(JTA) — A shooting at a Chabad synagogue in Poway, near San Diego, California, has left one person dead and three injured, including a child. Police in Poway detained a white 19-year old San Diego man in connection with the shooting on the last day of Passover, and hospitals said… Read more »
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Ukraine’s next president is a Jewish comedian
(JTA) — If official exit polls from Ukraine’s presidential elections are to be believed, that country is set to become the only one in the world besides Israel whose president and prime minister are both Jewish. Comedian Volodymyr Zelensky’s dramatic lead in exit polls Sunday — in many of… Read more »
NW Division expansion warrants facility growth
The Jewish Federation of Southern Arizona and its Northwest Division recently announced the expansion of its Oro Valley facility to larger premises. Due to increased participation in the many programs at the Northwest’s Ruth & Irving Olson Center for Jewish Life, this summer the center will move to 180… Read more »
Federation proposes slate of officers for 2019-2020
The Jewish Federation of Southern Arizona’s board governance committee has recommended the following slate of officers for the 2019-20 program year: Deborah Oseran, chair of the board; Jeff Artzi, vice chair; Ben Silverman, treasurer/secretary; Shelly Silverman, immediate past chair. Also nominated are Elena Boskoff, Avi Erbst and Scott Sheftel… Read more »
JFSA women to share family histories at JHM
The Jewish Federation of Southern Arizona Women’s Philanthropy will hold “Sharing Our Stories,” an evening of exploring individual and shared histories, on Monday, April 29, 5-7 p.m. on the patio of the Jewish History Museum. JFSA Senior Vice President Fran Katz and Young Women’s Cabinet Coordinator Danielle Larcom will… Read more »
Confessions of an Arkansas boy: How I almost ruined my first Passover seder
Somewhere, there’s a photograph: My future father-in-law is sitting at the head of the table. My future mother-in-law is sitting to his left and I’m sitting on his right, wearing a suit, tie and kippah. My stunningly beautiful fiancée is next to me, and the rest of the table… Read more »
New eruv extends public boundaries
Tucson now has a functioning eruv, Congregation Chofetz Chayim announced April 11 via email. An eruv is a symbolic wire boundary that follows the guidelines of Jewish law for creating a demarcation of private space that allows for carrying objects on Shabbat and other Jewish holy days. The creation… Read more »
Federation men honor mentor Kippur, enjoy night of fellowship
The Jewish Federation of Southern Arizona Men’s Night Out on Tuesday, April 9, drew a crowd of 130 men to the Sculpture Garden of the Tucson Jewish Community Center for a relaxed evening that included whiskey tasting, food trucks, and the presentation of the 2019 MENtor award to Gary… Read more »
Homer Davis 10th anniversary celebration includes Maizlish gift
A $12,000 donation will fund computers for additional classrooms at Homer Davis Elementary School. Jody Gross presented a check, on behalf of the 12 grandchildren who are part of the Maizlish Family Foundation, to the school’s principal, Lyle Dunbar, at the 10th anniversary celebration of “Making a Difference Every… Read more »
Jewish Latino Teen Coalition lobbies in D.C. for immigration reform
Eleven members of the Jewish Latino Teen Coalition, a program founded by the Jewish Federation of Southern Arizona Jewish Community Relations Council and the Office of U.S. Rep. Raúl Grijalva, visited Washington, D.C., March 31-April 5 to lobby lawmakers on immigration reform. In addition to meeting with a dozen… Read more »
JCRC volunteers provide lunch, supplies for TIHAN’s Poz Café
Members of the Jewish Federation of Southern Arizona Jewish Community Relations Council volunteered March 21 at Tucson Interfaith HIV/Aids Network’s Poz Café, along with other faith-based organizations. The café serves a monthly catered meal to those living with HIV. Organizations supply the food, cooked by the TIHAN chef with… Read more »
2 Jewish billionaires pledge $122 million toward restoring Notre Dame
(JTA) — Two Jewish billionaires have pledged a total of $122 million toward the restoration of Paris’ Notre Dame cathedral, which was ravaged in a fire. Lily Safra, a Brazilian philanthropist, said she would give $22 million to fund the restoration efforts of the iconic church, which was badly… Read more »
Jared Kushner says Trump Middle East peace plan will be unveiled in June
(JTA) — The Trump administration’s Middle East peace plan will be unveiled in June, White House special adviser Jared Kushner said. Kushner, one of the main authors of the plan, told a group of about 100 ambassadors in Washington, D.C., that the plan will be made public after a… Read more »
Chelsea and US soccer team to march from Auschwitz to Birkenau concentration camp sites
(JTA) — Two professional soccer teams — one in England and one in the United States — will send a joint delegation to the March of the Living. The Chelsea Football Club and New England Revolution announced Wednesday in a statement to the Jewish Telegraphic Agency that they will… Read more »
Netanyahu officially tasked with forming Israel’s next government
JERUSALEM (JTA) — President Reuven Rivlin has officially tasked Benjamin Netanyahu, the current prime minister, with forming Israel’s next government. Rivlin met Wednesday evening with Netanyahu at the president’s residence in Jerusalem hours after receiving the official results of last week’s national elections. Party leaders representing 65 of the 120… Read more »
Florida Jewish lawmaker calls one of his Jewish constituents a ‘Judenrat’
(JTA) — A Jewish Florida state representative called one of his constituents a “Judenrat” on Facebook. The constituent, also Jewish, says the lawmaker should apologize for describing him with a term that refers to Jews who collaborated with the Nazis during the Holocaust. Randy Fine, a Republican who represents… Read more »
Jennifer Lopez to perform in Israel for the first time
(JTA) — This time, don’t be fooled by the rocks that she’s got — Jennifer Lopez is set to perform in Israel for the first time. Concert promoters confirmed the rumor Wednesday. Lopez, 49, will play at Tel Aviv’s Hayarkon Park on Aug. 1. The pop star and actress… Read more »
Pete Buttigieg will no longer use the word ‘Pharisee’
(JTA) — Pete Buttigieg will no longer use the word “Pharisee” to refer to those he deems religious hypocrites, a campaign official said. Buttigieg, a Democratic presidential candidate and mayor of South Bend, Indiana, had called Vice President Mike Pence a Pharisee on multiple occasions because he claimed Pence… Read more »
Pittsburgh newspaper wins Pulitzer for coverage of synagogue massacre
(JTA) — The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette was awarded the 2019 Pulitzer Prize in breaking news reporting for its coverage of the Tree of Life synagogue massacre last October. Eleven people were shot and killed by a gunman during the rampage, which came as congregants at the synagogue complex in Pittsburgh… Read more »
Trump peace plan will be ‘born dead,’ new Palestinian Authority prime minister says
JERUSALEM (JTA) — The new Palestinian Authority prime minister said the still-to-be unveiled Trump administration peace plan will be “born dead.” Mohammad Shtayyeh told The Associated Press in a wide-ranging hourlong interview that the international community would join the Palestinians in rejecting the peace plan, whose release date has… Read more »