November 19, 2021 l 15 Kislev 5782
CONGREGATION BEIT T'SHUVAH WEEKLY NEWSLETTER
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TONIGHT: ROLLING STONES SHABBAT
Our iconic themed Shabbats are not to be missed! They represent what BTS is all about: creativity, spirituality, and transformative!
Join us tongiht for Rolling Stones Shabbat!
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THIS WEEK'S TORAH PORTION
By: Rabbi Miriam Green Potok
There is a moment in this week’s parasha - a story just a few sentences long - that captures two peak moments of human experience: birth and death. Jacob and his family are journeying to their new home, and as they are traveling, Rachel goes into labor. Even as she is giving birth to new life, bringing joy to Jacob as a second son of his favorite wife is finally being born, her own life is fading. Given the medicine of the time, birthing a human into the world was a dangerous event for both mother and child; in this moment of life beginning, Rachel’s life comes to an end. Before she takes her last breath, Rachel names her newborn son Ben-oni, meaning “child of my suffering.” Rachel gives her son a name that memorializes the greatest loss she can experience. As she gives life to her son, her own life ebbs away.
Coming into sobriety - whether for the first time or not - is a dramatic rebirth. Free from alcohol, drugs, and gambling, the brain and the body begin to heal and regenerate. Free from suppression and oppression, emotions burst forth, and spiritual questions - Who am I? Why am I here? Why is my life like this? And what should I do next? - surface for the first time, or re-surface after a long slumber. All of this is its own rebirth, its own new beginning.
Yet coming into sobriety also involves great loss. When we enter recovery, we leave our old identities, lifestyles, and coping patterns behind. We are separated from our roommates, family, friends, and even our beloved pets when we make the choice to enter treatment....click here to continue reading.
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Austin A., in absentia for 2 years of sobriety from gambling
Caden L. for 2 years of sobriety
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We are still celebrating birthdays each week on Zoom!
To sign up to take a Sober Birthday cake at Beit T'Shuvah, click here.
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-Anonymous
If you would like to sponsor Shabbat at
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We are excited to announce we have secured a new, fabulous location for our BTS Thrift Store. We are renovating the new space located at Pico & La Cienega. We will be sure to keep our community informed as we move forward with this new site and the grand opening!
Donation pick-ups are currently available on a limited basis. For more information, please contact our BTS Thrift Donation Line at 310-204-4669.
In the meantime, please support our BTS Thrift Store by shopping on our website (click here).
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Shop, donate and share with your friends.
*Shipping available upon request*
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CHALLAH ORDERING WILL BE UNAVAILABLE FOR FRIDAY NOVEMBER 26TH. WE APOLOGIZE FOR ANY INCONVENIENCE AND LOOK FORWARD TO BEING BACK THE FOLLOWING WEEK! |
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Our sincerest condolences to the family and friends of Mark Fiazi. May his memory be a blessing. |
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Tribute donations are a wonderful way of marking life cycle events for your loved ones and friends and supporting Beit T'Shuvah.
Laura Smith-Black & Richard Black in memory of Jerry Sands-Saklad
Edythe & Michael Mostin in memory of Anita Mostinsky
If you are interested in sending a beautiful tribute, please contact Development . You can also send a tribute online by Clicking Here. Beit T'Shuvah will promptly send a card to the family or friend you are recognizing.
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THIS WEEK'S SPOTLIGHT
Written by: Randall S.
“Not only did I want to be a decent human being, I had an obligation. I refused to dishonor the memory of my mother and the best way to pay tribute to it was to do good and to care about people,” Russell H. shares, with tears in his eyes, sitting on the women’s patio at Beit T’Shuvah. That Russell was a far cry from the little boy who grew up in Brooklyn, New York. The youngest of three, Russell was raised alongside his brother and sister by a strong and resilient single mother. “My mom did whatever she had to do to provide for us,” Russell recalls. But despite her best efforts she couldn’t be mother and father to the rambunctious and mischievous young Russell. To try and fit in he hung out with his siblings and their older friends. “I wanted to be the fun kid,” he remembers. This “fun” led to a life of juvenile delinquency and vandalism. It also led to his first experiences with drugs and alcohol. By age nine he had started drinking and by age ten he had added weed to his illicit activities.
This combination of petty crime and drug and alcohol abuse ultimately culminated with his first arrest at the tender age of thirteen. As a result of this arrest he was sent to his first drug treatment center in upstate New York. He spent the next three and a half years, off and on, at the facility. Following this period of attempted rehabilitation Russell went back to high school. However, it was a short-lived return and on his seventeenth birthday his mom signed him out of school and told him to get a job. But it was a boring existence and so he, along with a couple friends, decided to return to upstate New York to live a kind of vagabond life. But there was a problem. The teens had no transportation to start their adventure and so the boys decided to steal a van. After the first attempt failed, his friend had the ill-advised idea to steal yet another van. However, as his friend attempted to steal the van...click here to continue reading.
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Hanukkah 2021
Join us by Zoom to light Hanukkah candles, sing Hanukkah songs, and (Re)Dedicate yourself to what’s sacred.
To learn more, or to access the link to join, click here.
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Rolling Stones Shabbat: Tonight!
Our iconic themed Shabbats are not to be missed! They represent what BTS is all about: creativity, spirituality, and transformative!
Our next themed shabbat is Rolling Stones on November 19th at 6:30pm!
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Running4Recovery Marathon Team |
We are excited to announce our 2022 Running4Recovery team has started training for the 2022 LA Marathon!
The marathon team is a great way to stay connected to the BTS community while raising money to support the mission of Beit T'Shuvah.
Trainings are held on Sunday mornings throughout the training season. Marathon team training will be held this Sunday, November 21, 2021 at 7AM. We will walk/run 4 miles. Meet at the Cannon at Santa Monica Pier, run out onto the Pier, go down the stairs on the north side, head north on the bike path to the bridge, return.
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Get your "tail" over here and join the new BTS Puppy Program. This program is designed to bring joy to residents by playing and interacting with our beloved pets. Just one hour per session guarantees a wagging good time. Please join us Thursday December 2, 2021 at 2:30PM.
Don't "paws-" join us. Please let us know if you plan to participate by e-mail:
We expect that all our new friends will be vaccinated.
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Saturday Morning Services |
Saturday morning Prayer and Meditation will start at 10:15 am PT.
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Beit T’Shuvah has raised nearly 3,000 through the Amazon Smile program to help save the lives of those suffering from addiction. Be a part of the movement and choose Beit T’Shuvah as your set featured charity on Amazon Smile by clicking the link below for all of your amazon purchases!
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Friday night services held via zoom at 6:30pm PT.
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Beit T’Shuvah Sisterhood T-shirts $30.
Multiple Colors Available!
Contact Dana Gache:
Phone: 3103516408
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Alumni Process group for residents who have left BTS during the pandemic.
Wednesdays at 12pm.
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Whether your loved one is still in treatment or they have already moved on to the next chapter of their journey, we would like to provide a platform in which families get to talk about their shared experiences and wisdom.
This group is for families of our current and former residents.
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Come learn with our dynamic clergy team on Saturday mornings at 9:30am PT.
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We are still celebrating birthdays each week on our Shabbat Zoom.
To sign up to take a cake, please contact Chaya.
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Life in Uncertain Times: Coping Strategies Before, During, and After Corona. With Rabbi Joseph. Mondays from 12-1pm PT/3-4pm ET.
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Wednesdays at 9am PT. Join the Facebook group:
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BTS community AA meeting: Thursdays at 7pm.
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Past newsletters are now available online. Please click here to view.
For anyone that shops at Ralphs, please consider registering your phone with their community care program and select Beit T'Shuvah as your charity.
For anyone that shops on Amazon, go to Amazon Smile and choose Beit T'Shuvah as your charity and a percentage of each purchase will be given back to us.
To those in need of financial assistance: WellFed, a program of the Jewish Federation Los Angeles, provides a $250 Ralph’s gift card to any Jew age 18-40 in need of food assistance. The link to the program is: https://www.nuroots.org/wellfed . Applying takes less than 5 minutes—you just need to give your contact info, and confirm that you are Jewish and ages 18-40.
· To those in need of therapeutic services: The Jewish Federation of Los Angeles is partnering with the Maple Counseling Center (https://www.tmcc.org/ ) to provide Jewish clients and staff therapy for a maximum cost of $25/hour or less. If you are interested in learning more, call the center at 310-271-9999 and complete the intake form. Be sure to check off that the person requesting services is Jewish AND that they were referred by a Jewish organization. Checking off both of these boxes on the intake form will ensure that cost will not exceed $25/hour.
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