January/February 2023

In this issue...

Annual Book Review: The Story of Jane

HugPacks Packing Event

Kindergarten Festivals

Family Mega Challah Bake

Annual Repro Shabbat

4th Thursday Movie Night

Caring Corner Is Back

Last Chance to Support 2022 Annual Campaign

Recording Secretary?

Save the Date!

Get the link now!!

We are excited to announce that our annual book review will feature Laura Kaplan, who wrote the powerful book The Story of Jane and is herself one of the Janes! As always, this event is cosponsored by Sharon-Carmel Hadassah.

The Story of Jane recounts the evolution of the Abortion Counseling Service, code name Jane, the underground group of heroic women that provided low-cost abortion services in Chicago in the years before the procedure was legalized. Organized in 1969 and active until the opening of legal abortion clinics nationwide in 1973, Jane initially counseled women and referred them to abortion providers. As Jane grew, so did the group’s capacity to protect its clients. Eventually, determined to reclaim women’s reproductive power in any way they were able, many members of Jane learned to perform abortions themselves.

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Watch at home or gather with friends as we did for “The Janes” documentary. The book is available at most bookstores and at Amazon. We encourage you to read it before attending the event, and feel free to submit questions ahead of time to programs@ncjwlongbeach.org.

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There is no charge, but none of the important work of NCJW - GLB & WOC is possible without your continued support. We’d like to suggest a minimum $18 donation to our General Fund or to the Abortion Access and Reproductive Rights Fund at www.ncjwlongbeach.org/donate. Anything you give will contribute to our advocacy work and many community service projects.

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If you’d like to find a home at which to watch the presentation, participate in our discussion, and socialize, or for more information, email Sharon Brannon, VP programs, at programs@ncjwlongbeach.org or (657) 235-2511.

Many helping hands are needed, so join us in giving a "hug" to vulnerable children entering the foster care system!

Individually wrapped snacks and drinks are provided, and doing good will feel so great! All vaccinated volunteers, please RSVP to communityservice@ncjwlongbeach.org or call (657) 235-2511.

It's time again to help these young students entering TK/Kindergarten next fall and their parents receive important district information, participate in readiness workshops, and learn about resources from a variety of community agencies. NCJW volunteers arrive at 8:30 am and most finish by 11 am.

You’ll be glad you helped with this mitzvah for young children from typically underserved areas of Long Beach. 

10 NCJW vaccinated volunteers needed!

The next K Fest is February 25 at Burcham Elementary, so if you can sign up for that one, please do!

For more information or to volunteer, please call (657) 235-2511 or email communityservice@ncjwlongbeach.org.

More Info Coming Soon!

Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery

Time for some IN-PERSON fun!?! We are hoping to meet IN PERSON at one or more members' homes to watch the movie together in small groups and then share our reactions. More info to follow about how to sign up for a home. If you prefer to watch at home and then zoom in to a discussion, register at the link below!

The movie: Tech billionaire Miles Bron invites his friends for a getaway on his private Greek island. When someone turns up dead, Detective Benoit Blanc (played by Daniel Craig) is put on the case. This is an expertly crafted screenplay that delivers a real old-school, entertaining and intelligent mystery.

It's a return to the whodunit genre where logical storytelling is used, and they do not pull out implausible twists suddenly in order to deliver a surprise. All the clues are there if you pay attention to the precise framing of the cinematographer and the hysterical dialogue. Even if you do get a lot of them, there are still enough Easter eggs to keep you on your toes. This will also play well on a repeat viewing.

The cinematography is quite well done, especially for a murder mystery. Along with the costume design, the two marry perfectly in helping the viewers understand what type of character each actor is portraying. Thanks in part to the location, they manage to go bigger than the first Knives Out movie. Despite the humor, you still manage to get some emotional depth to all the characters--making them well-rounded and getting your buy-in to discover who the killer is.

We recommend watching the first Knives Out before watching the new one; comparing them would be fun. Glass Onion is available on Netflix.

Jeanne Halliday is waiting for your calls and emails! We strongly encourage you to let Jeanne know about such things as illnesses, deaths, simchas, honors, etc., in our community.

You can look up Jeanne's phone number or email in the Membership Directory, or you can call us at (657) 235-2511 or email us at info@ncjwlongbeach.org to request a card to be mailed.

If you meant to give to our 2022 Annual Campaign but just didn't get to it, here's the link for your last chance! Please select General Fund in the drop-down menu--we'll credit it to the Annual Campaign. Thanks for supporting our work!

Thursday, February 2: Board Meeting, 7 pm, Zoom. RSVP here.

Thursday, March 2: Board Meeting, 7 pm, Zoom. RSVP here.

Thursday, March 16: HugPack Packing, 6:00 to 7:30 PM, AJCC. RSVP here.

Thursday, March 23: Fourth Thursday Movie Night, 7 pm, zoom and in person. Register here.

HOW TO REACH US

Email us at info@ncjwlongbeach.org, call (657) 235-2511, or send mail to NCJW Greater Long Beach & West Orange County, 3801 E. Willow St., Long Beach, CA 90815. Please add this contact information to your contacts list.