Donald H. Harrison

Donald H. Harrison

Donald H. Harrison is the publisher and editor of San Diego Jewish World. 

Harrison began his journalism career in 1962 on the UCLA Daily Bruin.  Following graduation he joined the staff of the Associated Press, and later became politics writer for The San Diego Union.  Afterwards he pursued a career in tourism, helping to establish San Diego’s Cruise Ship Program as well as Old Town Trolley Tours of San Diego.  He also wrote for such Jewish publications as the San Diego Jewish Press Heritage and San Diego Jewish Times before starting San Diego Jewish World in 2007.

Don’s  latest work is the three-volume Schlepping and Schmoozing Along the Interstate 5.  

He is the author of six previous books.  Those with links may be obtained on Amazon.

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Jewish Nuggets on MS Koningsdam Cruise from San Diego

One notices almost immediately after boarding this cruise ship that it is musically themed. There are show rooms named for such musicians as B.B. King and The Rolling Stones.  Four decks are named after composers Mozart, Beethoven, Schubert, and Gershwin.  On the most forward of three elevator landings on Deck 5, there is an autographed photo of its namesake Jewish composer, who is well known for “An American in Paris” and “Porgy and Bess.” On the landing for the aft elevator, there is a cassette tape encased in a blue background – a physical interpretation, is it not?—of Gershwin’s celebrated “Rhapsody in Blue.” [Donald H. Harrison]

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Donald H. Harrison, International, Travel and Food

Chabad Opens Kosher Market in Lafayette

So, about two months ago, Rabbi Labkowski and his wife Tzipora opened Bay Kosher in the front part of the building that also houses their shul, Chabad of Lamorinda.  He engaged Mendel Schiffer, a native of Akko, Israel, to manage the store for him.  Schiffer, who didn’t care for retirement, had been in sales most of his life, and yearned for something new to do. [Donald H. Harrison]

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Business & Finance, California, Donald H. Harrison, Jewish Religion, Travel and Food

Postwar Encounters with the Holocaust

My friend Susan Ferraro, who lives in a rural part of Northern California. tells me that since about the age of 7, she had fantasized about becoming a Jew. It started, she said, when she read Anne Frank: Diary of a Young Girl. As children often do, she imagined herself invulnerable; death being something that unfortunately happened to other people. If she had been born Jewish, and living at that time, she could have prevented those Nazis from hurting Anne and her family and those hidden with them in the secret annex. [Donald H. Harrison]

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California, Donald H. Harrison, Holocaust, Jewish History, Music, Dance, and Visual Arts

San Francisco Rabbis Protested WWII Japanese-American Incarceration

San Francisco State historian Marc Dollinger said only one Jewish group – the Reform rabbis of San Francisco – publicly objected to the incarceration of Japanese-Americans during World War II.  The rest of the organized Jewish community acquiesced to the imprisonment of these innocent American citizens, Dollinger said during the 18th annual Mimi Epstein Memorial Lecture at Temple Isaiah on Sunday, Dec. 4, here. [Donald H. Harrison]

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California, Donald H. Harrison, International, Jewish History, San Diego County, Science, Medicine, & Education

The Sassoons: The Rothschilds of the East

This family biography traces the Sassoon family from its 19th century roots in Baghdad and its migration to Bombay, where it developed into an important merchant family specializing in such commodities as opium, textiles, and oil.  The family also had banking operations in various cities, real estate holdings in China and other parts of Asia, and an international customer base centered on England. [Donald H. Harrison]

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Books, Poetry & Short Stories, Business & Finance, Donald H. Harrison, International, Middle East

Novel Built upon Delicate Sexual Issues

Here is a novel by a Jewish author that is built upon a male and female character who each suffer from a form of sexual dysfunction.  Rebecca had been unable to achieve orgasm in lovemaking, and Kyle was forced, against his will, into a long-term sexual relationship by Jane, a powerful publisher of a popular fashion magazine who controlled his and many other people’s livelihoods. [Donald H. Harrison]

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Books, Poetry & Short Stories, Donald H. Harrison

‘Goldene Medina’ Exhibit Provides Anecdotal History of South African Jewry

SAJAC President Pamela Nathan said the exhibit was created by the South African Jewish Museum which is located in the Museum Mile of Central Cape Town.  She said she hopes that American-born visitors to the exhibit “will get a slice of South African Jewish life.”  For members of San Diego’s sizeable South African Jewish community, “it is nostalgic because we grew up in it, but I am hoping that the children will be here because it is their heritage, their history.  When I make calls, I say ‘bring the kids, bring the kids.’” [Donald H. Harrison]

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California, Donald H. Harrison, International, San Diego County, Science, Medicine, & Education, Travel and Food, USA