By Rivy Poupko Kletenik, JTNews Columnist Dear Rivy, I think that Purim should be a time to educate people about the strength of Jewish women. But the day has a life of its own. It is a high-speed kind of an experience packed with a dizzying amount of activities; lotsContinue Reading
By Diana Brement, JTNews Columnist It happened, as these things often do, at a conference. “It,” being Boundaries of Jewish Identity (University of Washington Press), a new collection of essays on Jewish identity edited by UW Professors Susan Glenn, the Howard and Frances Keller Endowed Professor in History, and NaomiContinue Reading
By Diana Brement, JTNews Columnist It’s become harder and harder to be a physician in private practice these days, especially in primary care, as Dr. Mindy Blaski can attest. We chatted on the phone last month about her recent retirement. It wasn’t just about the challenges of the current health-careContinue Reading
By Rivy Poupko Kletenik, JTNews Columnist Dear Rivy, Are Chinese mothers elbowing out Jewish mothers in the “super-crazed, ambitious, drive-your-child” department? How did we let this happen? I thought that Jewish mothers were firmly planted in the top slot of wild parental determination. Are we sliding? Do you think JewishContinue Reading
By Diana Brement, JTNews Columnist I called Tzachi Litov just to get a comment or two on a seminar he attended in November. My simple inquiry about how he got into his current job led me to the story of his interesting, yet somewhat circuitous career, which I will shareContinue Reading
By Rivy Poupko Kletenik, JTNews Columnist Dear Rivy, The good news is that we are well past our frantic winter gift-giving, overeating holiday. The bad news is that the challenge of this year’s calendar is about to begin: What to do with the end of December? I know intellectually thatContinue Reading
By Diana Brement, JTNews Columnist Albert Feldmann approached me a few months ago with some news we don’t often hear in these economic times. He wanted me to know — and to let you, dear reader, know — that our local Hebrew Free Loan Association has money! An engineer byContinue Reading
By Diana Brement, JTNews Columnist 1 When Lauren Mayo left Seattle for the Young Judaea Year Course in Israel, the Ballard High School grad probably didn’t realize that she’d get to participate in an historic event. On Oct. 28, Lauren joined the first Susan G. Komen Race for the CureContinue Reading
By Rivy Poupko Kletenik, JTNews Columnist Dear Rivy, A friend of mine is going through a lot since being diagnosed with a serious illness. She and I have had a number of conversations about life and its messiness. I try, but I keep feeling there must be more that IContinue Reading
By Diana Brement, JTNews Columnist There’s little that’s more entertaining than talking to David Volk, unless it’s reading something he’s written. Now David brings his brand of humor to his new book, The Cheap Bastard’s Guide to Seattle, part of a travel series from Globe Pequot Press. David hopes readersContinue Reading
By Diana Brement, JTNews Columnist When Ellen Lettvin took the newly created post of vice president of science and education at Seattle’s Pacific Science Center almost two years ago, she made what looked like a sudden departure from a career in academic research to one in education. The truth is,Continue Reading
By Rivy Poupko Kletenik, JTNews Columnist Dear Rivy, Now that the season has ended sadly, I believe the time has come for some words of wisdom for our “Mad Men” provocateurs. As I, like many a viewer, have voyeuristically tuned in to witness the various foibles of our favorite diabolicalContinue Reading
By Diana Brement, JTNews Columnist One of the many recent revolutions in publishing is the readily available, relatively inexpensive ability to produce books through Internet publishing companies. I could argue both for and against this trend. In this case I err on the side of good because now family eldersContinue Reading
By Diana Brement, JTNews Columnist Seattle-area rabbi Rick Harkavy is one of the founding members of a new organization that supports a non-partisan and centrist approach to discussions about Israel. Originally called Rabbis for Israel, the organization has adopted the new, more inclusive name of We Are For Israel. ItContinue Reading
By Diana Brement, JTNews Columnist 1 Few parents are likely to be as grateful as those whose children have survived serious illness. Sara Flash is one of those survivors — of non-Hodgkin lymphoma — much to the relief of her parents, Ed and Rabbi Allison Flash, her brothers, Adam andContinue Reading
By Rivy Poupko Kletenik, JTNews Columnist Dear Rivy, As I prepare to celebrate the holiday of Sukkot I have been exploring the various customs, and I’ve become intrigued by the ritual of Ushpizin, the inviting of supernal beings as guests to the sukkah. From what I have read it soundsContinue Reading
By Diana Brement, JTNews Columnist When Noah Sarkowsky came home with a Seymour Kaplan Humanitarian Award from Seattle’s Coe Elementary School, he not only generated kudos from his family, but some curiosity as well. He pointed out to his parents, Stacy Lawson and Steve Sarkowsky, that his certificate was signedContinue Reading
By Diana Brement, JTNews Columnist The Bronfman Foundation has been sending small groups of select teens to spend a summer in Israel for 24 years now, and Mercer Island’s Madeline Brown was one of 26 North American young people to be selected for their five-week Youth Fellowship this summer. MadelineContinue Reading
By Rivy Poupko Kletenik, JTNews Columnist Dear Rivy, I am feeling less than thrilled about the High Holidays this year. First, they are really early — just two days after Labor Day. This only exacerbates my chronic challenge in connecting with the themes of repentance. It is hard for meContinue Reading
By Diana Brement, JTNews Columnist Editor’s note: This article has been corrected to note that Rose Yu is included among the Jewish riders. JTNews regrets the error. Along with 10,000 other bike riders and, I’m sure, a few dozen or more folks from our Jewish community, a group of ridersContinue Reading
