What We Learned from The Education Series
by Jane Gomez
Over the past three months, Women’s Philanthropy sponsored an Education Series, which consisted of three discussion sessions that addressed topics relevant to women’s personal interests. Hosted by Alia Ramer, Sydra Miller, and Mara Kimowitz, these educational sessions were attended by women of all ages and stages. In addition to being a great diversion from the harsh winter, these sessions offered valuable, timely information that spurred many women to act in areas that they had not previously considered.
On January 14, we were treated to a discussion entitled “Love, Sex and Torah” by Rabbi Amy Small, award-winning founder of Deborah’s Palm. This lively discussion focused on age-old wisdom from the Torah and other Jewish teachings on the subject. Susan Kogan, an attendee, noted that while many of the topics discussed were familiar to her, she did learn some new perspectives. When I asked a group of women to share generally what they learned from the session, Ellen Goldner, a former Federation and WP President, summed it up succinctly: “Just do it.”
On February 11, women gathered to hear “Israel — Making Sense Out of All the Noise.” Presenting were Marc Leibowitz, Elliot Mathias, and Hayley Nagelberg. Their presentations centered around perceptions of Israel and how to be an effective advocate for Israel when faced with either indifference or open hostility. The discussion had a significant impact on many attendees. Laura Queller, Pam Fischman, and I were excited to pass on the information we obtained from the presentation to our college-age children. Pam noted that a friend left the session and immediately scheduled a trip to Israel for her family. Mara Kimowitz, mother of three young children starting public school, left the presentation determined to educate her children’s classmates about Jewish holidays and traditions so that she could help combat ignorance and indifference among non-Jews.
The final session of the series, held on March 11, was entitled “Keeping the Faith — Innovation in Jewish Experiences for Today’s Jews." Presenters included Rabbi Josh Stanton of Temple B’nai Jeshurun, Rabbi Rebecca Sirbu of Rabbis Without Borders, and Rabbi Small. The lively discussion centered around the innovative ways in which young people are connecting to Judaism, which do not necessarily include attending synagogue. While some women expressed fear that our traditions may be diminishing, many others, including all three rabbis, pointed out that the change being pushed by the younger generation of Millennials is a natural outcropping of our changing world. As the rabbis pointed out, our tradition has always been one of resiliency and adaptability to the world around us. Dina Polay was inspired by the session, noting that it was “good to see how many ways the Jewish community was reaching out to those who are unaffiliated.” The presentation gave me, a mother of two Millennials, hope that my children will continue to embrace their Jewish heritage in ways that are meaningful to them.
All who attended the Education Series agreed that the discussions were informative and thought provoking. Whether reminding us of the Torah’s wisdom about love and marriage, arming us with talking points and websites for our children, or providing us with an understanding of how tomorrow’s Jewish community will continue our traditions, there was much to learn from these sessions.
By popular request and as a result of the overwhelming positive feedback, we will be rerunning this series again. The new series, Beyond 9 to 5 Women’s Education Series PM, will be run in the evenings. For more information and to register, look for upcoming events on our website: http://www.jfedgmw.org/womens-philanthropy