands program to honor Ruth and Irving Olson
December 7, 2018 / Debe Campbell, AJP Assistant Editor
Ruth and Irving Olson

In 2019 the Northwest Division will organize its activities as The Ruth and Irving Olson Center for Jewish Life in the Northwest,” says Alan Kendal, advisory council chair for the Jewish Federation of Southern Arizona Northwest Division. Stuart Mellan, JFSA president and CEO, made the formal announcement during the… Read more »

Tucson firefighters see counterparts in action on Israel mission

Members of the November 2018 Firefighters Without Borders mission pose with soldiers of the Israel Defense Forces 118th Division Tank Battalion in the Golan Heights, (L-R): Eliot Anderson, Scott Peru, Ted Geare, K. Paul Maxwell, Kris Blume, Steve Lunde. (Courtesy Firefighters Beyond Borders)
December 7, 2018 / Debe Campbell, AJP Assistant Editor

Tucson Firefighters Beyond Borders completed its third mission to Israel last month under an unexpected hail of missiles. That only added a new dimension to the multi-faceted, cross-cultural and cross-technology educational exchanges that began in 2013, according to the six participants. The delegation left Tucson on Nov. 6, spending… Read more »

JFCS therapist and 1st-Rate thrift store create cozy office on shoestring budget

Anjulie Pfeifer wanted her office at Jewish Family & Children’s Services to feel homey. (Micheal Romero)
December 7, 2018 / Micheal Romero, AJP Intern

Visiting counselor Anjulie Pfeifer’s office is like visiting grandma’s house. Or going to a hipster coffee shop. Or seeing Smokey Bear’s cabin. At least that is what her clients at Jewish Family & Children’s Services say when they walk across the threshold of her office. Scenic paintings line the… Read more »

Tucson Federation develops and funds creative, relevant community programs

Jewish Federation of Southern Arizona volunteer Louise Good, right, is a classroom reading tutor at Homer Davis Elementary School. (Danielle Larcom)
December 7, 2018 / Debe Campbell, AJP Assistant Editor

Editor’s Note: This is the third in a series of four articles on how the Jewish Federation of Southern Arizona allocates funds. The first, in the Oct. 12 issue, focused on youth and family education programs at synagogues. The second, in the Nov. 23 issue, focused on national and… Read more »

Hebrew Free Loan of Tucson expands with employee assistance program

The Hebrew Free Loan Association of Tucson helps community members thrive. (Courtesy Hebrew Free Loan Association of Tucson)
December 7, 2018 / Phyllis Braun, AJP Executive Editor

The Hebrew Free Loan Association of Tucson has been around since 1947. Although it provides an invaluable service — granting interest-free financial assistance to those in need — its longtime president, Phil Bregman, has often called the association “the best kept secret in town.” But in the past nine… Read more »


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