The LifeCyclist: Electronic invitations a growing trend, but many still want traditional paper keeps

My bat mitzvah invitation had bright purple embossed text on a hot pink card with my name enlarged in decorative script at the top and daisies adorning the bottom.

Twenty-plus years later, I remember eagerly waiting for my friends to receive the invitations and running home weeks later to check the mailbox for the return of the RSVP envelopes. Secured in a scrapbook, the invitation is a treasured memento.

Today, however, a rising trend in simcha invites may be changing the run to the mailbox into a dash for the email inbox and the card stock mementos into computer printouts.

No longer for holiday parties and happy hours only, electronic invitations are becoming an acceptable way for some to announce major life-cycle events, including b’nai mitzvah celebrations and weddings.

The LifeCyclist: Bar mitzvah honors late father’s wish, reflects son’s creativity

In his 2003 memoir “Lessons for Dylan,” Joel Siegel, the late film critic for ABC’s “Good Morning America,” asked that his young son someday sing the Shema prayer.

 “But, when you finish,” he wrote, “think about applauding on the inside.”

Siegel passed away in 2007 after a 10-year battle with cancer. Had he lived, he would have been applauding at the recent early Saturday evening service when his only child completed his nontraditional journey to becoming a bar mitzvah.

Survivors’ grandchildren feeling an obligation to share Holocaust memories

Grandchildren of Holocaust survivors -- often referred to as the Third Generation -- feel an obligation to share memories of the Shoah.

The bond that many in the Third Generation have with their grandparents has been noted by psychologists and researchers who have studied the effect of the Holocaust on families.

For many survivors, it was easier to share their experiences with their grandchildren than with their children.

Seder can be splendid the second time around

The first seder may last late into the night as the ancient story is told, the questions are asked and the blessings recited. But when it is over -- if you live outside of Israel -- many will have an encore the next night.

In ancient times, before the days of a set calendar, a second seder was added to the celebration of Passover to ensure that Jews living outside of Jerusalem would get the notice in time that the holiday had begun.

In the modern world there is hardly any doubt over what day of the week that Passover falls or when to begin celebrating holidays.

Then is it still necessary today to conduct a repeat performance of the first night?

Giving the gift of tikkun olam

If the thought of spending too much Chanukah gelt on lavish gifts for friends and loved ones seems a little dim this year, adding a little tikkun olam to the presents can give your Festival of Lights a memorable glow.

Ben & Jerry’s co-founder explains how to do well by doing good

A scoop of Ben & Jerry’s may taste like heaven, and for company co-founder Jerry Greenfield, the business of making ice cream has a spiritual side as well.

“There is a spiritual aspect to business, just as there is to people,” said Greenfield.

The ice cream company known for its colorful pint-size containers, funky flavors and creative marketing has implemented smart business practices that have advanced its bottom line as well as its do-good corporate culture.

Passing of Evelyn Lauder marked by Jewish activists against breast cancer

It’s hard to find a Jewish woman without a direct connection to breast cancer. With nearly one in 40 women of Ashkenazi descent possessing a genetic mutation that greatly increases their chances of contracting the disease, breast cancer, like Tay-Sachs and Gaucher’s, is a disproportionately Jewish disease.

So it’s little surprise that the passing this weekend of Evelyn Lauder, the refugee from Nazi-occupied Europe credited with inventing the pink ribbon -- the global symbol of breast cancer awareness -- took on a special Jewish significance.