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Following Shabbat in late February, roughly 4,000 Jewish teenagers from across the country and around the globe gathered in Times Square, the heart of New York City, for CTeen’s “Meant2B” event. The annual international Shabbaton and celebration of Jewish pride saw teens jumping, dancing, si…
Healthy minds and bodies are important but even more so as we age. Being mentally and physically healthy leads to a better outlook on life. If we don’t take the time for self-care and focus on our overall well-being, depression can set in. When this happens, we lose our drive and motivation …
The nostalgia of summer camp has been close to my heart lately. I’ve been filled with gratitude for parents who had the means to send me and saw the value of the camp experience in molding my character. If you have never been to camp as a kid, the good news for adults of all ages is it’s not…
In 2020, JScreen, a national non-profit public health initiative dedicated to preventing genetic diseases, initiated the first annual Jewish Genetic Screening Awareness Week (JGSAW). This year, JGSAW is Feb. 5-11.
Over the course of a 29-year career as an OB-GYN, one horrific delivery still haunts Dr. Tracy Contant.
Shira Shecter knew she would only go to a college with a Hillel on campus. It was her biggest dealbreaker. She regularly attends her synagogue outside of Seattle and wouldn’t risk losing her connection to Jewish community — no matter where she ended up.
Fitness is one of Ruth Dryjanski’s priorities in life. It’s so essential, in fact, that she schedules all of her appointments, even those for radiation therapy, around her fitness classes. A few months ago, she was diagnosed with breast cancer but it didn’t dissuade her from fitness — quite …
Everyone has BRCA1 and BRCA2 genes, but only some have mutations in those genes. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, about 1 in every 500 women in the United States has a mutation in either her BRCA1 or BRCA2 gene. About 50 out of 100 women with a BRCA gene mutation …
On July 25, a new website launched to unite all of Phoenix’s Jewish voices in one cohesive space. JewishPhoenix.com is a site where visitors can easily connect to community organizations, find upcoming events, discover volunteer opportunities, enjoy lifestyle content and much more.
Jennifer Brauner is Jewish Family and Children’s Service (JFCS) site director for the Center for Senior Enrichment (CSE) and the new director of its Creative Aging program. “Creative Aging” is a national movement aimed at “fostering an understanding of the vital relationship between creative…
Devorah Medwin has always been intrigued by topics deemed taboo.
Dr. Robert Ziltzer, 58, could have spent his entire medical career running his successful primary care practice in Scottsdale. It was his plan when he went to medical school in New York, where he was also born and bar mitzvahed. He even stayed in school an extra year in order to become board…
Emery Kutz knows all too well how food can bring people together---and keep them apart.
Five-year-old Levi Miller has been asking to go to the Children’s Museum of Phoenix for a year.
Rabbi Moshe and Sashie Levertov were directing the Aleph-Bet Preschool & Kindergarten in Phoenix and raising their four kids, all between age 8 months and 6 years, when Sashie was diagnosed with leukemia at age 27 in January 2012.
There’s no good time during Phoenix’s hot summer to train for a cycling event.
Valen Krasnov, like many other 3-year-old boys, loves playing sports with his dad, pushing his dump trucks and helping to set the table. But unlike most other 3-year-olds, he recently underwent a liver transplant.
As the Jewish High Holidays near, we begin to take the time to reflect, recharge and renew ourselves for the year to come. Last year, Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur, for many of us, were observed at home as the pandemic prevented us from being in-person at our congregations. We experienced a d…
Being a brand-new mom who has spent most of her mom-life quarantined with a new baby, my daily routine has been about as smooth as my son’s sleeping schedule. Keeping the stress down to healthy levels is hard enough without a pandemic. With the High Holidays just around the corner, I can fee…
Holiday time is no stranger to stress. The anticipation of seeing friends and loved ones in person again, preparing traditional meals and keeping the strength up to last through lengthy services can create some anxiety. As a seasoned rebbitzin and nationally-certified Pilates teacher I have …
Hospitalizations for COVID-19 patients are once again on the rise, but this time, it feels different.
Dr. Jordan Karp, a geriatric psychiatrist, has spent his career trying to improve care for older people with major depression and mood disorders, especially those facing resistant depression. And he loves his job, or rather, jobs.
"Bet El synagogue Casablanca -torah scrolls" by dlisbona is licensed under CC BY 2.0
The leadership team at Temple Beth Sholom of the East Valley began planning High Holiday services in May.
Two weeks ago, on July 18, our 85-year-old father began having weakness that completely sapped him of his energy — he could barely move. Less than 24 hours later, we called 911 as his weakness led to a fall. We thought this all could be connected to a cardiac issue. He had a complete work-up…
Chloe Breger, a seventh-grade science and social studies teacher in the Glendale Elementary District, is eager to get back to the classroom next month.
Connie Wolf, 76, swam competitively in high school. When she moved to Arizona 24 years ago, swimming became her go-to exercise, one she could do year-round in the desert. She would often be found in Martin Pear Jewish Community Center’s pool in Scottsdale. But as she got older, she swam less.
Ten minutes before a virtual tour of the Musical Instrument Museum was to begin in The Palazzo’s Cinema Room, it seemed like the regular seating capacity of 28 chairs would be enough.
Joy Kerman spent 2020 in transition. The time had come for her to make a choice: Would she continue living on her own or move into a senior living community?
It was around 2007 when Rabbi Zalman Levertov, head of Chabad of Arizona, realized he had made a mistake.
Andrea Barth knows it’s summer when she feels hot in parts of her body she didn’t even know could register heat.
This article originally appeared on The Nosher.
“In A Different Key,” a documentary that tells the stories of various people on the autism spectrum, will debut in Arizona at the Sedona International Film Festival on June 15.
What do former Arizona Governor Rose Mofford, actor Gary Coleman, writer Kurt Vonnegut and songwriter Leonard Cohen all have in common? Sadly, they all died from a fall.
During the pandemic, we have collectively increased awareness of what the experts in their fields had on their radar all along. The epidemiologists were predicting this pandemic. Public health experts have been bracing for problems caused by underfunded infrastructure. And health care expert…
Tucked between a dance school and a 60’s retro lounge on a quiet street in Tucson, sits a small Middle Eastern and African foods store. But Al Basha Grocery isn’t just a place to get kosher meats and hard-to-find ingredients.
By the time Neal Bendesky had his bar mitzvah, he knew that as much as he loved sports, he was better suited to sports management than as an athlete on the field of play. And while that saved him from the injuries prone to athletes, decades of working in a high-profile career in marketing an…
It’s a busy day in the emergency room when an elderly lady with advanced dementia and pneumonia is wheeled in by ambulance. She is at death’s door. I introduce myself to her two daughters as the emergency physician and notify them of their mother’s critical condition.
Josh Liber thought he knew everything about horses. They have been a big part of his life since he was 8 years old, when he dreamed of being a cowboy. He took riding lessons, competed in rodeos and moved to Kentucky to immerse himself in the world of horse racing.
Ian and Alexa Sachs with their new twin son and daughter and dog.
To speak about infertility is taboo. It always has been and probably always will be. This is why we are sharing our experience.
Six-year-old “A” (name withheld upon request) was growing up plagued with anxiety. Living in a community in central Israel, his mother “S” told JNS that her now ex-husband, the boy’s father, was both physically and mentally abusive towards his son.
Lani Harrison of Scottsdale is risk averse when it comes to her kids. But when she learned Moderna would be starting a trial for a children’s vaccine against COVID-19 in Phoenix, she didn’t hesitate to try and enroll her children, ages 8, 6 and 4.
Eva Markowitz, 11, hugged her grandparents for the first time in over a year the week before Passover.
As a career nomad I have had the joy of experiencing life from coast to coast. Each new job brought me to a new community in which to live and work. For some, the idea of making numerous cross-country moves over the span of five decades would be a frightening proposition. For me, it was the …
As the saying goes, “Aging isn’t for the faint of heart,” and fitness is how we make sure that our heart, and the rest of our body, stays strong. The list of fitness options is endless. The key is to find what you enjoy and keep moving.
With vaccines opening up to more people across the state, there is a sense that the end of the pandemic might finally be in sight. While health care professionals promote vaccines as the quickest way to achieve that end, they warn against declaring victory too soon.
As increasing numbers of people get vaccinated, pre-pandemic behavior is becoming more common. Still, Passover will be challenging for some this year, whether because they haven’t been vaccinated, they’re unable to travel or they’ll be separated from family and friends.
Next week I will make brisket and charoset and set the table with fine china. But this Passover will be very different than any other. It will mark the first that my mom, Thelma Kurzweil, will not be at my seder.
