Tagged Coronavirus

Despite the restrictions imposed by the coronavirus pandemic, residents and staff at Handmaker Jewish Services for the Aging celebrated Hanukkah last month. Rabbi Richard Safran led a nightly menorah lighting for fellow residents in the Rubin Assisted Living Neighborhood. Nanci Levy, community outreach coordinator, cooked up potato latkes for… Read more »

Through Project Isaiah and Mitzvah Magic, two longstanding programs organized by the Jewish Federation of Southern Arizona and community partners, members of the Tucson Jewish community have helped put food on the table and meet other needs for local families this fall, despite the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic.… Read more »

Beth Shalom Temple Center of Green Valley celebrated Hanukkah at an outdoor gathering on Sunday, Dec. 13, led by Rabbi Norman T. Roman. Participants wore facemasks and practiced physical distancing to help slow the spread of coronavirus.… Read more »

Months ago, Ester Leutenberg told her husband, Jay, she was concerned about young children and teens’ reactions to the restrictions and uncertainty brought on by the coronavirus pandemic. “Our twin grandsons could not have a high school graduation ceremony; young people of all ages were either struggling with virtual… Read more »

Vinyl Tap performs at The Gaslight Music Hall in Oro Valley Nov. 4.

Last month, on Nov. 4, Northwest residents joined The Ruth and Irving Olson Center for Jewish Life/Northwest Division of the Jewish Federation of Southern Arizona for a drive-in concert at The Gaslight Music Hall in Oro Valley. More than 50 people enjoyed a night of music under the stars… Read more »

On Nov. 17, the Jewish Federation of Arizona/Jewish Community Foundation held its most ambitious event of the program year, bringing  the community together for a drive-in event at Park Place Mall and online to celebrate Stuart Mellan, former JFSA president and CEO, and his wife, Nancy, for 25 years… Read more »

With their usual Hanukkah bazaar curtailed by the coronavirus pandemic, the Women of Reform Judaism at Temple Emanu-El have created an online gift shop and will be holding a 20% sale on Hanukkah items Nov. 23-Dec. 1. Items can be browsed here, including newly arrived menorahs, menorah drip trays,… Read more »

CHAI Circle held its 16th annual retreat, “A Day of Connecting and Self-Care,” on Sunday, Nov. 8 through Zoom, with 33 participants.  With CHAI  standing for “Cancer, Healing, and Inspiration,” the circle is a support group for women with cancer in the Jewish community, whether they are newly diagnosed… Read more »

Hagar Ben-Bassat, the new Israel Fellow at the University of Arizona Hillel Foundation, was delighted when the Jewish Agency for Israel, which coordinates Israeli emissaries for a number of programs worldwide, gave her permission to come to Tucson despite the global coronavirus pandemic. Although it was a long process… Read more »

Community Investment Corporation, a local nonprofit, recently began administering $3.625 million in CARES Act funding from Pima County to residential landlords and property owners on behalf of tenants who have been negatively impacted by COVID-19. The program allows landlords/property owners and tenants to initiate the application process and will… Read more »

(JTA) — Public protests in Israel will be limited during the coronavirus lockdown under legislation passed early Wednesday by the Knesset. Protesters will be prohibited from traveling more than 1 kilometer, or 0.6 miles, to participate in a demonstration and outdoor gatherings will remain limited to 20 people. Hours… Read more »

In March, the Jewish Federation of Southern Arizona and Jewish Community Foundation, along with local families, launched the Jewish Community Pandemic Relief Fund to help community members facing financial challenges due to the coronavirus pandemic. Since March, the fund has raised more than $404,000 and its task force has… Read more »

This article originally appeared in The Nosher. (JTA) — I know the holidays will look, and taste, different than most years. I also know many families cherish the big brisket, standing rib roast or pot roast that graces their table each year. Traditions are important, and food imparts its… Read more »

(JTA) – Rising fears about a second wave of coronavirus cases in New York City’s Orthodox communities appear to be coming to pass, with the proportion of tests turning up cases of the disease more than four times the citywide rate in one heavily Orthodox neighborhood in newly released… Read more »

(JTA) — Israel passed a grim milestone over the weekend as its tally of coronavirus deaths exceeded 1,000. The country currently has the highest rate of new infections per capita in the world, with an average of 199.3 new cases a day per 1 million residents for the week… Read more »

(JTA) — Residents of Uman, Ukraine, scuffled with Orthodox Jews who were seeking to enter a building in the city that is the site of an annual  Jewish pilgrimage. In a video posted to Facebook on Friday by Sergiy Alekseev, a city council member representing the far-right Svoboda party, several… Read more »

Chabad of Oro Valley will hold three socially-distanced Shofar blowing events outside its premises at 1171 E. Rancho Vistoso Blvd. #131 on Sunday, Sept. 20. The times are 9:15 a.m., 12:15 p.m. and 6 p.m. Each will include a 10-minute service in the parking lot. No registration is required.… Read more »

When the coronavirus pandemic hit, causing millions to lose their jobs and hunger levels to skyrocket, the Jewish environmental organization Hazon knew it had to dramatically reconfigure its priorities. Normally focused on running immersive Jewish environmental educational programs and promoting sustainable food and farming, the group suddenly shifted from… Read more »

This story originally appeared on Kveller. On March 8, in a bustling and noisy bagel shop in Lawrence, New York, I stood alongside nearly 30 women to recite a prayer called the Hadran. This is a prayer said upon completion of a Talmud tractate, a feat most women never achieve.… Read more »

Jewish Arizonans on Campus, which provides classes, trips, Shabbat meals, and other programs at both the University of Arizona and Arizona State University, has raised $24,154 through Olami’s Walk to Israel pedometer fundraising challenge. Registration ends Aug. 15. JAC was founded in 2005 to provide Jewish students of all… Read more »