Ever since May 30 I have felt like a new person. On that day I met my Camp Swift campers, and we immediately created strong bonds. It was amazing to watch children from broken homes and underprivileged lives explore the outdoors as carefree kids. Camp Swift was the first time many had an opportunity to…
My six years of camp were memorable milestones in my childhood. I intended to become a counselor after a summer in Israel, but life took me in a different direction. Then I found myself back at camp at the age of 42. Though I love the independence that camp instills in children, my second son…
Established in 1941, Camp Friendly Pines has been called “an Arizona tradition.” For Margaret “Margo” Cramer, 14, Friendly Pines Camp is both an Arizona and a family tradition she’s happy to continue. She is the daughter of Amy S. Cramer and Amelia Craig Cramer, who spent many happy childhood days at Friendly Pines more than…
An impressive 70% of Camp Daisy and Harry Stein campers return to the overnight Jewish camp the following summer. Nestled in the majestic Bradshaw Forest of Prescott, Camp Stein is owned and operated by Congregation Beth Israel in Scottsdale. The forest environment provides the perfect setting for the many outdoor activities, such as mountain biking…
Let’s get the fact that The White Chocolate Grill is a chain restaurant out of the way first. It’s true it’s a chain, but it started here in Scottsdale before spreading to other cities. Let’s also acknowledge the corporate feel, where no detail is left undone and staff scripts have been well rehearsed. Let’s get…
The Maccabees, pilgrims and American Indians will be sharing a very special meal at our table this year, and it won’t happen again until the year 79,811. Yup! Try explaining that one to your 7- and 4-year-old. I did explain this as a great opportunity to celebrate Jewry in America. Whether you celebrate Thanksgiving or…
On Nov. 28, 2013, worlds will collide when the first day of Hanukkah falls on Thanksgiving Day. Due to a rare confluence of the Hebrew and Gregorian calendars, this is the last time this will happen for about 75,000 years! No doubt by then the Jewish people will have successfully colonized most of the galaxy,…
Hanukkah takes on a very Arizona flair when Mel and EllenBett Kline welcome the community to the unusual menorah lighting at their home each year. This will be the eighth year that the Phoenix couple has welcomed hundreds of people to witness the lighting of their saguaro Hanukkah menorah, which they believe to be the…
As Americans have watched the stock market advance this year, despite a myriad of obstacles that would have derailed even a courageous investor five years ago, many have expressed amazement at the apparent return of “irrational exuberance,” Alan Greenspan’s now-infamous phrase describing his basis for the technology sector’s record growth during the late 1990s. After…
The lightbulb went on for Mark Langerman in 2007. The Scottsdale-based financial adviser was at a Washington, D.C., symposium sponsored by the American Israel Public Affairs Committee, listening to workshops on encouraging state legislatures and pension funds to divest their portfolios of investments in Iran. Langerman heard Benjamin Netanyahu, then the opposition leader in Israel,…
