Community News, June 8
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UPCOMING SHABBAT
MEMOIR READINGS AT SHABBAT THIS FRIDAY Readers — Nancy Becker, Robbin DeWeese, Dorothy Dworkin, Beth Kaye, Buff Neretin, Lisa Rackner & Rob Freedman Friday, June 10 Havurah's popular annual Memoir Readings Kabbalat Shabbat is just around the corner! Come hear Nancy Becker, Robbin DeWeese, Dorothy Dworkin, Bob Epstein, Beth Kaye, Buff Neretin, Lisa Rackner, and Rob Freedman read from their memoirs on Friday, June 10, at 7:00 pm. For many years now, Rob Freedman's "Memoir Writing from a Jewish Perspective" workshop has helped participants discover the stories they want to write and share. The emphasis is on those experiences that are uniquely Jewish in nature, reflective of our culture and identity – whether the writers are Jews by birth or by choice, or among the still perplexed. The evening of readings will begin with a short Shabbat service and will be followed by a potluck dessert oneg. Mimi Epstein and Adele Thompson are overseeing the potluck dessert oneg, and they'd love to be sure we'll have enough desserts. So if you can bring a treat, please let Mimi know. Thanks! Community Minyan At our Community Minyan this Saturday, we will read and discuss parsha Bamidbar, which means "in the wilderness." A census is taken of all men who can fight, and each tribe receives a name, a role, and a place in the camp, marked by its own flag. Join leaders and leyners Roger Brewer, Maria Lisa Johnson, and other Havurah members to daven, read and explore Torah. Photo below is from Wikimedia.
SHABBAT SERVICE LEADERSHIP TRAINING TONIGHT Wednesday, June 8 If you're interested in learning how to lead Morning Prayers at a Saturday Community Minyan, join tonight as Rabbi Joey offers guidelines for current and future leaders. Please arrive by 7:00 pm on the dot, and bring a recording device so you'll have reference material for the future. Wonderful women and men have already signed up, but we'd love to add the voices of a few more men. Check out Rabbi Joey's article in Hakol, Boys Will Be Men, for inspiration. SHAVUOT - MONDAY MORNING MINYAN AT 8 AM NEXT WEEK (NOT WEDNESDAY) Monday, June 13 Next week we will have our weekday morning minyan on Monday, Shavuot, instead of Wednesday. It will start early, at 8:00 am, and will include Yizkor.
Shavuot, a time of culmination, is a complicated but lovely holiday, which weaves two strands of tradition together. From the Torah we inherit an agricultural celebration that marks the end of the grain harvest, which began during Pesach. From later tradition we receive the spiritual meaning of Shavuot. We mark the giving of the Torah on Mt. Sinai seven weeks after the exodus from Egypt. Learn more about Shavuot here on our website. Havurah's office will be closed on Monday, June 13, for Shavuot. Will you eat blintzes this Shavuot? The above photo of Havurah blintz makers was taken by Nancy Gordon-Zwerling during Fired Up! HELPING UNACCOMPANIED MINORS FROM CENTRAL AMERICA Sunday, June 12 Erika, an unaccompanied child seeking asylum, fled violence in Central America. Until last month, when she turned 18, Erika was supported by Morrison Center's Micasa program, which works with Central American refugees. Now that she has aged out of Micasa’s program, she will no longer receive support them. Erika’s current foster family will support her until the beginning of August. After that, she will need a home until her asylum case is resolved. If no one offers her a home, Erika could be sent to the Tacoma Detention Center. We hope that our community can find resources to support Micasa graduates such as Erika and keep them out of the detention center, which is essentially a privately run prison.
In partnership with the Morrison Center and the Interfaith Movement for Immigrant Justice, we have identified volunteer opportunities working with unaccompanied children. Read more here. The above photo from Time is of young refugees from Central America being detained at the border between Texas and Mexico. JUBILEE OREGON SALON: ADDRESSING ANONYMOUS SHELL COMPANIES & THE IMPACTS OF UNSUSTAINABLE DEBT ON THE PEOPLE OF PUERTO RICO Monday, June 13 Jubilee Oregon pleased to host Andrew Hanauer, the Campaigns Director from Jubilee USA in Washington DC for our Jubilee Salon. He will discuss two issue areas that Jubilee USA and Jubilee Oregon are addressing: the impacts of anonymous shell companies and the impacts on the US citizens of Puerto Rico of the unsustainable debt of this US Territory. Read more here. RSVPs are required. Email Bob Brown. PORTLAND HOMELESS FAMILY SOLUTIONS (PHFS) – GOOSE HOLLOW SHELTER HAVURAH DIRECT SERVICE PROJECT NEWS Based on a calculation using the most recent U.S. Department of Education’s count of homeless children in U.S. public schools and on 2013 U.S. Census data:
Join other Havurahniks at Goose Hollow to expand the experiences of these children, widening their "village." Children of any age are allowed to come volunteer with a parent or guardian. Upcoming Goose Hollow volunteer orientations: June 13 and June 20, 5:00 to 6:00 pm, at Goose Hollow, 1838 SW Jefferson. You can park behind the church. No orientation is needed to help with the dinner meal. For more information about the meal planning, please contact Len Shapiro. For general PHFS info, contact Gloria Halper. SUPPORT AFFORDABLE HOUSING AT PORTLAND CITY COUNCIL Thursday, June 16 As part of our work with the Metropolitan Alliance for Common Good (MACG), Havurah members continue to work on the issues of the lack of affordable housing causing gentrification, displacement and homelessness. We passed inclusionary zoning at the last legislative session in Salem. As part of this legislation, communities can define a construction excise tax (CET) on new construction. The Portland City Council will be meeting on Thursday, June 16, to decide how much of this tax will be used for affordable housing. MACG has been meeting with City Commissioners to push for 100% of the CET money shall be used for affordable housing. Please show your support for this issue by attending this City Council meeting. MACG will be testifying. Wear red! 2 MORE CHANCES TO ADD YOUR VOICE TO OUR FUTURE You have two more chances to meet the Havurahniks in your neighborhood and discuss Havurah’s future! Please SIGN UP HERE for one of these intimate, invigorating meetings on June 9 in SE Portland or June 14 in NE Portland. Click here for the addresses of the meetings. These small group discussions are not fundraising events but conversations about how to ensure Havurah Shalom’s long-term sustainability as a beautiful, vibrant Jewish community while remaining true to the egalitarian, respectful relationships that serve as our community’s foundation. The discussions will inform how we conduct our "Give Back to the Future" endowment campaign. Watch these short videos to learn why your fellow Havurahniks want to Give Back to the Future!
PORTLAND JEWISH FILM FESTIVAL, JUNE 15-29 Havurah Shalom is one of the sponsors of the this year's Portland Jewish Film Festival, which is produced by the Northwest Film Center and co-presented with the Institute for Judaic Studies. Learn about and see clips of this year's films on the Portland Jewish Film Festival website. While the Festival specifically celebrates the diversity of Jewish history, culture, and identity, Festival planners hope that these films, and the stories they tell, resonate beyond their settings and speak to universal experiences and issues that confront our common humanity. Presented annually since 1992 in partnership with the Institute for Judaic Studies, the Portland Jewish Film Festival celebrates the diversity of Jewish history, culture, and identity while speaking to the universal experiences and issues that confront all humanity. Above design is by Hannah Westerman.
PRIDE PARADE - MARCH WITH HAVURAH ON SUNDAY, JUNE 19 Why will you march with Havurah this year? Is it because:
Whatever your reason, come and march with us at Pride. The parade leaves W Burnside and NW Park at 11:00 am. Havurah is a part of contingent #125. We will line up on NW 8th St between Davis and Couch at 11:20 am. Please RSVP here if you can join us! For more information, contact Sandy Ramirez. HAVURAHNIKS IN ISRAEL Havurah members Carmella Ettinger and Ruth Thomas were among the seven Portland-area travelers joining more than 90 others across the U.S. on a six-day LGBT-focused trip to Israel. It was organized by Jewish Federations of North America in partnership with our local Jewish Federation of Greater Portland. You can read a story about the trip in The Jewish Week, and read blog posts from the travelers here.
Above, Carmella Ettinger waits by a bus in Israel. THANK YOU TO ALL — NEW BYLAWS APPROVED Thanks to everyone who attended the congregational meetings this spring. We passed the updated bylaws to reflect our new governance structure. The current bylaws can be found here. MAZEL TOV TO NILI YOSHI & MAKERS OF "LOST BOYS OF PORTLANDIA" It was great to see so many Havurahniks last night at Outside the Frame's showing of "The Lost Boys of Portlandia," a new documentary featuring the real lost children of Portland. Mazel tov to former Havurah High Coordinator Nili Yoshi, director of the nonprofit Outside the Frame, and all of the young people who wrote, produced and starred in "The Lost Boys of Portlandia." The film is a riff on Peter Pan, in which homeless youth debate if and how to return to mainstream society while creating their own film version of the iconic story. The evening event was sponsored by Havurah Shalom. You can watch a film trailer here. ACCEPTING APPLICATIONS FOR RABBI THROUGH JUNE Based on information from all who participated in Havurah’s rabbi search survey and focus groups, Havurah Shalom has posted this job description on our website for the position of rabbi. Applications for the position will be accepted through June 30, 2016. The new rabbi’s start date will be August 1, 2017. All inquiries about the job should be directed to Rabbi Joel Alpert, Director of the Reconstructionist Rabbinical Placement Center. His contact number is 215-576-0800 ext 304. Please do not send resumes to the committee! Learn more and see the committee’s timeline here. |
