May 22 - Congregational Meeting, 40th Anniversary Thanks, Shavuot
HAVURAH HAPPENINGS: (1) Upcoming Shabbat (2) 40th Anniversary & Mitzvah Moment (3) Office Closure for Memorial Day (4) Book Group Discusses Shanghai Diary (5) Last Thursday Witness (6) Help Needed Filling Out Summer Camp Applications (7) Interfaith Alliance on Poverty Monthly Meetings (8) Lev Tahor (Pure Heart) Chanting (9) Annual Congregational Meeting (10) Shavuot Celebration and Service
COMMUNITY NEWS: (1) Gathering Hope: A Story Swap, Part of the Vanport Mosaic Memory Activism Festival (2) ORA's 13th Annual Celebration of Art
(1) Upcoming Shabbat: B'not Mitzvah of Sarah and Daphne Shreve, Saturday, May 25, 10:00 am – This Saturday, Sarah and Daphne Shreve, daughters of Beth and Andy Shreve, will be called to the Torah as b'not mitzvah. Please join us in celebrating with the family and welcome Sarah and Daphne as members of our community.
(2) 40th Anniversary Party and Mitzvah Moment – Thanks to everyone who joined us at our lively, musical, 40th Anniversary Party! Havurah members know how to celebrate! If you weren't able to join us at the party, you can still donate to the Mitzvah Moment to support Havurah's ongoing activities – adult ed classes, lunch after Saturday minyans, Tikkun Olam efforts, holiday celebrations, building maintenance, and so much more happening in our community. Click here to donate.
(3) Office Closed for Memorial Day, Monday, May 27 – Havurah's office will be closed on Monday, May 27, for the Memorial Day Holiday.
(4) 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.
(5) Last Thursday Witness, IMIrJ ICE Vigil, May 30, 10:00 am, Portland ICE Headquarters, 4310 SW Macadam Ave – Gather in vigil as we express our support and love for families affected by ICE detentions. Join this monthly gathering to lift up the reality of what happens every day at the Portland ICE facility and participate in solidarity in various interfaith expressions and rituals. Carpooling is encouraged as parking is very limited.
(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, need 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.
(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 or Gloria Halper. 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 or Gloria Halper.
(8) Lev Tahor (Pure Heart) Chanting, Sunday, June 2, 7:00 am, Lower Macleay Park – This will be 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.
(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 was sent out to the congregation yesterday, May 21, and you can see it here too, so you have time to review it 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 or Ken Lerner.
(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.
COMMUNITY NEWS:
(1) Gathering Hope: A Story Swap, Part of the Vanport Mosaic Memory Activism Festival, Wednesday May 29, 7:00-8:30 pm, Cerimon House, 5131 NE 23rd Ave– Join us for an evening of live storytelling to spark hope and action. Storyteller/Maggid Cassandra Sagan will be working with community members who are targets of "othering" based on their religion, race, disability, or sexual orientation to help craft their stories, and there will be an open mic for your five-minute story. Featured tellers: Iman Abdi, Liza Jensen, Sam Sachs, and Tom Gevurtz. $5 donation. Questions? Email Cassandra Sagan.
(2) 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.
Prayer Flags for Our Planet Thursday, Apr 25th 11:00a to 3:00p This exhibit is about science and art.
It is meant to be a learning experience, about the top 60 solutions to climate change, as researched by over 5,000 scientists.
And most importantly it is about hope.
It is about learning about these solutions to climate change and
changing the hearts and minds of those around us,
so that we can all work together.
Anne Nesse, 2024
(ZM) Racial Justice Committee Meeting Thursday, Apr 25th 7:00p to 8:30p Please join us for our monthly Racial Justice Committee Meeting. We will learn of upcoming events and plan new ones.
(IP) HCAT & Partners' Climate Action Fair at MJCC Sunday, Apr 28th 12:00p to 4:00p HCAT invites you to continue with our climate action month by attending a community wide Climate Action Fair at the Mittleman Jewish Community Center. Cosponsored by the MJCC and the Jewish Federation’s Climate team, meet dozens of environmental organizations and discover resources for actions you can take. A series of speakers will talk about forestry, electrification, native plants and climate friendly foods. (And let Elianne Lieberman know if you can give someone a ride or are seeking a ride!)
Passover Minyan (Yizkor) Tuesday, Apr 30th 8:00a to 9:15a For all who want a regular prayer practice and for people saying Kaddish. We will observe Yizkor today as well. We meet both in person and streaming online in Zoom Room Aleph. All are welcome. Please email info@havurahshalom.org for join info.
Experience the Omer: Making it Count! Tuesday, Apr 30th 7:00p to 7:30p [RSVP to be emailed a recording of the April 9 intro session.] The Omer is an ancient tradition marking time between the Exodus from the Narrow Place to the Expanse at Sinai. Explore tools and practices to facilitate your own learning and experience from Liberation to Revelation. We will have an intro class followed by half-hour check-ins, one for each Sephira. Led by Andrine de la Rocha. 7 pm, Tuesdays, Apr. 9 (Intro), 23 (Chesed), 30 (Gevurah); May 7 (Tiferet), 14 (Netzach), 21 (Hod), 28 (Yesod); Jun. 4 (Malchut) Led by Andrine de la Rocha.
(ZM) Book Group: Lincoln in the Bardo by George Saunders Tuesday, Apr 30th 7:00p to 8:30p February 1862. The Civil War is less than one year old. The fighting has begun in earnest, and the nation has begun to realize it is in for a long, bloody struggle. Meanwhile, President Lincoln’s beloved eleven-year-old son, Willie, lies upstairs in the White House, gravely ill. In a matter of days, despite predictions of a recovery, Willie dies and is laid to rest in a Georgetown cemetery. “My poor boy, he was too good for this earth,” the president says at the time. “God has called him home.” Newspapers report that a grief-stricken Lincoln returns, alone, to the crypt several times to hold his boy’s body.
From that seed of historical truth, George Saunders spins an unforgettable story of familial love and loss that breaks free of its realistic, historical framework into a supernatural realm both hilarious and terrifying.
