CHAI LINES
The Newsletter of the International Northeast Region
July 9, 2021 - 29 Tammuz 5781
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From the Region President

Dear INR Members;

It has been a wonderful couple of weeks for me and my family as we were finally able to get together, and hug, for the first time in ages. My husband and I travelled to Montreal to spend 4 days with my daughter, her husband & my 3 grandchildren. Then, my other daughter & her family came to our cottage to spend Shabbat together. I’m sure you all know what a fantastic feeling that can be. I pray we can all stay healthy and return to a new ‘normal’ as soon as possible.

In the upcoming issues of our Chai Lines newsletters, instead of articles from me, you will be seeing introductory articles from our incoming Executive Committee. I thought this would be a good way to introduce you and give them a chance to tell you about themselves and their goals for their portfolios. Therefore, this week’s message is coming to you from Linda Boxer, our newly installed Torah Fund Vice President.

Todah Rabah to Linda and Shabbat Shalom to everyone!
Marilyn
Meet Linda Boxer...
It is an honor to serve as Torah Fund Vice President for the INR region. In early June, I joined a cohort of 12 other women in 4 days of training on Zoom. I learned a lot, but I am certain that I still have much more to learn. Please be patient with me as I strive to master the task before me.

Our president, Marilyn Cohen, asked me to tell you a bit about me. I was born and reared in Detroit, the youngest of three children. My mom immigrated to the United States when she was 12; my dad, who was also born in Detroit, learned English in kindergarten. Family, education, and community were stressed in our house. My fondest childhood memories are of my father taking the children to the library, just about weekly. As a young girl, I didn’t understand why my mother would opt to stay home. When I became a mother myself, I saw that image with new clarity: Mom had an hour to herself, to sit and read. We were a family of readers and I am still an avid book lover. My day is filled with reading, knitting, and long walks… and, of course, family, Torah Fund, and synagogue.

I met my husband, Laurence (Larry) Boxer, in high school, but we did not start dating until our sophomore year at the University of Michigan. We lived in neighboring dorms and would meet on the walk from the “Diag” (central campus) back up the hill to the dorms for lunch. I did not know, until many years later, that those ‘accidental meetings’ were the result of his running to catch up to me. Later this summer, we will celebrate our 51st anniversary. 

In college, Larry worked as the Chazen at the local Conservative shul. His beautiful voice, as well as having belonged to the Cantor’s Club in his childhood shul has served to make Larry active in every shul we have ever joined. This has been a wonderful entreé into each community we entered as we had to move frequently early in Larry’s career. Since Ann Arbor, Michigan, we have lived in Urbana, Illinois; Okemos, Michigan; Athens, Georgia; Greensboro and Winston-Salem, North Carolina; Allentown, Pennsylvania; Niagara Falls and Williamsville, New York. 

With each move, Sisterhood women offered me friendship and belonging. While the universities and the towns might be different, women banded together for a common goal helping the synagogue to which they were affiliated. Our last big move was to Niagara Falls, New York when Larry accepted a job at Niagara University, where he remained until we both retired in 2018. I had the distinction of firing myself. I was the Director of the Jewish Federation of Niagara Falls, NY. As the community’s population (and donations) declined, I was uncomfortable taking a salary. With the board’s blessing, I continued supervising a part-time bookkeeper. She was paid; I was a volunteer until the Federation disbanded. The board president asked if I would come help in his law office. That part-time job expanded to full-time and 30 years as an office manager.  

When we moved to Niagara Falls, we joined Temple Beth Israel, a shul now closed, but which will forever remain dear to us. Our children, Robin and Matthew, were 4 and 2 when we arrived, and that community welcomed us. Very early on I was asked if I could help with the catering committee’s preparation of a big Kiddush. I said I could probably help if they needed extra hands. “See you at 9 am on Thursday” I was told, and never looked back. Doing. Helping. Together. That was the mantra of Temple Beth Israel’s sisterhood and it was instilled in me. 

While Beth Israel offered us community, it no longer had youth groups and our children joined a USY chapter in Buffalo. Soon, they asked us to join the synagogue. “We don’t want to be guests in someone else’s shul,” we were told. As a result, we became dual members of Temple Beth El of Greater Buffalo, which later merged into Temple Beth Tzedek. With our children active in USY, I was asked to serve on the Youth Commission, which led to being the Regional Youth Commissioner for the former Empire Region of USCJ. That position put me on the International USY Board where I was invited to NYC for annual meetings and to the International USY conventions. Talk about ruach! Today Larry serves as Ritual Committee chair and I am currently a Vice President at Temple Beth Tzedek. We marvel that we ever had time to work. 

Our last move was to downsize to a condo in Williamsville, NY. We moved just days before Covid shut down the world. We certainly had plenty of time to unpack and learned patience as we ordered things like towel bars and garage shelving online and had to wait for delivery. We are now 1.3 miles from Temple Beth Tzedek. Robin and Matthew are now adults and have fulfilled our goal of raising productive members of society – something my dad would say was his goal for his children. Robin, a wonderful wife to Mark and the proud mother of three, works at the National Archives and Records Administration in Washington, DC. Matthew is an Assistant Research Professor at Brandeis University.  

When I was president of Buffalo’s free loan association, the Hebrew Benevolent Loan Association, I was invited to participate in a Mussar for Leaders program. We studied the various middot, and how to apply them to our community. Those lessons served me well this past year, the year of Covid isolation. Every morning when I awoke, I would remind myself to be grateful that we had shelter (a new home in which to enjoy retirement), the financial wherewithal to survive (thanks to careful savings for all those working years), and food (perhaps too much, sometimes, as baking and cooking helped pass time). I am grateful for the opportunity to work with the women of INR. Together we can achieve great things.
From our Torah Fund VP
What a year this has been for us all. The 2020-21 Torah Fund B’Yachad Campaign had so many meanings. While we were together in spirit (and on Zoom and LiveStream, etc.), we were apart avoiding Covid. Despite the separation, we were successful in our support of Torah Fund and award certificates will be distributed soon.

The International Torah Fund Committee has decided to continue the theme, B’Yachad, Together, again for 2021-2022. How fitting that theme is, together again, as Covid abates and vaccines become plentiful, we are able to be together, again. We ask that you again support Torah Fund and its important mission of providing help to the Rabbinical and Cantorial students at our five Conservative/Masorti Seminaries.
Hinei mah tov u’ma-na’im shevet achim gam yachad.

How good and pleasant it is to dwell together (again) in brother sisterhood. - Psalm 133
The Torah Fund office has promised that all back orders will be shipped in time for the High Holidays. Cards will be shipped soon, too. 

Questions? Please contact me.
Linda Boxer
INR Torah Fund Vice President
From Women's League
Baruch Dayan HaEmet
With sadness we advise you of the passing of Abby Silverston, z"l, mother of Carol Shayman Simon, Past International President of Women's League for Conservative Judaism. A graveside service was held in Miami Florida on Friday July 8, 2021.

Shiva will be held on Monday and Tuesday at 7:00 p.m. at the home of Carol and Jeff Simon, 342 Inner Harbour Circle, Tampa, FL 33602.  
 
 
Messages of condolence may be sent to Carol at her home address above.
Makom B'Yachad
As of Tuesday, July 6th,
Makom B'Yachad will change from 5 days to 3 days a week:
Tuesday, Wednesday, and Friday
12PM Noon ET; 11 AM CT; 9AM PT; 10 AM MT

Join Zoom Meeting: 
Meeting ID: 630 830 287          
Password: 875936                      
 
Dial by your location: 
+1 929 205 6099 US (New York); 
+1 669 900 6833 US (San Jose); 
+1 647 558 0588 Canada; 
+972 55 330 1762 Israel; 
+972 3 978 6688 Israel or
 
find your local number:
Want to sing, teach, help with technology, and more during Daily Psalm Study, Pirkei Avot, and Kaddish?
 
All are welcome. We have many available spots to fill.
How to Liver Forever - Thursday, July 22 @ 7:30 ET
WL Reads - Sunday August 1st @ 1:00 PM ET
WL Education: Thursday August 26th @ 1PM or 7PM ET
Programming Idea of the Week
Continuing with the Mavens...Program or Conference Planning
submitted by
Grace Schessler
WLCJ Programming Chair
Last week I introduced you to The Word Mavens, Joyce Eisenberg and Ellen Scolnic. Their popular hour-long program celebrating Jewish traditions, holidays and beloved foods and the Yiddish and Hebrew words that describe them is only one of their many program offerings. Joyce and Ellen have developed a Mavens-in-Residence program, similar to a Scholar-in-Residence series but a lot more fun! Women’s League Regions or Sisterhood Affiliates can choose from one or more presentations for a single event, a Shabbaton, or a Region Conference full of entertaining and educational programming. 

To read more, click HERE.
NEW! WL Calendar Diary 2021-22: Coming Soon
Available to Pre-Order
_____________________________
You can now purchase your WLCJ Calendar Diary 2021-2022, please click on the link below or email Razel: rkessler@wlcj.org
Weekly Words of Torah
submitted by
Rabbi Ellen S.
Wolintz-Fields
WLCJ Executive
Director
Parashat Matot-Masei, July 10, 2021

Last week I began a new series of WWOT for this new ‘fiscal’ year, which began on July 1, 2021, showing how the Torah and Haftarah portions go together (b’yachad). Since this is a special time of year, the three weeks between the fast day of Shevah Asar B’Tammuz, on the 17th of Tammuz, and the fast day of Tisha B’av, the 9th of Av, the Haftarah is not always the one usually matched up with that Torah reading. So for example, although last week I explained the many connections between Parashat Pinchas, the haftarah that is connected to Parashat Pinchas, from the book of Kings - which makes a good explanation of how they are linked, this year, because it is the Shabbat after Shevah Asar B'Tammuz- we actually read Jeremiah 1:1 - 2:3, which is the Haftarah which is paired with Parashat Matot, and for Sephardim, the haftarah for Parashat Shemot. The Haftarah from Jeremiah is the first of the three Haftarot read between Shevah Asar B'Tammuz and Tisha B'av. The 3 are known by the Aramaic name T'lat d'fur'anuta, meaning the Three Haftarot of Affliction. They discuss punishments that were brought on the people if they abandoned God's covenant, Brit.  
 
On Shabbat July 10, it is not only Shabbat, but also Rosh Chodesh Av, and the second of the three weeks between Shevah Asar B’Tammuz and Tisha B’av. Some people might read parts of the Haftarah designated for Shabbat Rosh Chodesh, from the book of Isaiah (which was explained in last week’s WWOT), and some may only read the second of the Three Haftarot of Affliction, Jeremiah 2:4-28; 3:4, the Ashkenazi Haftarah for Parashat Masei, and some read a combination of both haftarot, often starting and ending with the first and last verse of the Haftarah for Shabbat Rosh Chodesh, and in the middle reading the Haftarah from Jeremiah, the 2nd of the Three Haftarot of Affliction, or Tlat d’fur’anuta. The Haftarah from Jeremiah is like Tisha B’av, grim. Therefore, in order to not end on a negative tone, the verse from chapter 3 is added, in order to end on a positive note. Jeremiah was supposed to have been an eyewitness to the destruction of Jerusalem and the burning of the Temple, which occurred on Tisha B’av. Jeremiah also wrote the Book of Lamentations, Megillat Eichah, which is read on Tisha B’av. Another connection of the haftarah, not only to the time of year, but also the Torah portion, Parashat Matot-Masei, is that Jeremiah verse 2:6 mentions the wanderings in the desert after leaving Egypt, which parallels the Torah reading, in Numbers chapter 33, which provides a detailed description of the wanderings of B’nai Israel, the children of Israel, after leaving Egypt. Tisha B’av commemorates the destruction of the Temple in Jerusalem, which resulted in the Israelites wandering once again.
WL PrezNet
Toby Maser
PrezNet Moderator
Join the WL PrezNet
The WL PrezNet is an online group where we share ideas, exchange opinions, and discuss “out of the box” innovations. You can only belong to this group if you are currently a Sisterhood President. This ensures that you have the freedom to express yourself without the fear of 'outsiders' hearing you. To join this list, please send me an e-mail. Once verified by checking your current Sisterhood membership list and profile, I will add you to our list.
Upcoming Calendar Events & WL Groups to Join

All Regions are having
their trainings in

July & 
August 2021

Check in with your Region President for more information.
American Mothers of Olim GoogleGroup

Interested? Contact 
Ellie Kremer,
Israel Committee Chair
WLCJNet: The Sisterhood Without Walls
Want to join WLCJNet? Contact Sherry Lynn Rubin, Sisterhood Net Chair
Tell us about YOUR Sisterhood
event coming up!
More Learning Opportunities...
The Wanderings of a Yiddish Poet; A Virtual Theatre Talkback; Teen Jewish Learning; and More
The Whizin Center for Continuing Education is pleased to present our lineup of classes and learning opportunities. Dive into Whizin Summer Courses!
B’yachad Together continues to deliver original content designed to captivate, ignite and advance ideas, spark thought-provoking dialogue, and capture the insights of faculty and friends. 
Marriage For Life: Foundation CourseSundays | July 11 - August 1 | Online | 2 - 4 PM PST | $295 

Under normal circumstances, maintaining a healthy relationship with your partner requires dedication and attention. During the global pandemic, the stakes have been raised. We’re here to help! AJU’s Marriage For Life: Foundation Course provides the tools and safe space to give your relationship the love and attention it deserves. 

This program is for all committed couples, whether married for not. We warmly welcome LGBTQ+ couples and interfaith couples to participate.
Marriage For Life: Weekend Retreat 2 Nights | August 20 - 22 | In-person | $575/Couple
In the beautiful and serene setting of the Brandeis-Bardin Campus in Simi Valley, CA, this two-night weekend retreat provides a safe environment to develop and enrich intimate, loving relationships for all committed couples considering marriage or partnership, currently engaged, or recently married (less than five years). This 2-night retreat includes outdoor dining and delicious kosher food (certified by KosherLA).
If you are interested in learning more, contact Rabbi Morris Panitz, morris.panitz@aju.edu, (310) 440-1274.
INR of Women's League for Conservative Judaism