Local

When he’s not repairing books, local retiree turns them into works of art

Tucsonan Marty Getraer has entered these examples of folded book art in a local Judaica contest.

Tucsonan Marty Getraer taught himself bookbinding years ago when he lived in Baldwin, New York, repairing more than 600 prayer books for his synagogue in gratitude to the daily minyan where he said Kaddish for his father. He revived the hobby a decade ago after moving to Tucson, where… Read more »

Archaeology, wine intersect in upcoming UA lecture

Jennie Ebeling, Ph.D.

Update: This article was corrected 11.8.19 to show that the lecture is taking place on Monday, Nov. 18 (not Sunday). University of Arizona alumna Jennie Ebeling, Ph.D., now an associate professor of archaeology at the University of Evansville in Indiana, will present the next lecture in the Shaol and… Read more »

Series will blend Torah insights, modern psychology

A new Chabad adult education course will explore what Judaism has to say about common negative emotions such as sadness, anxiety, anger, guilt, and shame. “Worrier to Warrior: Jewish Secrets to Feeling Good However You Feel” will be presented by Rabbi Yehuda Ceitlin at the Tucson Jewish Community Center,… Read more »

Garden of Hope expands J outdoor exhibits

(L-R) Garden of Hope founder Randy Emerson, London Emerson, Bonnie-Sedlmayr Emerson, Jordan Emerson, Sasha Emerson, Miriam Emerson, and Jane Sedlmayr with artwork by Lynn Rae Lowe at the dedication of the Garden of Hope at the Tucson Jewish Community Center, Nov. 3. (Damion Alexander)

Gan Tikvah, the Garden of Hope, was officially dedicated Nov. 3 at the Tucson Jewish Community Center. Cancer survivor Bonnie Sedlmayr-Emerson was the inspiration for the garden. Her husband, Randy Emerson, oversaw the project. “The garden celebrates the arts, which is important to the JCC spiritually, emotionally, and cognitively,”… Read more »

Tucson collector goes nuts for nutcrackers

Tucsonan Bertí Brodsky began collecting nutcrackers 34 years ago in Germany. (Debe Campbell/AJP)

With a collector’s heart, Arizona Jewish Post advertising manager Bertí Brodsky surrounds herself with things that have meaning. A collection of crystal balls that began when her mother gave her an antique glass paperweight; charming David Winter cottages; teddy bears from the early ’80s; shoes in every color, to… Read more »

‘Greetings’ and mazel tov — why a nice Jewish boy enlisted in the U.S. Army in 1969

Bob Kovitz during his U.S. Army basic training at Fort Ord in Monterey, California, in 1969. Courtesy Bob Kovitz

Fifty years ago, I reported to the U.S. Army induction center in Los Angeles. My father, who was a World War II veteran, later described the experience of driving me to the center as the worst day of his life. Why was a Jewish graduate student from the University… Read more »

Tucson J seeks applications for pilot Women InPower leadership program

(L-R) Deb Krivoy, Springfield JCC (Massachusetts); Sarah Siegel, Harry & Rose Samson Family JCC (Milwaukee); Kendall Sisisky Valliere, Jewish Community Alliance of Jacksonville; Allison Wexler, Tucson Jewish Community Center; Leslie Sholl Jaffee, Leslie Jaffe Consulting; and Jessica Schneider, Belfer Center for Innovation & Social Impact at 92nd Street Y, at a Women InPower training session at the JCC Association in New York, Oct. 30. (Amy Wexler)

In August, a coalition of women leaders in the Jewish community, including Sheila Katz, CEO of the National Council of Jewish Women; Idit Klein, CEO of Keshet; and Shifra Broznick, founder of Advancing Women Professionals and the Jewish Community, authored a piece for eJewishphilanthropy about their experiences as highly… Read more »

PJ book inspires a baking party

Jenny Davenport, a PJ Library mother, reports that her daughter, Charlotte, age 9, received PJ’s “Once Upon an Apple Cake: A Rosh Hashanah Story,” and read it in one sitting. She then chose it as her book club selection for the next month. Seven girls in the book club… Read more »

Business Briefs: 11.8.19

Andrew Pawlicki-Sinclair has joined the Jewish Federation of Southern Arizona as the assistant director for leadership development and engagement. He has worked for Arizona Serve and the Arizona Conservation Corps managing AmeriCorps national service grants. Before that, Pawlicki-Sinclair served as an AmeriCorps VISTA member at Santa Rita High School… Read more »

Ryan Aaron Rudner

Ryan Aaron Rudner, son of Eric and Monica Rudner, will celebrate becoming a bar mitzvah on Nov. 9 at Congregation Anshei Israel. He is the grandson of Calman and Gail Rudner and Alberto and Sara Mirta Bien-Willner, all of Tucson, and the great-grandson of Lidia Esses of Buenos Aires,… Read more »

Meet University of Arizona Arthritis Center researchers

“Conquering Arthritis … Meet the University of Arizona Arthritis Center Researchers” will be presented Wednesday, Nov. 6, 6-7:15 p.m., at the Health Sciences Innovation Building on the UA Health Science campus, 1670 E. Drachman St., Tucson. This event features a look into the future of care, prevention, and ultimately… Read more »

Israeli political analyst parses Sept. 17 elections for Tucsonans

Political analyst Hani Zubida speaks at the Harvey and Deanna Evenchik Center for Jewish Philanthropy Oct. 10. Courtest Weintraub Israel Center)

Israel’s Sept. 17 elections, its second national elections in less than six months, produced no clear victory for either Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of the Likud Party or his top rival, Benny Gantz, retired commander–in-chief of the Israel Defense Forces who now serves as the head of the Blue… Read more »

Tucson migrants benefit from generous donations by Wisconsin congregations

(L-R) Shelter coordinators Diego Piña Lopez and Francis Wheeler, Jim Rich, Jill Rich, and volunteer driver Seth Ruskin unload coats and goods donated by Milwaukee’s Congregation Shalom at the Casa Alitas migrant shelter in Tucson. (Photo: Debe Campbell/AJP)

A sermon at Congregation Shalom in Milwaukee translated into generosity from that community to Tucson. It all began when Rabbi Ronald Shapiro joined a group of rabbis visiting a migrant detention center in San Diego in the spring. Returning to Milwaukee to share what he witnessed, he relayed how… Read more »

Federation’s Olson Center to commemorate Kristallnacht

Shops damaged in Magdeburg, Germany, on Kristallnacht. (Photo: Bundesarchiv, Bild 146-1970-083-42 / CC-BY-SA 3.0)

The Ruth & Irving Olson Center for Jewish Life (Jewish Federation of Southern Arizona Northwest Division) will commemorate Kristallnacht, the “night of broken glass” that took place in Nazi Germany Nov. 8-9, 1938, with a program on Sunday, Nov. 10, from 10 a.m.-noon. Many historians view Kristallnacht, in which… Read more »

CHAI Circle retreat to focus on mindfulness

Dawn Messer

Dawn Messer, founder of Mindful Meanderings, will be the keynote speaker for the 15th annual CHAI Circle retreat on Sunday, Nov. 10, from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the Hacienda del Sol Guest Ranch Resort, 5501 N. Hacienda del Sol Road. CHAI Circle, a program of Jewish Family… Read more »

Acclaimed Israeli author to address innovation

Israeli author Avi Jorisch

Israeli author Avi Jorisch will discuss his best-selling book, “Thou Shalt Innovate: How Israeli Ingenuity Repairs the World,” on Thursday, Nov. 7 at the Tucson Jewish Community Center. The book was published by Gefen Publishing House in 2018. It is being translated into more than 30 languages. Jorisch, an… Read more »

From ‘Antcars’ to ‘Mousecars,’ Tucson’s Truly Nolen delivers smiles worldwide

Vickie and the late Truly David Nolen (Photos: Courtesy Truley Nolen Pest Control)

If you’ve spent any time in Tucson you’ve seen the swarms of quirky yellow VW bugs dressed up with floppy black ears and a tail. They’re the iconic Truly Nolen Pest Control Mousecars. But, did you know there really was a man called Truly David Nolen … and that… Read more »

Tucson doctors get satisfaction from diverse sidelines to medical careers

Dr. Tedd Goldfinger assists aspiring medical assistants in a classroom at Kino College. Courtesy Todd Goldfinger

One of every person’s most important decisions is the choice of a future profession. Tedd Goldfinger, D.O., FACC, FESC, FCCP, and Ronald Mann, M.D., chose rewarding careers in the field of medicine with specialties in cardiology and dermatology, respectively. In addition, both have upped the ante in their busy… Read more »

Award-winner set for UA stage next month

The year is 1939 and while Hitler is invading Poland, Atlanta’s close-knit Jewish community is preparing for Ballyhoo, the social event of the year. The Arizona Repertory Theatre of the University of Arizona College of Fine Arts School of Theatre, Film & Television will present Alfred Uhry’s “The Last… Read more »