The Jewish Federation of Southern Arizona, along with five other local Jewish agencies, organizations, and synagogues, was recently awarded funding through the Arizona Department of Homeland Security (ADHS)’s Nonprofit Security Grant Program (NSGP) to improve campus security measures. JFSA intends to use the majority of the funds awarded to… Read more »
It was so exciting to welcome our new and returning students to campus on Thursday, August 5! Tucson Hebrew Academy also welcomed its new Head of School, Johanna Shlomovich. Since 2013, Johanna has served as the Chief Operating Officer of Ramaz School in New York City. In this role,… Read more »
Rosh HaShanah begins the evening of September 6. Yom Kippur begins the evening of September 15. Rosh HaShanah and Yom Kippur call to us through the piercing majesty of the sound of the Shofar, inviting us to renew our connection with ourselves, with our people, and with G-d. This… Read more »
Handmaker Assisted Living residents have been keeping busy with some new activities that are helping to expand their mind and body, giving residents new opportunities to learn about themselves and each other. Steve Hunt, Handmaker Administrator, began playing billiards with residents in the Rubin Assisted Living neighborhood last month… Read more »
Rabbi Dr. Scott Saulson Kol Ami is the “old-new” synagogue in town. After nearly two years of collaborative planning, we are emerging from and building on the legacies of Temple Emanu-El, founded in 1910, and of Congregation Or Chadash, founded in 1995. We envision “a home of joyful Judaism for all.” Indeed, we… Read more »
School supplies and toiletries are being collected for students at Homer Davis Elementary School through August 31 and can be dropped off at the Jewish Federation of Southern Arizona, Tucson Jewish Community Center, and Tucson Hebrew Academy. Making a Difference Every Day: The Homer Davis Project, an effort to… Read more »
Murray Keshner and his wife Joyce Murray Keshner, beloved husband, father, grandfather, and great-grandfather left this earthly plane early Saturday, July 31, just days before his 96th birthday. He was born August 2, 1925 in Brooklyn, NY. In his many roles as husband of 73 years, art director, dad, painter, singer, and teacher, he touched… Read more »
I am childlike when it comes to Fourth of July fireworks. I love the spectacle, the noise, the ephemeral artwork in the sky. I also love to read our 1776 Declaration of Independence on that day because the words “Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness” speak to me… Read more »
Dr. Yizhar Hess, Vice Chairman of the World Zionist Organization Southern Arizona Jewish community member Billie Kozolchyk shares her thoughts on a broadcast: I recently watched a discussion entitled “Life in Mixed Cities: What’s Next?” a part of the “Complicated Questions” series. I found it gripping and enlightening; I cried, laughed, and learned. The moderator, Yizhar Hess, a tenth… Read more »
Ray Tilden Davies, March 4, 1928 – July 5, 2021 Internationally renowned lecturer and Holocaust education trailblazer Ray Tilden Davies died in Tucson on July 5, 2021 at the age of 93. “Ray Davies was a teacher who taught through his actions as well as his words. His deep commitment to advancing civil rights and struggling for social and… Read more »
Most of the Holocaust survivors alive today were children or teens during the Holocaust. Their view of the world was shaped by trauma at a critical time in their development. Growing up with intense trauma teaches us that the world is not safe. Holocaust survivors saw the world as… Read more »
Emily Ellentuck became a certified cantor through the Cantors Assembly in May 2021. Emily is the Cantor of Congregation M’Kor Hayim, where she has served as cantorial soloist, then cantorial intern, since 2009. Emily is also a teacher at the Tucson Hebrew Academy, where she has taught since 2006.… Read more »
Sawyer Charles Lazarus Sawyer Charles Lazarus celebrated his Bar Mitzvah on August 7th, 2021 at Congregation Anshei Israel. He is the son of Emily and Adam Lazarus and the grandson of Ellen and Larry Z”L Yasmer and Sandy and Joel Lazarus of Davie, Florida. Sawyer is a rising seventh grade student at… Read more »
Nominations are no longer being accepted as of July 20, 2021. Nominations are requested for the Jewish Community Awards Celebration and Welcome Back Event on Thursday, September 23! The event will be held during Sukkot in the Tucson J’s Sculpture Garden so that we can meaningfully leverage the… Read more »
Since my parents died when I was young, Uncle Marek was my link to their shared past. My father’s younger brother, Marek was the only one alive in our family who witnessed the War and the Holocaust in Poland, the only one who could tell their stories. I have… Read more »
Elayna Direnfeld Elayna Direnfeld, Tucson native and local Jewish educator, received a 2021 Excellence in Civics Education Award and a cash prize of $350 from the Arizona District Court. Ms. Direnfeld teaches advanced placement U.S. government and advanced placement world comparative government at Basis Oro Valley High School in Tucson and… Read more »
Four Southern Arizona synagogues have recently joined the Jewish Community Roundtable and the Synagogue-Federation Dialogue: Beth Shalom Temple Center in Green Valley, Congregation Beit Simcha, Chabad of Oro Valley, and Chabad of Sierra Vista. The Jewish Community Roundtable and the Syn-Fed Dialogue facilitate unified action, coordinate scheduling and calendar… Read more »
What a blessing it was to welcome back Mel Cohen and Dan Asia to the Great Room at Handmaker Jewish Services for Aging for Shabbat this past month! After over 15 months of Virtual Shabbat Services over Zoom, everyone was thrilled to once again have Shabbat Morning services in… Read more »
On May 12th, 2021, Tucson Hebrew Academy’s (THA) eighth grade class celebrated their graduation after a year unlike any other. The ceremony took place from 7 to 9 pm at the Park Place Event Space adjacent to the Park Place Mall. Around 120 attendees gathered to celebrate the twelve… Read more »
The following statement was signed on June 17, 2021 by community faith, racial, and ethnic leaders at a convening called the “Coalition Against Hate” held at the Tucson Jewish Community Center. We, the undersigned religious and ethnic leaders of Tucson and the Southern Arizona community, come together today… Read more »
