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Hello Angela,,
It's time to welcome all into our sukkot, recall our ancestors' sojurn in the wilderness, and reflect on the impermanence of all things.
WRS wishes you a beautiful Sukkot to enjoy with friends and family.
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Help WRS Create Self Care Kits for
Unhoused Women
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Often unhoused women do not have easy access to feminine hygiene products or women's health needs. Please join WRS in assembling self care kits (in person) and writing cards (online) for women in need. Congregation Rodef Sholom's Mitzvah Day
Sunday, October 22
10:00am - 12:00pm.
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Join us for the Kocktail Kibbitz | |
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Hey Current WRS members!
Look for an invitation to our
new Kocktail Kibbitz.
October 29
at a Marin hot spot near you
or online. See you there!
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Soon we'll light up the
Chanukah lights!
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Celebrate the Chanukah season with laughter, latkes, and
loads of fun at the WRS Chanukah Social.
December 10 4:30pm
More information to come on where to make this Chanukah shine bright.
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Monday, October 1
7:00pm on Zoom
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The book selection for October
Carnegie's Maidie by Marie Benedict
Please email to wrs@rodefsholom.org if you would like to receive WRS Book Club updates each month.
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Join your neighbors and others for
monthly walks in Marin.
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Our September walkers enjoyed gorgeous views, animated conversation, and terrific bird sightings on a beautiful late summer day along Rush Creek in Novato.
Join the fun and relaxed WRS walking group for our next walk in San Rafael on October 1. We walk for about an hour on flat paths throughout Marin.
WRS monthly walks are a great way to connect
with other women and nature.
Upcoming Dates and locations
Sunday, October 1 - 10:00am in San Rafael
Sunday, November 5 - 10:00 am in Mill Valley
Sunday, December 3, 10am in Terra Linda
Register by emailing to WRSwalkinggroup@gmail.com with your name, email address, telephone number, and city or zip code. We will send you details before the walk. We can't wait to walk with you!
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WRS Rosh Chodesh
A Special Holiday for Women
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WRS Rosh Chodesh Group
No meeting in October
Seeking Group Coordinator, please contact wrs@rodefsholom.org
“Whoever blesses the moon in its time welcomes
the presence of the Schechina (female Devine presence).”
Rosh Chodesh marks the beginning of each month in the Hebrew calendar by the appearance of the new moon.
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It's a time for women to gather joyfully
to bond in sisterhood!
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Shop at the WRS Gift Shop | |
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Gary Rosenthal is back in our Gift Shop!
Gary Rosenthal was a prolific American artist known internationally for his mixed-media sculptures. Combining copper, brass, and steel with brilliant fused glass, the Gary Rosenthal Collection has a contemporary style rooted in tradition.
Shop online for a great selection of High Holy Day greetings cards, shofars, honey dishes, host gifts and much more. If you order at the WRS website, delivery is available in Marin.
Place an order for pick up or delivery.
If you are shopping for a talit, you can make an appointment by email to come in to the shop, or if you don't see what you're looking for in the Gift Shop, please ask for assistance by email.
Email the Gift Shop.
We will help you find just the right item, and your purchase will help fund the programs of the Women of Rodef Sholom.
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Sales staff needed in
the WRS Gift Shop
Have you ever considered yourself behind the counter meeting folks coming into the JCC and helping someone find that special gift?
We need you now! Flexible shifts and a 20% discount on your purchases.
Thinking about it? Email WRS Gift Shop to find out more.
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WRS Board Meeting
Tuesday, October 3
7:00pm - 8:30pm on Zoom
Our Board of Directors meetings are the first Tuesday of
the month and are open to all members.
Send your name and email to wrs@rodefsholom.org if you would like to attend this or future meetings.
WRS continues to recruit members to volunteer with several standing committees within our organization. If you are interested in sharing your talents with Membership, Programming, or Social Justice and Fundraising endeavors, please email your contact details to wrs@rodefsholom.org.
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The new fiscal year for WRS began on July 1.
Bring your unique skills to one of the standing committees in the new year by sending your contact information to wrs@rodefsholom.org:
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Membership through recruiting new members and planning events for our beloved existing members
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Planning fun and meaningful sisterhood activities through our Programming endeavors
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Performing important tikkun olam (repairing the world) through WRS Social Justice work
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Volunteering in our beautiful retail Judaica Gift Shop in the JCC, recruiting shop volunteers, or bookkeeping for our treasured shop
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Raising critical tzedakah (charitable funds) relied upon by our sisterhood-, congregational-, and wider communities.
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WRS Membership Team Meeting
Monday, October 16
7:00pm on Zoom
RSVP with your name and email to
membershipwrs@gmail.com
The Zoom link for the meeting will be emailed to you.
If you attend a meeting, you will be added to the distribution list for future meetings.
Join us! Without you we are one women short.
Thank you WRS Membership Team: Jen Levine, Naomi Sachs, Suzanne Alpert, Angela Giacomini, Roz Kahn, Fanny Stein
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There is still time to renew your WRS membership or join us for the first time. WRS membership for the current year began July 1, 2023 and ends June 30, 2024.
If you have renewed your membership, thank you!
We are so happy to have you with us in WRS.
Here are three easy ways to renew your membership.
- Renew your WRS membership when you pay directly to WRS online. Pay WRS
- Mail your renewal to WRS. Here's the membership form to print out and send with your payment. Membership form and address.
- Renew your WRS when paying Congregation Rodef Sholom annual membership. Link to CRS Website.
Contact membershipwrs@gmail.com for questions about your WRS membership.
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WRS Programming and Social Justice
Team Meeting
Tuesday, October 17
5:30pm - 7:00pm on Zoom
Join us as we plan our annual
feminine-focused Shabbat service (November 17)
and other upcoming events.
RSVP with your name and email to wrssisterhood@gmail.com.
The Zoom link for the meeting will be emailed to you.
Please let us know if you would like to be added
to the distribution list for future meetings.
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Seeking volunteers to plan our WRS Passover Seder
Start crafting ideas and possibilities for a WRS Seder.
Currently the seder is scheduled for the Hoyt Auditorium, but we need a group of individuals to start thinking through ideas and logistics. It doesn’t have to be a full seder. We could have a chocolate seder, a cheese seder, or your idea. The more volunteers we have, the more robust the ideas and the more spread out the workload!
Please email wrssisterhood@gmail.com to join us.
Thank you WRS Programming and Social Justice Team: Toni Grimes, Jan Goldberg, Gail Berkowitz, Amy Friedricks, Angela Giacomini, Susan Goldwasser, BettyAnn Kram, Barbara Kraus, Sheri Langer, Jen Levine, Gerri Miller, Barbara Merino.
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Meet the WRS Board of Directors | |
Jan Goldberg
Co-VP Programming
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What led you to take on a new role on the WRS Board of Directors?
I got a phone call from a friend asking if I might be interested in serving on the WRS Board. Since I was approaching retirement, I agreed. The timing was right for me to take on a new commitment.
Why should members engage with WRS programming this year?
There is a wide variety of activities offered: services, Mitzvah Day, book events. All of them offer an opportunity to meet new people and support WRS.
What is something that you have learned about yourself that has surprised you?
Since I stopped working, I have spent much more time with friends, having lunch or meeting for coffee. I now realize how much I enjoy this. As a workaholic, it surprises me how quickly I was able to give up my work responsibilities and enjoy this freedom.
What is your favorite hobby?
In the summer, I love to work in the garden, and I have been blessed with abundant crops. I love to make applesauce and jam to preserve a bit of summer to enjoy all year long.
What is your favorite book or film?
I love to read historical fiction.
What song or singer inspires you?
Songs by Leonard Cohen, especially “Hallelujah”
What have you learned from those who have served in this position before you?
Past chairs of programming have done an outstanding job of creating events under challenging circumstances. When the pandemic hit, they created virtual events, and as things improved, shifted some of them to hybrid. As the new chairs, we will continue to adapt as the situation changes, and hope to be as successful as past chairpersons.
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Toni Grimes
Co-VP Programming
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What led you to take on a new role on the WRS Board of Directors?
As CoVP of the Programing and Social Justice Committee, we report on our activities at the full board meeting, effectively spreading our process and ideas.
Why should members engage with WRS programming this year?
We have an exciting new schedule of hybrid events and lots of new committee and WRS members! We are all eager to bring joy and connection through our committee work and events. Hope to see new faces each time!
What is something that you have learned about yourself that has surprised you?
That I can learn new 'tricks' as I grow older. You know old dog new tricks? Particularly when my daughter is educating me on how her generation views the world on women's issues.
What is your favorite hobby?
Reading and watching movies. I just love how dialog shapes a story.
What is your favorite book or film? Genre?
My favorite series of books, that is also my go to gift, is The Spellman Files. So funny plus a good story!
What song or singer inspires you?
Bruce Springsteen - from my first show in 1980 to this coming December! Such a superb storyteller. And the Bruce Fan community is a blast!
What have you learned from those who have served in this position before you?
What I have learned is that generosity of spirit and creativity exists in us all. Hoping I can fill the shoes of those before me.
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WRS Social Justice and
Civic Engagement
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Jewish Community Relations Council
JCRC Bay Area asks public to lobby Congress on Israel pro democracy resolution
BY BEN SAMUELS | SEPTEMBER 12, 2023
A version of this article originally appeared on Haaretz.
The Jewish Community Relations Council Bay Area is urging people to lobby their congressional representatives in favor of a resolution affirming Israel’s pro-democracy protest movement and condemning Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s judicial overhaul.
While 17 leading U.S. Jewish organizations sent an open letter in August to members of Congress on the issue, the JCRC Bay Area letter represents a new level of attention on the matter.
JCRC Bay Area’s letter, released on social media platforms Sept. 1, calls House Concurrent Resolution 61 an “affirmation of U.S. support for a strong and democratic Israel and opposes actions that undermine its future as a Jewish and democratic State.”
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Religious Action Center of Reform Judaism
For more than six decades, the Religious Action Center of Reform Judaism (the RAC) has worked to educate, inspire, and mobilize the Reform Jewish Movement to advocate for social justice. More Information here.
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Marin Organizing Committee
MOC Civic Academy on Living Wages for Caregivers
Wednesday, October 4
7:00pm-8:30 pm
Register here
More information here
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WRS PRE-SERVICE PARTY AT CONGREGATION RODEF SHOLOM's OUTDOOR SERVICES
WRS hosted a lovely social get together before the CRS outdoor Shabbat service at Blackie's Pasture with games, food and fun for all! WRS was honored to sponsor the Shabbat oneg.
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WRS SUPPORTS JONATHAN'S PLACE
What's better than sisters serving together?
WRS joined together in serving a "heat and serve" meal at Jonathan's Place, the San Rafael based shelter serving unhoused clients.
We will be there on Sunday, December 31 from 10:00am - 12:00pm and continue on the
last Sunday of every month.
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