Rabbi Malcolm Cohen speaks during the “call to the audience” at the March 19 Tucson City Council meeting. (Photo courtesy Hava Leipzig Holzhauer) The Tucson City Council will discuss a resolution calling for a ceasefire in Gaza at its Tuesday, April 9 study session. Study sessions precede the council’s formal meetings. At the March 19 study session, council member Lane Santa Cruz requested a 20-minute discussion of the topic be added to… Read more »
“Resilience” is the word Dr. David Siegel, a Tucson neurologist, heard most often from Israelis during a solidarity mission last month with the American Healthcare Professionals and Friends for Medicine in Israel, or APF. “The absolute resilience of the many Israelis I had the privilege to talk and interact… Read more »
Alumni of the Brandes School, their children, and their grandchildren will find a treasure trove of photos and other memorabilia at the Arizona Historical Society’s archive in Tucson. Raphael “Ray” Brandes, an early leader of Tucson’s Jewish community, and his wife, Elsie, started the boarding school for children with… Read more »
This story first appeared in Jewish News (greater Phoenix). During a Gilbert Town Council meeting this month, a few citizens shouted their displeasure when council members voted unanimously to raise the city’s water rates by about 50%, a measure that will take effect in April. The increase was necessary… Read more »
Sadness, anger, hope, and resilience. Todd Rockoff, president and CEO of the Tucson Jewish Community Center (JCC), felt all these emotions and more on a JCC Association Board Solidarity Mission (JCCA) to Israel in January. “I felt a great pull to be there,” he says, to bear witness and… Read more »
The Northwest Tucson Jewish Community, a nonprofit organization, aims “to enrich the educational, cultural, and social life primarily of Jewish residents in Northwest Tucson,” according to its mission statement. “Primarily” is a clue that despite its name, the NWTJC does not impose strict geographical limits: The mission statement goes… Read more »
The International Association of Jewish Free Loans and 17 member agencies in the U.S. have provided over $3.3 million in an interest-free loan for emergency financial assistance to Israeli individuals and families. The Tucson Jewish Free Loan raised funds to contribute $36,000 to the effort, says Allison Wexler, executive… Read more »
Residents of Tucson’s B’nai B’rith Covenant House longed for a mural to enhance the back wall of the facility’s patio, says Abbie Stone, president of the board of Covenant House, an affordable housing community for older adults funded by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. “We try… Read more »
Capt. Jeff Hamblen of Northwest Fire recently signed up to train with Israel’s Emergency Volunteer Project. He expected to help his Israeli counterparts put out fires. He didn’t expect to be flying into a country at war. Hamblen’s travel date was Oct. 7, 2023, the day Hamas launched a… Read more »
Tucsonan Lindsey Baker wasn’t sure of the exact term for her family relationship with Rose Lubin, a 20-year-old Israel Defense Forces soldier who was killed by a knife-wielding terrorist in Jerusalem on Nov. 6, one month into Israel’s war against Hamas. Lubin was the granddaughter of Baker’s father’s first… Read more »
Thanks to Sandy and Maureen Salz of Oro Valley, a new MICU (mobile intensive care unit) for Magen David Adom, Israel’s emergency medical service, has arrived in Israel to help care for those dealing with increased violence, in response to Hamas attacks. Two events marking the sponsorship took place… Read more »
Some 200 people gathered at Congregation Anshei Israel at 3 p.m. on Sunday, Dec. 3, for Jewish Philanthropies of Southern Arizona’s “A Light in the Darkness” Israel solidarity event, which provided an update on the situation in Israel since the horrific Oct. 7 Hamas terrorist attacks and the subsequent… Read more »
I was heartbroken when my son, a tech sergeant and Jewish lay leader in the Air Force, informed me that he and his family would be moving to London from Charleston, S.C., where they were stationed at the time. It was Thanksgiving of 2021, and everyone was excited except… Read more »
Hava Leipzig Holzhauer’s official start date as president and CEO of Jewish Philanthropies of Southern Arizona is Dec. 4, but she will be joining the community on Dec. 3 for a solidarity gathering for Israel called “A Light in the Darkness” because of its proximity to Hanukkah. The event… Read more »
Jewish Philanthropies of Southern Arizona (JPSA) issued the following statement today in support of Israel: JPSA stands unwaveringly in support of the people of Israel. JPSA recognizes the right and necessity for Israel to defend itself and its citizens and for the Israel Defense Forces to act as required… Read more »
Dear Community Member, As a new member of the Weintraub Israel Center team, it is with great sadness that this has to be my first letter to the community. Friday evening, October 6, we returned from Shabbat dinner and arrived home. Suddenly, I received a message from one of my friends:… Read more »
Jewish Philanthropies of Southern Arizona (JPSA) is pleased to announce the addition of four new staff members to its development team. The new hires are Junko Nagao, Director of Development; Ian Arthur, Campaign Manager; Nate Weisband, Young Leadership Manager; and Ital Ironstone, Women’s Philanthropy Manager. They will all work… Read more »
This article is reprinted courtesy of Jewish News A standing-room-only crowd of more than 900 people gathered in the sculpture garden of the Tucson Jewish Community Center (Tucson JCC) on Oct. 9 to show solidarity with Israel in the wake of unprecedented terrorist attacks. The evening of prayers and… Read more »
Starting last month, and for the second year, Handmaker residents have been enjoying monthly Better Together Intergenerational meetings with Tucson Hebrew Academy (THA) and B’nai B’rith Youth Organization (BBYO) teens. A quick pivot was made on programming for the meeting with THA Students on Wednesday, October 11 from what… Read more »
In a message to the Tucson Hebrew Academy (THA) community following the October 7 terrorist attacks on Israel, Head of School Johanna Shlomovich wrote: “Our hearts are with our family and friends in Israel, and to those of us living in the Diaspora who feel these events at our… Read more »
