Maybe you only celebrate the High Holy Days; or you attend synagogue every week. Perhaps you grew up in a home where Jewish and other holidays were celebrated with joy and love; or you simply love your mother’s chicken soup. The Jewish experience is nothing if not diverse, but at the core there is the…
Preparing for a bat or bar mitzvah in America today means more than simply learning your Torah portion, writing a drash or picking the DJ for your after party. Many synagogues also suggest their b’nai mitzvah students undertake some kind of community service, commonly known as a mitzvah project. Mitzvah projects range from fundraising for a…
Younger donors first support causes they are passionate about – rather than institutions. It is up to organizations to inspire them and show them that their support can make a tangible difference on the wider issues. For years, many in Jewish communal service have raised the issue about the future of Jewish philanthropy. They ask,…
Mittleman Jewish Community Center Fitness Manager Jennifer Harrington understands the importance of exercise for good health. “Our wide range of classes offer cardiovascular fitness along with flexibility and balance,” she says. From cycling, Zumba and water aerobics to bodypump and Pilates coupled with personal training, we provide the variety to meet individual needs.” While individual…
To mark the 90th anniversary of the very first bat mitzvah, the Oregon Jewish Museum is hosting a traveling exhibition, “Bat Mitzvah Comes of Age,” featuring the remarkable story of how, in less than a century, individual girls, their parents and their rabbis challenged and changed communal values and practice to institute this now widely…
As director of the Oregon Health Authority since its inception in 2009 and a board member of Cover Oregon, which launches the state’s insurance marketplace this month, Dr. Bruce Goldberg is at the forefront of the state’s push to ensure more Oregonians have access to affordable health care. “Two years into Affordable Care, we estimate…
Last February my family was about to sit down to Shabbat dinner. As we gathered in the dining room and took our seats, my then 5-year-old son, Leo, was nowhere to be found. My wife and I called out his name, and suddenly he emerged from his bedroom, running up to us with a big…
Nationally and locally, the organized Jewish community has striven to embrace and engage an increasingly diverse and diffuse population. The so-called big Tent approach has been spurred in part by Jewish population studies, such as the 1990 national study that revealed a 52% intermarriage rate and the 2008-09 Portland study that found an astonishing 47,500…
Even if no one asks, Larry Chusid has a knack for seeing a need and meeting it – whether it’s funny greeting cards or pet food for hungry families struggling to feed the four-legged members of their families. When Larry was 23, he dropped out of college to sell his Rabbi Rosenberg greeting cards, even…
It’s that time again – time to get back to school! Outside of fall holiday shopping, it’s one of the busiest shopping seasons of the year, filled with sales and savings. So shake off the summer sand from your beach vacations and trade in those flip-flops for back to school styles! My must haves for back…
