April 2023/Nisan 5783

A Note about Pricing for the

Maine Conference for Jewish Life

Dear Friends,

We've heard from a number of you that the increased prices for this year's Maine Conference for Jewish Life—especially the cost of rooms—is surprising and dismaying. We understand your concerns, and want to address them. The Center for Small Town Jewish Life has always been committed to accessible prices, and we work to respect the human dignity of everyone in our community. This has meant, and continues to mean, that our prices do not actually cover the costs of the Conference. However, we are still participants in the larger economy, at the mercy of the global supply chain and ongoing labor shortages, which means that we are subject to price increases beyond our control. These account for the additional costs you may see reflected on the Conference registration page. 

We at the Center never want to exclude anyone from participating in our programming, and we never want cost to be a barrier to anyone's participation. Therefore, in addition to explaining why prices have gone up, we are working to ensure that everyone can access the amazing learning and community building that are the cornerstones of this weekend.

We are offering to all of you our scholarship code: scholarship2023. Enter this code and 100 percent of the costs will be wiped from your registration. If you feel able to pay something, if not the full amount, you will be able to add a donation to your registration, which we appreciate. If you're able to pay for your registration and would like to add a donation to help cover the costs for someone else, we appreciate that as well! 

We are deeply grateful to all the rabbis of Maine for making these community wide scholarships possible.

A provisional Conference schedule, which is being added to daily, can be found on our website. Check back regularly and follow us on Facebook for updates!

We are always happy to hear your feedback, and are excited to see you in June! Questions? Contact Conference Director Mel Weiss, maweiss@colby.edu.

Chag Pesach Sameach! Wishing you a joyous Passover.

Rabbi Rachel Isaacs, Executive Director

Melanie Weiss, Conference Director

Lunch and Learn Study Series

from Passover to Shavuot

The Omer—the 49-day period between the second night of Passover and the festival of Shavuot—marks a time of spiritual renewal, liberation, and harvest. Join Rabbi Madeline Cooper of the Center for Small Town Jewish Life for a reflective exploration of ancient and modern texts as we move through this period celebrating our freedom and spiritually prepare ourselves to receive Torah anew on Shavuot.  

Classes will take place on Zoom on the following Tuesdays, 12-12:45 p.m.:

April 18, April 25, May 2, May 9, and May 23.

By the end of this five-session online series, students will have learned a selection of texts that they can teach in their own communities on Tikkun Leil Shavuot, the nighttime learning customarily done on Shavuot. In each session, we will focus on a section of Pirkei Avot, the text traditionally studied on Shabbat during the Omer, and selections from Rabbi Karyn Kedar’s Omer: A Counting. Knowledge of Hebrew is not required.

Participants are encouraged to purchase Rabbi Kedar’s book, available in both paperback and Kindle formats.

Attendance at the entire five-class session is encouraged in order to get the greatest benefit, but drop-ins are also welcome. Feel free to bring your midday meal and enjoy lunch during class. The series is offered at no charge, but registration is required. Click below to register and to receive the Zoom link.