When my husband Ray was diagnosed with lung cancer two years ago, it came as a total shock. We were still basking in the glow of our trip to northern Italy, images of the lush Piedmont countryside and Lake Como still fresh in our minds. Ray ’s voice had gotten hoarse during our travels, but…
“I thought everybody loved going to the dentist!” quips Pnina Levine, her voice warm with amusement as she recalls her childhood naiveté. As a young girl, Pnina (Hebrew for “Pearl”) had a genetic disorder that caused many of her permanent teeth not to develop. Therefore, her parents frequently took her to their dentist for treatment….
Nava Brief-Fried of Leelach.com is dedicated to connecting women from Israel to women around the world through the fashion and design found on her website. Currently living in Nachlaot, Nava is a college student studying communications and Jewish art at Bar Ilan University. Her husband, Yehoshua, recently finished his army service and now studies computer…
Since the first Jewish Film Festival was held in San Francisco in 1980, the phenomena has spread across the country. Now about 150 such festivals are held across the United States each year – including the Tucson International Jewish Film Festival in January and the Greater Phoenix Jewish Film Festival in February. With 23- and…
I am the world’s fastest ice cream eater. While those around me are savoring their first few bites, I have already finished. This skill was honed as an ASU student driving home in my non-air-conditioned stick shift truck with a double scoop cone from Swenson’s. Tonight, as usual, I find myself finished first and beginning…
Like most parents, I find school lunches to be one more thing to check off the list in the morning. Trying to make them quick and nutritious can be a serious task. But “serious” is something we all need to stay away from when preparing our little ones’ lunch. Whether adding food color to dips…
When Pardes Jewish Day School relocates to the Ina Levine Jewish Community Campus next fall, school and campus leaders expect the synergy to benefit both organizations and the community. When classes begin Aug. 13, 2014, the state’s largest Jewish day school will join the Jewish Community Association, the Valley of the Sun Jewish Community Center,…
Perhaps it was yet another Hanukkah miracle – a room filled with hundreds of teenagers so silent you could hear a pin drop. It was Dec. 3, 2013, and the Israel Program Fair was in session. Thousands of miles away in Israel it was 4:30 in the morning, and Israeli Major Amir ben David was…
Mathematics may seem like an odd means for building interfaith bridges, but mathematics teacher and consultant Sherri Adler has met people she would never have encountered without it. Adler lives in the Phoenix area and trains teachers in Singapore Math and Common Core standards. Until recently she was a partner and co-founder of SMARTTraining, LLC,…
As budget constraints force school districts to shorten school years, increase class sizes and reduce offerings, many families are turning to private schools to meet their children’s intellectual and spiritual needs. When it’s time for college, families and students again have a range of choices. The educators profiled here have found a home where they…
