Prof. Evyatar Erell with a prototype of the Seasons window. “We spend most of our lives in a controlled environment,” says Evyatar Erell, associate professor of desert architecture and urban planning at Ben-Gurion University’s Jacob Blaustein Institutes for Desert Research. “We live and work under conditions that are different from those outside. When it’s hot, we turn on our… Read more »
Selma Davis, 96, died Dec. 17, 2013. Mrs. Davis and her late husband, former Tucson Mayor Lewis W. Davis, supported many community endeavors. Mrs. Davis was preceded in death by her husband Lewis W. Davis. Survivors include her children, Robert (Elaine) Pratt of Florida and Andrea Davis of Tucson;… Read more »
Bernard “Bernie” Evenchik, 83, died Dec. 14, 2013. A Tucson resident for more than 40 years, Mr. Evenchik was born in Elyria, Ohio. He ran Rigbee’s Toy Store in Elyria and managed Chateau Apartment-Hotels in Tucson. He was an officer in the U.S. Air Force and a volunteer “cuddler”… Read more »
Zachary Allen Schlamowitz, son of Jane and Kevan Schlamowitz, will celebrate becoming a Bar Mitzvah on Saturday, Jan. 18 at Temple Emanu-El. He is the grandson of Dorothy Allen of Tucson, the late Arthur Allen, and the late Samuel and Elaine Schlamowitz. Zach attends Orange Grove Middle School where… Read more »
Jack Tyler Eigen, son of Heylie and Brand Eigen, will celebrate becoming a Bar Mitzvah on Saturday, Jan. 11 at Temple Emanu-El. He is the grandson of Ellie Eigen of Tucson and Dennis Hubbes of Hopewell, Va. Jack attends Coronado Middle School, where he is an honor student. He… Read more »
Ann Lei Tumarkin, daughter of Joanna Norman and Paul Tumarkin, will celebrate becoming a Bat Mitzvah on Saturday, Jan. 11 at Congregation Chaverim. She is the granddaughter of Linda and Gerry Tumarkin of Tucson. Ann attends Civano Community School, where she is especially interested in history and Holocaust studies.… Read more »
Hadassah regional leader Cathy Olswing was installed as president of Hadassah’s Desert-Mountain Region on Sunday, Dec. 15 at a ceremony at Lodge on the Desert. The region encompasses eight southwestern and mountain states. As president of the region, Olswing will sit on the national board of Hadassah. Rochelle Edelman… Read more »
THE JEWISH COMMUNITY RELATIONS COUNCIL OF THE JEWISH FEDERATION OF SOUTHERN ARIZONA has named EILEEN WARSHAW, executive director of the Jewish History Museum, as the recipient of the 2013 Margie Fenton Award. The award recognizes an individual or group who has made a significant impact on the community with… Read more »
Linor Abargil in ‘Brave Miss World’ Nearly two dozen films from around the world will be screened at the 23rd annual Tucson International Jewish Film Festival. Running Jan.16 to 25, this year’s program features several international award winners, Arizona premieres and special guests. A pre-festival kickoff is scheduled Sunday, Jan.12 at the Desert View Performing… Read more »
Thinking about going to Israel in 2014? At least five Tucson congregations would be delighted to have you join them. Congregation Or Chadash is first up with a trip March 5 to 12. Congregation Chofetz Chayim’s trip will be May 4 to 18, followed by Congregation Bet Shalom June… Read more »
Cantor Ivor Lichterman Cantor Avraham Alpert has gathered an eclectic group of performers for Congregation Bet Shalom’s “An Enchanted Evening: A Jewish Music Concert” on Saturday, Feb. 1 at 8 p.m. at the Berger Performing Arts Center. Cantor Ivor Lichterman will be the special guest artist. “I think everybody knows Cantor Lichterman,”… Read more »
Bruce Magid, dean of the Brandeis University International School of Business, will discuss “Not Business as Usual: How Changes in the Global Economy Will Impact Your Lives,” at the Tucson chapter of the Brandeis National Committee’s annual University on Wheels event on Thursday, Jan. 9 at 9:30 a.m. The… Read more »
Congregation Anshei Israel will present a three-week adult education series offering a wide range of speakers on being Jewish and Judaism. The series will take place on Wednesdays, Jan. 22, 29 and Feb. 5, from 7 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. A different keynote speaker will open each evening from… Read more »
Hava Tirosh-Samuelson “Judaism and the Contemporary Pursuit of Happiness” will be the topic of the Arizona Center for Judaic Studies Shaol & Louis Pozez Memorial Lecture on Monday, Jan. 13 at 7 p.m., at the Tucson Jewish Community Center. Hava Tirosh-Samuelson, of Arizona State University, will discuss happiness as a central… Read more »
Rabbi Thomas Louchheim Happy New Year, my friends. I know that some of you are saying to fellow Jews, “Happy secular New Year,” as if perhaps we are unable to distinguish between Jan. 1 and Rosh Hashanah. And yet, I tell my congregants, we are fortunate to have two calendrical opportunities to… Read more »
Twenty-five percent of adults in the United States have a mental illness — from depression and anxiety, to bipolar disorder and schizophrenia — according to a 2011 Centers for Disease Control and Prevention report, “Mental Illness Surveillance among Adults in the United States.” The percentage of Jewish adults with… Read more »
Aurora tallit by Beth Surdut Beth Surdut, a designer of tallitot from Santa, Fe., N.M., will discuss the importance of personalized prayer shawls on Sunday, Jan. 12 from 2 to 4 p.m. at the Tucson Jewish… Read more »
(Above) Members of Team Tamara at Liver Life Walk Tucson on Dec. 14. Front row (L-R): Lavina Tomer, Bryan Kaplan, Tamara Novak, Sandra Wortzel,
Judith Weiser, Lyla Michelson, Rabbi Helen Cohn, Joel Alpert; back row: Gabi Zimerman, Linda Horowitz, Renate Wasserman, Carol Weinstein, Marlyne Freedman, Kenny Wortzel, Nan Rubin, Tanya Fleisher, Nancy Lefkowitz, Ann Markewitz, Byron Michelson. (Courtesy Congregation M'kor Hayim) As my wife, Tamara, and I anxiously awaited news of a liver donor, it seems as if the third time truly was the charm. Three years ago she started gaining weight and experienced an unfamiliar level of fatigue. She could barely make it out of the house for more… Read more »
The Women’s Philanthropy Advisory Council of the Jewish Federation of Southern Arizona is seeking nominations for the eighth annual Bryna Zehngut Mitzvot Award. The award, honoring the late Bryna Zehngut, recognizes the outstanding achievements of a Jewish teenage girl in Tucson. Award nominees must be high school juniors or… Read more »
Desert Caucus President Chuck Gannon, M.D., in the waiting room of his ophthalmology office. (Nancy Ben-Asher Ozeri) Although it’s been around for 37 years and currently has over 200 members, the Desert Caucus has a reputation as the best-kept secret in Tucson’s Jewish community. President Chuck Gannon would like to see that change. According to Gannon, an ophthalmologist who has been with the organization for the… Read more »
