Sisterhood’s programs and events for 2007-2008 include:

In addition, we offer many other programs for women of all ages, highlighting books, movies, worship rituals for women in our Rosh Hodesh monthly events, programming for younger women, such as our annual Mind, Body and Soul Day, our Day of Pampering and social events for younger couples. See below for a list of some of Sisterhood’s upcoming activities.

Z’havah Sisterhood, for our younger members, offers activities throughout the year, including some with the Men’s Club’s BOYZ Club, for younger men.

Z’havah Sisterhood’s Reading Screening and Eating meets the third Sunday evening of the month - offsite - to view a movie, review a book, have dinner or dessert and have a good time being together. For more information email: zhavahsisterhood@harshalom.org.

The Sisterhood Daytime Book Club meets at Har Shalom on the first Wednesday of every month at 12:30 p.m. Come join us! Bring your dairy or pareve bag lunch and socialize with our congenial group of readers. Cake, coffee and tea are, of course, provided.

September 5 - Nan Fried – “The Glass Castle” by Jeannette Walls
October 3 - Ruth Levin – “The Human Stain’ by Philip Roth
November 7 - Valerie Gordon – “There is No Me Without You” by Melissa Faye Greene
December 5 – Madeline Shere – “Water for Elephants” by Sara Gruen
January 2 – Marie Kramer – “Bodies and Souls” by Isabel Vincent
February 6 – Thelma Meyer – “The True Story of Hansel and Gretel” by Louise Murphy
March 5 – Phyllis Weltz – “A History of Love” by Nicole Krauss
April 2 – Marjorie Turgel – “The Faith Club” by Idliby, Oliver and Warner
May 7 – Joan Gorman – “The Yiddish Policeman’s Union” by Michael Chabon

Second Thursday is back and we’ve got a line-up of wonderful books to regale you, captivate you, pique your curiosity, and just plain entertain and engage you Every month on the evening of each Second Thursday , come join your Sisterhood "sisters" at 8:00 p.m. at Har Shalom for a wonderful discussion of the best in Jewish literature. The warmth of the discussion combined with the warmth of the freshly-brewed coffee and tea and the delicious refreshments -- often related to the themes in these books -- will help you to relax and laugh and think at the end of a hectic week. This is an activity that you can absolutely do for yourself.

October 11 – 8 PM with Rosh Hodesh: Rabbi Weinstein - “Dr. Grey’s Baby”
November 8 - Jackie Haynes – “History of Love” by Nicole Krauss
December 13 – Valerie Gordon – “Disobedience” by Naomi Alderman
January 10 – Hedda Kenton – “Murder at the Minyan” by Shulamit Kustanowitz
February 14 – Nina Simon – “Suite Francaise” by Irène Némirovsky
March 13 – Sheila Moldover - “The Fortune Teller’s Kiss” by Brenda Serotte
April 10 – Debbie Schapiro – “The World to Come” by Dara Horn

Rosh Hodesh Women’s Minyan - In recent years, women have reclaimed Rosh Hodesh as a special time to gather for prayer and study. It is a time of renewal, reflection, a time for light after darkness, a time to begin again. As we begin our tenth year of Rosh Hodesh programming, please join us monthly for our special women’s minyan and then participate in our study of Ethical Dilemmas.

Heshvan - October 11 – 8 PM with Second Thursday. Rabbi Weinstein - “Dr. Grey’s Baby”
Kislev - November 11 – 2 PM, with One Book / One Congregation. Ellen Kaner Bresnick, Amy Fine – “As a Driven Leaf”
Tevet – December 10 – AM Service – PM Program Nina Simon - Gender Identity
Shevat - January 7 – 8 PM Sally Klein – Stem Cell Research
Adar I –February 6 – 8 PM Susan Steinberg – Organ Donation
Adar II - March 6 – 8 PM Joanne Crantz – End of Life Issues
Nisan – April 6 – 5:30 PM Women’s Seder (w/ B’nai Israel)
Iyar – May 5 – 8 PM Margot Raphael – Torture/War Crimes
Sivan – June 3 – 8 PM Rabbi Janet Ozur Bass – TBA

Winter Movie Madness is a new Sisterhood program this year - movies on the big screen and delicious movie snacks during those cold winter nights when you don’t feel like going to the big theater. We have the popcorn and chocolate waiting for you and you get to see the best in Jewish films at Har Shalom, the newest, edgiest theater in town. Come join us. No charge...

Steel Toes on Thurs. Jan. 24, 2008, 8:00 p.m.
51 Birch Street on Thurs, Feb. 28, 2008, 8:00 p.m.
Layl Sader /Passover Fever on Thurs. Mar. 27, 2008, 8:00 p.m

Company is Coming! Cooking Classes- Sisterhood and Adult Education are working together again to bring to you their wildly successful cooking and learning series. This particular group of cooking classes will help participants make and share traditions, carry out appropriate rituals and prepare food for gatherings of family and friends. There will be no class fee, but there will be a materials fee (TBD) and advance registration – through Adult Education- is required. Be sure that you are not left out because wait till you see who is cooking and teaching and when they are doing it! You will never be afraid of those times during the Jewish calendar year when you are thinking---"Company is Coming!"

September 4 – Sukkot – Rabbi Leonard and Elizabeth Cahan
November 27 – Hanukah – Rabbi Risa Weinstein and Jonathan Levine
January 16 – Shabbat – Hazzan Henrique Ozur Bass and Rabbi Janet Ozur Bass
May 13 – Shiva – Rabbi David Rose and Natalie Merkur Rose

Sisterhood Shabbat – Saturday, March 29, 2008. We will be calling on you to participate in this special service, led by the many talented women of Sisterhood. However, if there is a special part you would like, a prayer you would like to lead, a portion of the service you would like to chant or if you would like to write a d’var Torah, haftorah or tefillah, please contact Sally Klein or Ellen Bresnick. If you would like to learn to do any of these things, get in touch with one of us and we will gladly help you learn the skills.


Sisterhood Social Action Projects - The Social Action Committee’s purpose is tikkun olam, repairing the world. One of the positive commandments under tikkun olam’s broad banner is birkur holim, visiting the sick. For years, Social Action’s Birkur Holim subcommittee (chaired by Margery Swerdlow) has carried out that commandment by delivering meals to members who are ill or injured. This past year, we expanded that program to include gift baskets to postpartum mothers. If you know of a new mother in the Har Shalom family, including non-members who are part of our ECEC family, please let Margery know.)

Serving those at the other end of the age spectrum, Senior Bingo goes into its second year this year. If you’d like to help make sandwiches, call numbers, or hand out prizes, contact Senior Bingo chair Hedda Kenton.

Social Action also collects contributions that go to support the Jewish Theological Seminary through the Torah Fund campaign, which is used to buy books, furnish housing, provide scholarships, and anything else needed to help the Seminary provide the finest Jewish education possible to as many students as possible. Torah Fund chair Bena Siegel is looking to introduce more women to the Seminary and its importance to Conservative Judaism. If you haven’t made a contribution before, or if you’re looking to increase your contribution, watch for information on this year’s Torah Fund PINS campaign.

The killings, rapes, displacements, and torture of Darfuri people—80 percent of whom are women and children—continue. Work to end this tragedy relies on volunteers to visit NATO and African Union ambassadors and to carry out several projects of the Jewish Community Relations Council, the Save Darfur Coalition, and other organizations. If you’d like to find out more about the situation in Darfur, go to www.savedarfur.org or www.AJWS.org. If you’d like to help, contact Yvonne Paretzky, VP Sisterhood Social Action, or DarfurToday@HarShalom.org.

The Earth’s environment is in serious and immediate need of repair. To help in that regard, we’re working with the Tikkun Olam committee on ways to “green” Har Shalom and working with Sisterhood Catering on ways to “green” the Har Shalom kitchen. One action we’re taking is good on several levels: it provides financial support to a cooperative of Jewish, Muslim, and Christian coffee growers in Uganda, promotes Fair Trade kosher coffee, and gives Har Shalom members and guests delicious coffee. To order coffee for your own use, please see the order form on the Tikkun Olam page on the Har Shalom website.

We started a new project last year, From Women For Women (Marjorie Klein, chair), to help the women staying at the Stepping Stones Family Shelter with donations of sanitary supplies, hand lotion, shampoo, women's deodorant and other similar items requested by the Rockville-based shelter. Donations of money and discount coupons on these items are also welcome. (Please make your checks payable to Har Shalom Sisterhood, earmarked Stepping Stones.) All non-money donations can be placed in the Toiletries Collection bin in the Gordon coat room, with coupons in labeled sealed envelopes so they don't get lost.

For questions about any of our social action projects, please contact Yvonne Paretzky, Sisterhood Social Action VP, or call the Sisterhood phone line, 301-299-7087, Ext. 410.