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…
Ah, shopping for school supplies. Is there anything … worse? First of all, why do they need so darn much stuff ? I mean, honestly, are they really gonna use one pencil a week for the next 36 weeks? Plus, this school supply stuff really adds up fast. It was probably wrong to tell my…
Israel has two main seasons: hiking season and stay-at-home season. The hiking season, which runs from May through September, is very hot and dry. but there is a way to survive the summer and still venture outside. Despite years of drought, there’s no shortage of great water hikes in Israel. Here are 10 favorites: THE…
When Shmuel Shalom Cohen moved to eugene in 2010, he easily located synagogues to pray in, but found it wasn’t quite as simple for him to track down adult classes on Judaism, social gatherings for all nature of Jewish people or even kosher bread for Shabbat. after months of searching, he discovered where to buy…
Growing up in Portland attending Congregation Beth Israel, Rachel Shimshak learned the value of Oregon’s environment and tikkun olam. After graduating from the University of Oregon, she spent 16 years in Colorado, Washington, DC, and Massachusetts gaining experience and skills that now benefit her home state. Since its inception in 1994, Rachel has been the executive…
When Havurah Shalom wanted to pursue a tikkun olam project in Nicaragua, many who were unfamiliar with global poverty got involved. So they teamed up with Green Empowerment, a Portlandbased nonprofit that builds renewable energy and water systems throughout the developing world. The congregation raised $40,000 to jump-start a solarpowered water system in the tiny village of El Jocote with a population of 230, including 41…
Dear Helen: I just volunteered to edit my neighborhood association’s quarterly newsletter. I’ve recently retired and have more time, so thought this might be fun. Wrong! Chasing after people to give information or to write the articles they promised to do is worse than getting paid employees to do their jobs. Everyone gives me their articles late, incomplete, misspelled, with…
For more than 100 years, Sephardic Jews have been an important part of the Portland Jewish community. Next year, beginning in June, they will celebrate their rich history and hopes for the future with “A Hundred Years of Sephardic Life in Portland.” This ambitious project will feature a gala kickoff dinner and a four-month historical exhibit, documentary DVD and catalog. “We’ve…
Rabbi Yossi Chaiton and Rabbi Alan Berg help answer the question, “What does Jewish tradition say about our responsibility to take care of our body?” Rabbi Yossi Chaiton Chabad of Oregon, shaliach, associate rabbi Portland Jewish Academy, Hebrew and Jewish studies director “Maintaining a healthy and sound body is among the ways of G-d,” but…
A new generation prompted lifelong athlete, Paula Garfinkle Reed, to begin teaching fitness classes, and previous generations inspired her to open her own gym – Born To Ride Cycle & Fitness. When Paula’s children were toddlers, she realized she could get paid to exercise if she was teaching classes while her children played in the…
