Articles written by Marilyn Shapiro
Sorted by date Results 1 - 25 of 51
By 
Reliving an old memory
In today's crazy world, it is hard to find things for which to be thankful. So I have been trying to find gratitude in the small things: a FaceTime with my children and grandchildren; a good cup of...
Documentary film 'Eva's Promise' debuts on TV in 2024
On a train to Auschwitz, 15-year-old Eva made a promise to her brother, Heinz Geiringer. If he did not survive the camps, Eva promised to retrieve the paintings and poetry Heinz hid under the...
I am enough
Every year since 2015, my husband, Larry, and I have spent six weeks in Frisco, Colorado, a beautiful mountain town nestled in the Rockies. Our rented condo is a two-minute walk to my daughter,...
Just because it's about baking challah doesn't make it a cookbook
As Jews around the world herald in the Hebrew Year 5784, I am celebrating Rosh Hashanah with the release of my fourth book, "Keep Calm and Bake Challah: How I Survived the Pandemic, Politics,...
A Holocaust survivor revisits his past
Standing in front of the Bielefeld, Germany, railroad station in June 2018, Harry Lowenstein traced his fingers over the all-too-familiar names etched into the Holocaust memorial: His father, David. H...
The road less traveled throughout history
As I write this, I am at 9100 feet in Summit County, Colorado, spending time with my daughter Julie and my granddaughter, The Mountain Girl, while my son-in-law Sam is away on a once-in-a-lifetime...
What goes around eventually comes around
Recently, the University of Southern California renamed the school track and field Allyson Felix Field in honor of the USC alumna and its illustrious 11-time Olympic medalist. Most media sources did not include in its coverage the previous name of th...
We need more Davids to fight the Goliaths of antisemitism
In 2021, ADL reported 2717 antisemitic incidents throughout the United States, a 34 percent increase over 2020. The recent mass shooting in Highland Park, Buffalo, Colorado Springs, and Virginia, are deplorable testimonies to the level of hate in...
Memorial Scrolls Trust loans out Torahs around the world
They escaped destruction by the Nazis, survived communism, and found their ways to new homes. This is a story of three Torahs that all have their roots in long-gone Czechoslovakian synagogues. Up...
Jewish singer brings 'lost' popular, historic music to the Fringe
My mother loved Judy Garland and Deanna Durbin. She would have loved Melanie Gall. My husband, Larry, and I first became acquainted with Melanie Gall, a Canadian chanteuse, in 2019, through our friend...
Sharing a family legacy in a new book
“Fradel’s Story,” my third book since 2016, is especially sweet as it was co-written with my mother, Frances Cohen. Ever since I could remember, my mother was the family storyteller. Give her an...
A hallmark Chanukah
Even though the pandemic has altered our world, my husband Larry and I will still maintain many of our traditions this Chanukah. Eating potato pancakes with applesauce. Lighting candles each night. “Betting” on which candle lasts the longest....
Holocaust survivor Albert Kitmacher and his five miracles
So much has been written about the Holocaust. But have we really learned from the past? Millions of words later, we are facing a terrifying upswing in anti-Semitism. What can we do? We can keep...
Victoria has a secret during the pandemic
She is NOT wearing an underwire. And so are many other women. Yes, we have expunged our Exquisite Forms, ousted our Olgas and wiped out our Warners. Instead, we have traded our confining, pokey...
Why I am not voting for Donald Trump
This article is in response to “Donald Trump: Social Justice President” (Rabbi Sanford Olshansky, Heritage, Aug. 28, 2020). The High Holy Days will be very different this year for all of us. Rather than meeting fellow congregants in our...
Abbott's chocolate almond ice cream - and don't skimp on the almonds!
How will I celebrate a milestone birthday during the pandemic? That hoped-for week away with my family is out. A party at my home is out. Heck, my husband, Larry, and I can't even head to my favorite...
A bolt out of the blue
When I was six years old, I loved summer storms. As the sky turned dark, the thunder clapped, and the lighting shot across the sky, I would watch from the safety of our living room window. My mother...
I finally 'get it' - I'm sorry I'm late
In 1994, I attended, along with a number of my colleagues from the Capital District Educational Opportunity Center, an Office of Special Programs conference in downstate New York. After the opening night’s dinner, I wandered over to the venders...
My Top Ten list to get through this pandemic
Some day-hopefully in the near future-the COVID-19 pandemic will be behind us. Medical interventions to those infected will alleviate the pain, suffering, and deaths. A vaccine may be developed...
The personal impact of the corona virus
As we tread carefully through the fourth month of the corona virus pandemic, the emotional and physical devastation this plague has caused is felt acutely by so many. As our days of sheltering at home continue, it has become much more real, much mor...
May the coronavirus passover us all
Biblical Irony: Passover seder may be delayed by the plague. Facebook meme One of Judaism’s most important holidays officially begins with the first seder on April 8. Pesach in the time of coronavirus, however, will be very different. During these...
Purim-a time to be drunk on happiness
By Marilyn Shapiro Purim is around the corner, and not far behind are costumes and dancing and Purim shpiels and groggers and hamantashen. And, for some, alcohol. According to the Talmud, it is one's...
Waking up the children... and us!
I do believe we woke up the children. You think the Flower Children of the 1960s were revolutionary? Just wait! Full confession. Outside of wearing bell-bottom pants and trying marijuana once, I was not a flower child. My first vote for a president...
Remembering Mr. Rogers
The murder of eleven Jews while they were observing Shabbat occurred in the heart of Mister Rogers's Neighborhood. The Reverend Fred Rogers and his wife Joanne owned a home and raised their two sons i...
All I want for Chanukah is a new IPhone
According to Adobe Analytics, Cyber Monday 2018 generated over $7.9 billion in sales, with one of the top sellers spent on smart phones. I will be one of those in the market. My iPhone 7, approaching its third year, is losing battery power. And,...
