May 15 - Shabbat Picnic, 40th Anniversary This Sunday, Shanghai Diary
HAVURAH HAPPENINGS: (1) Upcoming Shabbat: Shabbat Family Picnic, Community Minyan (2) 40th Anniversary Celebration this Sunday (3) Lev Tahor (Pure Heart) Chanting is Moved from May 20 to June 2 (4) Book Group Discusses Shanghai Diary (5) Help Needed Filling Out Summer Camp Applications (6) IMIrJ Call-In Day (7) Interfaith Alliance on Poverty Monthly Meetings (8) Song of Miriam Awards Brunch (9) Annual Congregational Meeting (10) Shavuot Celebration & Service (11) Poverty & Homelessness Workgroup Update (12) ORA's 13th Annual Celebration of Art
(1) Upcoming Shabbat
Shabbat Family Picnic, Friday, May 17, 6:00 pm, Grant Park in NE Portland– In lieu of our the regular May Dorot service and potluck, we will gather for an informal Shabbat Family Picnic on May 17 at 6:00 pm at Grant Park in NE Portland. Bring a picnic blanket and dinner for your family and together we'll welcome Shabbat with blessings, songs and treats. Challah and popsicles will be provided. Please RSVP to Karen Pomerantz at karen_pomerantz@yahoo.com so we know how many folks to expect.
Community Minyan, Saturday, May 18, 10:00 am – Join us for our Shabbat morning minyan, with Barbara Slader, Susan Brenner, Solomon Barnett, Emily Simon, Tivona Reith, and others leading and reading Torah. We will read and discuss Parsha Emor, in which we learn about laws pertaining to priests and high priests, and the festivals of the Jewish calendar, including Shabbat, Passover, the Counting of the Omer, and more. The minyan will be followed by a light lunch.
(2) Havurah 40th Anniversary Celebration, Sunday, May 19, 5:00-8:00 pm – Havurah Shalom is 40 years old! Join us THIS SUNDAY to celebrate and support your favorite community. We're having a tasty menu along with beer, wine, and a signature cocktail, and non-alcoholic drinks, too. We're excited to feature two Havurah music groups, including some of your favorite musicians. They will accompany our celebration with jazz, klezmer, and dancing to your favorites from 40 years ago!
Whether you've been a member for one year or for 40, our party will be a great time to reflect on our history and look forward to the next 40 years! The party is for members ages 21 and over. If you aren't available on May 19, you can donate to our Mitzvah Moment at the RSVP link below. Questions? Contact Debbi Nadell, debbinadell@gmail.com. RSVP here.
(3) Lev Tahor (Pure Heart) Chanting, Sunday, June 2, 7:00 am, Lower Macleay Park– Lev Tahor Chanting scheduled for next Monday, May 20, has been replaced with a contemplative hike on Sunday, June 2.Facilitated by Rabbi Benjamin. We will gather in Lower Macleay Park in the early morning, beginning with some chanting then walking mindfully along the trail. With teachings and intentions from Jewish tradition to guide us, we will intersperse chanting, silence, and reflective sharing as a means to connect within and without, and to wake up more fully in our lives. This will be a short hike at a gentle pace. We will conclude by 8:30 or 9:00 am. Contact Rabbi Benjamin with questions. RSVP here.
(4) IMIrJ Call-In Day, Tuesday May 21 – Your legislators need to hear from you. On Tuesday, May 21, IMIrJ is encouraging people of faith from throughout the state to call our Oregon state legislators to urge them to support the Equal Access to Roads Act (driver's licenses for all) and Equity Corps of Oregon (expanding funding for legal representation). Click here to get the phone number of your Oregon state Senator and Representative. Additional resources, including sample call scripts, can be found on the IMIrJ website at IMIrJ.org. Take a minute, make a call to advance state policies in support of immigrant & refugee justice. Questions? Contact shari.raider@gmail.com.
(5) Book Group Discusses Shanghai Diary by Ursula Bacon, Tuesday, May 28, 7:00- 8:30 pm – Shanghai Diary is an autobiography by a woman who now lives in the Portland area. By the late 1930s, as the Holocaust approached, many Jewish families in Germany fled to one of the only open ports available: Shanghai. Eleven-year-old Ursula Bacon and her family made the difficult 8,000-mile voyage to Shanghai. But instead of a storybook China, they found streets teeming with peddlers, beggars, opium dens and prostitutes. Amid these abysmal conditions, Ursula learned of her own resourcefulness and found within herself the fierce determination to survive. She taught English to Chinese concubines and they became very good friends. She learned about spirituality and herself from a Buddhist monk. She also met the man she eventually married. There are many stories rolled into this one book. Discussion led by Stacey Hankin.
(6) Help Needed Filling Out Camp Scholarships Applications, By Appointment at the Bienestar de la Familia Ortiz Center, 6736 NE Killingsworth St – The families at the Ortiz Center, our Sanctuary community engagement partner, are in need of help filling out summer camp scholarship applications for their children. The families have difficulty reading and writing in English and cannot fill these forms out on their own. Volunteers must have conversational proficiency in Spanish. The Ortiz staff can set up a time to meet with a client that fits into the volunteer's schedule. Contact Deb Kallen at debkall2010@gmail.com.
(7) Interfaith Alliance on Poverty Monthly Meetings, First Thursdays, 12:00 noon-2:00 pm, Member Congregation Locations – Havurah is the latest partner member of the Interfaith Alliance on Poverty (IAP), with approval of the Steering Committee. We had a good showing at their May 13 meeting hosting Portland's Mayor. The Mayor shared stats and more about what Portland has done and continues to do, and future plans to address poverty, specifically the issue of homelessness in our city. Interested in IAP monthly meeting info or joining a sub group of the IAP, please contact Steve Rudman at sdrpdx@gmail.com or Gloria Halper at losninos6@gmail.com. IAP's website: www.allianceonpoverty.org. Also, watch for more from the Poverty and Homelessness Tikkun Olam workgroup in Havurah's community emails and Hakol. Questions? Contact Steve Rudman at sdrpdx@gmail.com or Gloria Halper at losninos6@gmail.com.
(8) Song of Miriam Brunch Honoring Nancy Becker, Sunday, June 2, 10:00 am-12:15 pm, MJCC – Havurah is honoring Nancy Becker at this year's Song of Miriam Brunch. Nancy has been involved in many different areas of Havurah and is known for her Tikkun Olam efforts and for representing us at the Jewish Community Relations Council. Nancy is also our current Fundraising Committee Chair. Register for the brunch using the form linked here. We will be saving a table for Havurahniks. Let Debbi Nadell know (debbinadell@gmail.com) if you want a seat at the Havurah table.
(9) Annual Congregational Meeting, Sunday, June 2, 1:00-3:00 pm – Please join us for music, study, and community building. This will be an excellent opportunity to greet old friends, welcome new ones, and consider what Havurah Shalom means to each of us. We will share the proposed nominations for Steering positions starting July 1 as well as review and approve our annual budget. The budget will be sent out to the congregation the week of May 20, so you will have time to review before the meeting. Please join us, and if you have questions that you would like to have answered at the meeting, email them to transparency@havurahshalom.org by May 30. Questions? Email Julia Lager-Mesulam (lagermes@gmail.com) or Ken Lerner (ken@klerner.com).
(10) Shavuot Celebration, Saturday, June 8, 4:30 pm until late, at Havurah – For Families: We’ll begin at 4:30 pm with paper crafts and a First Harvest Procession to beautify the Sanctuary. At 5:45 pm, we’ll have blintzes and cheesecake for our potluck dinner, followed by Havdalah. For Adults: You are welcome for dinner and Havdalah. From 6:30-8:00 pm, Alicia Jo Rabins and Rebecca Clarren will read from their new books, rescheduled from January. Childcare will be available. For those who want to do Tikkun Leil Shavuot and study into the night: From 8 pm on, Deborah Eisenbach-Budner and Rabbi Benjamin will guide us in text and hevruta. RSVP here.
Shavuot Service with Yizkor, Sunday, June 9, 9:00 am-12:00 pm – Join us for a morning Shavuot service with Yizkor.
(11) Poverty and Homelessness Workgroup Update – On April 30, the Family Winter Shelter (FWS) coordinated by Portland Homeless Family Solutions (PHFS) closed, having met its goal to house throughout our winter whatever number of families comprise the 75-person limit. In the spirit of Tikkun Olam, Havurah played a formidable role in volunteer hours at the shelter as well as meal preparation at home and at Havurah. We will continue to support PHFS at its new site in the Lents neighborhood throughout the year. To volunteer an orientation is required. For info about PHFS orientations please contact Havurah member Gloria Halper at losninos6@gmail.com.
(12) 13th Annual Celebration of Art, Sunday, June 2, Congregation Neveh Shalom – Calling all Jewish artists! Jury for Northwest Jewish Artsists 13th Annual Celebration of Art on Sunday, June 2, at Congregation Neveh Shalom. There is a $25 jury fee that can be applied to the membership of $50. For detailed information and jury application, go to the ORA website: northwestjewishartists.org.
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Havurah Shalom is a vibrant, diverse, participatory Jewish community steeped in Jewish values promoting spirituality, learning, and acts of social responsibility.
B’nai Mitzvah: Beginning the Journey/Date Selection Sunday, Feb 23rd 10:00a to 12:00p This workshop for parents intends to launch families on the b’nai mitzvah journey. We will focus on the rite of passage itself, then families will learn about the date selection process. Led by Rabbi Benjamin, Deborah Eisenbach-Budner and the Bnai Mitzvah Committee.
Musical Theater New Works Workshop Monday, Feb 24th 7:00p to 8:30p If you consider yourself a creative actor/singer who loves musical theater and trying new things, then please join us for this first ever musical theater workshop series. We are writing a musical - Freedom: The Untold Story of Moses – and want to work with a group of passionate performers to develop a physical, spiritual, and musical language for the piece. You can be a part of bringing the script to life and pick up a few tips and tricks to musical theater performance along the way! This will culminate in a staged reading performance of the first act at Havurah Shalom.
Performance dates: Sunday, April 5, 2pm and 7pm
10 spaces open to adults.
Questions? Contact Chari Smith
Parenting with Multiple Layers Monday, Feb 24th 7:00p to 8:30p Parenting is challenging at some points no matter what. Although each situation is unique and parenting experiences differ tremendously, mental or physical health conditions, addiction, history of trauma, and some kinds of disabilities can add another layer to parenting. Systemic social issues like stigma, marginalization, lack of services, or general lack of knowledge can add yet more layers and create further challenge. These 2 sessions aim to begin to build a safe space for parents to be heard, break down the isolation that can come with parenting with many layers, and explore how Jewish community and Judaism can be helpful. Facilitated by Laura Orgel, psychologist and child/family therapist, and Deborah Eisenbach-Budner. Max. 8 participants; commitment to confidentiality prior to attendance required. Please contact Laura at ljorgel@earthlink.net by January 20 to indicate your interest.
Sacred Action: Contemplative Practice for Engaging in the World Wednesday, Feb 26th 12:00p to 1:00p Facilitated by Rabbi Benjamin
In what ways can Jewish spiritual practice guide our work for healing and justice in the world? In this group we will explore this question together through learning, discussion, and practice. At each meeting we will engage in various modalities, including meditation, chanting, contemplative study, and self-reflection. Guidance will be given for continued practice and engagement between sessions. Our intention will be to form a trusting and supportive group as a foundation for this sacred work. No experience necessary, but participants should be able to commit to all or nearly all of the meetings. Please RSVP by January 15. Limited to 12 participants.
