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 »
Whenever he called me from the United States, my uncle asked the same question, “Do you think you’re going to stay in Israel?” As the decades passed, the question turned more and more into a jest. And now that I’ve lived in Israel for almost forty years, including marrying… Read more »
“I’m too busy.” “I don’t know enough about the candidates.” “My vote won’t count.” We’ve all heard these excuses for failing to vote, some from family, some from friends or acquaintances. The quasi-reasons annoy me or infuriate me, depending on the context. Voting has been around for centuries. Why… Read more »
Harriet Fruchtman Feldman Harriet Fruchtman Feldman was born on February 7th, 1931, in Brooklyn, New York and was preceded in death by her husband Elliott Ivan Feldman in 1989. She graduated from the University of Arizona with a B.A. in Physical Education. In 1996, Harriet was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s Disease. This marked… Read more »
Yesterday a devastating act of antisemitism was discovered at the Chabad on River. An entry door was defaced with a swastika and an antisemitic slur. This comes just weeks after vandalism against Congregation Chaverim where a rock was thrown through a window in the front door of the synagogue. These horrendous antisemitic acts… Read more »
Mara Aspinall With the increased availability of COVID-19 vaccinations and updated guidance from the Centers for Disease Control, many in the Southern Arizona Jewish community are feeling cautiously optimistic about a summer that looks very different from years past. The Maimonides Society, a fellowship of healthcare professionals who are dedicated to… Read more »
Stacey Tarquinio, LPC After more than a year providing Chaplaincy services by phone as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, the ability to be at the bedside of a patient in the hospital, or sit and visit with a Handmaker resident is such a blessing! Since March 16, 2020, the Jewish Federation… Read more »
Marcia Zaccaria accepts the Maricopa County Chapter of the NAACP Freedom Fund Community Award for Civic Engagement on behalf of Congregation M’Kor Hayim Racial Justice Task Force Congregation M’kor Hayim is a 90-member synagogue located in Tucson, Arizona. One week after the killing of George Floyd, M’kor Hayim member Jane Levin proposed a Racial Justice Task Force to Rabbi Helen Cohn. This proposal was met with enthusiasm by both the Rabbi and the M’kor Hayim President… Read more »
