Posts By PHYLLIS BRAUN - AJP Executive Editor

(JTA) — NBA star Tony Parker has apologized for performing an anti-Semitic salute after a three-year-old photo was published in the French media. The photo shows Parker, a French national born in Belgium, performing the quenelle salute with its inventor, the French comedian Dieudonne Míbala Míbala. The quenelle is… Read more »

Edgar Bronfman, philthropist and Jewish communal leader, dies at 84.

In the coming days, many eulogies will attempt to capture the magnitude of the loss suffered this week by the Jewish community. Really, though, all you need are eight words: Edgar Bronfman was a prince of his people. There are other machers who devote much of their time and… Read more »

(JTA) — In 1992, Edgar Bronfman was preparing to leave North America for Paris for his first meeting with then-French President Francois Mitterand at the Elysee Palace when at the last minute Bronfman decided he wanted to take an unexpected meeting in Geneva instead. So he asked Serge Cwajgenbaum, Bronfman’s right-hand… Read more »

Sophie Anna Holtzman, daughter of Kyra and Barney Holtzman, will celebrate becoming a Bat Mitzvah with her cousin Lola Maas on Thursday, Dec. 26, 2013 at the Hadassah Medical Center Synagogue in Jerusalem, Israel. She is the granddaughter of Barbara Holtzman and the late Stuart Holtzman of Tucson and… Read more »

Lola Olivia Maas, daughter of Billie Holtzman Maas and Galen Evans, will celebrate becoming a Bat Mitzvah with her cousin Sophie Holtzman on Thursday, Dec. 26, 2013 at the Hadassah Medical Center Synagogue in Jerusalem, Israel. She is the granddaughter of Barbara Holtzman and the late Stuart Holtzman of… Read more »

THE RABBI SAMUEL S.  AND A. IRMA COHON MEMORIAL FOUNDATION will present the Cohon Award for 2013 to two winners: Harriet Rossetto, founder and CEO of Beit T’Shvuah, the House of Return in Los Angeles, which uses Jewish spirituality, 12-step recovery and psychotherapy to rescue people from addiction; and… Read more »

A son, ITAYI SIMON NYAMUZUWE, was born Sept. 13, 2013 to Emily Simon and John Nyamuzuwe of Oakland, Calif.  Grandmother is Dr. Miki Paul of Tucson.… Read more »

KERI SILVYN, a partner in Lazarus, Silvyn & Bangs, P.C., has been selected as the 2013 Woman of the Year by  Greater Tucson Leadership. Silvyn is co-founder and chair of Imagine Greater Tucson, president of the Jewish Communitty Foundation, serves on the boards of the Tucson Metropolitan Chamber of… Read more »

Andra Karnofsky and Chuck Gannon with Andra’s Chanukah dessert creation.

Making history come alive On the crisp morning of Sunday, Nov. 17, Barry Friedman led a Jewish pioneers tour of Tucson’s Evergreen Cemetery. Friedman, board president of the Jewish History Museum, began by making a disclaimer. He is not a historian, but rather a retired doctor who finds history… Read more »

Danny Cole will perform at Tucson’s Temple of Music and Art Dec. 28, 2013 with Tucson native Eric Buss and juggling champion Ivan Pecel.

Danny Cole has been performing magic since he was 10. Now, at 35, he has more than a dozen magic awards to his credit —starting with the Kleinman Award for Most Promising Young Magician at age 15 — and has performed all over the world, from Toledo, Ohio, to… Read more »

(L-R): Scott, Haley, Julie and Dylan Zorn on a family vacation in Lake Tahoe in February 2013

Even though her full-time position as Jewish cultural specialist at the Tucson Jewish Community Center doesn’t begin until Jan. 6, Julie Zorn has been a familiar face at the JCC for almost a decade. Her husband, Scott Zorn, is the director of children, youth and family engagement; her children… Read more »

Zachary, Tyler and Courtney Fenton of Reilly Craft Pizza and Drink

There’s an old stereotype about sibling rivalry, but for three sets of Tucson siblings, family and food have only brought them closer. Whether it’s gluten-free baked goods, pizza, or craft beers, co-owning and operating local restaurants have become a way of life for Daphna and Eyal Ron, Aric and… Read more »

Itzhak Perlman

Itzhak Perlman is coming to Tucson on Tuesday, Jan. 14, to play Beethoven’s Violin Concerto in D with the Tucson Symphony Orchestra. Perlman has attained the status of superstar — a rarity for a classical musician. He has brought classical music to audiences worldwide through his presence on concert… Read more »

Samuel Asher Sommer

In March, dozens of rabbis will shave their heads at the Reform movement’s Central Conference of American Rabbis gathering in Chicago. But the 8-year-old boy whose struggle with cancer inspired the rabbis’ campaign will not be there to witness their act of solidarity. Samuel Asher Sommer, the son of… Read more »

Rabbi Yossi Winner cycles the UA Chabad menorah to a new location on campus. (Courtesy UA Chabad)

Mitzvah 613 Torah dedication Hundreds of people gathered on Sunday, Dec. 8, to witness the dedication of Congregation Anshei Israel’s new Torah, the culminating event to a yearlong celebration of the synagogue’s 83rd anniversary. The event included learning stations and art projects for all ages, performances by adult and… Read more »

As part of its quest to continue as “the heart of Conservative Judaism in Southern Arizona,” says Rabbi Robert Eisen, Congregation Anshei Israel is launching a search process for one or more professionals to fill the roles of cantor and educator. “Our mission statement is wordy (CAI shall serve… Read more »

Diane Turner

Diane Turner, a life coach, psychotherapist and author of “Heart Wisdom: A Concise Companion for Creating a Life of Possibility,” will launch a three-part course at the Tucson Jewish Community Center starting Tuesday, Jan. 7 from 1 to 3 p.m. The sessions will continue on Jan. 14 and 21.… Read more »

Members of Firefighters Without Borders, the seven-man Arizona delegation that traveled to Israel in October, will discuss their trip at Hadassah Southern Arizona’s lunch program on Sunday, Jan. 5. The local firefighters conferred with Israeli firefighters and rescue workers to learn firsthand how to respond to mass casualties. Their… Read more »

Shalom Tucson will host a free bagel brunch for newcomers and anyone interested in the Tucson Jewish community on Sunday, Jan. 12, at 10 a.m. at the Tucson Jewish Community Center. Representatives from synagogues, agencies and organizations will provide “one stop shopping for our warm and vibrant Jewish community,”… Read more »

In Washington, D.C., for a 2011 lobbying trip are Jewish Latino Teen Coalition members (L-R) Maia Schneider, Rena Barber, Harrison Avigdor, Roberto Flores, Susan Keovongsa, Amanda Monroy, Brian Molina, Analiza Grabowski, Louie Sanders, Natalia Navarro and Lindsey Bressler. Many will attend the coalition’s anniversary celebration in Tucson on Jan. 5.

More than 100 teens who otherwise may have never met have shared their cultures through the Jewish Latino Teen Coalition, a program founded by Rep. Raul Grijalva and the Jewish Community Relations Council of the Jewish Federation of Southern Arizona. The purpose of the coalition, which may be the… Read more »