Speakers Bureau Speaker
Risa Mallin, Phoenix
Risa Mallin has been an active member of the community as a volunteer and professional. Receiving a degree in Education from Denver University, and pursuing graduate study at Yad V’Shem in Jerusalem, Mallin has taught classes on the Holocaust and founded the Phoenix Holocaust Survivors Association. Mallin has received honors for her volunteer work. She has authored "Jews of Arizona" in Encyclopedia Judaica, edited a book of stories, and has be a guest speaker for national organizations. She recently retired as Executive Director of the Arizona Jewish Historical Society.
Presentations are suitable for high school as well as adult audiences.
Bold, Brave and Beautiful: Jewish Women Who Helped Build the West
Discover the role Jewish women played in the development of Arizona’s history. This presentation discusses the contributions of important and influential figures such as Rosa Drachman; Anna Solomon, who ran the hotel and company store near Bisbee; Josephine Marcus Earp, who was married to Wyatt Earp; and Freeda Marks, whose life was dedicated to the women’s suffrage movement in Arizona.
Lure of the West: Arizona’s Jewish Pioneers
This illustrated presentation gives the audience an overview of the important role several Jewish families have played in the development of Arizona’s business community and political history over the past 150 years. It also discusses the contributions of several families who were lured to the West because of the opportunities and the climate, including Phillip and Rosa Drachman, who worked in education in Tucson; Isaac and Anna Solomon, who worked in mining and banking in southeastern Arizona; Baron and Morris Goldwater, who worked in commerce in Prescott and Phoenix; David and Freeda Marks, who worked in Arizona State legislation issues; Aubrey Grouskey, who worked in Arizona’s cattle industry; and Allen and Rose Rosenberg, who worked in philanthropy in Phoenix. Other important figures can be added to the presentation depending on the audience.
