Local

PCC to stage Kaufman’s ‘The Laramie Project’

Samantha Orzech in ‘The Laramie Project’ at Pima Community College (Courtesy Pima Community College Center for the Arts)

Pima Community College Theatre Arts will present “The Laramie Project” by Moises Kaufman and members of the Tectonic Theatre Project, directed by Nancy Davis Booth, Nov. 14-24. In 1998 University of Wyoming student Matthew Shepard, who was gay, was kidnapped, beaten and left to die tied to a fence… Read more »

HYLT plans social action events at Handmaker

Handmaker Youth Leadership Team will participate in two community service projects with residents at Handmaker Jewish Services for the Aging, this month and next. On Sunday, Nov. 17 at 2 p.m., youth participants and residents will pack care packages for clients of Tucson Interfaith HIV/AIDS Network. A speaker will… Read more »

Events honor 75th anniversary of Kristallnacht

The 75th anniversary of Kristallnacht, the “Night of Broken Glass,” a dark time in Jewish and world history, will be commemorated Nov. 9 and 10. The Tucson Jewish community will host several interrelated events to memorialize what’s often referred to as the start of the Holocaust, when violence against… Read more »

Matching grant helps JFSA Campaign boost goal

Gary Kippur

The Jewish Federation of Southern Arizona is set to begin its 2014 Community Campaign next month with a goal of $3.5 million, an increase from last year’s goal of $3.36 million. One boost for this year’s campaign, says Campaign Chair Gary Kippur, is a matching grant for new or… Read more »

JHM to honor Gabrielle Giffords with Jewish Heritage Award

Gabrielle Giffords

Former U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords will receive the 2013 Jewish Heritage Award at the Jewish History Museum’s annual brunch and silent auction on Sunday, Nov. 3 from 9 to 11:30 a.m. The event will take place at the Tucson Marriott University Park, 880 E. Second Street. The award is… Read more »

JFSA Northwest event to feature art, wine

(copyright Irving Olson)

The Jewish Federation of Southern Arizona’s Northwest Division will hold a fundraising event, You Gotta Have Heart, on Thursday, Nov. 14 at 5:30 p.m. The evening will include a 100th birthday celebration for Irving Olson, the honorary event chair, as well as a live and silent auction of art… Read more »

CAI to host one of ‘America’s Top 50 Rabbis’

Rabbi Ethan Tucker will serve as scholar-in-residence at Congregation Anshei Israel Nov. 8 and 9. His topic will be “Judaism and Ethics.” Tucker is co-founder, rosh yeshiva and chair in Jewish law at Mechon Hadar, a New York-based educational institution. Named one of America’s Top 50 Rabbis by Newsweek… Read more »

Oncology social worker to keynote CHAI Circle retreat

The 9th annual CHAI Circle Retreat, “A Day for Healing and Spirituality,” will take place on Sunday, Nov. 3 from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the Canyon Ranch Health Resort, 8600 E. Rockcliff Road. A light breakfast and lunch will be provided. There is no registration fee for… Read more »

Chaverim to host rabbi/author Wayne Dosick

Rabbi Wayne Dosick, Ph.D., author of eight books including “The Real Name of God: Embracing the Full Essence of the Divine,” will present a workshop at Congregation Chaverim on Sunday, Nov. 3 from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Dosick is the founder and spiritual leader of the Elijah Minyan,… Read more »

‘Be Your Own Health Advocate’ message for Hadassah seminar

Hadassah Southern Arizona will sponsor a free education seminar, “Be Your Own Health Advocate,” on Sunday, Nov. 10, 9 a.m. to noon at Tucson Medical Center’s Marshall Auditorium, 5301 E. Grant Road. The emphasis of the seminar will be on lifestyle choices and preventive measures that promote wellness. The… Read more »

Douglas Jewish cemetery evokes pioneer past

A gravestone at the Jewish cemetery in Douglas shows signs of vandalism. (Benjamin Herman)

Touring the U.S.-Mexico border may conjure up intrigue, fear and compassion, depending on one’s perspective. For Congregation Anshei Israel’s Assistant Rabbi Benjamin Herman, checking out the border led to an adventure in Jewish pioneer history. On Nov. 29, 2012, Robert Feinman, vice president of the humanitarian organization Humane Borders,… Read more »

Women’s Philanthropy to hear shlicha’s story

Spend five minutes with Oshrat Barel, the new director of the Weintraub Israel Center and community shlicha (Israeli emissary), and you realize that this is a woman who radiates joy. It is not surprising that the title of Barel’s talk for the Jewish Federation of Southern Arizona Women’s Philanthropy… Read more »

Handmaker to celebrate Tucson’s oldest Jews

Handmaker will recognize volunteers Michael and Allison Wexler and their daughters, (L-R), Lily, Sage and Bella, at its “Celebration of Tucson’s Oldest Jewish Residents” on Oct. 22.

Handmaker Jewish Services for the Aging will hold its fifth annual “Celebration of Tucson’s Oldest Jewish Residents” on Tuesday, Oct. 22 at 11 a.m. The lunch is a celebration of Jewish Tucsonans ages 88 and older. The Wexler family will be recognized for their spirit of volunteerism and commitment… Read more »

At jubilee, Handmaker looks to past success, new collaboration

I.H. “Murf” and Mae Handmaker started the process for a Jewish geriatric home in Tucson in the 1950s.

Handmaker Jewish Services for the Aging is celebrating its 50th anniversary jubilee with a black-tie gala next month. Hirsch Handmaker, a physician in Phoenix, remembers how his parents, Mae and I. H. “Murf” Handmaker, came up with the idea for a Jewish geriatric home in Tucson. “My maternal grandmother,… Read more »

Memory of THA alumna to be honored at Tikkun Olam dinner

Anna Greenberg

Tucson Hebrew Academy will celebrate its 40th anniversary at the Tikkun Olam (repairing the world) dinner on Sunday, Oct. 27 from 5:30 to 8:30 p.m. at the Tucson Jewish Community Center. The annual event will honor the memory of Anna Greenberg with the 2013 Tikkun Olam Award. Greenberg, a… Read more »

“I Heart Jenny” filmmakers to discuss ovarian cancer fight

The “I Heart Jenny” film crew (L-R): Shani Rajesh, sound and camera operator; Katie Harris, director of photography; Jenny Vanderlinden; Blake Babbit, director and producer

Jenny Vanderlinden, 51, is battling stage 3 ovarian cancer. She will speak about her struggle — and her ongoing sense of adventure —on Wednesday, Oct. 16 at 7 p.m. at the Tucson Jewish Community Center. Vanderlinden and filmmaker Blake Babbitt are creating a documentary to raise awareness of the… Read more »

Survivor to lead team on breast cancer walk

Hedy Feuer

Hedy Feuer is a two-time breast cancer survivor. She knows that makes her one of the lucky ones. Feuer was diagnosed the first time 16 years ago, and again two years ago. The advances in treatment that saved her life a second time underscore why breast cancer research is… Read more »

Jerusalem Quartet to perform Shostakovich

The Jerusalem Quartet

The Arizona Friends of Chamber Music will open its 66th season with the Jerusalem Quartet in two performances. The quartet will perform an all-Shostakovich concert on Wednesday, Oct. 16 at 7:30 p.m. and a matinee on Thursday, Oct. 17 at 3 p.m. in the Leo Rich Theater at the… Read more »

Israelpalooza to bring flavors of Israel to UA mall

Israelpalooza, a one-day Israeli culture fest at the University of Arizona, will be held Oct. 16 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. This year, the UA Hillel Foundation is partnering with Chabad of Tucson, Jewish Arizonans on Campus, the World Zionist Organization, Associated Students of the University of Arizona… Read more »

JCC chief will speak at Shalom Tucson brunch

Todd Rockoff

Shalom Tucson, a program of the Jewish Federation of Southern Arizona and the Tucson Jewish Community Center, will hold a “Gateway to our Jewish Community” bagel brunch on Sunday, Oct. 20, 10 a.m. to noon, at the JCC. Representatives from synagogues, Jewish agencies and organizations will be on hand.… Read more »