Amb. Yechiel Leiter, left, completes letters of the Torah dedicated to the memory of his son with the scribe, Rabbi Tzvi Bider, as Dudi Berkowitz, right, looks on, Feb. 1, 2026 (Photo courtesy TTC)

Israeli Ambassador Visits Tucson, Drawing Huge Crowd for Torah Completion Ceremony

February 13, 2026 / Phyllis Braun, AJP Feature Writer

More than 600 people turned out to hear H.E. Dr. Yechiel Leiter, the Israeli ambassador to the United States, speak in Tucson on Sunday, Feb. 1. The ambassador was in town to dedicate a Torah in memory of his son, Maj. Moshe Yedidya Leiter, an Israeli physician and soldier who was killed while leading IDF forces into battle in Gaza in November 2023. The new scroll will belong to the Tucson Torah Center, which two of the ambassador’s nephews, Rabbi… Read more »

Tessa Veksler to Bring her Passionate Jewish Activism to JPSA Connections
February 24, 2026 / Phyllis Braun, AJP Feature Writer
Tessa Veksler

Public speaker, content creator, and activist Tessa Veksler, a leading Jewish and Zionist voice, will headline Connections, Jewish Philanthropies of Southern Arizona Women’s Division’s flagship event, on March 8. A first-generation American of Ukrainian Jewish descent, Veksler graduated in 2024 from the University of California, Santa Barbara, with a… Read more »

Don Baker Receives Posthumous Award from UA College of Architecture, Planning & Landscape Architecture
February 24, 2026 /
Lindsey Baker speaks at a University of Arizona event celebrating Donald Baker, MRED '14, as the College of Architecture, Planning & Landscape Architecture 2026 Alumnus of the Year earlier this month. (Photo: Chris Richards/University of Arizona)

The University of Arizona College of Architecture, Planning & Landscape Architecture (CAPLA) has posthumously named Donald Baker, MRED ’14, its 2026 Alumnus of the Year.  Baker was an active member of the local Jewish community, and his legacy fund held at the Jewish Community Foundation continues to support CAPLA’s Master of Real Estate… Read more »

Tucson Jewish Museum & Holocaust Center to Debut New Contemporary Human Rights Exhibit
February 23, 2026 / Lori Shepherd, TJMHC Executive Director

The Tucson Jewish Museum & Holocaust Center (TJMHC) will host the grand opening of its newest exhibition, ”Media Matters: Cutting Through the Noise,” on Thursday, March 12, at 6 p.m. This year’s installment of the Allen & Marianne Langer Contemporary Human Rights Exhibit explores the evolution of media literacy and… Read more »

Partners Tucson: Building Community, One Conversation at a Time
February 23, 2026 / Jennifer Lorch Selco, Senior Director of Jewish Life + Engagement, Tucson J
Rabbi Lord Jonathan Sacks, z'l

Rabbi Lord Jonathan Sacks, of blessed memory, once wrote, “I believe that the challenge for our time is to open a series of windows so that the world can illuminate our understanding of Torah, and so that the Torah may guide us as we seek to make our way… Read more »

JFCS SASIC Program Successfully Concludes
February 23, 2026 / Viviane Lovato, JFCS Development Associate
Members of the Services to Afghan Survivors Impacted by Combat team at Jewish Family & Children’s Services of Southern Arizona (L-R:) Arif Muhammad, Ahmad Omid Rahimi, Anna-Lise "Annie" Kunz, Joelle Zuberi, Neda Ardebili, and Molly Bryan. (Photo courtesy JFCS)

Celebrating the Impact of the JFCS SASIC Program  The Jewish Family and Children’s Services of Southern Arizona (JFCS) Services to Afghan Survivors Impacted by Combat (SASIC) program is a mental health initiative designed to support Afghan individuals and families who arrived in the United States after 2021 and have been affected… Read more »

Downsizing: What to Keep and What to Leave Behind
February 23, 2026 / Judith Manelis, Special to the AJP
Judith Manelis with, from left, Shimon Peres, Yitzhak Rabin, and Menachem Begin (Photo courtesy of Judith Manelis)

Downsizing is not simply a “rehoming” of old possessions: the shoes that are too tight … the extra set of silverware that has been packed away in the closet for 20 years … the scrapbook with pictures from 12 years at camp.   To me, downsizing is a metaphor for aging. … Read more »

Birth: Chaim Asher Zimmerman
February 20, 2026 /

A son, Chaim Asher Zimmerman, was born Jan. 28, 2026 to Mushkie and Rabbi Ephraim Zimmerman of Oro Valley. Chaim joins his siblings, Devora, Chana, Leah, Risa, Zev, Bayla, Menachem, and Levi.… Read more »

Bar Mitzvah: Ivan Arthur Moravec
February 13, 2026 /

Ivan Arthur Moravec, son of Bryan Moravec and Meg Knight, will celebrate becoming a Bar Mitzvah on Feb. 14, 2026 at Kol Ami Synagogue. Ivan attends The Gregory School. He is passionate about sports and plays both baseball and tennis. He also has a strong love for music; he… Read more »