January 6, 2012

‘We’re here to make other people’s lives easier’

Julie Gruenbaum Fax January 6, 2012

Many people avert their eyes when they walk by the homeless. Hanne Mintz opens her hand, her heart and her home.

Cooking for AIDS patients Is chicken soup for grieving mom’s soul

Naomi Pfefferman January 6, 2012

Several days before Mollie Pier’s son, Nathaniel, died of complications from AIDS, she joined together with his doctors, Nathaniel and his longtime partner, Michael, as the couple exchanged rings and vows in his hospital room.

Secret to his happiness? Happy Minyan

Lauren Bottner January 6, 2012

Jonathan Boyer may be the Happy Minyan’s unsung hero, though he’s more than happy to sing the shul’s praises. The Shlomo Carlebach-inspired synagogue was launched some 17 years ago to answer the need for an aufruf for a friend of Boyer’s who was unaffiliated at the time.

Latching on to a healthy solution

Ryan E. Smith January 6, 2012

As a third-year pediatric resident at Children’s Hospital Los Angeles who works an average of 80 hours per week, Dr. Jonathan Goldfinger could use a break, you would think. Too bad there’s so much else that needs to be done — fighting obesity, lowering the risk of SIDS (sudden infant death syndrome) and reducing the rate of infection for babies, for example.