Roberta Elliott sorts shoes donated for refugees in Vienna in October 2015.
Roberta Elliott’s exploration of what it means to be a refugee started when she had her bat mitzvah at the age of 60. But it really started long before that. She helps refugees because she grew up with refugees in her own family. For many years she has been… Read more »
Jill Rich and her husband, Jim, serve dinner at the Primavera Shelter, July 30. (Courtesy Jill Rich)
How do you create a philanthropic heart? Make an early start. Jill Rich has been a volunteer for nearly all of her 69 years. Her first foray into raising money to help others began with her curiosity. At age 4 she wanted to understand what was meant by the… Read more »
Gail Birin
No matter where she’s lived, Gail Birin says being tapped into the Jewish community has always been an essential part of her life. “I feel I’m just continuing my life’s work, the work I grew up with and the culture I grew up with,” says Birin. “The ones who… Read more »
"Big Sam: A Rosh Hashanah Tall Tale" (Apples and Honey Press) (JTA) — A challah-baking Jewish giant, a young baseball champ and an endearing boy in a pumpkin patch are among the stars of five delightful new books for kids published just in time for the High Holidays. This year’s crop includes new stories by two of the country’s most… Read more »
(Flickr Commons)
(Rabbis Without Borders via JTA) — The month of Elul is the season of repentance and forgiveness that culminates with Rosh Hashanah, Yom Kippur and Sukkot. In the rabbinic imagination, Elul is an acronym for “Ani L’Dodi V’dodi Li” – “I am my beloved’s and my beloved is mine.”… Read more »
A Living Church of God congregation in San Diego celebrates the Feast of Tabernacles -- the church's name for Sukkot -- in 2016. (Courtesy of the Living Church of God)
NEW YORK (JTA) — On the night of Rosh Hashanah, thousands of people will leave work, gather in congregations across the globe and worship God, the ruler of the world. Ten days later they will begin a fast and gather again to pray, this time atoning for their… Read more »
(L-R) Fred Klein, Sharon Klein, Bruce Beyer and Donna Beyer at the Jewish Family & Children’s Services ‘Celebration of Caring’ event, April 23, 2017. (Liz Hernandez/JFCS)
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Koreen Johannessen (Courtesy Johannessen)
Koreen Johannessen, 70, had some difficulty retiring. She first announced that she would step down from her clinical social worker position at the University of Arizona Campus Health Service in 2000. Johannessen had been working with U A students with mental health issues throughout the 1990s. “It became clear… Read more »
‘Chair Yoga’ is an ongoing class at the Tucson Jewish Community Center. (Courtesy Tucson Jewish Community Center)
From “Painting the World Jewish” to “Senior Shimmy Belly Dancing” to kosher cooking, the Tucson Jewish Community Center’s Arts & Culture, Fitness & Wellness, and Jewish Life & Learning departments will offer a wide array of programs for seniors this fall. The Tucson J will partner with Ballet Tucson… Read more »
A scene from 'Shalom Italia,' a documentary by Tamar Tal Anati (PBS)
On the run from Nazis, three Italian Jewish brothers spent months during their childhood hiding in a cave in the Tuscan countryside. Nearly 70 years later, after immigrating to Israel, the three reunite in the country they were forced to abandon and rediscover their hiding place. “For years I’ve… Read more »
Rabbinical student Harry Kleinerman, left, and Robert Nye of Green Valley study together at Congregation Chofetz Chayim in 2016. (Courtesy Southwest Torah Institute)
“In the Driver’s Seat” is this year’s theme for the Southwest Torah Institute’s Dr. Paul W. Hoffert Spirit Program, which begins Wednesday, July 26 and runs through Tuesday, Aug. 8. Begun in 2000, the program offers two weeks of free learning for Jewish men and boys ages eight and… Read more »
Cantorial soloist Marjorie Hochberg guides Temple Emanu-El religious school students in singing the Four Questions at a second night Passover seder in 2015. (Steve Shawl)
Declining youth engagement has been a problem facing synagogues across the country for a decade or more. To help local synagogues reverse this trend, the Jewish Federation of Southern Arizona is providing them with new allocations for religious schools and family education programs. Each synagogue will decide how to… Read more »
Darkaynu Tucson Jewish Montessori is making changes for the new school year, adding a new covered playground, new staff members and a toddler program. The preschool now accepts children ages 1-6. Darkaynu will become the first preschool in the area with Imagination Playground Blue Blocks (as seen at the… Read more »
This small side yard has a Tombstone rose-covered arbor that provides shade in summer and offers an insulating space of non-moving air in winter. (© Jacqueline A. Soule)
A well-designed landscape can save you money in three major ways. Properly designed, installed and maintained, a landscape can help you reduce energy use, reduce water use, and increase the usable space you are paying the mortgage on. This last benefit also increases the resale value of your home… Read more »
Smoking in Israel is on the increase, partially due to lower taxes on loose tobacco. (Hadas Parush/Flash90)
TEL AVIV (JTA) — Israel has one of the highest life expectancies in the world — 82.5 years, on average. But a surprising increase in smoking rates may threaten that status. In line with with global trends, the smoking rate in Israel fell from about 45 percent in… Read more »
La Contessa Boutique Thirty-two years ago, father–daughter team Bob Couchman and Kara Moeller opened La Contessa Boutique in Plaza Palomino, offering a wide selection of women’s casual and formal wear and accessories. The pair credit their longstanding success not… Read more »
Better education about the dangers of sun exposure is credited for helping bring Israel's skin cancer rate down from the world's second-highest a decade ago to 18th today. ( Miriam Alster/Flash 90)
As if Jews don’t have enough to worry about. Geopolitical threats to the Jewish people may wax and wane, but there’s another lethal danger particular to the Jewish people that shows no signs of disappearing anytime soon: cancer. Specifically, Jews are at elevated risk for three types of the… Read more »
Bill Begal and Kira Epstein at their nuptials, April 2. (Clay Blackmore)
What wedding gift do you give the couple that doesn’t need anything? Bill Begal, chairman of the board of Gift of Life Marrow Registry (giftoflife.org), and his bride, Kira Epstein, decided that in lieu of a wedding registry they would make the marrow registry the centerpiece of their wedding… Read more »
Members of the Sparks club, aa new group for youngsters with special needs, with residents of Handmaker. The kids and senior citizens played board games together on Sunday, June 4. (Allison Wexler)
Caring for a child or young adult with physical or mental challenges means negotiating a world geared primarily for a differently-abled majority. So where do you start in locating a therapist, a school for a child with learning disabilities, a supervised social environment, or simply a salon to give… Read more »
Tzeitel, owners Larry and Melanie Rogovein To see many more pet pictures from our readers, staff and colleagues, click the link below. And please patronize our advertisers! Pages 11-12-13… Read more »
