It’s that time of year again … graduation, and we love to hear from our readers. We get the season rolling with a couple of Top 10 graduates from J.J. Pearce, who will “walk the stage” on Sunday, May 29, with their classmates. Send your high school, college, med school, law school, business school (you get the picture) graduate news to sharon@tjpnews.com; we will be publishing them over the next few weeks.

JJ Pearce Top 10 grads: Samuel Mandell and Lily Garfield

Samuel Mandell, son of Susan Cohen Mandell, and Lily Garfield, daughter of Karen and Glenn Garfield, were honored by RISD last week as top 10 graduates at Pearce.

Samuel will graduate Number 3 on Sunday. Samuel is a National Merit Commended scholar. He was a member of the band, drumline front ensemble captain, varsity tennis captain, SOS lifeguard and National Honor Society member. He has finished the requirements for Eagle Scout and will soon have his court of honor. When he heads to UT Austin, Samuel will be in the new Texas Honors Electrical and Computer Engineering and Business degree (Texas ECB) program. He will be part of two honor programs: the Cockrell School’s Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering (ECE) and McCombs School’s Canfield Business Honors Program (CBHP). 

Lily Garfield will graduate Number 10 when J.J. Pearce holds commencement Sunday. Lily played volleyball throughout high school, is a member of National Honor Society and an SOS Lifeguard and is a member of J.J. Pearce Best Buddies. She is also a counselor at Camp Impact and a frequent blood and platelet donor for Carter Blood Care. Lily will attend the University of Cincinnati, where she will pursue a degree in nursing.

Hannah Roberts graduates from Texas Tech

Hannah Elaine Roberts graduated from Texas Tech University in Lubbock, from the School of Human Sciences, on Saturday, May 14. Hannah is the daughter of Gwen and Ron Roberts and sister of Chloe.

Hannah earned a Bachelor of Science in Retail Management with concentrations in Store Management and Corporate Research and a minor in General Business.

Hannah is a member of Alpha Xi Delta Sorority and worked at Pandora while attending classes. Hannah will start graduate school in the fall at Texas Tech.

Hannah attended Congregation Beth Torah Preschool and completed Learning Center by 10th grade.

We love to hear all about your graduate’s accomplishments! Send your graduation news to sharon@tjpnews.com for inclusion in an upcoming issue.

Temple Shalom Cornhole Bowl Tournament

Temple Shalom will host its first Cornhole Bowl Tournament and festival from noon to 6 p.m. Sunday, May 29, at the synagogue, 6930 Alpha Road in Dallas. 

The event includes cornhole and other competitions, food and family fun for all with bounce houses, arts and crafts and a special emphasis on supporting and honoring veterans. The 2022 Cornhole Bowl will benefit Temple Shalom and Homes For Our Troops. Teams of two can register online at www.cornholebowl.org now through May 25. A registration fee of $30 includes tournament entry for a team of two, plus admission and $4 food/drink/activity tickets. 

“We wanted to create a fun, family-friendly event where everyone could play and anyone could win,” said Dennis Eichelbaum, Cornhole Bowl chair and president-elect of Temple Shalom. “Our planning began in 2021 when we weren’t sure what the COVID-19 situation would be. When we decided on an outdoor festival, hosting a cornhole tournament was really a no-brainer.” Apparently, participants are having a lot of fun with it. Prizes of up to $300 are at stake for this amateur tournament.

As with all fundraising events at Temple Shalom, the committee was tasked to bring on board another nonprofit as a beneficiary. The committee selected Homes For Our Troops, whose mission is to build and donate specially adapted custom homes for severely injured post-9/11 veterans, to enable them to rebuild their lives.

“What drew us to Homes For Our Troops was our ability to designate funds for local veterans whose homes are being built in the DFW area,” Eichelbaum said. Three of the four local Homes For Our Troops recipients are planning to attend the Cornhole Bowl with their families, and everyone attending will have the opportunity to meet them and hear their stories. A special Veterans Breakfast, sponsored by Legacy West and Starship Bagels, will kick off the festivities. 

“Any veteran or active military member and his or her immediate family are invited to the breakfast as our guest, and will receive complimentary admission to the festival so long as they RSVP in advance on CornholeBowl.org,” Eichelbaum added. 

To register a cornhole team or RSVP as a veteran or active military member to receive complimentary admission, visit www.Cornholebowl.org. To learn more about Homes For Our Troops and the local veterans participating in their program, visit www.HFOTUSA.org.

The Veterans Breakfast starts at 11 a.m. (RSVP required). Cornhole warm-ups are at noon, and the tournament commences at 12:30 p.m. Cash prizes and trophies will be awarded at the end of the tournaments.

—Submitted by
Lisa Rothberg