By Amy Hummell Jewish Disability Awareness, Acceptance, and Inclusion Month (JDAIM) was formed in 2009 when the Jewish Special Education International Consortium got together for their annual meeting. Two of the members presented the idea of selecting a specific month for all communities to raise awareness and share resources on the topic of disability….
PHOTO: The Ruderman family presenting Michael Phelps with the Morton E. Ruderman Award in Inclusion; L-R: Sharon Shapiro, Marcia Ruderman, Jay Ruderman, Michael Phelps, Todd Ruderman. Photo by Cindy Loo The Ruderman Family Foundation, an international leader in disability inclusion, presented its Morton E. Ruderman Award in Inclusion to Michael Phelps at a ceremony…
By Deborah Moon During a women’s trip to Israel two years ago, Shoshana Gordon was very impressed by the transformative care that children with disabilities receive from Shalva. In March she will return to Israel to run in the Jerusalem Half Marathon to raise funds for the group. “This trip had such a profound effect…
This summer Sarit Cahana’s passion for Judaism, social justice and advocacy brought her to Washington, D.C., for the Machon Kaplan program at the Religious Action Center of Reform Judaism. Sarit is the daughter or Rabbi Michael Z. Cahana and Cantor Ida Rae Cahana of Portland’s Congregation Beth Israel. “We are very proud,” says Rabbi…
Network of Jewish Human Service Agencies was one of 22 organizations to receive funding under a matching grants program sponsored by The Genesis Prize Foundation and Jewish Funders Network. The program, Breaking Barriers Initiative, established in honor of 2016 Genesis Prize Laureate Itzhak Perlman, will fund programs that promote inclusion of individuals with disabilities in…
While every child has individual needs when it comes to bar and bat mitzvah preparation, youngsters with mental and physical disabilities have unique challenges and strengths. As the director of congregational learning at Neveh Shalom and mother of a son with Asperger’s syndrome, Mel Berwin’s interest in working with all children runs deep. “At one…
When Hannah Sturman became a bat mitzvah in February, it stirred many emotions in the Neveh Shalom community. Hannah and her younger brother Mitchell have a rare brain disorder in which the two hemispheres of the brain do not communicate with each other. Congregation Neveh Shalom for many years hosted a community-wide Sunday school class…
“Brilliance and Resilience” is on display at Temple Beth Israel, 1175 E. 29th Ave., in Eugene, through October. The exhibit includes photographs and vignettes of 30 women with disabilities who have participated in Women’s Institute on Leadership and Disability programs. For information on viewing the exhibit at TBI, call 541-485-7218. For information on hosting the…
Another benefit of WILD has been the cross-cultural understanding that evolves during the delegates’ home stays with families in Eugene. Rabbi Yitzhak and Shonna Husbands-Hankin hosted deaf delegate Hanan Mohsen Ibrahim Aly from Cairo, Egypt. “We had many meaningful interactions,” says Shonna. “We showed her around, including a painting of a Middle Eastern woman releasing…
Susan Sygall and her band of 156 WILD women are “Loud, Proud and Passionate” in their efforts to enhance the lives and rights of women with disabilities around the globe. In August Sygall’s Eugene congregation hosted the closing session of the sixth Women’s Institute on Leadership and Disability program. Temple Beth Israel is also hosting…
