OrH Newsletter

Weekly Newsletter

24 January 2023

Abundance

Friends, we have so much to share with you that this intro will be short by necessity. If the winter blahs have caught you, enjoy this sunny list of upcoming events and news items while we dream of warmer days.

Portraits of Or Haneshamah - Launch Party!

How many congregations are lucky enough to get their own photobook? Not many. In fact, this project is so special that we are throwing an old fashioned launch party to celebrate. 
On February 12, join us in Fellowship Hall from 2-4 as we admire beautiful hard copies of “Outside: Portraits of Or Haneshamah.” Members Gary Stein and Deborah Margo started working on this project in 2020 and kept at it. A digital version can be viewed here.

This event will also serve as a fundraiser for Or Haneshamah, with copies of the book available to purchase (and should we run out, order-to-purchase). We will have music, snacks, some chatting and some toasting. We hope you will come. L’chaim!
PS, could you contribute something to the bake sale to help us fundraise? Let us know at communications@orh.ca .

Message From the Board

January 2023
We have lots of exciting news to share! Strap in - when we say ‘lots,’ we mean it.
First off, we are thrilled to announce the appointment of Jenny Burns as our 2 day a week Administrator. Most of you already know Jenny as our extremely talented and vivacious Educator, organizing Machaneh Shabbat (Shabbat Camp) every week, and assisting with B Mitzvah Group and Festivals. She will stay on in the role of Educator for one day a week. Jenny will help with organizing, publicity, and general support for our growing congregation. She can continue to be reached at educator@orh.ca for children and youth education matters, as well as administrator@orh.ca for any organizing matters and will also respond to info@orh.ca . Also, Jenny will be at 30 Cleary in person, in Room 5, Tuesday and Thursday from 9:30am to 12:30pm. Welcome to your expanded role, Jenny!

Speaking of which, did you know that we only have three paid leaders at our synagogue and between them, it is only one full time position? Rabbi Liz’s contract is for less than two days a week, Jenny now has a combined role as Educator/Administrator for three days a week, and Molly Blacher, our book-keeper, works three hours a week. In the past, we have over-relied on volunteers and Rabbi Liz to organize everything, and that model has been breaking down in recent years. Our amazing and esteemed Treasurer is working with a board taskforce to model how we can grow over the next seven years to two full time staff, including a full-time Rabbi. Want to know more? Contact our Treasurer Ari at treasurer@orh.ca.

Related to this, it is great to see so many new people joining us for Teddy Bear Shabbat, Freylekh Fridays (both on the 2nd Friday of each month), and our hybrid Shabbats and Festivals. We hope to increase our membership from 130 people (about 100 households) to 200 people over the next seven years to support weekly services and expanded events, especially for the next generation. If you aren’t yet a member, we have a discount for membership this year (since our membership runs from one High Holidays to the next) and we are happy to discuss reduced rates for those who might have lower incomes, including students. Please contact our dynamic Membership Coordinator, Myrna, at membership@orh.ca – and don’t forget to bring your friends.

And while having an Administrator helps, we still rely on YOU to help setting up and taking down our materials for the in-person “roomies” at Shabbat and Festivals – especially our new Friday night Kabbalat Shabbat services as part of Freylekh Fridays. It is surprisingly easy and a great way to meet people. Contact Karen, our In-Person Team Coordinator shabbat@orh.ca to join that team. For the online “Zoomies,” our Tech Team Coordinator David ( techteam@orh.ca ) is always looking for hosts, chat managers, and also people to handle the streaming equipment in the synagogue. And don’t forget that we are now back to potluck meals after in-person services – please bring vegetarian food and meet new people (and eat some truly excellent food).

Finally (phew), we would love to reinstate a monthly lay-led Shabbat, which would allow us to have weekly OrH events. We also need help with Torah readings and High Holidays. Please contact our incredibly talented Rituals Coordinator Shira at rituals@orh.ca rituals@orh.ca for more info.

This year is a special one for Or Haneshamah. It’s our Double-Chai (36th anniversary year). Can you believe it? Appropriately, the next few months will be packed with celebrations. Here’s a quick snapshot:

Tu Bishvat - the birthday of trees (Feb. 6)
Our Portraits of Or Haneshamah Launch Party + Fundraiser (Feb 12)
Annual funding drive (Feb. - April) 
Purim (March 5-7)
Pesach (April 5-13)
Annual General Meeting (May 28) 
Shavuot (May 25-27), another fundraiser featuring a special OrH flavour of ice cream !
Queer Shabbat and Kabbalat Shabbat picnics over the spring and summer

If you are wondering about all the fundraising, as a small congregation, OrH depends on regular donations to run all our programming. We are also focusing on building on the generous Walter and Teena Hendelman Fund to bring a student rabbi next year. This year, the Walter and Teena Hendelman Fund will help us bring in guest rabbis as Rabbi Liz takes a long-delayed educational leave to complete her counseling certification March-June.
 
At the May AGM (Sunday, May 28 – save that date!), Carolyn Whitzman will be moving on after two years from the position of President, and we will collectively discuss our 2030 OrH vision and how we all can work towards full time support and an even more inclusive congregation.

And maybe most excitingly, we want to cap off the year with a big Double Chai anniversary celebration in November, featuring a little history, a lot of music, and tons of community! Yes, it is 36 years since the Ottawa Reconstructionist Havurah formed, 10 years since Rabbi Liz joined us, and 10 years at 30 Cleary!

With best wishes and excitement,
Carolyn Whitzman on behalf of the Board

Carolyn Whitzman, President
Gabrielle Dolgoy, Vice-President
Nicola Oddy, Secretary
Ari Rosberg, Treasurer
Myrna Barwin, Membership
Andrea Simms-Karp, Communications
Caroline Bowden, Volunteer Engagement
Sarah Lines, Interim Member-At-Large

SOMEWHERE, SOME OF US, SOME OF THE TIME

I haven’t seen the movie Everything Everywhere All At Once, and have avoided learning too much about it. Mind you, I also haven’t been to a cinema since the onset of the pandemic (though I must confess to finally “watching” stuff on my little hand-held device, formerly known as a phone, with startling comfort). 
Maybe it’s the title. I’m already somewhat prone to noticing everything, everywhere, all at once, most of the time. Maybe it’s an occupational hazard. After all, the Jewish holiday cycle, the Torah reading cycle, the daily prayers, the concept of ongoing Revelation and other perpetual events are the hallmark of our lived tradition. Noting and knowing what happened before, and what we want to do with that now, is How We Jew. 
​​​​​​​
A story from my senior rabbinical student internship: approaching Sukkot that fall, I suggested an outdoor gathering in keeping with their usual home-based communal gatherings at which we might, among other activities, bless and wave the lulav. A member of their governing council, called The Wise Fools, piped up: “But we did that last year!” After a beat, I made a response that (I hope) acknowledged the benefits of revisiting a ritual without making the objecting party feel in any way “wrong” in their objection.

It is in the repeated, ongoing encounter, perhaps exactly the same, perhaps highlighting new elements, that allows different folks to engage Jewishly at different moments in their lives, while the ongoing-ness of it all keeps on ongoing, primarily in the hands of others. So it is in our secular lives as well. Those folks who pay attention, with commitment and regularity, to the perpetual issues that arise and challenge the global we – I am grateful for their utter utterly dedication. They sustain our awareness and propel our actions on a host of issues that would clearly be impossible for one to perpetually devotes one’s attention, even with the ready availability of those little hand-held devices.

And what about when the ongoing-nesses around us offer an unrelenting cascade of calamity? I won’t even try to list them. You have your own version of that list going already, with little spikes in the chart for the striking horrors of the day that cross the downward-trending curve representing that “I can’t even contemplate this issue again/right now.”

 It is both/and – everything everywhere and somethings somewhere. We each can’t do it all, can’t respond, notice, or even allow our limbic systems to take it (all) in. Yet. Some of us will, and can, act, or follow, or observe, or respond, much of the time. When that prevailing concern reaches in and grabs your heart, energizes your limbs, stirs your soul – that’s the eternal, perpetual Presence that is our people’s Everything Everywhere All At Once.

Rabbi Liz 

Getting Involved in Services

As you know, we are a congregation that thrives on community involvement. We are looking for some volunteers to either leyn or help lead part of a service between now and June. Rabbi Liz will be taking a study leave later this year and we want to plan in advance. If this interests you, or if you want to learn to leyn / lead services, email Shira at rituals@orh.ca.

Volunteer Sign-Up

Have you been tossing and turning, trying to figure out how you can support Or Haneshamah and connect with your community?
Look no further!
Volunteers: click here to add your name to the sign-up sheet for volunteer roles

Questions or concerns? contact manyhands@orh.ca 

Tech Team

Are you (or someone you know) benefiting from our multiaccess services and programs? Help us keep the party going! 

Zoom Hosts and Chat Managers: click here for service outlines.

Need OrH Zoom account access information? contact techteam@orh.ca

Cleary Avenue Detour

Effective Monday November 21st, 2022, visitors and congregants will use the new detour for Cleary Avenue to enter 30 Cleary. The new entrance is through the parking lot of Kristy’s Restaurant. Please drive slowly and pay attention to new detour signage. The construction will include signage, a pedestrian walkway from the detour intersection to Unitarian House, and a traffic light at Richmond Road. The detour will be in place until September 2024 as part of the O-Train construction.

Over the two year detour period, you'll be able to find updates about the detour and related construction impacts https://www.firstunitarianottawa.ca/cleary-detour.html here .

Reminder About Masking

Due to increased hospitalizations, please note that mask use is mandatory in all indoor synagogue events, including services, small group interactions and other congregational activities.

Exceptions only surround food and drink, and children under five years. Eating and drinking should be done at a set time, preferably in an alternative space. We are also continuing to encourage people to wear an N95 mask where possible and to ensure that the mask is properly fitted and completely covers your nose and mouth.

It is our job as a congregation to protect all people who enter our doors and masking has proven to be the safest way to interact in large and small groups alike. Thank you for your continued support and participation in this matter.

Member News
Hesed: OrH’s Caring Committee

Hesed, often translated as “loving kindness,” is OrH’s “Caring Committee.” Hesed can provide caring, practical support to OrH members and their immediate families in times of need. We are a committee of 5 - 8 members who coordinate a database of volunteers who stand ready to assist their fellow-congregants. We offer (in part): Life Cycle Support, such as facilitating the provision of Shiva service leadership, organizing a minyan, providing meals for a grieving family, temporary Respite Support during illness, and Social Support. More information can be found on the Hesed page (found under the Connect button) of the OrH website. 

Members of the Hesed Committee rotate the co-ordinatorship every two months. The coordinator for December and January is Jean Hanson. You may reach the co-ordinator by email at hesed@orh.ca or by phone, by accessing their contact information in the Member Directory, available to any OrH member logged in to the OrH website. We do not publish personal phone numbers in the OrH newsletter.

Upcoming Services and Events

TUESDAY NIGHT SHIRAH Music Circle - Every Tuesday from 7:00 - 8:30pm
Join us in Room 5 (30 Cleary Ave) for informal liturgical music making. It's a chance to learn and practice melodies for our Shabbat and festival services, to build our harmonizing muscles, and to enjoy some musical company. No Hebrew or music reading skills required. Questions? rituals@orh.ca

Shabbat Morning Torah Service
Saturday, February 4
10:00 AM - 12:00 PM
In-person and Zoom

Tu Bishvat
Sunday, 5 February, 2023 • 14 Shevat 5783
5:00 PM - 8:00 PM
NOW Room
The ritual of the Tu Bishvat Seder dates back to the 16th Century as Kabbalah was finding its voice in Medieval Jewry. Now a Tu Bishvat Seder is a chance to explore the Torah, Jewish tradition and the modern issues of taking care of our earth. Seder foods and drinks will be provided by Or Haneshamah's B'nei Mitzvah Group. Dinner and dessert are potluck! Please bring something to share.
Register here .

Freylekh Friday
Friday, February 10
In person, 30 Cleary, Room 5
Teddy Bear Shabbat at 5:30 pm
Potluck Shabbat Dinner at 6:30 pm 
Musical Kabbalat Shabbat at 7:30 pm (available via Zoom as well)
Guest Speaker Joel Westheimer at 8:15 pm (available via Zoom as well)
Register for Teddy Bear Shabbat here .
Register for Freylekh Friday here .

Portraits of Or Haneshamah Launch Party
Sunday, February 12, 2-4pm
In person at 30 Cleary, Fellowship Hall
Hard copies of this beautiful book will be sold for $54. Bring extra for the bake sale! Enjoy some music, snacks, and meet the community.

Reconstructionist News and Events

Reckoning Together: A Reconstructionist Pilgrimage Towards Racial Justice
Thurs, Mar. 16 - Sun, Mar. 19
This spring, Reconstructionists from all across the movement will make a pilgrimage to the  National Memorial for Peace and Justice and Legacy Museum in Montgomery, Alabama, and we want you to journey with us. Learn more and REGISTER NOW! 

Community Events

Combatting Antisemitism with Jewish Pride
Tuesday, Feb. 7, 7pm
Soloway JCC,  21 Nadolny Sachs Private, Social Hall A
Register here.

The Jewish Federation of Ottawa is excited to be hosting a community-wide event with guest speaker Ben M. Freeman, the founder of the modern Jewish Pride movement and author of Jewish Pride: Rebuilding a People and Reclaiming our Story: The Pursuit of Jewish Pride. This is a unique opportunity to hear from one of the leading voices against modern-day antisemitism. This talk will benefit teenagers and adults of all ages. (While the cost is $10, we are happy to help cover ticket prices for those who require support.

New Podcast Series: Playing Anne Frank
This seven-part series is a deep dive into the history of The Diary of Anne Frank —  the original 1955 Broadway production that won Tony Awards and the Pulitzer Prize, the Oscar-winning 1959 film — and how it shaped those involved in it. 
Listen and subscribe here.  

Book Launch - Clara at the Door with a Revolver
Thursday Feb 9 2023 7:00pm - 8:30pm
The Spaniel's Tale Bookstore, 1131 Wellington St W
Doors open at 7pm

Join us for an evening of conversation about Clara at the Door with a Revolver, with author Carolyn Whitzman and playwright Sarah Waisvisz.
On the night of October 6, 1894, Frank Westwood was shot to death by an unknown assailant as he stood in the doorway of his home. Six weeks later, Clara Ford – a Black tailor and single mother known for wearing men’s attire – was arrested and confessed to the murder. But as the details of her arrest and her history with Westwood emerged, Clara recanted, testifying that she was coerced by police into a false confession. Carolyn Whitzman tells the story of a courageous Black woman in nineteenth-century Toronto and paints a portrait of a city and a society that have not changed enough in 125 years.

*This event is free, however, an RSVP is required as space is limited. Register with the ‘buy tickets’ button to RSVP .

Your text goes herWe hope you can join us for a special literary event: “Graphic Novels, Holocaust, Survival: A Conversation with Charlotte Schallié.”

January 24th, 2023 at 6 PM. (Doors open at 6PM)
Club SAW, 67 Nicholas Street
Register here!

But I Live: Three Stories of Child Survivors of the Holocaust, edited by Charlotte Schallié is a powerful collection of non-fiction ‘graphic novellas’ that deal with the Holocaust. The book has won the Canadian Jewish Literary Award for Biography. But I Live sketches autobiographical stories by Holocaust survivors Emmie Arbel, Nico and Rolf Kamp, and David Schaffer, co-created with visual artists Miriam Libicki, Gilad Seliktar, and Barbara Yelin.

The Embassies of Germany, Israel, Romania and the Netherlands would like to invite you to an evening with Professor Dr. Charlotte Schallié featuring a discussion moderated by Professor Dr. Agatha Schwarz. The discussion will be followed by a reception. A small exhibition featuring art from the publication will also be on site.

Donations to OrH

Donations are a significant part of the funding for activities and rabbinic support in our community. You can direct your contribution to different areas of Or Haneshamah’s activity, including: general donations to fund programming, rabbinic leadership, donations in honor or in memory of a person or event, or dedication of ritual objects. We also welcome donations to the Gita (Tova) & Zvi Taub Memorial Fund, the Rabbi's Discretionary Fund, the Or Haneshamah Endowment Fund. Federal employees or retirees can also give to OrH through the Annual Government of Canada Workplace Charitable Campaign. Information on all these programs and how to give can be found at this link, or by clicking on the "Donate" tab on the main menu of the OrH website.

Board of Directors

Chair: Carolyn, president@orh.ca 
Treasurer: Ben, treasurer@orh.ca
Secretary: Nicola, secretary@orh.ca
Communications: Andrea, communications@orh.ca
Membership: Myrna, membership@orh.ca
Many Hands Coordinator: Caroline, caroline@orh.ca
Interim Member-at-large: Sarah, sarah@orh.ca  
Interim Member-at-large: Gabrielle, gabrielle@orh.ca ​​​​​​​ 


Rabbi Elizabeth Bolton: rabbi@orh.ca
OrH Members are welcome to contact Rabbi Liz, the Hesed team (hesed@orh.ca),
or any member of the board, regarding pastoral needs.

Or Haneshamah
30 Cleary Ave., Ottawa, ON, K2A 4A1
613-239-4988
www.orh.ca
info@orh.ca

** Disclaimer Regarding Community Event Postings **

Or Haneshamah frequently receives requests to post notices of upcoming events in the community at-large.  These events run the range from cultural, educational, and in some cases explorations of topical political issues.  In the interest of providing information to our congregation about the diversity of interesting events in the Ottawa community we will post notices of these events in our regular newsletter.

We recognize also that from time to time we are requested to post notices of events which are highly controversial in nature and reflect a wide range of opinions among our congregation on particular issues.  We are, however, of the opinion that it is appropriate for us to post events taking place in the community which may challenge us, which may cause discomfort, and which may cause us to reflect on some of our beliefs.  Our openness to post notices for a wide range of community events, however, does not mean that we have abdicated our responsibility to show discernment and to distinguish between those events which demonstrate an open-minded and thoughtful approach to specific issues and those which do not appear to reflect such values.  So, we will make judgments about what notices we believe are appropriate to post and those which we believe will not contribute to a thoughtful and balanced exploration of ideas and issues.

Will we make mistakes along the way?  Probably.  But the possibility of errors of judgment does not mean that we can excuse ourselves from the responsibility to show judgment in posting notices about events in the community and we promise to do so with openness tempered by a sense of responsibility.

In agreeing to post any notice of an event in the community, Or Haneshamah does not endorse, support or promote any perspectives, positions or ideas expressed in the events which are posted in our newsletter.