WRJ Northeast District Kallah Photos
Norwalk, CT, 2019
Norwalk, CT, 2017
WRJ Northeast Kallah – April 2015
"Dolce," Norwalk, Connecticut
Reflections about Kallah 2015 by Barbara Brown:
Driving home from the WRJ Northeast District Kallah, I am digesting the weekend (and all the good food we had), while listening to NPR. I was thinking about what to "bring back" to my own Sisterhood. Our Temple Sisterhood Board meetings are packed and there isn't much time, or often interest, about District "doings".
And, from the event chairs wrote afterward:
Though frost was in the air, our late April Kallah at Dolce Hotel and Resort in Norwalk, Connecticut, was full of warmth and comfort. Contributing to the success of the weekend, attended by many more women than have come to previous Kallahs or Retreats, was the camaraderie between first-timers and returning WRJ Northeast District Board members. The starting icebreaker, involving chocolate, set the tone for the entire weekend: an abundance of food and great conversation!
We were so fortunate to have Elaya Jenkins-Adelberg, third year HUC cantorial student, lead our Shabbat services. Friday night consisted of a slide show with pictures and prayers accompanied by Elaya's beautiful musical renditions. Also on Friday, our scholar-in-residence and nationally-recognized WRJ speaker, Karen Sim, gave a compelling D'var. On Saturday morning we were again treated to Elaya's spiritual music with Torah readings superbly done by Paulette Black, Vivian Blumstein and Elaya.
SEE MORE PHOTOS FROM KALLAH 2015
WRJ Northeast District Board Project – October 2013
Celebrations of Centennial: "100 for 100" Mitzvah Project
The Executive Committee of the WRJ Northeast District participated in a "100 for 100 Mitzvah Project," collecting hats, mittens, gloves, scarves, socks, coloring books with crayons, and new or gently-used children's books.
Gift bags containing one outerwear clothing item, one pair of socks, and an age-appropriate coloring book or a reading book were put together by women attending the WRJ Northeast District Executive Board meeting on October 5-6, 2013.
In all, 111 bags were produced in celebration of Women of Reform Judaism's 100-year celebration.
CONTINUE READING AND SEE PHOTOS
WRJ Northeast District Retreat – April 2013
Under One Tent: In the Company of Our Sisters
Over the weekend of April 26-28, 2013, Sisterhood and WRJ leaders throughout the Northeast District gathered in Norwalk, Connecticut, for our Biennial Retreat – a time to refocus our efforts, renew our commitments, and have the opportunity to meet and greet friends who share our interests and goals. Because the weekend took place just after the Boston Marathon bombing, we were able to offer comfort and support to our sisters" who joined us and live in Boston. We were joined by our spiritual leader for the weekend, Emma Goldin, a cantorial student at HUC, and a wonderful example of the talented and enthusiastic leadership coming from our movement.
The services on Friday night and Saturday were those written for the WRJ Centennial, including a special prayer written by Cheryl Greenfield of Beth El Temple Synagogue in Providence, Rhode Island. The Centennial was a recurrent theme throughout the weekend. Each participant was asked to bring an article highlighting an event that took place a hundred years ago, or how her sisterhood has celebrated this milestone; these were posted by Barbara Jayson and incorporated into an icebreaker. Shabbat was welcomed with a birthday cake and Israeli dancing.
Special projects included the decoration of plaster butterflies, coordinated by Yvette Bergman, in memory of the children who perished in the Holocaust. Most women participated in a Meditation Walk on Saturday afternoon. And our fundraising tradition, the Missouri Shuffle, was held on Saturday night and enthusiastically led by Natalie Berhumoglu. We raised $1,200 for the YES Fund through our donations and auction of a wide range of items.
Those who were able to find rare opportunities of unscheduled time were able to swim in the indoor pool, bike the trails, walk around the pond, and work out in the gym. During one break between activities, fifteen of us witnessed a very special wedding in the atrium of the hotel!
Our weekend was punctuated with business as well as pleasure, as we attended a Board Training with "fashionable" accessories provided by Robin Sobol, learned more about WRJ activities through an interactive bingo game prepared by Denise Levine, and had a formal meeting on Sunday morning. At the meeting, we were also treated to a slide show of a recent WRJ-organized trip to Israel, attended by Abby Fisher and Carmen Holtzman, and during which Carmen became a bat mitzvah.
Any combination of the weekend's events would have ensured its success, but the perfect spring weather, beautiful setting, and wonderful meals guaranteed that "Under One Tent" will be a Retreat to be savored for years to come.
All the best,
Yvette Bergman
Natalie Berhumoglu
Barbara Jayson
Sharon Sobel
Partners in Reform Judaism located in the Northeast District
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |