Hineinu, December 13, 2023

Gate Proposal for Courtyard and Kearney Street
There will be three Havurah community-wide meetings (one-hour long): 5 pm on Thursday, December 21; 6 pm on Thursday, December 28; and 7 pm on Thursday, January 4 – Havurah Shalom and Zoom Room Gimel
At the December Steering meeting, the Gate Resolution Work Group (GRWG) proposed that Steering approve installation of a gate in the courtyard entrance walkway and one at the Kearney Street alcove. Proposal details will be shared in a stand-alone email to the community on Thursday, December 14. A Steering vote on the proposal will take place on January 9, 2024. Havurah members can attend three community-wide meetings at Havurah and on Zoom-—December 21 at 5 pm, December 28 at 6 pm, and January 4 at 7 pm—to offer input and ask questions before the vote. The GRWG will reach out starting this week to committees and groups who use the building regularly for input. Contact David Kertzner, Co-President with questions. Havurah members, click on the links to RSVP for the hybrid, Havurah community-wide meetings on Dec. 21 at 5 pm;  Dec. 28 at 6 pm; and/or Jan. 4 at 7 pm.

Have You Explored the "More Tikkun Olam" and "Out in the Community" Sections of Hineinu?
Want to learn (more) about Tikkun Olam happenings connected to Havurah, including Havurah Shalom Tikkun Olam committee-led undertakings and events and publications from Havurah Shalom partners? Scroll down in every issue of Hineinu to "More Tikkun Olam."

Want to learn about some of the many opportunities and happenings in the broader Jewish community in our area, including events led by Havurahniks and opportunities of special interest to Havurah members? Scroll down in every issue of Hineinu to "Out in the Community."

General Info

Thank you for following our COVID safety guidelines for in-person gatherings, which were updated on June 15, 2023. Contacting your fellow Havurah members: If a member's name is hyperlinked below, you can go directly to their contact page in the directory by clicking on their name and then logging into your Havurah account. Or search in the online Havurah member directory (log into the website and go to the Contact tab). Zoom/YouTube stream links can be found near the end of this email.

Regular Havurah Happenings

Weekly Torah Study​ 
9 am, Saturdays – Havurah Shalom and Zoom Room Bet
An in-depth look at the weekly Torah reading, led by congregants. No prior knowledge or study is necessary.

Shabbat Morning
10 am, Saturdays – Havurah Shalom and Zoom Room Aleph
All are welcome at our Shabbat services, including b'nei mitzvah services. Upcoming b'nei mitzvah (Bennet Aliyar, December 16) are listed below and in the website calendar. (On Saturday, January 6, there will be a Contemplative Shabbat service.)

Mahjong Group
1 pm, first and third Mondays – Havurah Shalom Library
Mahjong is a fun, social activity that builds community, encouraging new friendships and cementing old ones. If you want to learn how to play, please contact Leah Hershey for teaching resources. If you are ready to join a game, please RSVP on the calendar. To receive Mahjong Group updates, ask Leah to add you to the email list.

Jewish Mindfulness & Meditation
12 pm, Tuesdays – Havurah Shalom (Sanctuary or Library) and Zoom Room Bet
We gather to find moments of quiet and shalom in a welcoming space. Various styles of Jewish meditation are explored. No meditation experience necessary. All are welcome to drop in. Led by Rabbi Benjamin, Adela Basayne, Nancy Becker, or Deborah Eisenbach-Budner.

Morning Minyan
8:30 am, Wednesdays – Havurah Shalom and Zoom Room Aleph
For all who want a regular prayer practice and those saying Kaddish. All are welcome.

Upcoming Havurah Events

Racial Justice Committee Monthly Meeting
7 pm to 8:30 pm, Thursday, December 14 – Zoom Room Bet
Join the Racial Justice Committee Monthly meeting. Join us this month for time to reflect, hear some updates of what we have been up to and help us plan an event in honor of Martin Luther King, Jr Day!

Shabbat Morning with Bar Mitzvah of Bennet Aliyar
10 am, Saturday, December 16 – Havurah Shalom and Zoom Room Aleph
Please join us for Shabbat morning services, including welcoming Bennet Aliyar as a Bar Mitzvah and member of our community. All are welcome.

Hakol Submission Deadline: Thursday, December 21
Havurahniks, click here to learn more on submitting short articles for the next issue of our monthly synagogue newsletter, Hakol. The deadline for the January 2024 Hakol is Thursday, December 21.

Havurah Community-wide Meetings on Gate Proposal for Courtyard and Kearney Street
There will be three Havurah community-wide meetings (one-hour long): 5 pm on Thursday, December 21; 6 pm on Thursday, December 28; and 7 pm on Thursday, January 4 – Havurah Shalom and Zoom Room Gimel
At the December Steering meeting, the Gate Resolution Work Group (GRWG) proposed that Steering approve installation of a gate in the courtyard entrance walkway and one at the Kearney Street alcove. Proposal details will be shared in a stand-alone email to the community on Thursday, December 14. A Steering vote on the proposal will take place on January 9, 2024. Members can attend three community-wide meetings at Havurah and on Zoom-—December 21 at 5 pm, December 28 at 6 pm, and January 4 at 7 pm—to offer input and ask questions before the vote. The GRWG will reach out starting this week to committees and groups who use the building regularly for input. Contact David Kertzner, Co-President with questions. Havurah members, click on the links to RSVP for the hybrid, Havurah community-wide meetings on Dec. 21 at 5 pm;  Dec. 28 at 6 pm; and/or Jan. 4 at 7 pm.

Havurah Office Closures: Administrative Holidays
The Havurah Shalom office will be closed on Monday, December 25 and Monday, January 1.

Havurah Book Group Discussion: The Promise by Damon Galgut
7 pm to 8:30 pm, Tuesday, December 26, 2023 - Havurah Shalom and Zoom Room Bet
2021 Booker Prize winner The Promise, by Damon Galgut, charts the crash and burn of a white South African family, living on a farm outside Pretoria. The Swarts are gathering for Ma's funeral. The younger generation, Anton and Amor, detest everything the family stands for—not least the failed promise to the Black woman who has worked for them her whole life. After years of service, Salome was promised her own house, her own land...yet somehow, as each decade passes, that promise remains unfulfilled. The narrator's eye shifts and blinks: moving fluidly between characters, flying into their dreams; deliciously lethal in its observation. And as the country moves from old deep divisions to its new so-called fairer society, the lost promise of more than just one family hovers behind the novel's title. In this story of a diminished family, sharp and tender emotional truths hit home. Confident, deft and quietly powerful, The Promise is literary fiction at its finest. Fiction: 293 pages Discussion led by David Newman. Nonmembers welcome. RSVP for Zoom info for this hybrid meeting on Dec. 26.
 

More Tikkun Olam 

Blue Bags Ready for Use at Havurah Shalom
The Blue Bags are ready for can/bottle collection with proceeds coded to Trash for Peace-Common Good Project, non-profits with Havurah connections.There is a bag under the sink in the laundry area and extra bags are on the kitchen shelf. Let meeting and event organizers know about this option. It's fine to take a bag for use in your home, too.

Houseless Day of Remembrance
5 pm to 7:30 pm, Thursday, December 21 – Ground Score Association (624 NW Couch Street, Portland, Oregon)
From the Havurah Poverty and Homelessness Committee: The Interfaith Alliance on Poverty, a non-profit organization with whom Havurah Shalom partners, is supporting the 2023 Houseless Day of Remembrance (December 21) to recognize and honor those houseless individuals who lost their lives this year. Please click to view the event flyer and learn more. Even if you cannot attend, it is an event worthy of our knowing about. Questions? Please contact Havurah members Sue Abrams or Marcia Suttenberg. 

Also: An amazing amount of new/almost new clothing for the Winter Clothing Drive—filling two cars—was delivered to Rose Haven Women's Day Center!! Your immediate response and generosity are overwhelming!! Thank yous are not enough.

News & Events from Our Tikkun Olam Partners

Path Home (formerly PHFS): Volunteer for our monthly Path Home dinner | Interfaith Alliance on Poverty (IAP) | Lift UP | MACG | Jewish Coalition for Immigrant Justice NW ​​​​​​ | Rose Haven

Out in the Community

2023 Cultural Shift Survey (Open through January 5, 2024): For Jews of Color in the Pacific Northwest
Accepting survey responses until January 5, 2023 - tischpdx.org/pnwsurvey

From TischPDX: Announcing our 2023 Cultural Shift Survey! It's a comprehensive survey crafted to gain valuable insights into the demographics and interests of Jews of Color (JoCs) in the Pacific Northwest (PNW)!! The confidential data collected from this research is being stewarded, conducted, and analyzed by Jews of Color through a partnership between TischPDX, JOC Collective, JOCI and Tiyuv. We know that many people in our Jewish communities, especially Jews of Color, have been feeling disconnected or maybe experiencing fraying relationships with their Jewish communities at this time. We hope that this survey can be an offering to bridge those gaps and foster a deeper sense of belonging, return or Teshuvah.
 
Who is eligible to participate in this research?
- Jews who identify as a Jew of Color, however they understand that term;
- Currently live in the Pacific Northwest United States (Washington, Oregon, Idaho, Montana, Wyoming, or Alaska);
- Must be age 18 or older.
 
Responses for the 2023 Cultural Shift Survey will be accepted until January 5, 2024. TischPDX will publish the data in a report and host discussions of the survey findings and key trends in early 2024.

To take the survey or to learn more please go to tischpdx.org/pnwsurvey

Resources

Do You Need Support?
If you are facing emotional, financial, or health challenges and would welcome support, please consider contacting the (a) Bikkur Holim (Visiting the Sick) Committee for spiritual support, (b) Lotsa Helping Hands for help with food, transportation, or other errands, or (c) Rabbi Benjamin, for spiritual and moral support – benjamin@havurahshalom.org or 503-248-4662 ext. 3. If you're interested in being on a list of people who support others in concrete ways, such as grocery shopping or running other errands, please contact Lotsa Helping Hands. To request that the name of a relative or Havurah member be read during the Misheberach (healing prayer) at Shabbat services, please use this Misheberach Request Form.

Questions About Havurah?
The Transparency & Inclusivity Committee is an avenue within Havurah Shalom to help members find the answers to questions or concerns they have wondered about. Please send your questions to transparency@havurahshalom.org. We will anonymously answer your question in Hakol. Everyone in our community benefits from this clarity.

Havurah Zoom Rooms

To see our full Zoom room instructions, click here. Member sign-in required.