Dear Cheryl,



Hello JCRC! My name is Sasha Albright. I am currently a senior at University City High School. I participate in an early college program through my high school, meaning I will graduate with two years of college credit under my belt. I am a varsity tennis player, and am involved heavily in NFTY, serving as the Membership Vice President for the Missouri Valley region. I attend Congregation Shaare Emeth in St. Louis and have been raised in the reform branch of Judaism.

I have been privileged enough for the last two years to introduce myself in the same manner to classes in seven schools. I started my journey as a junior with no idea how the ‘Student to Student’ program worked but now am honored to say that I am a group leader who truly loves giving these presentations.

My favorite memory comes from St. Joseph's Academy. While teaching about Israel using my Maccabi Haifa soccer jersey, the students could make a personal connection because their school colors are green and white just like the colors on the jersey. This helped to peak their own interest into the subject and got them to ask great questions about Israel and Judaism as a whole.

Lauren Abraham and Rabbi Andrew Terkel gave me an excellent opportunity this week to be on the Fox 2 news show “The Pulse of St Louis.” I was given the opportunity to talk about what the ‘Student to Student’ program means to me and what I do during the presentations. This was not taken lightly on my part, as I was representing all the ‘Student to Student’ participants in not only St. Louis but also in a dozen other cities.

I am so proud that I could represent JCRC and ‘Student to Student’ as a group leader. I hope that the program continues to thrive and that we get to educate more students about Judaism.

Second from the right: Sasha Albright, with his Student to Student presentation group and Mr. Brian Jennings (holding the striped soccer jersey), Chair of the History Department at Affton High School and Student to Student teacher for more than 20 years.

Shabbat Shalom,

Sasha Albright

Senior at University City High School

Student to Student Group Leader

Sasha Albright with his Student to Student group, showing a chuppah during a presentation at

Affton High School.

What you absolutely need to know. Find all the information below.

attend

MLK Community Event

1.17.23 | Register

listen

Sh'ma Listen Speaker Series

1.26.23| Register

learn

Advocacy in Action: Leading through Uncertainty

March 3-5, 2023| Sign Up

travel

Interfaith Trip to Israel and the Palestinian Territories

7.24.23 | Register

Above, from left to right: Rabbi Andrew Terkel, Lauren Abraham and Sasha Albright

Below, alongside Fox 2's Jasmine Huda

Upcoming Interfaith Breakfast Dialogue Meeting Dates:

• Monday, February 6 - Tri-Faith Initiative case study discussion
• Monday, March 13 - Conversation with one of the clergy from the Tri-Faith Initiative

MLK Community Event

Tuesday, January 17, 2023

7 pm | St. Louis JCC Staenberg Family Complex

This event is free but tickets are required

Author Jessica Nordell will discuss her new book, The End of Bias-A Beginning: How we eliminate unconscious bias and create a more just world. After the presentation, there will be a brief panel discussion and audience Q&A.

Sh'ma Listen Speaker Series

Guest lecturer Rabbi Shoshana Cohen

Thursday, January 26 | 7-8:30pm

Jewish Federation of St. Louis | 12 Millstone Campus Drive

The last century has seen unprecedented lows and highs when it comes to Jewish power. Today, older Jews may have memory of Jewish vulnerability, such as the Holocaust, and the ecstasy from the Six Day war. But younger Jews may not recall a time when US and Israeli Jews did not have power.

How does this difference in perspective affect the way each generation approaches Israel, Judaism and Jewish identity? How do past lessons about power inform the new reality in which Jews live today? What narratives from our traditions can help us navigate contemporary dilemmas about power and vulnerability in Israel and the US?

Advocacy in Action: Leading through Uncertainty

March 3-5, 2023

Sheraton Westport Plaza

Presented by NCJWSTL

Co-sponsored by JCRC and the Jewish Council on Public Affairs

Join NCJW in St. Louis March 3-5, 2023 for a full weekend of workshops and speakers with plenty of time to share best practices and learn from each other. Workshops will include learning how to advocate, social media for advocacy, how to write letters to the editor, creating coalitions, reaching outside for support, and other topics that will help you move forward on the issues of importance to all of us.

Interfaith Trip to Israel and the Palestinian Territories

JCRC is excited to partner with two churches, Grace United Methodist Church and the Episcopal Church of the Holy Communion, for interfaith trip of Jews and Christians to Israel and the Palestinian Territories to see the Holy Land through the eyes of the other and learn more about the intersection of faith and politics in the region. The ten-day trip will take place from July 24-August 2, 2023. To register for the trip, sign up here. For more information, contact Rori at rpickerneiss@jcrcstl.org. 

Mark your calendar for these upcoming JCRC programs of the Newmark Institute for Human Relations. More details to come.

The Pope at War: The Secret History of Pius XII, Mussolini and Hitler with author David Kertzer

Monday, March 27

Annual Aurelia Konrad Community Seder

Thursday, April 20

Lunar New Year 2023

Sunday, January 15

1 - 4 pm | St. Mary's High School (directions)

Why Institutions Matter: Religious Perspectives on Building and Sustaining Institutions in a Fractured Society

Thursday, January 19

7:00-8:30pm

In person or virtual

Interfaith Tours at the Saint Louis Art Museum

Tuesday to Sunday, 10 am - 5 pm

Friday 10 am - 9 pm

Arts & Faith St. Louis is pleased to announce that the Saint Louis Art Museum is resuming Interfaith Tours at the museum, after a hiatus during the pandemic. The tours can be scheduled by emailing kbratkowski@thesheldon.org. Interfaith Tours at the Saint Louis Art Museum are led by two volunteer docents of different faiths, with a maximum of 16 participants. Two visitor groups of diverse faith groups are paired together for the customized tour. The tour demonstrates common elements of global faith traditions in art produced through the ages. The tours were initiated by the Saint Louis Art Museum in 2017 in collaboration with Arts & Faith St. Louis and the Interfaith Partnership of Greater St. Louis. In October 2019, SLAM docents and staff presented the Interfaith Tour program at the National Docent Symposium in Washington, D.C. as a model for other communities to create partnerships with community organizations.