Monthly Newsletter: November 2023 |
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Welcome to our Values in Action (VIA Isaiah) newsletter: Your quick guide to improving our community and the world at Temple Isaiah. For the newsletter archive, click here.
VIA ISAIAH IS…a collection of groups within Temple Isaiah who offer opportunities to temple members to serve those in need and to make our community more just through education, advocacy and direct service. Our efforts are grounded in the Jewish values of Tikkun Olam, repairing the world. Everyone is welcome and needed in this effort.
“The best way to find yourself is to lose yourself in the service of others”
Mahtma Ghandi
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Important Israel Update Details |
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Israel Support
Support Israel
· Visit this link for a comprehensive list of local and Israeli organizations accepting donations to provide aid to Israel as well a call for medical volunteers.
Additional Resources
We are hearing about problematic communications from school districts, universities, and corporations. To that end, JCRC has provided resources and guidance for schools and businesses to address the needs of the Jewish community at this time.
UnXeptable is a grassroots movement launched by Israel expats in support of a democratic Israel. We call on world Jewry to come together and preserve the democratic identity of Israel as the home of all Jewish people. Here are some actions you can take:
Participate in IRAC’s letter writing campaign to the Government of Israel
Contact Israel & World Jewry Committee Chair Amy Fischer Smith amyfischersmith@gmail.com or Karen Goldberg kgoldgm@gmail.com to learn more and get involved?
Join ARZA! The Association of Reform Zionists of America is the Israel arm of our Reform Movement. Temple Isaiah is an ARZA congregation. ARZA dues are just $50 per year and our support is critical right now. You can opt in to join ARZA and pay your ARZA dues when you renew your Temple annual commitment!
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New Interfaith Council of Contra Costa County Representative
Mazel Tov and gratitude to Andy Scharlach for agreeing to be the Temple Isaiah representative on the Elected Council of the Interfaith Council of Contra Costa County. He is replacing Terri Moss who served for 5 years. Andy will be our voice in the interfaith community and will bring back to us information about events taking place in different faith communities in our county. This role is even more critical today as we navigate the ever-present waters of hate, including antisemitism and islamophobia. We need one another now more than ever and we need to foster understanding. Andy, thank you for being our ambassador and taking this on.
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Law Passed for Housing on Religious Institution Land
Much gratitude and honor to Melody Weintraub and Jasmine Tarkoff for their tireless work in getting this law passed. We are so proud they are members of Temple Isaiah and social justice warriors making a difference in our community.
"The Governor signed SB 4 by Senator Wiener, colloquially known as Yes In God’s Backyard (YIGBY), which allows a religious institution or independent institution of higher education to build a housing development project on their property 'by right'."
From California Governor Gavin Newsom's website, read full article here
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ICARE Thanksgiving Fixings November 10th, at Peace Lutheran Church in Danville
Join us for a Thanksgiving service project! We are partnering with Peace Lutheran Church of Danville and The Tri-Valley Hindu Community and perhaps another one or two faith communities. Volunteers are invited to participate in the service at 11:30am and begin assembling the bags at 12:15pm with light refreshments to follow. Sign up here. Questions? Contact Anita Weil anita.weil@gmail.com or Zina Rosen Simon zinalrs@gmail.com
ICARE Food for Thought December 13 - 15 at Easter Hill Methodist Church and Beth Hillel both in Richmond, needs volunteers with strong backs (and some without) to assemble boxes of food for families in need over the winter break holiday. Food is provided; we just need volunteers to coordinate and assemble. Click to sign up here.
HOPE SOLUTIONS Help us make the holidays special for a Hope Solutions family. Sign up to purchase and donate a gift and bring it to the Temple Isaiah Office by Monday, December 4th. If you have any questions, contact Pat Reyes patreyes@comcast.net;
925-683-5485. Hope Solutions provides permanent supportive housing services to families in Contra Costa. Sign up here for HOPE Solutions Spirit of Giving 2023.
Jewish Coalition for Literacy needs tutors! JCL has been serving Bay Area children and families for over 20 years! Interested in becoming a K-5 reading tutor? www.jclread.org. contact Phyllis Edwards (925)200-5239 lafwards5@gmail.com
Angel Network needs volunteers! Become part of a team dedicated to offering comfort and support to members and their families in times of need and celebration. We help out with meals, visits, phone calls, greeting and get-well cards, and rides. We welcome our newborns with a small gift; deliver a “Mishe Bear” to young congregants in need of TLC due to illness, visit our most elderly members and deliver holiday greetings/treats to them. We fund the Shiva Consolation Kits delivered to mourners, offer rides to members who are unable to drive to Temple services and programs. We need you! Getting involved even once or twice a year makes a big difference. To volunteer, please contact Greta Frantz at gf.angelnet@gmail.com or Denise Glicklin at dg.angelnet@yahoo.com.
Get Involved in Bay Area Environmental Actions
Receive useful information regarding local Bay Area actions and events dedicated to fighting the climate crisis. https://350contracosta.org
Refugee Assistance We have an urgent need to help settle newly arrived refugee families. Help refugees find work, enroll their children in school, become familiar with their surroundings, etc. In particular, there is a new family from Kenya seeking asylum looking for housing in the Bay area and needs help navigating their new home. JFCS can also use our help with the following below. Contact Lisa Hirsch at lhirsch17@gmail.com if you have any questions or you are interested in helping.
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Welcome Team – be part of a team to welcome new refugee families.
- Legal Support - JFCS needs pro bono attorneys to help with Afghan asylum applications.
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ESL Tutors - This can be in person or via Zoom.
- Grocery Shopping for newcomers - buy groceries at your own expense and deliver them to clients
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Adult Bikes - JFCS needs adult bikes in any condition.
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Gift Cards - Target, Visa, Amazon and Safeway are preferred but they are grateful for anything. You can send them to the JFCS office at 2151 Salvio Street, Suite 350, Concord CA 94520 attn: Volunteer Services
Join the Multi-faith ACTION Coalition to tackle the root causes of poverty. People from all faith backgrounds meet to identify issues, research potential solutions, and advocate by meeting with elected local and state officials, attending legislative visits, supporting bills, and writing letters. Contact Doug Leich, leichd@gmail.com to be connected with the task forces you wish to join. https://www.multifaithactioncoalition.org/newsletter/2022
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Temple Isaiah’s Mental Health & Wellness Webpage has Spotlight articles that seek to educate and bring awareness to a variety of topics covering mental illness, addiction, spiritual wellbeing, and more. To access these articles, please visit https://temple-isaiah.org/community/mental-health-and-wellness/ and scroll down to
New Israel Fund The New Israel Fund (NIF) helps Israel live up to its founders’ vision of a society that ensures complete equality to all its inhabitants. Our aim is to advance liberal democracy, including freedom of speech and minority rights, and to fight the inequality, injustice and extremism that diminish Israel. https://www.nif.org/about/
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Mental Health Support for Adults
Monthly on Second Sundays at 3pm on Zoom
Upcoming Dates: November 12 at 3pm on Zoom
Whether you are going through a difficult period or have ongoing mental health issues, please join us for our monthly drop-in support group. We provide an opportunity to share and support one another as part of a nonjudgmental, caring community. Facilitated by Jacqueline Golub, a doctoral student in Clinical Psychology at John F. Kennedy National University. Free of charge and open to our Jewish Community.
Meeting ID: 850 2107 4973
Passcode (current password available in Shavua Tov) or join by phone at (408) 638-0968
Mental Health Support for Family Members:
November 27, 7pm on Zoom
Fourth Mondays from 7-8:30pm online. Are you a parent, sibling, or child of an adult with mental health issues? This free drop-in support group provides information as well as the opportunity to share and support each other as you learn to help your loved one. Facilitated by licensed clinical social worker, Rosemarie Frydman, NAMI certified trainer Karen Cohen.
Tikkun Olam is NOW
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To contribute information to this monthly VIA newsletter, please contact co-editors
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