Posts By April Bauer

Two letters to the Arizona Jewish Post (June 4) are confusing, based as they are on mistaken understanding of federal immigration law. Though both writers claim the Arizona statute is an exact copy of federal law, it isn’t. SB 1070 defines a new crime; being an illegal is per… Read more »

It was almost 5 o’clock when Susan realized she didn’t have the fresh basil and black olives she needed for the chicken dish she was preparing for dinner. Guests were arriving at 7 o’clock and she still needed to shower and change. Scribbling the few items down on a… Read more »

“Dawning of One Hundred Days,” acrylic by Ginny Tompkins

Paintings by Ginny Tompkins will be featured in the Tucson Jewish Community Center Fine Arts Gallery through Aug. 24. Specializing in very large abstract art in acrylic, Tompkins was the subject of “Ginny Tompkins: A Retrospective” by France-Marie Haeger, Ph.D., published in 2005 with 101 color plates. Haeger’s descriptions… Read more »

Rabbi Jason Holtz

Temple Emanu-El’s new assistant rabbi, Jason Holtz, will take up his duties June 21. Holtz received his rabbinic ordination earlier this month from Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion in Cincinnati, Ohio. Since 2006, he has served as a student rabbi at Congregation B’nai Abra­ham in Portsmouth, Ohio; Temple… Read more »

(L-R) Seth Grossman, Sol Lieberman, Janet Winans and Adrienne Halpert, gathered in Halpert’s store, Global Arts Gallery, have found varied ways to express their Jewish identity in Patagonia, Ariz.

Whether engaged in traditional religious practices or celebrating the High Holy days at the “temple of nature,” for the dozen or so Jewish residents of Patagonia, Ariz., identification with Judaism runs deep.… Read more »

Zach Emanuel,  the son of  White House Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel, celebrated his Bar Mitzvah in Jerusalem. The ceremony took place May 30 at the Davidson Center, located  near the Western Wall.  About 50 people, mostly family members, participated.  Security was heavy for the family and guests;  there… Read more »

HILARY LYONS was named a recipient of the 24th Annual Hadassah National Leadership Award. Lyons is Young Judaea Chair for Hadassah Southern Arizona and is the education director of Congregation Chaverim. RUTH OSOBOW was named Hadassah Southern Arizona’s Woman of the Year. Osobow is currently chapter membership co-vice president… Read more »

CONGREGATION M’KOR HAYIM has named EMILY ELLENTUCK as its Cantorial Soloist. Ellentuck has led the musical part of several of M’kor Hayim’s Shabbat services as well as last year’s High Holy Days. Her new role will include Friday evening services twice a month, festival services and the High Holy… Read more »

Linda and David Schiesel will celebrate their 50th wedding anniversary with family and friends with a weekend getaway and dinner celebration at the Sheraton Wild Horse Pass Resort and Spa in Chandler, Arizona. Linda and David were married on June 5, 1960 at Temple Emanu-El in Tucson. The couple… Read more »

ELLIE MACKIE, daughter of Elysa and Jim Mackie, will celebrate becoming a Bat Mitzvah on Saturday, June 19 at Congregation Chaverim. She is the granddaughter of Sheila and Joe Dobrzynski of Sea Girt, N.J., Nancy and the late Albert Mackie of Amelia Island, Fla., and Kathy and the late… Read more »

MATTHEW ARLEN REIN, son of Laurie Rein, will celebrate becoming a Bar Mitzvah on Saturday, June 12 at Congregation Or Chadash. He is the grandson of Min Rein of Tucson. Matthew attends Esperero Middle School where he plays clarinet in the band, as well as basketball and tennis. He… Read more »

(L-R) Tamara Novak, Holly Harper, Ann Markewitz, Nan Rubin, Linda Horowitz

Five women will become B’not Mitzvah at Congregation M’kor Hayim on Friday, June 4 at  7 p.m.… Read more »

Rabbi Helen T. Cohn

I remember clearly the first time I was called by my newly acquired Hebrew name to say the Torah blessings on Rosh Hashanah. I was in my early 40s and just beginning to discover my own heritage. Who knew that Judaism could be so complex, so compelling, so enriching?… Read more »

(StatePoint) — Swimming and lounging by the pool are some of the great joys of summer, but homeowners need to take precautions to ensure that children, grandchildren and visitors are safe. Drowning is the second-leading cause of accidental death for children under five in the United States, and each… Read more »

Sunflower in Deborah Maayan's Tucson garden

When I think of snacks in Israel, along with the ubiquitious Bamba (peanut butter-flavored corn puffs), something healthy comes to mind— sunflower seeds. While I didn’t quite get the hang of splitting shells easily with my teeth like a sabra, I did acquire a taste that I fulfill not… Read more »

This scene in the Oberamergau Passion Play, showing Jesus' crucifixion, perpetuates the charge against the Jews of deicide, some Jewish critics say. (Passion Play/Obergammergau 2010/JTA Photo Service)

Berlin (JTA) — It’s a tradition that goes back hundreds of years in the Bavarian village of Oberammergau, nestled in the German Alps. After witnessing it in the 1930s, Hitler reportedly proclaimed, “Never has the menace of Jewry been so convincingly portrayed as in this presentation of what happened… Read more »

Istanbul — While Turkey and Israel have seen their once-close relationship deteriorate steadily for the past few years, the Israeli commando raid of a Turkish-led flotilla heading for Gaza, in which several Turks were killed, marks a dangerous new low in the two countries’ relations. “Turkey is now involved… Read more »

Washington — President Obama’s Cairo speech and its equivalent invocations of Palestinian and Jewish sufferings. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton’s call for an unequivocal freeze: “Not some settlements, not outposts, not natural growth exceptions.” The Joe Biden fiasco. And now the Obama administration’s venture into a nuclear-free Middle… Read more »

Singer/songwriter Sam Glaser will be in Tucson to celebrate a local friend, his own father, and fathers everywhere this Father’s Day. The acclaimed Jewish pop musician will perform at a fundraiser suggested by his friend Michael Deitch on Sunday, June 20 at 1 p.m. at Congregation Anshei Israel. Deitch,… Read more »

The Israel Scouts (Tzofim) Friendship Caravan will return to Tucson on Tuesday, June 15, with a free song and dance performance at the Tucson Jewish Community Center at 6 p.m. Four performing groups, consisting of five male and five female 17-year-old Israeli Scouts, travel across North America each summer.… Read more »