Valley View

In 2014, the Alzheimer’s Association designated June Alzheimer’s & Brain Awareness Month in order to support those with Alzheimer’s and those caring for them, in addition to promoting early detection. This year, the monthlong observance culminates on the summer solstice, June 21, with The Longest Day, an event offering individuals and groups the opportunity to host private or public events in order to raise money and awareness to support the organization’s continuing service.

George Gershwin’s “Rhapsody in Blue” played in the background as around 200 attendees mingled and noshed in the social hall on the Ina Levine Jewish Community Campus last Wednesday. They were there for the Legacy Celebration, organized by the Jewish Community Foundation of Greater Phoenix, to honor the 2018 signers of the Endowment Book of Life and celebrate the success of the local Life & Legacy program.

OK, I admit it: I chose to flash back to this date because this issue of Jewish News was published one day after I was born. As I thumbed through the issue, I was pleased to find a photo and small story about Phoenix’s second successful and permanently established synagogue.

Jessica Knight was diagnosed with stage 3 breast cancer in September 2013. Married to a marine, Knight and her family moved around every couple of years. At the time of her diagnosis. they were living in Vienna, Virginia, and Knight hadn’t yet connected with a synagogue.

For their first-round draft selection, the Arizona Cardinals chose former University of California, Los Angeles quarterback Josh Rosen, who is Jewish, as the 10th overall pick.

Ariel Rosen once dreamed of being an actress. Raised in Scottsdale, Rosen went to Fordham University in New York to study theater. But these days, the 34-year-old prefers to be behind the camera, directing videos for her health and wellness social media channel, Vegan Sprouts.

Jewish Federation of Greater Phoenix has announced $1.7 million in allocations for 2018 that focus on the organization’s four core impact areas: enriching senior lives, engaging the next generation, building community and supporting Israel and Jewish communities worldwide. Federation gave $979,520 to its local strategic partners, agencies that are supported for their longevity, impact in the community and breadth of programming.

Rabbi Mari Chernow realized the remodel of the small sanctuary at Temple Chai had really made a difference when one young congregant entered and told her mother, “It smells like Shabbat.”

Fashion made the front page of the Feb. 24, 1978, issue of Jewish News. A fashion show was part of the United Jewish Welfare Fund Women’s Division 1978 campaign effort. Guests at a fundraising luncheon were treated to a look at the latest fashions from Saks Fifth Avenue.

When Nathan Sachs, the founder and owner of Blueprints for Tomorrow, a financial services company based in Scottsdale, considered teaching classes at the Valley of the Sun JCC (The J), it wasn’t a tough call.

Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program recipients will no longer be eligible for in-state college tuition in Arizona, the state Supreme Court unanimously ruled last week, sparking the ire of those advocating on behalf of the so-called Dreamer community, including some local Jewish nonprofits.

There’s no doubt that the declaration of the State of Israel on May 14, 1948, was both joyous and frightening for the Valley’s Jewish community. A day after Israel’s future and first prime minister, David Ben-Gurion, declared the establishment of the Jewish state, Egypt, Syria, Transjordan and Iraq attacked the fledgling nation.

Yityish Aynaw’s life reads like a modern fairy tale, full of early tragedy, a great journey and even a happily ever after. Born in northwest Ethiopia near the city of Gondar, her father died when she was 2 during the long war with Eritrea.

Violins of Hope Phoenix, a project of the Jewish Federation of Greater Phoenix, was recently awarded a grant from the Newton and Betty Rosenzweig Fund for the Arts through the Arizona Community Foundation. The Violins of Hope project showcases instruments used by Jewish musicians during the Holocaust, with concerts and exhibitions around the world. It will come to Phoenix in 2019.

On April 18, 1978, former President Jimmy Carter recognized the first Education and Sharing Day, USA.

In honor of Yom Hashoah, the day in which the 6 million Jewish people who died in the Holocaust are remembered, a special multimedia event will take place at Temple Beth Shalom in Sun City.

When Passover begins on Friday at sundown, students attending Arizona State University will be able to enjoy kosher foods such as matzah and (assuming they are 21) wine.

Arizona Gives Day offers every Arizonan the opportunity to be a friend and donate to our state’s nonprofit community. Organized by the Alliance of Arizona Nonprofits and Arizona Grantmakers Forum, the event was first held in 2013 and has raised more than $10.14 million since then, with almost $3 million raised during the last Arizona Gives Day alone. This year the event will take place on April 3.

Maddie Schur is tired.

At a shopping center near Baseline Road and Val Vista Drive on March 5, Gilbert police gathered in front of a memorial honoring their dead compatriot, Lt. Eric Shuhandler. This year marks the eighth anniversary of Shuhandler’s murder during a traffic stop. The Jewish police officer is survived by two daughters, Meredith and Nicole.

Many college students enjoy joining fraternities and doing everything that it entails — volunteer work, fundraising, even a fair bit of partying. But there are limits, which the Alpha Sigma chapter of the Jewish Alpha Epsilon Pi fraternity at Arizona State University (ASU) learned the hard way.

“The land of Israel was the birthplace of the Jewish people.”

Carol Consalvo was destined to be an advocate for the public.

Sherman Minkoff, co-founder of the Jewish Genetics Center of Greater Phoenix, died March 7 at the age of 82.