Special Sections

“Unrest,” a Sundance-award-winning documentary, will be screened at the Loft Cinema on Sunday, Oct. 22 at 2 p.m. Jennifer Brea, a Harvard Ph.D. student, was about to marry the love of her life when she was derailed by strange symptoms. Hoping to find answers, she grabbed a camera and… Read more »

Celebrating Shabbat and Jewish holidays brings the joy and comfort of tradition to residents of senior living communities. This can involve anything from a ride to synagogue to holding High Holiday services on site. Handmaker Jewish Services for the Aging “Jewish celebrations and services are important because they help… Read more »

If Irving I. Silverman had not been born legally blind 97 years ago, he probably wouldn’t be making news today. Silverman recently published “Aging Wisely … Wisdom of Our Elders,” a nearly 500-page anthology of essays by more than 75 seniors and experts in aging. This is just the… Read more »

TEL AVIV (JTA) – In this tiny country, there are only so many places to have a wedding. Or so you would think. But a growing number of Israelis are creating one-of-a-kind outdoor weddings from the ground up. In some cases, they even start with the ground. “We brought in bulldozers for one couple,” said Ori Fuks, an Israeli… Read more »

For Jewish teens, a bar or bat mitzvah project is an opportunity to learn more about their responsibilities as Jewish adults. It’s a  hands-on way to learn the meaning of tikkun olam (repairing the world), and serve the community in personally meaningful ways. Several Tucson Jewish teens shared with… Read more »

By the time Sukkot arrives, and we are three weeks into nonstop Jewish holiday mode, some people might be a little tired of cooking. I don’t blame these people one bit. But Sukkot probably is my favorite holiday of the season to cook for — I love sitting outdoors… Read more »

People are living longer than ever before — but living with a painful joint can restrict daily activities and decimate quality of life. In the 1950s, few retirees lived beyond their mid-60s, but today the average length of retirement is 18 years. During that time, joints often degenerate. As… Read more »

When it comes to healthcare in rural areas, the overarching question is how to level the playing field between geographically isolated healthcare facilities and their urban counterparts, says Ronald S. Weinstein, director of the Arizona Telemedicine Program at the University of Arizona. That’s exactly why the Arizona Telemedicine Program… Read more »

Picture services for the High Holidays: A roomful of congregants sitting with heavy books in their laps listening to a rabbi sermonize or a cantor chant is what likely comes to mind. Baking pizza? Embracing a chicken under a tree? Not so much. But those are some of the… Read more »

At age 90, Claire Grunstein of Fabrics That Go, is full of design ideas, still drives and works 30 hours a week at her store in Tucson. She is happy to tell the story of how a family-run business stays successful for decades and how a married couple stayed… Read more »

Sukkot, the Feast of Booths, also known as the Feast of Tabernacles, is an eight-day holiday that marks the end of harvest time in the Land of Israel. Celebrated five days after Yom Kippur beginning on the 15th of Tishrei (Oct. 5 this year), Sukkot is filled with family-centric… Read more »

Pruned olive tree (Pixabay)

With Sukkot approaching, I’m here to let you know that you can easily cover your sukkah with schach (sukkah roof material) made with plants in your own landscape. There is an array of plants that grow in Southern Arizona that should be pruned in early fall — meaning now… Read more »

I know something about most Jewish holidays. I can tell you that Hanukkah is about miracles, Passover is about slavery and freedom, and Shavuot is about cheesecake. (I have no idea why, but when it comes to matters of cheesecake, it is not mine to question.) The one holiday… Read more »

  LOS ANGELES (JTA) — Was your father a rabbi? When I tell people that I wanted to be a rabbi from the time I was 4 years old, they always ask me that same question. No, my father made women’s clothing, but he was my rabbi. When I was… Read more »

Social action, community service, acts of loving kindness, humanitarianism … no matter what you call it, engaging in tikkun olam (repairing or healing the world) is an expression of a core Jewish value.  One idea behind the concept of tikkun olam is that we must act as partners with… Read more »

Bob Feinman

In 1967, Bob Feinman, an 18-year-old Jewish kid from New York City found himself in Tucson, enrolled in college, knowing no one. He could speak Spanish, but had never heard of a taco. He ended up with a 40-year career in Spanish language radio and became an advocate for… Read more »

Helping Sister Jose Women’s Center renovate a 9,000 square foot warehouse on South Park Avenue took far more of Steven Tofel’s time than he’d anticipated. But he has no regrets. “I’m 100 percent glad I did it,” he says. Tofel, 75, the founder and president of Tofel Construction, ended… Read more »

Stanley G. Feldman, LL.B., has been a leading champion of civil rights in Arizona, and beyond,  for 60 years and counting. He served as an Arizona Supreme Court justice for 21 years, from 1982 to 2002, including five years as chief justice. Born in the Bronx in 1933, and… Read more »

Deborah Howard Jacob keeps a relatively low profile. For someone so involved in the Tucson community, her name doesn’t ring a lot of bells with Google. But to the people she helps and to those who know her work, Jacob’s name looms large. “She is kindness and caring personified!,”… Read more »

Sherrie Kay at the Sister Jose Women's Center

For Sherrie Kay, giving back to the community and helping those at risk is simply a way of life. “Growing up, my family was always involved in Jewish life and tikkun olam and all the different avenues that represents. Somehow that transferred to me. The more injustice I saw… Read more »