A delegation of Tucson educators representing Jewish organizations experienced Israel in a meaningful, weeklong cultural exchange during rodeo school break in late February. Jeanette Butcher (Tucson Jewish Community Center), Nicole Chorny and Kim Spitzer (Congregation Anshei Israel), Allie Silber (Temple Emanu-El), Jill Sobieszyk (Congregation Or Chadash) and I were… Read more »
Local
JFCS Matza & More sees local needs increase
For more than 40 years, Jewish Family & Children’s Services of Southern Arizona’s Matza & More project has packed and delivered Passover bags to Tucson area families who otherwise could not afford food and items for a Seder. Volunteers and staff fill the bags with fresh vegetables, gefilte fish,… Read more »
Orchestra to play Weimar era music at Fox
Max Raabe and the Palast Orchester will play the Fox Tucson Theatre on March 15. Raabe founded the Palast Orchester in 1986 in Berlin, with fellow music students who loved to play music from Germany’s Golden 1920s. Their style and showmanship struck a chord with the public and their… Read more »
Searching for family on the Mount of Olives
On a cold and windy day in February, I drove an hour and a half from Haifa to Jerusalem in search of my great-great-grandfather, Rabbi Moshe Yehudah Franco. I had learned about him from stories my mother told me and a family tree carefully constructed by relatives who were… Read more »
Local pet lovers have options for day, overnight animal care, socialization
About 28 percent of American households have dogs. That’s a whopping 90 million four-legged friends, or as many dog-owners prefer to say, family members. When dog-owners are unable to take their fur babies with them, or when they want to offer them some social interaction, daycare or overnight care… Read more »
Easy-care houseplants for Southern Arizona’s low-humidity climate
Houseplants are trendy once more — which is “groovy” or “cool beans” or maybe just plain super. Not only do plants make oxygen for us to breathe, they bring nature indoors and can help us relax. And there are so many pretty ones to choose from. BUT! Here in… Read more »
Finding ourselves in familiar, unfamiliar places
With a name like Batsheva, I also have a Starbucks name, “Beth,” for ordering in person. I know that the name Batsheva is not easy for people. It might be the first time that they encounter the name and that it is hard to spell if you are not… Read more »
PAWS treatment options help maintain pet wellness
There are scores of veterinary clinics in Southern Arizona, many that have specialties. PAWS Veterinary Center is an integrated health care center, combining the science of conventional medicine with the benefits of alternative therapies. These complementary alternate options include ancient Chinese therapies with herbs, acupuncture, pulse and tongue diagnosis,… Read more »
Tucson tops most favorable rent, salary gap
Looking to stretch your dollar a little further this year? If you live in a city where you paid less rent than the average American and get to keep more of your paycheck — you’re essentially earning more than you would in a city where rent was steeper. The… Read more »
Youth group conventions and a home turf visit for a Stanford b-ball player
Way to go, Maya! Maya Levy was elected 2019-20 North American Federation of Temple Youth president at the NFTY convention, held Feb. 15-18 in Dallas. She was NFTY Southwest regional president before attaining this role as head of the North American board. Maya, a University High School senior, was… Read more »
Tucson’s Markzon to bring Thunderbirds, lightning over Arizona
There’s always excitement when the elite Thunderbirds Demonstration Squad roars into Tucson’s Davis-Monthan U.S. Air Force Base for an air show. But this year’s “Thunder and Lightning Over Arizona,” March 23-24, brings a hometown pilot soaring into town for the performance. Maj. Jason Markzon, flying the #8 slot and… Read more »
Northwest bus trip to examine border status
Learn more about what’s happening along the Arizona border with an informative trip south. The Ruth and Irving Olson Center for Jewish Life in the Northwest and Hadassah Southern Arizona will sponsor a bus journey to the border Tuesday, March 12. Stops will include Humane Border’s water station in… Read more »
Inclusion topic for professional training at J
The Special Abilities and Inclusion Initiative, in partnership with the Tucson Jewish Community Center, is offering a free daylong professional development opportunity next month through Matan, a New York-based organization. Matan advocates for the inclusion of diverse learners and educates Jewish leaders, educators, and communities, empowering them to create… Read more »
At new JFSA event, exploring how we grow from pain, healing
Success teaches us very little, other than to keep doing the things that we have already been doing with our lives,” says Rabbi Steve Leder, who Newsweek magazine twice named as one of the 10 most influential rabbis in America. “It is only pain that can disrupt us in… Read more »
Cindy Wool Seminar to focus on doctor-patient conversations
The 10th Annual Cindy Wool Memorial Seminar on Humanism in Healthcare, honoring a decade of encouraging compassionate care, will be held next month. Dr. Danielle Ofri, an internist, acclaimed author and one of the foremost speakers about the doctor-patient relationship, will discuss the topic of her latest book, “What… Read more »
Museum dialogue will put refugee history, current events in context
A “brunch and learn” program next month, hosted by the Jewish History Museum, pairs noted author and Stanford professor Steven J. Zipperstein with Mark Hetfield, the chief executive officer of HIAS, a national refugee protection agency, for an interactive community dialogue. “The program, ‘Learning from the Past, Rising to the… Read more »
Lecture, photo display to spotlight Israeli humanitarians
Rachel Wallace will present “Humanitarian Heroes Around the World” as the Weintraub Israel Center’s Gertrude and Fred Rosen Memorial Lecture next month. The free lecture marks the launch of a month-long photo exhibit at the Tucson Jewish Community Center, “Stories of Courage and Resilience.” The Tucson J will host… Read more »
Longtime camper draws on memories to make summers special at Camp J
Playing “Ga-Ga ball” is a camp tradition that Josh Shenker, the Tucson Jewish Community Center’s director of child, youth and camping services, looked forward to every year he returned to summer camp at the JCC in Houston. The game starts with a ball thrown into the “pit,” a ringed… Read more »
Asner among Jewish authors to be featured at festival
The 11th Annual Tucson Festival of Books will be held March 2 and 3 on the University of Arizona campus. With hundreds of authors participating each year, the AJP traditionally highlights several Jewish writers who will be presenting authors. Brenda and Bill Viner, Jewish community members who helped co-found… Read more »
Tucson to Israel to Oregon, celebrating with cake, music, truffles, and movies
Newly-minted septuagenarian When Andy Kunsberg turned 70 in mid-December, his wife, Linda, planned a late December celebration. The party wasn’t a surprise but the guest list was. Relatives — daughter Rebecca Goodman, her husband Ted and their three children, plus Andy’s brother, brothers-in-law, nieces, great niece and nephews, from… Read more »