Senior Community Shlicha Yuval Malka (front) and Junior Community Shlicha Daniella Ironi with the Banai family — Uri, Noam, and Boaz — who performed at the 2025 Yom Ha’aztmaut festival in Tucson (Photo courtesy Weintraub Israel Center)

Observing the “Yamim”: Tucson’s Israeli Emissaries Plan Memorial Day, Independence Day Commemorations

April 10, 2026 / Phyllis Braun, AJP Feature Writer

Yuval Malka, Southern Arizona’s senior community shlicha (Israeli emissary), and Daniella Ironi, junior community shlicha, have been planning events for two of the most important dates on the Israeli calendar: Yom HaZikaron, Israel’s Memorial Day, and Yom Ha’aztmaut, Israel’s Independence Day, known collectively as the spring “Yamim” (Hebrew for “days”).  These two holidays, Malka says, “have all of our story within them.”  Malka and Ironi have been working with a volunteer committee of Americans and Israelis living in Southern Arizona on both events, along with local synagogues… Read more »

Bar Mitzvah: Julian Moses Saletan Hall
April 7, 2026 /

Julian Moses Saletan Hall, the son of Jordana Saletan and Robert Hall, will celebrate becoming a Bar Mitzvah on April 11, 2026, at Kol Ami Synagogue. Julian attends Tucson High Magnet School and is a whiz at word games and math. His hobbies include video games and Jojo’s Bizarre… Read more »

Mezuzah Case Collection Finds a Home at Center for Jewish Philanthropy
March 29, 2026 / Phyllis Braun, AJP Feature Writer
James Heuser and Carol Mintz Heuser display their mezuzah case collection at the Center for Jewish Philanthropy on March 9, 2026. (Photo courtesy JPSA)

On March 9, Jewish Philanthropies of Southern Arizona received a special donation from Carol Mintz Heuser and James Heuser. The gift was a collection of 52 mezuzah cases and scrolls James had saved from demolition over decades of working at a retirement community in New Jersey. … Read more »

JFCS of Southern Arizona Names Kseniya DeLano President & CEO
March 24, 2026 / Viviane Lovato, JFCS Development Associate
Kseniya DeLano

Jewish Family & Children’s Services of Southern Arizona (JFCS) has named Kseniya DeLano as the agency’s president and chief executive officer, effective April 6. DeLano joined JFCS in 2024 as the agency’s finance director and most recently served as chief administrative officer. “As a member… Read more »

Of Blessed Memory: Hirsch Handmaker
March 24, 2026 /

Dr. Hirsch Handmaker, a devoted physician, lifelong learner, and beloved father and grandfather, passed away March 9, 2026, surrounded by the enduring love of his family. His life was defined by intellectual curiosity, compassion for others, and deep devotion to the people he loved. Born July 2, 1940, in… Read more »

Yom HaShoah Commemoration to Honor Holocaust Survivor Legacies, Community Commitment to Memory and Education
March 24, 2026 / Lori Shepherd, TJMHC Executive Director

All are invited to be a part of Southern Arizona’s annual Yom HaShoah (Holocaust Remembrance Day) commemoration on Sunday, April 12, 2026, at 2:00 p.m. This year’s event, titled ”The Legacy We Leave Behind,” will be held in the Paul and Alice Baker Ballroom at the Tucson Jewish Community Center. The commemoration is… Read more »

Tucson Hebrew Academy Spanish Program Expands Curriculum
March 24, 2026 /
Tucson Hebrew Academy Spanish Teacher Miguel Montemayor reviews vocabulary with a student (Photo courtesy THA)

This fall, Tucson Hebrew Academy launched a full-fledged Spanish program, expanding on what was formerly a middle school elective. On a recent Wednesday, eight students from the fifth, seventh, and eighth grades engaged in a spirited game of Pictionary, reinforcing their vocabulary lessons on food and restaurants as… Read more »

Farfel as a Teaching Tool
March 23, 2026 / Judith Manelis, Special to the AJP
Judith Manelis with Farfel (Photo: Steve Shawl)

Who knew when I named my new dog Farfel seven years ago, that I would become a Judaic studies teacher to my non-Jewish neighbors? All I knew was that I wanted a dog to replace the female Yorkshire Terrier that I had lost 20 years earlier. Her name was… Read more »

‘Shul of Rock’ Band for Teens and ‘Sabra Singers’ Youth Choir Open to Community
March 17, 2026 / Phyllis Braun, AJP Feature Writer
The Shul of Rock band, part of the Shirei Simcha project started by Kol Ami Cantor Jen Benrey, rehearses on Feb. 12, 2026, led by Benrey (standing, with guitar) and Chris Tackett (seated, in red shirt). (Photo courtesy Kol Ami)

Cantor Jen Benrey of Kol Ami Synagogue has started a teen band, the “Shul of Rock,” for students in grades 7-12, and a junior youth choir, “Sabra Singers,” for students in grades 2-6. Both are open to Jewish kids from across Southern Arizona. The band and choir are the… Read more »