Our Town

Cantor Bryce Emily Megdal, a Tucson native, was ordained as a cantor on May 27, 2019 in Los Angeles by the Academy for Jewish Religion California. She will continue to work as a b’nai mitzvah teacher at Kehillat Israel Reconstructionist Synagogue of the Pacific Palisades as well as teach… Read more »

Jewish Federation of Southern Arizona has hired Aviva Zeltzer-Zubida, Ph.D., as vice president for planning and community engagement, succeeding Oshrat Barel, who will continue at JFSA into the fall to assure a successful transition. Zeltzer-Zubida was born in Moldova, grew up in Israel and completed her graduate work at… Read more »

Tucsonan Sam Goldfinger, president of Tucson’s AZA chapter of BBYO, was featured in an article “A Shabbat to Remember and Never Forget” from eJewishPhilanthropy, an independent online publication. Sam and five other teens gave a D’var Torah honoring visiting Holocaust survivors during BBYO’s International Kallah summer program in Lake… Read more »

Truly Nolen volunteers recently delivered $700 in cash and more than a dozen boxes of school supplies donated by Truly Nolen customers and staff to Homer Davis Elementary School. Truly Nolen is a community partner in the Jewish Federation of Southern Arizona’s community outreach program, “Making a Difference Every… Read more »

Josie Shapiro

Josie Shapiro will join the staff at the Jewish History Museum as the 2019-2020 Zuckerman Fellow. Shapiro will serve as curator of community engagement, which includes program development work. Shapiro has been active in social movements for more than 15 years. They studied Women’s Studies and Chicana/o Studies at… Read more »

On Saturday, June 15, Tucson Jews for Justice hosted the Tucson Jewish Summer Arts Festival at the Jewish History Museum. The event raised over $500 for local migrant shelters, which will be matched by Jewish Federation of Southern Arizona. About 75 people attended, enjoying music from Joyce Luna with… Read more »

The Israeli Scouts Tzofim Friendship Caravan performed their high-energy song and dance show for about 200 people at the Tucson Jewish Community Center on Thursday, June 20. Prior to the show, the scouts spent the day at Camp J. They gave a morning show for the camp, the Taglit… Read more »

(L-R): Rabbi Batsheva Appel, Rotem Rapaport, Ron Benacot, and Cantorial Soloist Marjorie Hochberg

About 60 community members celebrated with Tucson’s outgoing shinshinyot (Israeli teen emissaries), Rotem Rapaport and Ron Benacot, as they were called to the Torah at Temple Emanu-El on Saturday, June 15. The young women had celebrated coming of age with parties in Israel, but neither had read from the… Read more »

The Arizona Jewish Post has won a Simon Rockower Award from the American Jewish Press Association. The second place Louis Rapoport Award for Excellence in Commentary (Division B., newspapers 14,999 circulation and under) is for three columns by Amir Eden, former director of the Weintraub Israel Center: “On the… Read more »

Robert Youdelman, an officer with the Hayden, Arizona, police department, was honored by Pinal County District Attorney Kent Volkmer with a Victims Service Award for his dedication, commitment, and compassion for victims of crime. The award was presented at a Law Enforcement Appreciation Night dinner on April 9 in… Read more »

On May 29, community volunteers from Truly Nolen Pest & Termite Control packed 240 bags of food to supplement nutrition for students at Homer Davis Elementary School over the summer break, when kids can’t get meals at school. The food program is part of the Jewish Federation of Southern… Read more »

Some 60 community members gathered on Tuesday, June 4, at the Mexican Consulate to hear Joaquin Ruiz, Ph.D., dean of the College of Science at the University of Arizona, speak about his life and work, highlighting Tucson’s geology, diversity, and extensive natural wonders. Ruiz is a member of both… Read more »

Photo by Tucson photographer Martha Lochert.

Gabrielle Erbst has been named principal at Tucson Hebrew Academy. A native Tucsonan and the first alumnus in this role, Erbst has been THA’s director of admissions and director of student support services for the past five years. She is a graduate of the University of Arizona with a… Read more »

Melissa Landau was honored with Tucson Hebrew Academy’s 2019 Teacher Excellence Award at the THA annual meeting on May 15. Two THA parents, Robyn Kessler and Martha Sampson, established the award at the Jewish Community Foundation of Southern Arizona. First presented in 2005, the award includes $1,500 for the… Read more »

Former Tucsonan Jacob S. Louchheim is appearing in the musical “Ragtime” at the Serenbe Playhouse in Atlanta through June 9. Louchheim, who plays Tateh, is one of three actors named as particularly outstanding in Atlanta InTown’s review.… Read more »

Two Jewish Federation of Southern Arizona Young Leadership special teams received funds to disburse in the community, which they presented at the JFSA Annual Meeting and Community Awards Celebration on Thursday, May 9 at the Tucson Jewish Community Center. Recipient agencies included the University of Arizona Hillel Foundation, Jewish… Read more »

The Weintraub Israel Center organized a musical tribute to Israel’s fallen soldiers and victims of terror for a local commemoration of Yom Hazikaron, Israel’s Memorial Day, on Tuesday, May 7 at the Tucson Jewish Community Center.… Read more »

Israeli elite mountain bike racer Chanoch Redlich won the 750-mile Arizona Trail Race, a self-supported ride that stretches from Mexico to Utah. Redlich won this year’s ride in just over eight days, riding in 20-22 hour stretches with two to four hours of sleep before the next stretch. Redlich… Read more »

PJ Library hosted a “Kids Helping Kids” afternoon May 19 at Jewish Family & Children’s Services. Children and families gathered to learn about the mitzvah of helping others. Sharon Glassberg shared an educational presentation, reading from the book “Mitzvah Pizza.” Participants expressed their gratitude in drawings and letters to… Read more »

Barney Holtzman

Barney M. Holtzman joined Mesch Clark Rothschild as a partner in the labor and employment law and commercial litigation practice group. Holtzman has been consistently recognized as a premier attorney in employment law and commercial litigation by Best Lawyers in America, Southwest Super Lawyers, and Tucson Lifestyle Magazine in… Read more »