Amy Hirshberg Lederman I grew up in a house where words were the currency by which my brother and I gained recognition. Unlike most of our peers’ parents, whose approval was dished out for making the varsity team or getting straight A’s, my dad’s highest form of praise came as a result… Read more »
Tel Aviv — Scientists today agree that there are five molecules that are known to affect or cause Alzheimer’s disease, which plagues an estimated five million Americans. The potency of these molecules is linked to environmental factors such as diet and lifestyle. Professor Daniel Michaelson of Tel Aviv University’s… Read more »
A growing number of Jews in Wisconsin are joining the protests in Madison against a budget-cutting proposal by the governor to eliminate most collective-bargaining rights for public-sector employees. “Judaism has long stood for the rights of the worker, beginning with the biblical injunction of Deuteronomy: ‘Do not take advantage… Read more »
In just two years the Tucson Festival of Books has been astonishingly successful: It ranks fourth among book festivals around the United States, with 80,000 book lovers attending last year. The 2011 festival will take place March 12 and 13 on the University of Arizona campus. “What’s unique is… Read more »
Maxx Carlisle-King, Judy Kaye and Ryan DeLuca in Arizona Theatre Company's Lost in Yonkers. (Photo:Tim Fuller/Arizona Theatre Company) Arizona Theatre Company will bring the Kurnitz family to life in Neil Simon’s Pulitzer and Tony-winning “Lost in Yonkers” Feb. 26 through March 19. Called “the best play Simon ever wrote” by the New York Post, “Lost in Yonkers” chronicles the Kurnitz family’s efforts to stay together during World… Read more »
The rapid changes in the Middle East are leading many in the American Jewish community to suffer from “analysis paralysis.” We have become so mesmerized by events in Cairo that we have stopped doing vitally important work to advance American interests and stability in the Middle East, as well… Read more »
The Eighth Annual Jewish–Muslim PeaceWalk Tucson will be held Sunday, March 6. The theme of this year’s walk is “Weaving Peace.” The organizers invite all who share a vision of coexistence and mutual understanding to take part in all or part of the event. Participants will gather at 1:15… Read more »
The advisory council of Women’s Philanthropy at the Jewish Federation of Southern Arizona will award its fifth annual Bryna Zehngut Mitzvot Award, which recognizes an outstanding Jewish teenage girl, to Alyssa Silva. The council created the award in partnership with many of Zehngut’s friends to honor the late community… Read more »
Terry Perl Terry Allen Perl started his career in 1969 operating summer camps and day programs for the physically and mentally challenged. The Baltimore native joined Chimes International, a multi-service agency for the disabled, as its first residential director in 1971. His four-decade career at Chimes, he says, helped define his… Read more »
Sandy Heiman (left) and Myra Dinnerstein While sickness, care-giving and other negative scenarios have long been associated with aging, there’s another side to the story. “There’s a certain amount of freedom getting older. I decided it was a good thing, although I had approached it with a certain amount of trepidation,” says Tucsonan Sandy Heiman,… Read more »
As Rabbi Yossie Shemtov draws the grand prize raffle ticket at Chabad’s annual Purim party and wine tasting at Congregation Young Israel on Sunday, March 20, he may take a moment to reflect on the journey to this point. A mere 18 years ago he was standing in the… Read more »
Congregation Bet Shalom will host its 8th annual kosher-for-Passover wine tasting gala, “Not Just A Wine Tasting Event” Saturday, March 5, from 7:30 to 11 p.m. This year’s wine sponsor is Total Wine & More; the event will feature wines from California and Israel. The evening includes live music… Read more »
Jon Cotter The “Too Jewish with Rabbi Sam Cohon and Friends” radio show is launching JOiN (Jewish Organized i-Network), a business networking group with a focus on Jewish values and teachings. JOiN will hold monthly programs that will include facilitated networking, educational components and a spotlight on local businesses. The kick-off… Read more »
Ron and Diane Weintraub Ron and Diane Weintraub, who helped found Tucson’s Israel Center, have Israeli connections that run deep. Long before their daughter Beth made aliyah in 1986 with her future husband and gave them four Israeli grandchildren, Ron had relatives in Israel, including an aunt from Cleveland who made aliyah in… Read more »
Rabbi Jennifer Krause Jewish identity has been rooted in belonging to a synagogue — but that’s changing. What hasn’t changed is a Jewish woman’s unwavering commitment to improving the world, says Rabbi Jennifer Krause, this year’s Jewish Federation of Southern Arizona Women’s Philanthropy Connections speaker. Krause will present “Giant Leaps for Humankind:… Read more »
Abby, Jordan, Joel and Jane Herz at Independence Hall in Tel Aviv “This year in Jerusalem” When Joel Herz recently visited Israel after a long hiatus, he was astounded by the growth and progress of this small country. In 1988, as a recent law school graduate, Joel spent three months in Israel, living and working on a kibbutz, studying Hebrew, and… Read more »
For a while last month we here in Tucson were the epicenter of the world, thanks to the brutal act of the deeply disturbed man who murdered six innocent people and wounded 13 others, including our congresswoman and friend, Gabrielle Giffords. She is a kind, intelligent, principled, Jewish representative… Read more »
Ashlee Hall models antique wedding gown The Jewish History Museum, 564 S. Stone Ave., will host a style show of vintage and antique wedding dresses on Sunday, Feb. 13 at 1:30 p.m. The story of the Jewish bride who originally wore each dress will be told. Included are an 1880s gown from the Arizona pioneer… Read more »
Bride Rebecca Kunsberg is veiled by her mother, Linda Kunsberg (left), and the groom’s mother, Beanie Rohtbart, in the ‘bedeken’ ceremony, witnessed by Rabbi Robert Eisen (far left) and groom Ted Goodman. (John Hursh - Focus On Events Photography) Rebecca Kunsberg, 31, daughter of Andrew and Linda Kunsberg of Tucson, and Theodore Goodman, 33, son of Beanie and Markus Rohtbart of Bloomfield Hills, Mich., and Don and Gloria Goodman of West Bloomfield, Mich., were married on Nov. 14, 2010 at Westward Look Resort with Rabbi Robert Eisen of… Read more »
The Tucson Jewish Community Library will hold its annual book sale on Sunday, March 6, from 9 a.m. until 3 p.m. at the Tucson Jewish Community Center. Proceeds will be used to support the activities of the library. The library is seeking donations of books (fiction and nonfiction, Jewish… Read more »
