Yofi wears her Sparks Cheer T-shirt.
Yofi, a fluffy 2-year-old goldendoodle, leads a very dynamic life in the Jewish community and beyond. She is an athlete, educator, therapist and beloved pet with a very busy schedule. Her active social life began early with basic training at eight weeks old. “She went from crazy to calm… Read more »
Newlyweds Grace Kolack and Daniel Louchheim (Steven Palm)
Grace Kolack, daughter of Marque Kolack of Naples, Florida, and Janice Wilson of Tucson, and Daniel Louchheim, son of Thomas and Marcia Louchheim of Tucson, were married April 29, 2018, at La Mariposa Resort with Rabbi Thomas Louchheim and Cantor Janece Cohen officiating. The maid of honor was Bailey… Read more »
Cake decorating is Lauren Berger’s forte.
A recent trip to Israel and India inspired cake decorator Lauren Berger, of Cayley’s Cakes, to bake pastries from around the world. “If I got my way in this world, for 10 years I would just travel and learn how to bake things from all over,” Berger says. “Then… Read more »
Ellie Chestnut and David Abram take a stroll during their wedding in Brooklyn, New York. (Lorie Kleiner Eckert)
At the end of a Jewish wedding ceremony, there is the dramatic moment in which a wine glass (wrapped in a napkin) is placed on the ground. The groom stomps on and shatters the wine glass as the assembled guests shout their congratulations, “Mazel tov!” There are many interpretations… Read more »
Seth Windham with the lovin’ Ozzie
All hounds were on deck Sunday for a Blessing of the Pets at Congregation Anshei Israel, led by Rabbi Robert Eisen. About two dozen dogs attended, and a half-dozen cats were blessed virtually through photographs or with stuffed stand-ins. One dog even brought her stuffed cat for blessing. The… Read more »
B efore you toss that treat to your pooch, remember it might be a fatal decision. Human bodies process foods differently than canines, says U.S. Food and Drug Administration veterinarian Carmela Stamper. Like people with allergic reactions to foods, one food may harm one dog and not another, depending… Read more »
Ilene Rosenheim after losing 110 pounds (TOPS)
Not only does Ilene Rosenheim feel like royalty, she was also selected the Arizona State Queen for 2018 by the international weight loss support group Take Off Pounds Sensibly. TOPS founder Esther Manz felt members who achieved weight goals should be treated like royalty. Each year the biggest losers… Read more »
Judith S. Gordon, Ph.D. The University of Arizona is launching a new guided imagery-based smoking cessation program called the Be Smoke Free program. Led by Interim Associate Dean for Research Judith S. Gordon, Ph.D., the study focuses on retraining a participant’s brain both in the need for nicotine and the habit of smoking… Read more »
Models for Hadassah Southern Arizona’s fashion show on Oct. 21 will include Tucsonan Talya Simha Fanger-Vexler.
Hadassah Southern Arizona is hosting a luncheon fashion show called “Walkin’ and Rollin’ Down the Runway” next month. It will be held on Sunday, Oct. 21 at 11:15 a.m. at the Country Club of La Cholla, 8700 N. La Cholla Blvd. Committee member Anne Lowe says the fashion show… Read more »
Iris reticulata ‘Harmony’ (Courtesy Colorblends)
Arizona and Israel have some climatic and botanic similarities. Israel is lovely in spring — the hillsides covered with a plethora of bright flowers. Israel has a Mediterranean climate, with rains in the cooler winter months, followed by months of no rain, similar to Arizona. While some of the… Read more »
Yellow is a lively hue that represents youthfulness and joy. (Family Features)
(Family Features) Just as filling your plate with colorful foods is typically good for your body, filling your kitchen with color can be good for the soul. In fact, color is an important element in interior design not only for its aesthetic value, but also because it can shape… Read more »
Shahar Avnet has designed dresses for Beyoncé and Eurovision winner Netta Barzilai in her studio in Tel Aviv. (Kobi Richter/TPS)
Walk into Shahar Avnet’s south Tel Aviv studio and a cacophony of colors hits the senses. Sparkling rainbow-hued tulle dresses, Swarovski crystals, and colorful sketches adorn the walls of the atelier. Two years ago the 30-year-old designer was a student at the Shenkar College of Engineering, Design, and Art;… Read more »
Rabbi David S. Wolfman Rabbi David S. Wolfman will help officiate High Holy Day services this year at Temple Emanu-El, along with Rabbi Batsheva Appel, Cantorial Soloist Marjorie Hochberg, and the High Holy Days Choir under the direction of RobertLopez-Hanshaw. Currently, Wolfman is the founder and principal of David S. Wolfman Consulting, LLC:… Read more »
2015 was the last year that Temple B'nai Brith families were allowed to use bread at the traditional tashlich ceremony at the Blessing of the Bay Boathouse in Somerville, Mass. (Sharona Jacobs)
SOMERVILLE, Mass. (JTA) — On the first afternoon of Rosh Hashanah, Rabbi Eliana Jacobowitz will lead her congregation on a walk to the Blessing of the Bay Boathouse on the Mystic River for tashlich, a centuries-old ritual when Jews symbolically discard their sins from the past year into a… Read more »
(Illustration by Michelle Shapiro/AJP) Whether making a name for themselves in front of the bright lights or behind the scenes, whether they still call Southern Arizona home or have moved to far-flung cities, the 12 young people profiled here bring a wide array of talents to the fields of arts and entertainment. Some… Read more »
Robert Lopez-Hanshaw, left, conducts members of the Temple Emanu-El Teen Choir. (Courtesy Temple Emanu-El)
Robert Lopez-Hanshaw’s passion is writing music. He has been involved with music in one way or another since childhood. Along with being a composer and conductor, he is the choir director for Temple Emanu-El, and a sound designer for Winding Road Theater Company. He has had choral and instrumental… Read more »
Two things that ground Danielle Faitelson are her love for theater and her connection to her Jewish heritage. “It’s part of some bigger purpose,” she says of her Jewish roots. “It feels like a responsibility for generations past, not just two generations ago. I’d be ungrateful to drop Judaism,… Read more »
Grant Henry, right, performs a yoga pose with his girlfriend, Erica Chen. (Courtesy Grant Henry)
Video, photography, early childhood education and yoga all figure into the art of Grant Henry. Currently a resident of Brooklyn, New York, Henry, 35, grew up in Tucson. He gained a love of working with children through 10 years of teaching preschool at Temple Emanu-El, and his primary career… Read more »
(Courtesy Michael Martinez)
Michael Martinez describes his young self as a “strange kid. I had trouble finding my place in this world.” That suddenly changed at Saguaro High School when he walked into drama class. When he found the stage, he finally felt at home, “a home where I could be myself… Read more »
Sam Gasch enjoys performing in improv shows. [Courtesy Sam Gasch)
Actor, writer and singer Sam Gasch acquired his love of acting when he was in a play in first grade at Tucson Hebrew Academy. He also acted in plays in high school and college. Now living in Los Angeles, he is still pursuing acting, although he is more interested… Read more »
