Abe Chanin, a former publisher of the Arizona Jewish Post, longtime Arizona Daily Star sports editor, University of Arizona professor, author and historian, died Feb. 1 in Albuquerque, N.M. He was 92. Mr. Chanin co-published the Arizona Post, as it was then known, with his wife, Mildred, from 1956… Read more »
"Spiraling" by Ira Wiesenfeld Twelve additions to the Tucson Jewish Community Center’s Sculpture Garden will be unveiled on Sunday, March 9, 1-3 p.m. at the opening of the 5th annual Sculpture Garden exhibition, which features the work of artists from Tucson and across the country. “The goal was to find sculptures that would… Read more »
Handmaker Youth Leadership Team will hold a multi-generational event with a disabilities awareness theme on Sunday, March 2 at 2 p.m. Youth volunteers and Handmaker residents will learn strategies for communicating with people who have hearing loss, how daily life is affected by vision loss and how daily life… Read more »
Rita Rudner Rita Rudner is your typical housewife. She washes dishes, makes beds, folds laundry … then she dashes off to her sold-out show in Las Vegas. “Actually I am making the beds right now,” said Rudner, from her beach home in Dana Point, Calif., which is currently for sale. “We… Read more »
Jeannie Smith “From Darkness to Light,” the theme of the 2014 Connections brunch, raises the question of individual responsibility to others — a Jewish value — regardless of the risk. Jeannie Smith, the daughter of Polish Righteous Among the Nations rescuer Irene Gut OpDyke, will be the keynote speaker at this… Read more »
Rabbi Eric Yoffie Rabbi Eric Yoffie, president emeritus of the Union for Reform Judaism, supports what he calls “passionate pluralism” in the Jewish world — not one right way of being Jewish. He’s coming to Tucson as Temple Emanu-El’s scholar-in-residence from Thursday, Feb. 27 to Saturday, March 1 “to combat stereotypes that… Read more »
Kristen Fabry as Tzeitel and Damian Garcia as Motel in “Fiddler on the Roof” at Pima Community College (Carol Carder/PCC) Working on Pima Community College’s upcoming production of “Fiddler on the Roof” has been “an absolute joy,” says director Todd Poelstra. “More than anything we’ve done, this event, from the first moment we announced it — it’s just been a positive response. ‘Oh, that’s one of my favorite shows… Read more »
Eran Levin, Ph.D., examines a bat in Nimrod Castle on the Golan Heights What do the Society for the Protection of Nature in Israel and the Israel Defense Forces have in common? Bats. Yes, that’s right. A dozen species of these nocturnal flying mammals have made their summer home in a collection of abandoned army bunkers along the border with Jordan. And… Read more »
NEW YORK (JTA) — The hostile intentions of the international boycott, divestment and sanctions movement toward Israel are clear. But some believe it is possible to be pro-Israel while supporting just a little BDS — boycotting Israeli businesses located on the West Bank but not those within pre-1967 Israel.… Read more »
A Tucson Tu B’Shevat More than 100 people attended a Tu B’Shevat celebration on Thursday, Jan. 16 sponsored by the Weintraub Israel Center, the Tucson Jewish Community Center and the Congregation Or Chadash religious school. The holiday is known as the “New Year for the Trees” and the event… Read more »
Barbara Levkowitz with her youngest great-granddaughter, Halle Jewish Cuba From Dec. 9 to 18, Barbara Esmond traveled on Road Scholar’s “Shalom Cuba” bus tour. Sixteen participants explored the Jewish heritage of this island nation. The group carried donations of school, medical and religious goods to augment government rationing and short supplies. The American Jewish Joint Distribution… Read more »
Bernyce Simon, 79, died Jan. 23, 2014. Born in Paterson, N.J., Mrs. Simon was active in many community and civic endeavors. Mrs. Simon was preceded in death by her brother, Albert Kamine. Survivors include her husband of 58 years, Donald; children, Michael (Lynn) Simon of North Caldwell, N.J., and… Read more »
Lester Morton Goldsmith, 79, died Dec. 25, 2013. Born in Chicago, Mr. Goldsmith was a graduate of Northwestern University. While in high school, he began working at one of Chicago’s first television stations. He later was a campaign videographer for John and Robert Kennedy. He was a story development… Read more »
Louis Norman Rib, 85, died Dec. 18, 2013. Raised in the Bronx, N.Y., Mr. Rib was part of the Kingsmen club at the Young Men’s Hebrew Association during high school. He attended New York University earning a bachelor’s degree in chemical engineering and a master’s degree in meteorology (sponsored… Read more »
Rabbi Harold Kushner There is a universal human craving for significance, says Rabbi Harold Kushner. The world-renowned rabbi and author will speak on this idea when Temple Emanu-El presents “Making a Difference in Your Life and in Our City,” a brunch next month honoring Mayor Jonathan Rothschild. “We want to know that… Read more »
Laura Heisler, daughter of Barbara and Michael Heisler of Tucson, and Scott Cogan, son of Jesse and Sandra Cogan of Livingston, N.J., were married on May 26, 2013 at Loews Ventana Canyon Resort with Rabbi Robert Eisen and Ron Sandler officiating. Scott is the grandson of Abraham Olshan of… Read more »
Models pose at the home of Catherene Morton prior to the Jewish History Museum’s bridal style show on Jan. 1. (Athol Cline/JHM) Exotic gowns in red, purple and gold as well as the traditional white are on display at the Jewish History Museum’s sixth annual ketubah (Jewish wedding contract) and wedding dress exhibit, which continues through March 30. The exhibit features gowns from the 1500s to 2010, with origins from New… Read more »
The good news is in: Rabbi Avi Weiss’ conversions will be accepted in Israel. I am glad to see that the religious integrity and leadership of Rabbi Weiss has been acknowledged. Undoubtedly, this course correction on the part of the Israeli Chief Rabbinate is due in part to the… Read more »
The Modern Language Association, which held its annual conference here Jan. 9-12, has approximately 28,000 humanities scholars in its membership, about 4,000 of whom attend the annual conference. The conference features hundreds of workshops and panel discussions — about 800 in total this year — on topics ranging from… Read more »
Hava Tirosh-Samuelson Jewish thinkers focus on happiness as the quality of life as a whole, not a few moments in the accrual of pleasure or money. So said Hava Tirosh-Samuelson in her talk “Judaism and the Contemporary Pursuit of Happiness” on Jan. 13 at the Tucson Jewish Community Center. The Irving… Read more »
