Post-Its

Obituary: Susan Broder

Susan Marcia Broder, 72, died Oct. 24, 2019. Mrs. Broder was born in the Bronx, New York, to Minnie and Murray Cohen. At age 13, she was stricken with Type 1 (insulin-dependent) diabetes. In 1967, after receiving her bachelor’s degree in romance languages from Queens College in New York… Read more »

After the High Holy Days, what is our focus?

Rabbi Robert Eisen

Finish the sentence: “If not now, _____” I would venture to guess that most of us would immediately call to mind the famous passage attributed to Hillel the Elder (Pirkei Avot 1:14): If I am not for myself, who is for me? When I am for myself, what am… Read more »

Obituary: Judith Millstone

Judith Millstone, 69, died Sept. 28, 2019.  Ms. Millstone had been a resident of Tucson since 1968 when her family moved here from Rochester, N.Y., and she decided to attend the University of Arizona, graduating in 1972. She taught fifth grade for about seven years in Safford.  While she… Read more »

Obituary: Betty Light

Betty Lou Rosenthal Light, 97, died Oct. 6, 2019. Mrs. Light was a matriarch in Gunnison, Colorado, for over seven decades before moving to Tucson in 2013. In Tucson, she lived at Handmaker Jewish Services for the Aging. Mrs. Light was preceded in death by her husband of almost… Read more »

Obituary: Rayna Gellman

Rayna Leah Gellman, 83, died peacefully in her sleep on Sept. 19, 2019, after a brief period of illness. Born in Chicago, Illinois, on April 21, 1936, Rayna was the middle of Sol and Julia Nathan’s three daughters. Julia moved Rayna and her sisters Esther (Capin) and Roberta (Bracker)… Read more »

Obituary: Robert Hersch

Robert Michael Hersch, 69, died Oct. 3, 2019. Mr. Hersch was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He graduated from Abington High School and went on to receive a B.A. in political science from American University in Washington D.C., a master’s degree in public administration from the University of Arizona, and… Read more »

Obituary: Roslyn Miller

Our beloved mother, Roslyn Girard Miller, was born in Brooklyn, New York, on Feb. 25, 1929 and passed peacefully on Sept. 29, Erev Rosh Hashanah, 2019. Along with occasional excursions to Coney Island with her younger brothers George and Ira, Roz’s Brooklyn childhood and early teen years revolved around… Read more »

Rabbi’s Corner: Sukkot — A holiday of joy and unity

Joy Often repeated during the High Holiday season: “What are you celebrating now?” “Who cares? We Jews always pray, eat, and are merry!” During prayers on every Jewish holiday, we mention “Mo’adim L’Simcha,” a holiday to rejoice. Yet, on Sukkot there is an extra emphasis on being happy and… Read more »

Obituary: Thomas Peters

Thomas John Peters, 62, of Oro Valley, died Sept. 16, 2019. Mr. Peters was born in Chicago, Illinois. He studied music in college and eventually followed his brother and sister-in-law, Jim and Maureen, to Tucson, where he began a career in the health insurance industry. He was at UMC/Banner… Read more »

Obituary: Eric Prosnitz

Eric H. Prosnitz, M.D., died Sept. 24, 2019. Dr. Prosnitz was preceded in death by his wife, Elaine Lois Prosnitz. Survivors include his daughters, Debra (Peter) and Beth; significant other, Kathi Willis; and brother, Ted (Karen). Memorial contributions may be made to the El Rio Foundation at www.elrio.org or… Read more »

Obituary: Jerome Sonenblick

“Jerry” Jerome Sherwood Sonenblick, formerly of Tucson, passed away in Encinitas, California, on Sept. 8, 2019, after a protracted illness. He is survived by his daughter, Beth Blum and her husband, Howard, of San Diego, and their sons, Alex and Ty; his son Ando Sonenblick and his wife, Negin,… Read more »

Wandering from the path: A law of return

Rabbi Israel Becker

As Rosh Hashanah approaches and we take stock of our own spiritual lives, it certainly behooves us to dedicate ourselves to expend every effort in reaching out to our fellow Jews, and especially to our own children and grandchildren. In fact, extending ourselves to help inspire our fellow Jews… Read more »

Obituary: Thelma Frankel

Thelma Frankel, 94, died Sept. 4, 2019. Mrs. Frankel was born in New York City to Fanny and Joseph Prince. A graduate of Adelphi College and Columbia University, she married Frank Berlin in 1948. They had three children. She later married Julius Frankel. Retiring from a career as a… Read more »

Obituary: Annette Kolodny

Annette Kolodny, Ph.D., 78, died Sept. 11, 2019. Dr. Kolodny was an internationally recognized scholar in interdisciplinary American studies and a pioneer of women’s studies and feminist literary criticism. Born in New York City, Dr. Kolodny attended Brooklyn College, graduating in 1962 magna cum laude, Phi Beta Kappa, and… Read more »

Obituary: Mildred Lachman Chapin

Mildred Lachman Chapin, 97, died Aug. 26, 2019. Mrs. Chapin was born to Hannah Segal and Henry Rosenstreik Pollack in Philadelphia, one of eight siblings. She was a dancer from an early age. She received a full scholarship to the University of Pennsylvania, where she studied economics and met… Read more »

Rabbi’s corner: Is your faith solid or fluid?

Rabbi Yehuda Ceitlin (Britta Van Vranken)

There is a tale about a rabbi whose synagogue was infested with mice. When the conventional method to get rid of them didn’t succeed, he turned to a fellow rabbi for advice. “Simple,” said his colleague, “give them a Bar Mitzvah and they won’t step foot in your synagogue… Read more »

Rancho Sahuarita founder Robert Sharpe succumbs to brain cancer

Robert (“Bobby”) Sharpe died Aug. 28, 2019, in Snowmass Village, Colorado, after a long battle with terminal brain cancer. Born and raised in Minnesota, Sharpe’s career took him to the movie business in Los Angeles and the garment industry in Minnesota before he was drawn to Tucson, where he… Read more »

Jeremy Shea Landau

A son, Jeremy Shea Landau, was born July 13, 2019  to Melissa and Matt Landau. Grandparents are Cindy Klein of Grass Lakes, Michigan, Steve Klein of Tucson, and Brenda and Steve Landau of Tucson.… Read more »

Obituary: Marvin Bernstein

Marvin Bernstein, 89, died Aug. 13, 2019. Mr. Bernstein was an insurance broker and grief counselor. He was born in New York City to Jacob and Minnie Bernstein in 1929. “Moishe,” as he was known to his family, suffered from polio as a child, but still took part in… Read more »