Mara Liasson
The Jewish Federation will launch its 2017 Community Campaign with a free event, “Together: A Post Election Conversation with Mara Liasson” on Wednesday, Nov. 16 at 7 p.m. at Congregation Anshei Israel. Liasson is the national political correspondent for NPR and a regular panelist on “Special Report with Bret… Read more »
Neshama Carlebach
Neshama Carlebach’s albums have sold 1 million-plus copies — but she views her success as a way to help others through the pain of life transitions toward inner strength and spiritual growth. “Music brings healing to our souls,” says Carlebach, who will perform at the Fox Tucson Theatre on… Read more »
(JTA) — The United States, Israeli officials and Jewish groups reacted with outrage to a preliminary vote by the United Nations cultural agency that denies a Jewish connection to the Old City of Jerusalem. UNESCO — the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization — at its executive board’s… Read more »
Carry Ulreich, right, and her older sister, Rachel, in a photograph taken during their time in hiding in Rotterdam during the Nazi occupation. (Boekencentrum/Mozaïek)
AMSTERDAM (JTA) — A Holocaust survivor dubbed “Rotterdam’s Anne Frank” in her native Netherlands published her wartime diary, which she wrote while hiding in the bombed-out city. “At Night I Dream of Peace,” the Dutch-language diary of 89-year-old Carry Ulreich, hit bookstores in the Netherlands last week. The book generated strong… Read more »
Annie Schlesinger, project designer at Skinnytees, helps a ‘Pictures of Hope’ student snap some photographs at the Tucson Museum of Art on Saturday, Oct. 1. (David J. Del Grande/AJP)
Fourteen children enrolled in Our Family Services, a local program that provides support for homeless families and youth, pack a small conference room on a crisp Saturday morning, listing their future goals, decorating coloring sheets and snacking on cheese sticks. Linda Solomon, a Tucson native and founder of Pictures… Read more »
Jean Fedigan, executive director of the Sister Jose Women’s Center (left) and Lean Avuno, a Tucson shinshinim volunteer from Israel, spoke at the Jewish Federation of Southern Arizona Women’s Philanthropy annual welcome Sept. 28.
When we work together, when we reach out to the least among us, we improve the lives of others while enriching our own lives and our community, Jean Fedigan, executive director of the Sister Jose Women’s Center, told about 90 people attending the Jewish Federation of Southern Arizona Women’s… Read more »
Bob Dylan onstage during the 17th Annual Critics’ Choice Movie Awards at The Hollywood Palladium in Los Angeles, California, on Jan. 12, 2012. (Christopher Polk/Getty Images for VH1)
(JTA) — American singer and songwriter Bob Dylan has not been in contact with the Swedish Academy since it awarded him the Nobel Prize for Literature last week. Dylan also has not made a public statement about the honor, the New York Times reported Tuesday. Sara Danius, the permanent… Read more »
Jonathan McMahan, Rural/Metro Fire Department chief in Pima County, was recently in Poland as one of seven U.S. fire chiefs invited to present a symposium on American firefighting expertise at the Main School of the Fire Service in Warsaw. This was the first delegation of U.S. fire chiefs invited… Read more »
Southern Arizona firefighters (from left) Marcela Donovan Hammond (Nogales Fire Department), Capt. Bruce Avram (Tucson Fire Department), Chief Randy Ogden (Mt. Lemmon Fire District), Jeremy Carillo (Rio Rico Fire and Medical District) and Captain Pete Ashcraft (Nogales Fire Department) tour a mobile command post in Haifa with Guy Caspi, chief mass casualty incident instructor of Magen David Adom, Israel’s emergency medical services unit (seated). (Facebook)
Five Southern Arizona firefighters recently spent nine days in Israel training and battling blazes with fire crews in Jerusalem and Petach Tikvah. As the latest Firefighters Beyond Borders delegation, they were the first personnel from Arizona to participate in the Emergency Volunteer Project, a program that trains first-responders to… Read more »
Irving J. Olson, 102, entrepreneur, photographer and philanthropist, died at his home in Oro Valley on Oct. 1, 2016. Born on Nov. 26, 1913, in New Britain, Conn., he chalked up the first of many lifetime achievements: recognition by the governor as the heaviest newborn in Connecticut that year… Read more »
Pep Rosenfeld, left, and Greg Shapiro portray Donald Trump supporters at their comedy club in Amsterdam, May 11, 2016. (Courtesy of Boom Chicago)
AMSTERDAM (JTA) — In the Dutch capital’s main American comedy club, two middle-aged Jewish men wrestle while wearing blond wigs until one of them pretends to rip out his opponent’s still-beating heart. This violent portrayal of a Hillary Clinton victory over Donald Trump is the closing scene of a… Read more »
Illustration by Amy Leutenberg Brodsky, LISW-S, from “Nurturing Spiritual Development in Children by Understanding Our Own Spirituality’
Spirituality encompasses wonderment, awe, caring and kindness, yet many adults have a hard time finding a spiritual path. Ester Leutenberg and Deborah Schein, Ph.D. have written a book that gives adults a road map to finding their own spirituality and directions on teaching spirituality to children. The book, “Nurturing… Read more »
Tammy Duckworth and Sen. Mark Kirk shaking hands after their debate at the Chicago Tribune, Oct. 3, 2016. (Nancy Stone/Chicago Tribune/TNS via Getty Images)
WASHINGTON (JTA) – While the Iran nuclear deal gets fleeting attention in the presidential race, it is shaping up as a key issue in at least nine states integral to Democrats’ hopes of regaining control of the U.S. Senate. Rival pro-Israel factions are pouring money into many of those races, and candidates are… Read more »
Donald Trump speaks at a campaign rally in West Palm Beach, Fla., Oct. 13, 2016. (Maria Lorenzino/Sun Sentinel/TNS
Updated with a response from the Trump campaign. MIAMI BEACH (JTA) — Donald Trump’s star, blunted into a circle, may just have re-sprouted six corners. Trump delivered a speech Thursday in West Palm Beach, Florida, that sounded some familiar themes – familiar to his campaign, but also to… Read more »
Israelpalooza, the University of Arizona Hillel Foundation’s annual event on the UA Mall, will be held Wednesday, Oct. 19, from 10 a.m.-2 p.m. This year, Israelpalooza will be hosting Artists 4 Israel. Artists 4 Israel utilizes the power of art to beautify the land, uplift the people and enhance… Read more »
Vice President Joe Biden addresses a memorial for Shimon Peres in Washington, D.C., Oct. 6, 2016. (Ron Kampeas)
WASHINGTON (JTA) — Vice President Joe Biden said Shimon Peres’ legacy should be one of tolerance at a time of rising bigotry. “At a time when the currents of bigotry and anger and isolationism are on the rise, when too many are quick to cast blame on the outsider,… Read more »
(Illustration from 'Shanghai Sukkah')
A family Sukkot celebration, “Shake It Up in Shanghai!,” sponsored by the Tucson Jewish Community Center and PJ Library, will be held in the sculpture garden at the J on Thursday, Oct. 20, from 5-6:30 p.m. The organizations invite families to be their ushpizin (Hebrew for “guests”) in the… Read more »
“Patagonia Moebius” by Merlin Cohen
Tucson Handweavers & Spinners Guild will present more than 60 juried fiber artists for its show, “A Palette of Fiber Arts” on Saturday, Oct. 29, from 1-6 p.m. at the Tucson Jewish Community Center. The event will be a stop on the Heart of Tucson Arts Open Studios Tour.… Read more »
Don Baker (Martha Lochert)
Tucson Hebrew Academy’s “Developer of Dreams” Tikkun Olam Celebration honoring the late Donald Baker will be a promotion of visionary ideals, says Deborah Baker (no relation), alumni coordinator at THA. This year will be an intimate community event because of Baker’s untimely death, she says. “There are people who… Read more »
Hans Winterberg “Forbidden Composers” is the theme for the 9th annual Music + Festival which will be presented by the University of Arizona Fred Fox School of Music later this month. The festival will focus on the music, lives and cultural impact of three Jews whose music was banned by the… Read more »
