Schmooze with Suze Suzie Becker

Following the events of October 7, 2023, I feared that all of the work I had done to become a cycle-breaker would become derailed. The propaganda filled images and messages seemed like they were unleashed concurrent with the atrocities upon my Homeland. I worried I would lean into the devastation, my very real and growing fear, and perhaps the fury that was simmering beneath the confusion at all the noise. So before I scorched the Earth, I knew I had to recalibrate my "why." Dr...

I can remember the first person I blocked on social media.She unabashedly took to my comments to give unsolicited feedback, judgment and suggestions. She wrote that I was sharing too much personal information and I would never find a husband if I kept this up. She complained that I should show a better version of myself online “like everyone else.”And I remember calling my sister to complain about it. “Mommy is being so mean to me.”“You know you can block her,” said my much younger siste...

Back in the 1900s, as a child of immigrants to the United States, I remember always having to learn it on my own. My parents weren't familiar with American cultural norms and my world was pretty narrow. If I wanted to understand how private school girls acted, I watched "The Facts of Life." When it was time for high school, thankfully, "Beverly Hills 90210" launched. But when college came around, well, there wasn't a show that showed you how to apply, what picking a major meant, or how n...

Back in the 1900s there was a period of time that you could not safely stroll the streets of Manhattan for fear. I’m not talking about the high profile cases that made the news. Those weren’t the things that scared me. Violence that had statistics meant there were people following and tracking those crimes and those criminals. Also, money was invested into researching ways to avoid becoming a statistic. But for me, the real stories that didn’t make the big news, was people being hi...

Growing up in New York City meant I was exposed to all kinds of ethnicities, cultures and religions. Except Baptist- I don't think I ever met a Baptist.And the more I knew about every other- because I studied them relentlessly with curiosity, along with my Catholic best friend Mary Beth- the more knowledgeable I felt. The interfaith world was an easy one. But my own...? The confusion was tough, the judgment was worse. But ultimately, while religion is one matter, what about faith? Do you find...

For as far back as I can remember charity has been ingrained in me, like challah braided into my DNA. From my very first nursery school classroom, at my very first circle time, I recall proudly clutching my shiny copper penny and eagerly waiting that tzedaka box to get to me. Whether it’s passing the plate or the pushka, the value of giving is part of our foundation, so why does giving it to a "Foundation" sound scary to someone like me? And that’s what we’re going to tackle today…...