Yearly Archives 2011

It was probably not what Dr. Lynn Polonski had in mind for his 15 minutes of fame. It must have been a bittersweet moment when he found himself at the bedside of America’s most famous Congresswoman, ready to operate and relieve some of the damage caused by the Jan.… Read more »

Shari Gootter with her retired guide dog, Harper

Tucsonan Shari Gootter recently sent an e-mail to friends and colleagues promoting Harper Appreciation Day — a celebration of her retired guide dog on his 14th birthday on March 8. Gootter, whose sight is limited due to uveitis and secondary glaucoma, works as a clinician at Emerge! Center Against… Read more »

BORDEN PHYSICAL THERAPY has added Ruth Edwards, PT, to the staff. Edwards, a graduate of the University of North Carolina, has more than 30 years experience as a manual therapist, with a background in orthopedics, sports medicine and geriatrics. The office, located at 4544 E. Camp Lowell, may be… Read more »

HOWARD PALEY has published a book of photographs, “First Impressions — Landscapes.” For more information, visit www.hpaley.com. PATTI DAY has published a novel, “The Ride: In the Air & Through the Courts.” The book won a Spring 2010 Pinnacle Book Achievement Award from the North American Book Dealers Exchange.… Read more »

ZAKA volunteer holds a body bag containing one of the victims of the terror attack in the West Bank settlement of Itama, March 11, 2011. (Courtesy of ZAKA)

JERUSALEM (JTA) — Demonstrations in solidarity with settlers and a Cabinet committee’s approval for new housing in the West Bank are among the Israeli responses to the suspected terrorist attack that killed five members of a West Bank Jewish family. An estimated 20,000 people attended the March 13 funeral at a cemetery… Read more »

Betty Zunin, 95, died Feb. 27, 2011 in Napa, Calif. Born in Brooklyn, N.Y., Mrs. Zunin lived most of her life in Tucson. Mrs. Zunin was preceded in death by her husband, Louis Zunin. Graveside services were held in the Congregation Anshei Israel section of Evergreen Cemetery with Rabbi… Read more »

Elaine Judith Smelkinson, 71, died Feb. 23, 2011. Born in Baltimore, Md., Mrs. Smelkinson graduated high school at age 16 and was a registered nurse. After earning a bachelor’s degree in 1985, she moved into psychiatric nursing. After retiring, Mrs. Smelkinson did volunteer work chairing community events for organizations… Read more »

Rabbi Helen T. Cohn

Impenetrable, irrelevant, boring. These are some of the descriptions I’ve heard about the Book of Leviticus, which we begin reading this week during the annual Torah cycle. Even the great Israeli teacher Nehama Leibowitz called the laws of Leviticus a “closed book to us” — which did not prevent… Read more »

Chaim Potok’s widow, Adena Potok, center, advised the Arizona Jewish Theatre Company production of ‘My Name is Asher Lev.’ From left: Andrea Dovner, Layne Racowsky (director), Michael Kary, Ben Tyler (Mark Gluckman)

The Arizona Jewish Theatre Company in Phoenix will present the Arizona premiere of “My Name is Asher Lev,” written by Aaron Posner, and based on the novel by Chaim Potok, March 24-April 3. “My Name is Asher Lev” had its world premiere in Philadelphia in January 2009. Set in… Read more »

Women’s Philanthropy of the Jewish Federation of Southern Arizona is organizing a team for the 13th Annual Southern Arizona Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure, which will be held Sunday, April 10 at Reid Park. The event includes a one-mile walk at 7 a.m. and a five-mile walk/run… Read more »

Founded in 1912 by Henrietta Szold, Hadassah is celebrating its upcoming centennial by offering community members the opportunity to become a life member or male associate at a special price of $100. Hadassah is the largest women’s Zionist volunteer organization in the United States and has members in more… Read more »

Young Judaea, the national Zionist youth group of Hadassah, will hold its West Merchav Spring Convention for grades 3-8 at the Triangle Y Camp in Oracle, Ariz., April 1-3. Hosted by the Tucson Young Judaea youth group, it will feature a chocolate Seder, games, hiking, Shabbat services, songs and… Read more »

Congregation Or Chadash will host “An Affair to Remember,” an evening of dinner and dancing, on Saturday, March 26 from 7 to 11 p.m. at the Tucson Jewish Community Center. Klezmerkaba will provide the music, along with the debut of Quintessence, a new band fronted by Or Chadash’s Cantor… Read more »

The detractors of J Street, the “pro-Israel, pro-peace” lobbying organization, like to portray the organization’s leader, Jeremy Ben-Ami, as so far to the left of mainstream American Jewish opinion as to be out of bounds. If they think Ben-Ami is too much of a lefty on Israel, just wait… Read more »

Although the 10-month moratorium on building in Jewish settlements in the West Bank was lifted last September, settler leaders complain that no construction is being allowed in the large urban areas and warn that a de facto freeze on all Jewish building in the West Bank is looming. The… Read more »

The favorite word of Navi Pillay, the U.N. high commissioner for human rights, appears to be “accountability.” Yet with her own agency tainted by its longtime disregard of Libyan human rights violations — and by apologists for Libyan strongman Muammar Gadhafi occupying key U.N. positions — it’s high time… Read more »

The Tucson Jewish Community Center will send a delegation to the inaugural Junior Maccabi Games for ages 11-13, to be held in Chicago May 27-31. Tucson plans to take a boys basketball team, a girls basketball team and several swimmers, says Stu Epstein, head of the Tucson delegation. For… Read more »

The Jewish Federation of Southern Arizona and the Desert Caucus will lead a “Focus on Israel” mission, Oct. 23 to Nov. 2, 2011. The joint mission will offer an insider’s view of Israeli-U.S. politics “with extraordinary access to Israeli leaders and insiders from all sides of the political spectrum,”… Read more »

Leonard Joffe, M.D.

Dr. Leonard Joffe, ophthalmologist and retina specialist, will present “Age-Related Macular Degeneration and Recent Advances in the Management of this Condition” at a Hadassah education meeting and brunch later this month. Macular degeneration is one of the hottest research topics in ophthalmology and many advances in its treatment have… Read more »

CBS fired actor Charlie Sheen from the sitcom "Two and a Half Men" following a series of bizarre outbursts that started wtih a tirade referring to Chuck Lorre, his Jewish boss, as Chaim Levine. (Angela George/Creative Commons)

Expressions of anti-Semitism by public figures generally follow a certain script in the media. The politician/actor/public figure says something construed as offensive/hostile/ insensitive to Jews. Abraham Foxman, the national director of the Anti-Defamation League, issues a condemnatory statement demanding penance. The offender expresses regret. If he deems it sufficient,… Read more »