THE HOLOCAUST SURVIVORS EDUCATION GROUP of the Coalition for Jewish Education of the Jewish Federation of Southern Arizona, coordinated by Bryan Davis, received a 2012 Salpointe Catholic High School Volunteer of the Year Award, along with Salpointe alumna Karen Kalil Callan. The award honors those “who have contributed to Catholic education and development of character of Southern Arizona’s young people.” At a ceremony at the school on Tuesday, May 8, a plaque was presented to the survivors. Father Rick Zamorano read the names of local survivors who have died in recent years and called for a moment of silence in their honor.
THE TUCSON JEWISH COMMUNITY CENTER announced its 2012-2013 board of directors at its annual meeting on Tuesday, May 1. Officers are Tom Warne, chair; Neal Cash, Barney Holtzman, Jill Rosenzweig, Jeff Silvyn and Mary Cochran Wolk, vice chairs; Stuart Shatken, secretary; David Greenberg, treasurer; Fran Katz, immediate past chair. Board members include Rebecca Bednar, Austen Berens, Sara Cohen, Greg Gadarian, Jaime Gallick, Ted Goodman, Susan Moss, Lindsay Pasternack, Ed Rogoff, Isaac Rothschild, Joaquin Ruiz and Debbie Yoklic.
Outstanding staff members and friends of the TJCC were also recognized at the annual meeting. Mary Cochran Wolk was named Volunteer of the Year for her dedication to the wellness of the JCC staff, which included providing flu shots, and her work as the Early Childhood Education chair. The members of the International Jewish Film Festival Committee were named Leaders of the Year. The Beth Stern Awards of the Year for Staff Excellence were given to Mary Byrnes, Sports & Wellness fitness class coordinator, and Tammy Lewis, building services crew leader. Yevgeniya Orenbakh and Svetlana Rabayeva received Early Childhood Education Professional Excellence Awards.
The TJCC received a Kol Ha Kavod (Honor to You) Award from the Jewish Community Centers of North America for its 2011-12 Sculpture Garden brochure, produced by Marty Johnston and Helen Gomez Bernard. The brochure also received a Gold Addy from the American Advertising Federation of Tucson.
GREEN FIELDS COUNTRY DAY SCHOOL won a $10,000 prize in a national “Find Your Balance” competition sponsored by the Healthy Weight Commitment Foundation, Discover Education and Sports Authority. Physical education and health teacher Carly Parsons and 11 fifth graders focused on the relationship between food, activity and energy, leading them to create a Breakfast Market at Green Fields to offer balanced breakfasts with a protein, whole grain and fruit.
MARIA MARTINEZ, nursing assistant at HANDMAKER JEWISH SERVICES FOR THE AGING, was named Nursing Assistant of the Year by the American Association of Nurse Assessment Coordination. Martinez will receive a $5,000 scholarship toward education expenses and an all-expense paid trip to Florida to accept the award.
