(1) Upcoming Shabbat: Bar Mitzvah of Nathan Merrill (2) Mini-Retreat for Coming Year's Event Planning (3) Big Legislative Win: Thanks, MACG (4) Hebrew Teacher for Youth Needed (5) Renew Your Membership for 2019-20 (6) Portland Homeless Family Solutions Orientation (7) Play Reading of "God of Vengeance" in Preparation for "Indecent" Shabbaton (8) Shabbat in the Pool (9) Please Take Your Copy of Havurah's Old Siddurim (10) Protecting Members' Contact Information (11) Thanks to Our Security Committee
COMMUNITY NEWS
"Priced Out" Documentary to Air on OPB Tuesday, July 2
In this week's Torah portion, Shelach,12 spies sent by Moses return from Canaan with giant grapes, a pomegranate, and a fig – and stories of a powerful people.
(1) Upcoming Shabbat: Bar Mitzvah of Nathan Merrill, Saturday, June 29, 10:00 am-12:00 pm – This Saturday Nathan Merrill, son of Cindy and Andrew Merrill, will be called to the Torah as a bar mitzvah. Please come celebrate with Nathan and his family, and welcome Nathan as a member of our community.
(2) Mid-Year Planning Retreat for Everyone Planning Events & Programs for the Coming Year, Sunday, June 30, 9:30 am-12:00 pm – Come collaborate across clusters and gain insight and tools to make your program a success! If you can come, please contact Shelley Sobel with your name and the name of your cluster or committee. Shelley's email address is in the online membership directory. (See below post about how to access the directory.)
(3) Big Legislative Win: Thanks, MACG! – Gov Brown signed HB 2801, legislation that requires pharmacists to label prescription drugs in a language other than English if the patient to whom a prescription drug is dispensed is a person of limited English proficiency. This is a huge win for immigrant communities. This success is in no small way a result of the organizing prowess of MACG, Metropolitan Alliance for the Common Good. MACG found legislative champions, bipartisan sponsors, and a wide range of endorsers. This spring, MACG organizers testified in support of the bill before both House and Senate committees. Today the solution they identified is law. Havurah is a member organization of MACG, and our support helped make this happen. Congratulations, Havurahniks!
(4) Hebrew Teacher for Youth Needed – Havurah Shalom seeks a part-time teacher for youth ages 8-10, who can teach beginning Hebrew reading with a very clear Tora Aura curriculum. Hours of instruction are 16 Saturdays (already scheduled) between Sept. 21 and May 9, 1:30-2:40 pm, at Havurah. 7-14 children per class. Competitive compensation. Please contact Deborah Eisenbach-Budner, Education Director, deborah@havurahshalom.org; describe your experience and expertise.
(5) Renew Your Membership for 2019-20! – As our new fiscal year begins, we want to take the time to acknowledge the many ways in which Havurah provides opportunities for us to engage and thrive within a supportive Jewish community. Havurah continues to grow in membership and in programming. We are joined by families of all ages and sizes, excited to find their Jewish home at Havurah Shalom. Read the complete message with form links here.
(6) Portland Homeless Family Solutions (PHFS) Orientation, Thursday, July 18, 5:00-6:00 pm, PHFS Lent Location (address given when you sign up to attend) – The building in the Lents neighborhood purchased by PHFS is just a few months away from opening its doors to approximately 26 homeless families. These families will not have to move between two buildings for day and night shelter as in the past. Join our very dedicated, active group of Havurah volunteers at the Lents shelter by attending a PHFS orientation. Next one will be held at the Lents building on July 18, from 5:00-6:00 pm. RSVP at TC@pdxhfs.org. PHFS questions? Email John Devlin (Havurah member and PHFS board member) or Gloria Halper (Havurah member and PHFS coordinator). Their email addresses are listed in Havurah's online directory.
(7) Play Reading of "God of Vengeance" In Preparation for "Indecent" Shabbaton, Wednesdays, Aug. 7 and Aug. 14, 7:00 pm, Havurah Shalom – To support the joint Shabbaton over Labor Day weekend with Temple Emek Shalom, Emily Simon will lead an informal, participatory play reading of "God of Vengeance," the play on which "Indecent" is based. Act I will be read on Aug. 7, and Act II will be read on Aug. 14. The evenings will begin with a short show introduction by Emily, who will then assign the parts based upon who shows up and what part they want to read. Hopefully there will be enough time after the reading to then discuss the play. Everyone is welcome to participate in either evening event (no need to attend both), whether they are attending the Shabbaton, seeing "Indecent" at another time, have already seen it, or are not seeing it at all. Please RSVP here for Aug. 7 and RSVP here for Aug. 14.You can read a pdf file of the play here.
(8) Shabbat in the Pool, Saturday, Aug. 10, 5:15-7:30 pm– We've got the Sellwood Pool to ourselves for Shabbat games followed by a potluck picnic and Havdalah. Music? Yes! Fun for everyone? You bet! RSVP here to save your spot and help us know how many lifeguards to request.
(9) Please Take Your Copy of Havurah's Old Siddurim – Before switching to our current Kol Haneshama prayer books, Havurahniks put together their own booklet with prayers for Shabbat, including Mincha, Ma'ariv and Havdalah. These are in excellent condition and still quite functional. We are looking to save a few copies for posterity but also to find people who can use them, so they are not sitting in storage anymore. If you would like copies for yourself, your family, or your community, please email Rachel Pollak at rachel@havurahshalom.org to arrange a pick-up time.
(10) Protecting Members' Contact Information– Due to recent phishing using Havurah members' emails, Havurah will no longer include members' email addresses or phone numbers on our website pages and blog, including the weekly community emails, which are posted to our blog. People will be directed to the online membership directory for members' contact information. Any member who is logged in to our website can find the membership directory at the bottom of the drop-down menu under "Community."
Please be aware that any official communication from Havurah Shalom will come from a havurahshalom.org address, so if you receive an email claiming to be from staff which does not come from havurahshalom.org, don’t answer it. Mark it as spam. If you have any questions about whether an email comes from a staff member, please ask by phone or email info@havurahshalom.org.
Logging in For the First Time
To log in to our website for the first time, click on "login" in the upper right corner of our home page, enter your email address as your ID, and create a password at least eight characters long. After you receive an email confirming that your password has been received, you can log in any time. This both gives you access to the membership directory and allows you to update your personal membership account with current information. Office staff can help if you have questions
(11) Thank You to Our Security Committee– Havurah has many generous members, whose time and other contributions are greatly valued. This week we thank our Security Committee, led by John Devlin, with special thanks to Curtis and Rachel Shipley for their in-depth research and advice about online security at Havurah.
COMMUNITY NEWS
"Priced Out" Documentary to Air on OPB, Tuesday, July 2, 9:00 pm– Exploring the complexities and contradictions of gentrification, "Priced Out" (2017) is a heartbreaking vision of the history of housing discrimination in Portland and the personal impact it has had on residents. "Priced Out" was edited and co-produced by Havurah member Eric Maxen. For more information go to https://www.pricedoutmovie.com/
Please use this form to submit stories for this weekly community email. Submissions are due by noon on Tuesday each week.
Havurah Shalom is a vibrant, diverse, participatory Jewish community steeped in Jewish values promoting spirituality, learning, and acts of social responsibility.
(HYB) Shabbat Morning Shabbat, May 3rd 10:00a to 12:00p Led by community members and Rabbi Benjamin (who is on sabbatical until July 1, 2025), this service includes davening, Torah reading, and discussion. Join us afterward for a light community brunch provided by the Lunches and Noshes Committee! Free childcare is provided. For Zoom information, please email info@havurahshalom.org.
(IP) Shabbat School Shabbat, May 3rd 3:00p to 5:15p This program gives children a foundation for lifelong Jewish learning and engagement while integrating parents and children in a caring Jewish community.
(ZM) Progressive Israel Network Sessions Sunday, May 4th 11:00a to 12:00p Havurah Shalom is hosting a four-session series from the Progressive Israel Network. Come learn in collaboration with representatives from five to six of the participating Progressive Israel Network organizations, including T’ruah, New Jewish Narrative, Partners for Progressive Israel, New Israel Fund, J Street, and Reconstructing Judaism.
All perspectives on Israel-Palestine, as well as all curious people, are welcomed and encouraged. Our guests will give presentations and take questions. You can register for all sessions, below, but it's okay if you can't attend all three sessions.
(Reconstructing Judaism, the central organization of the Reconstructionist movement, of which Havurah Shalom is a part, is a member of the Progressive Israel Network.)
(IP) Writing for Peace and Reconciliation, Within and Between Us Sunday, May 4th 6:30p to 8:30p Commemorate the last day of Pesach and Yitzkor in community Passover not only invites us to retell our ancient story but to look at our current reality and ask: what is our mitzrayim today? The obstacle in our personal and communal life? Where can we break through in an act of courage and compassion? April 20th & May 4th, 6:30 PM at Havurah, join Harriet Cooke for a writing/drawing group to explore this theme along with Yitzkor, the Sephirot and Counting the Omer. (It is recommended to attend either just the first session or both sessions.)
(IP) Jewish Ethical Responses to the Problem of Racism Monday, May 5th 6:30p to 7:45p We will address topics such as countering white nationalism and antisemitism, Jewish perspectives on reparations, repairing Jewish pioneer memory, and responding to racial microaggressions. Facilitated by Karen Sherman and Adela Basayne.
(CANCELED) Collage Art with Jewish Symbols Wednesday, May 7th 6:30p to 7:45p This class has been canceled by the instructor. If you are interested in doing art at Havurah, please reach out to Adela Basayne (info@havurahshalom.org). Bring your crafts and creativity out for making collage art with Jewish symbols. We will create hamzas, stars of David, trees of life, and images for blessing the home. All ages are invited! Led by Carolina Martinez.
(IP) Hebrew as a Tool: Prayer and Torah (registration closed) Wednesday, May 7th 7:00p to 8:15p (This class will now be starting on January 8.) Using an in-depth, word-by-word approach, we discover literal meaning(s), ancient layers of understanding, and our own personal interpretations that stem from the nuances of the Hebrew text. Basic Hebrew decoding skills necessary.
