Ivan Arthur Moravec, son of Bryan Moravec and Meg Knight, will celebrate becoming a Bar Mitzvah on Feb. 14, 2026 at Kol Ami Synagogue. Ivan attends The Gregory School. He is passionate about sports and plays both baseball and tennis. He also has a strong love for music; he… Read more »
Art teacher Martha Rast, left, with Handmaker resident Grace Efaw (Photo: Nanci Levy) Handmaker residents have been thrilled with the recent enhancements to their activity programs. New art classes and music therapy sessions are furthering the goal of enriching the lives of the older adults Handmaker serves. Handmaker recently introduced dementia-friendly, accessible art classes in the Tynan Advanced Assisted Living, Kalmanovitz Memory Care, and Rich Long Term Care Skilled Nursing Neighborhoods, which include residents… Read more »
Elissa Toni (Shavin) Tempkin, 77, passed away on October 26, 2025 in Tucson, Arizona. Elissa was born on January 17, 1948 in Atlanta, Georgia, the daughter of Ruth (Piassick) Shavin and Samuel Joseph Shavin. Elissa graduated from Grady High School in Atlanta in 1965, where she was the class… Read more »
Howard Polster passed away on Nov. 26, 2025, in Phoenix. Howard was born exactly two years before D-Day to Jerome I. and Margie Polster in Cleveland. He was the oldest of five siblings – Richard (Fran), Marilyn Katzel (James), Carolyn Bayer (Todd) and David (deceased). After graduating from Cleveland… Read more »
This semester, Tucson Hebrew Academy opened the Lions’ Discovery Den, a new maker space designed to support hands-on, collaborative STEM learning for students in kindergarten through eighth grade. The Discovery Den reflects the school’s commitment to experiential learning, cross-curricular connections, and preparing students with the skills they need for… Read more »
Antonia Lassar If you spend any time online, chances are you’ve stumbled across Antonia Lassar’s very funny — and very Jewish — comedy clips on TikTok, YouTube, or Instagram, or caught her co-hosting the “Yenta!” podcast. And even if you haven’t, now is your chance to catch this young, fresh Internet sensation live in her first Arizona appearance on Feb. 21, 7 p.m., at Congregation Anshei Israel. Lassar describes her Jewish comedy as much more than stereotypical Borscht… Read more »
Matt McQuoid, left, and Zach Glicksman The Tucson Jewish Community Center (the J) has welcomed two new senior leaders whose professional expertise and personal connections to Jewish communal life are poised to strengthen the J’s impact across Southern Arizona. Matt McQuoid joined the organization in November as Chief Experience Officer (CXO), and Zach Glicksman recently came on board as… Read more »
For more than a decade, the Mitch Dorson Scholar-in-Residence Fund has stood as a living expression of the belief that Jewish learning should be engaging, accessible, and meaningful. Established in 2012, the fund brings a visiting scholar or artist to Tucson to offer a popular exploration of Jewish life… Read more »
Martin (Marty) Victor Drozdoff said, “Hasta la vista!” to his body at age 78 on Jan. 14, 2026. He valiantly fought idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis for eleven years, which was many years longer than expected for those facing the disease. In the face of his illness, he continued many meaningful… Read more »
I can say without hesitation that my experience so far with Hillel at the University of Arizona has been nothing short of incredible. As I get ready to begin my second semester at college, I’ve been thinking a lot about those first few days on campus — and how far I’ve… Read more »
Shelley Pozez looks on as Brenda Landau uses an oversized dreidel to teach the traditional Hanukkah game to Homer Davis Elementary School students in 2023. Landau is director of legacy development at the Jewish Community Foundation at Jewish Philanthropies of Southern Arizona. (Photo: JPSA) Eighty children at Homer Davis Elementary School currently receive snack packs of food to supplement their nutrition each weekend. “They rely on it,” says MaryCarmen Salazar Rubio, a reading instruction assistant and snack pack coordinator at Homer Davis, which is in the Flowing Wells School District. There’s always a waiting… Read more »
Sharon Glassberg has spent years bearing witness to history. As a Holocaust Survivor Services Coordinator at Jewish Family & Children’s Services of Southern Arizona (JFCS) and President of the Board at the Tucson Jewish Museum & Holocaust Center, she has facilitated weekly support groups, creating sacred space for survivors… Read more »
Jane Berenbeim, International Association of Jewish Genealogical Societies immediate past president, center, with Southern Arizona Genealogical Society Co-Presidents Nancy Grayson, left, and Rich Schlesinger The Southern Arizona Jewish Genealogical Society won the Member of the Year Award at the International Association of Jewish Genealogical Societies’ 45th International Conference on Jewish Genealogy held in Fort Wayne, Indiana, from August 10-14, 2025. The IAJGS represents more than 90 Jewish genealogical societies worldwide. Rich Schlesinger and… Read more »
In recognition of Drowning Impact Awareness Month, Tucson Medical Center and the Tucson Jewish Community Center are partnering to host the annual Community Water Safety Day on Sunday, Aug. 24, from 1 to 4 p.m. The free event, hosted at the Tucson J, is designed to promote water safety… Read more »
Shamsedin Zamani, pictured with his four children, spoke at Tucson’s World Refugee Day program on June 20, 2025. His daughters wore traditional Afghan attire. (Photo: Dana Narter)
Longtime Tucsonans Dana Narter and her husband, Ed Baruch, were volunteers with the refugee resettlement program at Jewish Family & Children’s Services for several years. She wrote about one of her first experiences with the program for the AJP in July 2022. In 2023, JFCS asked if Narter and… Read more »
Delegates to the Association of Holocaust Organizations conference in Toronto, Ontario June 7-10 included Lori Shepherd, executive director of the Tucson Jewish Museum & Holocaust Center, middle row, seventh from left. (Courtesty Lori Shepherd) Each year, the Association of Holocaust Organizations, an international network of more than 130 organizations, hosts a summer conference devoted to the advancement of Holocaust education, remembrance, and research. Tucson Jewish Museum & Holocaust Center is a proud member of this amazing group of educators, scholars, and institutional leaders.… Read more »
The Tucson Jewish Community Center (the J) will honor volunteers and staff, elect new board members, and celebrate the organization’s 2024 accomplishments in the Alice and Paul Baker Ballroom on Thursday, May 15 from 5:30-7:30pm. The entire community is invited to join for a celebratory evening. Honorees include Amy… Read more »
At its April 2, 2025, board of governors meeting, Pima Community College honored Lisa Grabell for 20-plus years as a student mentor in PCC’s Teacher Certification program. Grabell is a Holocaust survivor from Vienna, Austria. She earned a bachelor’s degree from Mills College of Education in New York City,… Read more »
Scarlett Van Damme and Jacob Meyer were married on Saturday, February 15, 2025, at Wild Horse Ranch in Tucson, Arizona. Rabbi Malcolm Cohen of Kol Ami Synagogue officiated the ceremony beautifully following sunset. The happy couple did not host a traditional wedding party, but were honored by the attendance… Read more »
The Jewish History Museum & Holocaust History Center in downtown Tucson has a streamlined new name: Tucson Jewish Museum & Holocaust Center. The name, approved by the Museum’s Board of Directors in October, is the result of months of deliberations and conversations with stakeholders, says Board President Eric Schindler.… Read more »
