Shop for the YES Fund | UN Tour | Mah Jongg | Song Story | Books | VAWA
Shop for the YES Fund | UN Tour | Mah Jongg | Song Story | Books | VAWA
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News from the Northeast

April 6, 2021
This eblast is sent from northeast@wrj.org.
Please add this address to your Contacts so you won't miss our News.
If this email is clipped, click "View entire message" at the end of the eblast.
Did you miss the  March newsletter? You can read it here.

Message from Carol Chaykin

Vice President of Marketing & Communications
WRJ Northeast District

Change is happening... Daffodils have emerged. Small green buds are beginning to appear on the tips of tree branches. Birds have returned and their song fills the air. Spring is here. With warmer weather, more of us venture outside again, masked, and still careful to distance from others. As we become vaccinated, we make plans to get together in person with friends and family, after a year of pandemic separation.
It is good to be back on the streets of New York City. Things look familiar, and yet much has changed. The city is quieter and less frenetic, with less traffic and fewer pedestrians than before the pandemic. We see some signs of rebound. Restaurants that were closed all winter are now open. There are even several new restaurants, and some new stores as well.
You may also notice some subtle changes in the newsletter. Sisterhood, WRJ, and other events are listed together, instead of separately. Event listings are shorter, but interactive. In most cases, a click will launch an informative event flyer containing registration information.
We would like to know how you like the newsletter changes. Please let us know if you like them, or if there is anything that you miss. Send your comments to wrjneblast@gmail.com.
Change can be powerful. Be in touch and help make WRJ more powerful.
Sincerely,
Carol Chaykin
Stephen Wise Free Synagogue, New York, NY

Online April Events

Here are some online events to keep your hands and minds busy throughout the month.

This listing includes selected sisterhood, WRJ Northeast, and WRJ events.
Please send your comments about this new format to wrjneblast@gmail.com.
http://tinyc.org/wlcmahjongg
Click the image for details

April 11, 12:45 p.m.
Virtual Mah Jongg Tournament

Sponsored by the Women's Leadership Council of Temple Israel (New York, NY) to benefit the Temple Israel Religious School.
https://d31hzlhk6di2h5.cloudfront.net/20210401/e4/69/0b/14/d48322cd9f9d83efd847503f/Jewelry_fundraiser.pdf
Click the image for details

April 15–30
Retail Therapy with Jewelry
Shop for the YES Fund

Join the WRJ Northeast District and shop with us and benefit the YES Fund at the same time.
Be sure to include WRJ YES in the special instructions so that 20% of your purchase will be donated to the YES Fund.
https://d31hzlhk6di2h5.cloudfront.net/20210404/b2/56/b4/5e/d4081060cc02bf4cb1c2557e/UN_Event_April_2021.pdf
Click the image for details

April 16 & 18
The United Nations and WRJ

A Two-Part Program from the WRJ Northeast District

Part 1: Friday, April 16, 2–3 p.m.
A virtual tour of the UN (registration is limited)
Part 2: Sunday, April 18, 4–5 p.m.
Hear WRJ’s representatives to the UN (no registration limit)

April 17, 7 p.m.
Song & Story Night

Join Temple Beth-El (Providence, RI) for an evening concert to benefit the Rhode Island Food Bank and the Temple Beth-El Religious School.
https://www.sstte.org/event/book-discussion---the-only-woman-in-the-room.html
Click the image to register

Wednesday, April 21, 7 p.m.
Book Discussion

Join the women of SSTTE (Scarsdale Synagogue Temples Tremont and Emanu-El)) for a discussion of Marie Benedict's novel The Only Woman in the Room. The novel is about Hedy Lemarr who in addition to having an acting career was instrumental in developing technology used during World War II that we continue to use today.
This event is open to everyone but registration is required.
http://huc.edu/huc-connect/huc-connect-2021#womensstudies
Click the image to learn more

Thursday, April 22, 1 p.m.
Judaism & Women's Studies
From HUC Connect

If Flame Falls on Cedars, Women Leaders Will Put Out the Fire: The Biblical Deborah Reimagined

The first modern Hebrew woman poet, Rachel Luzatto Morpurgo (1790–1871) placed herself in the shoes of the biblical Deborah when she suggested that women might be able to do the job better than their male counterparts. Discover the story of the biblical Deborah through the lens of Morpurgo's 1859 poem "Look: This is New."
Look for more WRJ events and selected HUC events in WRJ's new April 2021 Program Guide.
Don't forget to check the Online Programming Group on Yammer for more events.

Violence Against Women Act

The Religious Action Committee (RAC) and other organizations are encouraging the passage of a number of bills that protect some of the most vulnerable individuals in our society. This month's newsletter will take a deeper dive into the reauthorization of the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA).
As reported by the RAC in the United States, nearly one in three women and one in six men will survive some type of sexual assault or violence in their lifetime. Nearly 20 people are physically abused by an intimate partner every minute. This amounts to a staggering 10 million individuals every year.
In 1993, the first VAWA was signed into law. VAWA was enacted to address the scourge of gender-based violence for survivors of domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, and stalking. VAWA is up for reauthorization every five years, but Congress let the bill lapse in December 2018.
Based on information from the National Network to End Domestic Violence (NNEDV), on March 8, 2021, a bipartisan bill to renew and improve VAWA was introduced in the U.S. House of Representatives. The reauthorization takes a holistic approach, addressing the complex realities of survivors' lives while maintaining established protections and addressing persistent gaps. The reauthorization bill addresses the following points.
  • housing protections that allow survivors in federally-assisted housing to relocate to new, safe housing;
  • closure of legal loopholes in existing federal domestic violence-related firearm laws;
  • restoration of tribal jurisdiction that allows tribes to hold non-native perpetrators accountable when they commit assault crimes on native lands; and
  • non-discrimination requirements that guarantee equal access to VAWA protections for all survivors regardless of gender
The bill passed by the House of Representatives in 2019 includes a provision that bars selling a gun to those who have misdemeanor convictions of domestic abuse and/or stalking. The bill also expands the definition of who is impacted by existing gun prohibition to include dating partners.
The House version of the bill was passed on March 17, 2021, and was sent to the Senate on March 18.

You can help!

Summer Camp 2021

URJ camps are accepting registrations for Summer 2021. Some sessions are already all booked up! Get the details for URJ camps in the Northeast District:

Calendar and Other Resources

Holiday Calendar

April 8 Yom HaShoah (Holocaust Remembrance Day)
April 14 Yom HaZikaron (Israel Memorial Day)
April 15 Yom HaAtzmaut (Israel Independence Day)
April 30 Lag BaOmer

New sisterhood presidents and women's group leaders!

Please complete the LEADERSHIP INFORMATION FORM so that we can update our records and keep you informed with news, events, advocacy alerts, and more.

Keep in Touch
with WRJ Northeast

Twitter Facebook Instagram
NEwebsite yammer

Need access to Yammer?

Contact Heather Lorgeree at 212‑650‑4050 or email her at leadership@wrj.org.

Request an Online Speaker

Your sisterhood is entitled to a district speaker without expense to your sisterhood.
In alternate years, you may REQUEST A WRJ SPEAKER.
The RAC has established a series of call‑to‑action petitions:

Something to Consider. . .

Being Part of a Sacred Community

Being part of this special, sacred group of women . . .
Allows me to share ideas that sustain and promote
the ideals of sisterhood
         in the midst of women in my community.
I feel proud . . . I am blessed . . . I am a better woman
         because of these women who are my friends.
I have an opportunity to encourage others to be
the best they can be
         as our greater group builds connections.
I feel the strength and bonds of women
         that link me to the generations before and yet to be.
I feel at one with our matriarchs.
Sisterhood gives me a sense of continuity to all the sisters
who have led
         me to this place in time.
I am fortunate to call these women sisters.
I am in awe of their commitment.
I am grateful for this sense of family, Jewish family.
This special, sacred group of women teaches me about myself;
         they inspire me to be the best I can be.
Together, we build mitzvah and memory and the future.
By Rosanne Selfon, past president of WRJ;
printed in The Covenant of the Generations
Visit our website Follow us on Twitter www.facebook.com/WRJNortheast wrjneblast@gmail.com
Share this newsletter by using one of the "Share this" icons at the top of the newsletter.
The next eblast will be sent on May 4, 2021.
Send program listings, photos, and articles to wrjneblast@gmail.com by April 27, 2021.
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