San Diego County

Proud of the U.S. and local response to migrant children

I’m so proud of President Joe Biden, Vice President Kamala Harris, Cabinet Secretaries Alejandro Mayorkas and Xavier Becerra, San Diego County Supervisor Nathan Fletcher, our city’s Mayor Todd Gloria, the folks at Jewish Family Service, and San Diego Jewish World’s own contributor Mimi Pollack. [Donald H. Harrison]

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Donald H. Harrison, International, Jewish History, Mimi Pollack, San Diego County, USA

Virtual March of the Living Set for April 8

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the March of the Living will be hosting multiple virtual events and programs to commemorate Yom HaShoah- Holocaust Remembrance Day. View the promo video https://youtu.be/akdIQv9M9dk  to learn more about this year’s theme and how we will be place memorial plaques on the train tracks leading into Auschwitz-Birkenau. [March of the Living news release]

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International, Jewish History, Marcia Tatz Wollner, San Diego County, USA

Jewish community responds to Boulder, Atlanta shootings

The Jewish Community Center in Boulder,  Colorado, is actively participating in the healing of that city in the wake of a gunman opening fire on Monday, March 22, at the Table Mesa King Soopers supermarket and killing 10 people ranging in age from 20 to 65, including Police Officer Eric Talley, 51, who tried to quell the disturbance. [Donald H. Harrison]

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Donald H. Harrison, San Diego County, USA

Migrant Minors to be Housed at SD Convention Center

City and county officials announced Monday that the San Diego Convention Center will be used for three months to temporarily house unaccompanied immigrant minors amid a surge along the border. At the same time, local nonprofit organizations have stepped up to house families and individual adults in hotel rooms. [Chris Jennewein]

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Chris Jennewein, International, San Diego County, USA

Gardens, cacti and a ring grab poets’ attention

By Eileen Wingard LA JOLLA, California — The “Jewish Poets—Jewish Voices” program featured a stellar line-up of poets for its Tuesday, March 16 program, attracting over 100 virtual audience members. The attendees were well-rewarded with the high caliber of poetry, beautifully delivered by local poets Annette Friend, Jen Laffler and Susan L. Lipson. A sample

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Books, Poetry & Short Stories, Eileen Wingard, San Diego County

Obituaries provide much to learn and ponder

I often read the obituaries of people I have never met, and often find myself regretting that life hadn’t afforded me the opportunity to sit down with them and benefit from hearing their stories and life experiences.  In today’s San Diego Union-Tribune there were 4 ½ pages of paid obituaries, and many of them had an endearing fact or two about the deceased family member.  Below I pull brief quotes from 22 of them so you can see what I mean. If you’re like me, I bet you also would have enjoyed meeting each one of these remarkable people. [Donald H. Harrison]

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Donald H. Harrison, Lifestyles, Obituaries & memorials, San Diego County, Travel and Food

In San Diego, it was lox, bagel and ‘pi’ day

Initially, the event on Sunday, March 14, was advertised by the Tifereth Israel Synagogue Men’s Club as a lox and bagel brunch, during which members could gather by Zoom and discuss how the coronavirus pandemic affected them, and what they look most forward to when it is over.  Members were invited to drive to the synagogue’s parking lot, where a boxed lox n’ bagel meal would be waiting for them. As my wife Nancy had some errands to run in the neighborhood of the synagogue, she volunteered to pick up the boxed brunch.  Inside of the box were two individual fruit pies — one apple, another cherry — in addition to the advertised lox, bagels and cream cheese.   How come?  “It’s pi day,” explained Bram Rubinstein, a Men’s Club member. [Donald H. Harrison]

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Donald H. Harrison, Jewish History, Lifestyles, San Diego County, Science, Medicine, & Education, Travel and Food, USA

A most unusual bar mitzvah

I attended the bar mitzvah of a young man who recoils from compliments or recognition.  So I can’t say who he is, but I can tell you that his friends and relatives are shaking their heads in wonder.  The young man turned 14  just two days ago, on March 11.  But today it was if he were 13 again.  Or so it seemed, because today he finally had his bar mitzvah, which normally occurs when a boy turns 13. [Donald H. Harrison]

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Donald H. Harrison, Jewish Religion, Lifestyles, San Diego County

Antisemitic graffiti riles SDSU

Earlier this week, an unidentified resident advisor at South Campus Plaza North, a large dormitory serving hundreds of students at San Diego State University, found scrawled on the exterior of the building three swastikas and coded messages often associated with white supremacist philosophy.  She immediately got some poster board to cover the offensive messaging, and drew hearts upon the poster board along with the message “Spread Love.”  After campus police were called to the scene and photographs taken of the offending material as part of an ongoing investigation, the antisemitic message was eliminated. [Donald H. Harrison]

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