When I went for my 37-week pregnancy checkup, my doctor informed me that I was walking myself straight over to Labor and Delivery for an induction. While I waited to be admitted, my husband ran home to walk the dog and check off items on my birthing “to do”… Read more »
Special Sections
Mixed Roasted Vegetables with Tahini Sauce: A colorful dish inspired by spring
This article originally appeared on The Nosher. A colorful spring-inspired platter of roasted vegetables is the perfect side dish for your seder dinner or any time you are entertaining a crowd. For this particular mix, I chose a whole head of cauliflower, smaller cauliflower florets in purple and yellow, shallots,… Read more »
6 quirky Passover traditions to inspire your seder
(JTA) — There are several do’s and don’ts when it comes to the Passover seder: what we may or may not eat, and the story we are obliged to tell. Within these guidelines, how do 21st-century American Jews manage to keep Passover engaging and alive? Some find the secret to… Read more »
500 doctors who serve US Jewish communities sign letter urging vaccinations
(JTA) — Some 500 doctors who serve Jewish communities across North America have signed on to a letter calling on all children and healthy adults to be vaccinated. “We the undersigned doctors who faithfully serve the Orthodox Jewish communities of North America, strongly urge all members of our community… Read more »
From 1600s Europe to a lesbian feminist seder, these 4 Haggadahs are a trip through Jewish history
NEW YORK (JTA) — From graphic novel Haggadahs to a Donald Trump-themed one, if you’re looking for a certain kind of guide to the Passover seder, chances are it’s out there. Recent years have seen a proliferation of political, environmental, family-friendly, or just plain irreverent Haggadahs, but the urge to… Read more »
This cartoon matzah character is huge in Holland — and not just among Jews
AMSTERDAM (JTA) — Anywhere else in Europe, a muscular cartoon character named Max the Matzah would have amounted to little more than an inside Jewish joke. But in the Netherlands, where matzah for many non-Jews is a household item year-round, Max became an unlikely hit with the general population.… Read more »
The Passover kitniyot argument isn’t worth a hill of beans
(JTA) — Israel held elections under the cloud of its leader’s possible indictment. The world’s far right and its far left have found common cause in their hatred of the Jews. There is a measles outbreak among the Orthodox. And friends want to kvetch about kitniyot. Every year around… Read more »
THA’s Kutler finds his personal grit in Ultraman Israel endurance challenge
As if completing a 320-mile race in three days isn’t enough, doing it in 36 hours is an enormous challenge. Included in that are a 6.2-mile swim through chilly mountain waters and cycling 171 miles across a desert at the lowest point on earth, not to mention running a… Read more »
‘Nearing Ninety,’ Viorst still writing with the same sass
As a mother of three active boys, bestselling author Judith Viorst never had the luxury of waiting for the muse to strike. “I just put my tushy on the chair and wrote” when the kids were napping or at preschool, she told the AJP recently. “If every once in… Read more »
Federation transportation service takes seniors from isolation into action
For some local Jewish seniors and the disabled, transportation can’t be taken for granted. Without a vehicle, a driver’s license, friends or family to take them places, or the ability to afford a ride service, life can be confining. Isolation can lead to depression and affect general well-being. When… Read more »
Pesach-friendly rainbow cookies infuse color, flavor into holiday
(The Nosher via JTA) – I love rainbow cookies. Love. And they are a serious obsession for my entire family. So when I made this recipe Passover-friendly last year, it was a wonderful, delicious game-changer for our Passover celebrations. Simply replace the regular flour with 1/2 cup matzah cake… Read more »
New wave: The changing face of Jewish philanthropy
We live at a turning point in the history of Jewish philanthropy. Over the next few decades, more than $30 trillion will be passed down from the baby boomer generation to their children. As these considerable assets change hands, so too will the power to shape the philanthropic sector.… Read more »
‘Sesame Street’ seder leads new kids’ books
Four questions. Four cups of wine. Four types of children. At Passover, the number four figures prominently in the rituals of the seder, the ceremonial holiday meal that can be mesmerizing and mystifying. Four new delightful and brightly illustrated books for young kids will enliven — and help explain… Read more »
Creative hacks can make seder more memorable and fun for young, old
No joke: I love hosting the Passover seder. I love feeding people — I’m both Jewish and Southern, so this is deeply ingrained in me. I love educating people, and I love being Jewish, so the seder is a perfect opportunity to gather the ones I love for a… Read more »
This relative of a Pittsburgh victim is combating anti-Semitism with love and matzah
This article originally appeared on Kveller. Joyce Fienberg was a connector. Bringing people together for a holiday meal was incredibly important to her, and not just her family: She invited people she met on world travels, her students from the University of Pittsburgh, colleagues. She loved connecting people of… Read more »
A family Haggadah imagines a ‘complicated, engaging and fleshy’ Passover
(JTA) — The Passover seder can be boring for kids. A new Haggadah is trying to change that. Published by Kveller, a Jewish parenting site, the Kveller Haggadah is “for curious kids — and their grown-ups.” The Haggadah’s co-creators are Elissa Strauss, a columnist on parenthood for CNN, and… Read more »
Talk to focus on domestic violence survivors
LEAH (Let’s End Abusive Households), a program of Jewish Family & Children’s Services of Southern Arizona, with community partner Hadassah Nurses Council, will present, “Freeing Survivors of Domestic Violence from Stigma and Self-Blame” with Deena Gayle Hitzke, Ed.D., on Sunday, April 7, 10 a.m. to noon at Congregation Bet… Read more »
Winter resident active in Tucson, East Coast communities
Nancy Lefkowitz is a “winter resident.” But the six months of the year she lives in Tucson, “we really live here,” she says, and her community engagement certainly proves it. “Having worked with Nancy over the last several years, I know she is always ready to take on responsibilities… Read more »
Peace Corps veterans keep giving service where needed
The Peace Corps takes a unique approach to making a difference. The altruistic, hands-on, volunteer program, founded in 1961, provides social and economic development abroad. Through technical assistance, it promotes mutual understanding between Americans and foreign populations. Many U.S. college undergrads complete two-year assignments in developing nations, often working… Read more »
Tucson talk to explore health risks of Wi-Fi technology
Fourteen years ago, Jenny Baldwin, wife of Tucson neurosurgeon Hillel Baldwin, was having sleep problems and was diagnosed with restless leg syndrome and periodic limb movement disorder, making it almost impossible for her to get deep, restorative sleep. But over the past three years, she says, her symptoms “became… Read more »