Posts By PHYLLIS BRAUN - AJP Executive Editor

THA to honor Mellans with Tikkun Olam award

Nancy and Stuart Mellan

Stuart Mellan, longtime leader of the Jewish Federation of Southern Arizona, and his wife, Nancy, will be the honorees for Tucson Hebrew Academy’s 2020 Tikkun Olam Celebration. “Then and Now: Celebrating 25 Years of Leadership” will be presented as a YouTube video on Thursday, Oct. 22 at 7 p.m.… Read more »

Chabad to present Mega Challah Bake online

Southern Arizona’s Mega Challah Bake will be held in your own kitchen this year — with Chabad providing live instructions and entertainment via Zoom, plus ingredients for those who want them. “It has been a delight to organize and host the Mega Challah Bake of Tucson over the past… Read more »

High Holiday profiles: Local environmentalists’ passion stems from Jewish roots, family

A view of the Arizona Desert Laboratory from atop Tumamoc Hill, with the sprawl of Tucson beyond it. (Photo Paul Mirocha)

The year 2020 has brought us face-to-face with many significant obstacles, from the global coronavirus pandemic to issues of racial injustice. Among the challenges that we are confronting is climate change, which forces us to ask ourselves, “How will we leave the environment for future generations?” In time for… Read more »

Childhood tales of oppression spur environmental advocate

lori_ann_burd_460pxLori Ann Burd

The echoes of oppression in Jewish history have shaped Lori Ann Burd’s strong sense of Jewish identity and desire to do good in the world. “I am so privileged, and have come from these people who fought so hard just to survive,” says Burd, 39. “I have literally no… Read more »

Water researcher links arid regions of Arizona, Israel, and Jordan

Sharon Megdal, Ph.D.

Sharon B. Megdal, Ph.D., director of the Water Resources Research Center at the University of Arizona, was not always interested in water. She studied economics, planning to work in public policy, and became immersed in the world of water as part of that journey. “A lot of people just… Read more »

Environmental Education Exchange founder Markowitz empowers kids

Neil Markowitz

Neil Markowitz, 61, has been a contributing member of the Tucson community for over 25 years. His work in founding and running the Environmental Education Exchange (E3) as well as the time he gives to Jewish organizations has made an impact felt across the region. Markowitz has been working… Read more »

Torah and science come together for UArizona climatologist

Gregg Garfin, Ph.D.

Growing up in the 1970s it was almost impossible not to be surrounded by environmental movements. The first Earth Day was held in April 1970 and many people were concerned with saving forests and protecting the air, land, and water from pollutants. Gregg Garfin, Ph.D., was no exception. Garfin,… Read more »

Grants from Jewish Community Pandemic Relief Fund continue

In March, the Jewish Federation of Southern Arizona and Jewish Community Foundation, along with local families, launched the Jewish Community Pandemic Relief Fund to help community members facing financial challenges due to the coronavirus pandemic. Since March, the fund has raised more than $404,000 and its task force has… Read more »

JCC reopens fitness center after five months, moves cultural programming online

tucson_J_social_distancing_1024pxThe number of people in any space at the Tucson Jewish Community Center is limited to allow for social distancing. (Courtesy Tucson Jewish Community Center)

The Tucson Jewish Community Center reopened its fitness center on Aug. 28, following a decision from the Arizona Department of Health Services that allowed gyms in Pima County to resume operations with safety measures in place. The J’s fitness center had been closed since late June, when it briefly… Read more »

UArizona’s Dr. Sternberg studies how office environments affect workers’ health

Esther Sternberg, M.D.

Esther Sternberg, M.D., has been a pioneer in the field of wellness in the workplace. Her research on how the built environment affects worker’s health and productivity has been a great tool for architects, building managers, and other researchers expanding the field. Sternberg was born and raised in Montreal,… Read more »

Dan Karsch, longtime Tucson doctor and community activist, dies at 78

dan_karsch-_tom_newman_large_obitAt left, Daniel Karsch (left) and Tom Newman, former partners in Old Pueblo Urology, during a visit Karsch and his wife, Carol, made to Tucson from Israel in February 2020. At right, Karsch and Newman co-host 'The Plumber's Ball' in 1974. (Courtesy Carol Karsch)

Daniel Nathan Karsch, M.D., 78, died of cancer on July 23, 2020. Dan was born in Philadelphia to Lil and Joe Karsch and grew up in the large Jewish neighborhood of Wynnefield, centered around Har Zion Temple, Jewish schools, synagogues, and Camp Ramah. A graduate of Ursinus College and Jefferson… Read more »

Partnerships with Israel, Mexico key to UArizona’s global environmental strategy

Joaquin-Ruiz-profile-article460pxJoaquin Ruiz, Ph.D.

Joaquin Ruiz, Ph.D., the University of Arizona’s first vice president for Global Environmental Futures, gets excited about the work of its partners around the world, such as farmers in Israel’s Arava region. “There are a bunch of kibbutzes in the Negev that are growing stuff on rocks and with… Read more »

Business briefs 9.11.20

laura_mckee_150x191

Laura McKee has been hired as executive assistant to the CEO of the Jewish Federation and Jewish Community Foundation of Southern Arizona. McKee began her career with an associate’s degree as a legal assistant from Pima Community College and worked as a legal secretary while earning her bachelor’s degree… Read more »

Marley Rose Sutton Adler

marley-adler_ot_birth

A daughter, Marley Rose Sutton Adler, was born July 26 to Meredith and Michael Adler of Denver, Colorado. Grandparents are Dana and Ira Adler of Tucson, and Barbara Gross and Terry Pollack of Pepper Pike, Colorado.… Read more »

JCRC and JHM condemn AZ representative’s Holocaust analogy

The Jewish Community Relations Council of the Jewish Federation of Southern Arizona and the Jewish History Museum & Holocaust History Center in Tucson today issued a statement strongly condemning statements made by Arizona Representative John Fillmore likening the tattooing of Holocaust victims to government mask-wearing mandates issued to slow… Read more »

People in the news 9.11.20

Mary Jo Pollack won the Phoenix Moth Story Slam in July. Pollack has told stories live in Tucson for Odyssey Storytelling, FST! Female Storytellers, and Tellers of Tales Tucson, where she is second vice president. Rabbi Baruch J. Cohon, vice president of the Tucson-based Rabbi Samuel S. and A.… Read more »