By Deborah Moon, November 2014 When Ted and Shirley Century, both 82, decided to downsize their home, they looked for a place near family. With seven children and 14 grandchildren scattered around the country, they had many places to choose from, but they wanted someplace where they could continue their active lifestyle. Arizona won and…
By Janet Arnold, November 2014 Raise your hand if you’ve heard this one: A rescue ship stops at a nearly deserted island to find just one old Jewish man. They see three huts in the distance. “What are those?” they ask. “Ah,” the man says, “those are the temples I built.” “But why three?” they…
By Stuart Wachs, November 2014 Excerpted from postings by Stuart Wachs, who participated in a Solidarity Mission to Israel with a group of more than 50 Jewish Federation professionals and lay leaders. AUG. 16 I am on my way to Israel today and I stand firmly with Israel. When will the world wake up there…
By Amy Hirshberg Lederman, November 2014 When I was growing up, money meant AUTHORITY. Dad made the money, so he also made the decisions. Our family lived by the Golden Rule as in: He who has the gold, rules. We were told at an early age that it wasn’t “polite” to talk about money, but…
By By Deborah Gilboa, M.D., aka “Doctor G”, November 2014 “What a mensch!” When said about a boy or a girl, this compliment is guaranteed to make us feel like great parents. We all know what it means, but what does it really mean? An honorable and decent person (according to YiddishDictionaryOnline and my grandma…
By Staff, November 2014 Socially minded teens eligible for $36,000 Tikkun Olam Awards alongside projects with broad impact, as can be seen at the awards program website. The Helen Diller Family Foundation is accepting nominations for the 2015 Diller Teen Tikkun Olam Awards. The program recognizes as many as 15 Jewish teens annually with awards…
By Janet Arnold, November 2014 In the summer of 2013 Courtney Haworth, director of Camp Simcha, the summer day camp held at Scottsdale’s Congregation Beth Israel, was approached by temple member Daniel Openden with an interesting question. Would the camp consider partnering with SARRC, the Southwest Autism Research and Resource Center, to provide a camping…
By Janet Arnold, November 2014 “The mission of the Jewish Student Union is to get more Jewish teens attending public high schools to do something Jewish! That’s it! It’s that simple!” This is the opening statement on the website for the national Jewish Student Union program, jsu.org. The social and educational movement began includes a…
By Debra Rich Gettleman, November 2014 As a parent, the first thing you want is to protect your child from getting hurt. It’s a lot easier when they’re younger. “Don’t hit your head!” “Watch the step!” “Pay attention!” We constantly monitor our babies and toddlers to ensure safety and a minimum of painful experiences. But…
By Janet Arnold, November 2014 Neale Perl grew up in Brooklyn assuming the world must be half Jewish and half Italian, as were his own immediate surrounds. His grandparents were of Russian and Polish Jewish descent, and his grandfather was an ardent Zionist. He grew up in a secular Jewish home where music was an…
