Judith Aarons died March 12 at 65. Survived by husband Michael; sons Brett (Lenka), Kelly; 4 grandchildren; father Allan Adler; sisters Edie Bogoff, Melony (Gary) Linza, Terry (Bill) Rogoway; brother Craig Adler. Mount Sinai
Preparing for a bar or bat mitzvah is hard work, involving years of intense study and the courage to lead an entire congregation in prayer. Organizing a party to celebrate this milestone — well, that’s no picnic either.
So you’re planning a bar or bat mitzvah? Mazel tov! You may feel overwhelmed by decisions and details. I certainly did when it was time for my son, Steven, to take part in the ritual this past December. I asked experienced parents for advice and promised to “pay it forward” once I became a seasoned veteran. Here is some of the wisdom I gleaned, along with issues you’ll need to consider.
With the summer travel season fast approaching, providers of Israel programs for teenagers are bracing themselves for what several say could be a season of historically low travel in a year unaffected by major security concerns.
Cotton caps in shades of pastel pink and sky blue are standard go-to gifts for a newborn baby. But for Steven and Jodi Zimelman, whose now-13-year-old daughter, Taylor, spent the first three months of her life in an incubator in Cedars-Sinai’s neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) at the Maxine Dunitz Children’s Health Center, one particular pink cap will remain an everlasting symbol of comfort and hope.
Every week, dozens of bar mitzvah boys from Israel and the Diaspora celebrate their rite of passage at the Kotel, also known as the Western Wall, which, after the Temple Mount, is Judaism’s holiest site.
Preparing for the complete bar or bat mitzvah experience — the ceremony, the food, the entertainment — can feel like a three-ring circus. So maybe it shouldn’t come as a surprise that carnivals are one of the hottest themes these days as kids prepare for the biggest party they’ve thrown in their 13 years on the planet.
When veteran social worker Debbie Fox’s name appeared in Australia’s Sydney Morning Herald on April 10, the story about her claimed she was doing the unthinkable: protecting a known abuser of children.
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