UPDATE: CROFTON ARRAIGNMENT ~ INDEPENDENCE DAY ISSUE June 25, 2026 | Tammuz 5786 New Mexico Jewish Journal

The person who on June 2, 2026 smashed Congregation Albert's front doors, setting off their gunshot alarm, and then 8 minutes later attacked the more resistant inner doors of the JCC with a wrecker's bar, after which he was pursued and sprayed by JCC security with a foam irritant, Rex Crofton was arrested by the APD with the FBI the next morning and has been continuously in official custody. Following the state magistrate judge's determination to release him to home detention on June 12, he was immediately re-arrested by federal officers in the building — he never left the building. At a detention hearing in federal court on June 16, where he was represented by a public defender, Crofton faces a charge of a hate crime against religious property, with a possible three-year sentence. Following testimony by the FBI agent and witnesses from the community, the federal judge determined that there was probable cause to hold him because he poses a danger to himself or others, and he will remain in federal custody pending further proceedings. An arraignment will take place this week. Details to follow.

Our Independence Day Issue opens with a deep look at how early American Jews — Sephardic and Ashkenazi alike — helped finance the Revolution, shape the Constitution, and establish the legal foundation for religious freedom in the United States — laying the groundwork for every wave of Jewish immigration that followed. By Carl Montoya, a former Foreign Service officer and federal official, and New Mexico native writing on Jewish history.

Jane Wishner has emerged as a core leader of the New Mexico Jewish community. Veteran reporter Ellen Marks tells us who she is, where she came from, and what she stands for, in our newest Spectrum profile of influential Jewish voices in New Mexico.

See the exuberant chaos of Goatchella, Congregation Albert's beloved annual goat landscaping festival captured in words and video by accomplished student journalists Austin Curtis, 18, and Tori De Anda, 20.

Rabbi Shefa Gold shares a story about an awkward moment in interfaith work, Cantor Barbara Finn takes us inside RACAA, the little-known organization that unites Albuquerque's rabbis and cantors across denominations in support of the entire Jewish community, and Howard Friedman introduces us to what may be the only synagogue in America with not one but two marathon-running rabbis.

Hats off to Bonnie Ellinger for her interview with Amir Tibon, who just won the $100,000 Sami Rohr prize, and to NMJJ for two new Rockowers, the "Jewish Pulitzers," in company with publications hundreds of times our size.

And links to earlier stories you may have missed, including an announcement about what happened to the proceeds from the sale of the David Specter Shalom House (a new story is coming soon on how that has unfolded). If viewing in newsletter, be sure to click "View in Browser" at the top to see the photos with the text :

America 250: Faith, Freedom, and Mikveh Israel — The “Synagogue of the American Revolution”

As America marks its 250th anniversary, Philadelphia takes center stage as birthplace of the Republic. Lost in that celebration: the early Sephardic Jews who helped finance the Revolution, shape the Constitution, and lay the foundation for religious freedom.

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That’s the Tradition: Jane Wishner on Conflict, Community, and the Jewish Future

Jane Wishner has emerged as a core leader of the New Mexico Jewish community. Veteran reporter Ellen Marks tells us who she is, where she came from, and what she stands for, in our newest Spectrum profile of influential Jewish voices in New Mexico.

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Release the Goats: How a Landscaping Fix Became Goatchella

By Austin Curtis Visuals by Tori De Anda and Diane Joy Schmidt Release the goats! When the rambunctious two-horned creatures rolled out of the truck, they did not exactly make a quiet entrance. One after another, the energetic goats sprung into the enclosed back lot at Congregation Albert, where

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Love, Anyway

I love to sing. I had wanted to join the Community Chorus, but at the first rehearsal I innocently asked, “Are we only singing Christmas music?” The choir director proudly said YES.

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Amir Tibon Wins Prestigious Sami Rohr Prize for 2025

Amir Tibon, author of the The Gates of Gaza: A Story of Betrayal, Survival, and Hope in Israel’s Borderlands, has won the $100,000 2025 non-fiction Sami Rohr award for outstanding work by an emerging writer. Here is an interview with Tibon conducted by Bonnie Ellinger and article.

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Inside RACAA: How Albuquerque’s Rabbis and Cantors Support Each Other and the Community

Often RACAA has been asked to advise on Jewish community issues. Members include Reform, Conservative, Reconstructionist, and Renewal. RACAA, as a group and individually supports the Jewish community, officiating at life cycle events and providing guidance on Jewish issues.

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Albuquerque’s Running Rabbis

By Howard Friedman Who would have thought that Albuquerque and Congregation Albert have the unique distinction of having not one but two rabbis who run marathons. They are Rabbi Celia Surget and Rabbi Micah Citrin. After a Google search, they appear to be the only two rabbis at a single

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NM Jewish Journal Wins Two Rockower Awards for 2026, including a First Place

For the 2nd year in a row, the New Mexico Jewish Journal, founded in 2024 and the new kid on the block, has won 2 Rockower Awards. NMJJ has .5% of the circulation and revenue of the publications it competes with. The awards are presented to major Jewish media across North America — and to NMJJ.

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A Message to the Albuquerque Jewish Community about the David Spector Shalom House

An in-depth article will follow exploring the carefully considered decision to sell Shalom House, which will continue as affordable senior housing for its current residents, and how proceeds will be invested back into the Albuquerque Jewish community. NMJJ is publishing this letter immediately upon receipt, as a service to

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Were Diego Rivera and Frida Kahlo Jewish? The Answer Is Complicated

By Judith Fein Photos by Paul Ross My husband Paul and I were dining in the Gastronomy Cooking School in Mexico City when I became captivated by a copy of a startling Diego Rivera mural that covered the entire back wall of the room. I could not take my eyes

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Good Poetry Travels Through Time: Voices from the Jewish Heart of Latin America

By Corinne Joy Brown I Am of the Tribe of Judah: Poems from Jewish Latin America, UNM Press, received the Multicultural Winner award at the 2025 New Mexico Book Awards, presented by New Mexico Writers. Some say poetry is making a comeback. I’d like to think it never left.

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LITTLE EDNA’S WAR: An Extraordinary Child in the Warsaw Ghetto

By Dianne R. Layden, PhD Janet Bond Brill spent 37 years with her mother-in-law Edna before losing her — and she refused to let Edna’s story disappear with her. The result is Little Edna’s War, a Warsaw Ghetto memoir written in Edna’s own voice as a

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SATURDAY, JUNE 27th Santa Fe Pride 2026 Vist the TBS Booth!

Mahjong at Temple Beth Shalom Santa Fe

Our Religious School, the Academy of Jewish Learning at Congregation B'nai Israel, is now open and accepting registration and enrollment for the 2026-2027 school year. Please reach out to our Religious School director Judith Segall for more information or with any questions. CALL 505-266-0155 or email School Director at cbi.abq.school@gmail.com Visit: https://bnaiisrael-nm.org/learn/religious-school

The Academy of Jewish Learning (AJL) at CBl is seeking part-time teachers for the 2026-27 school year for our students in grades pre-K through 6th grade. For more information on the school, the curriculum, and teacher responsibilities, please contact Judith Segall, School Director, at cbi.abq.school@gmail.com 505-266-0155

JULY 3 at Temple Beth Shalom Santa Fe

MONDAYS beginning July 6th · YOGA at Temple Beth Shalom

WATCH NOW ON THE JEWISH LEARNING CHANNEL: https://youtu.be/ZhhoUre1hfI?si=I3pXCQJaGpvh9l1_

SHABBAT WITH FRIENDS brings **SHABBAT DELIGHT**

Check out Minyan Midbar's temporary website: https://rabbidov-site.vercel.app/programs/minyan-midbar/ and see the next gathering

TEMPLE BETH SHALOM - COME AS YOU ARE - SANTA FE

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READ: “To Be a Jew Is a Verb”: A Las Cruces Family’s Century of Showing Up Learn about Life and Legacy with JCF of NM.

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