In
ternational Northeast Region
Women's League
for Conservative Judaism
Networking to Engage, Enrich, and Empower Conservative Jewish Women
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February 7, 2020 Volume 4, Issue 4
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FROM THE REGION PRESIDENT--JOAN LOWENSTEIN
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Housekeeping. Most people don't like to do it but it is something that needs to be done on a regular basis. So this week, we are going to do just that. I have so many things that I want to share with you that I decided to just call it Housekeeping.
First, I want to tell you about something very exciting that is in the works for our region. Recently, your Region Board has approved a motion for scholarships to be made available for region members to attend Conventions and Conferences. A new subcommittee, headed by Rusty Zackheim, is being formed to establish all the details. More information will be forthcoming as soon as it is available. And yes, scholarships will be available for Convention 2020!
Next on my list is the World Zionist Congress election which began on January 21st and runs through March 11th. Every five years American Jews have the opportunity to make our voices heard in Israel. This is our opportunity to send a clear message to leaders in Israel about issues like religious pluralism, equality and inclusion for all Jews, equal access to the Kotel and continued growth of our Kehillot and the Conservative/Masorti movement in Israel. By casting your vote for MERCAZ, you will ensure that we will get our fair share of the $1 billion dollars in funding for programs, both in Israel and around the world. For more information and to vote go to
https://www.mercaz2020.org/
. Vote Mercaz Slate #6 for the Conservative/Masorti movement.
The last thing on my housekeeping list a gentle reminder. Thank you to the International Northeast Sisterhoods that have submitted their Per Capita for this fiscal year. If your Sisterhood hasn't sent in Per Capita yet, please take a minute to update your membership roster in the Women's League database and send your Sisterhood's check to the Women's League office.
Wishing you a very meaningful and peaceful Shabbat,
Joan
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MAZAL TOV TO RABBI MAURICIO BALTER
The staff at Masorti Olami and MERCAZ Olami extend a mazal tov to their executive director, Rabbi Mauricio Balter, who was among those to receive an honorary degree from the Jewish Theological Seminary of America on Sunday, January 26.
Rabbis were honored for over 25 years of dedicated service with a special convocation held in the newly opened atrium at JTS.
Rabbi Balter has served congregations in Kiryat Bialik and Beer Sheva and, prior to his making Aliyah, he was the first director of the Masorti Movement in Argentina. He was joined at the celebration by his wife Bilha, his two daughters and sons-in-law, two grandsons and sister. Rabbi Philip Scheim (Masorti Olami, president), Rabbi Rafi Cohen (Masorti Olami NY administrator and development associate), Rabbi Marcelo Rittner (Masorti AmLat, president) and Mirko Lebl (Masorti AmLat, vice president) were in attendance as well as many other JTS alumni, faculty, students and administrators, to show their support for his great honor.
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MORE GOOD NEWS WANTED
Toot your own horn.
Tell us what is going on in your Sisterhood.
Tell us what is successful in your Sisterhood.
Email Lois Silverman, Chai Line editor, at
and she'll share your news.
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Do you know that INR has its own website and Facebook page?
Go to our Facebook page and like us. Click here to see our page.
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FROM WOMEN'S LEAGUE FOR
CONSERVATIVE
JUDAISM
Come to Convention 2020 in Schaumburg, Illinois!
Sunday, July 12 - Wednesday, July 15, 2020 at the Hyatt Regency Schaumburg
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CONVENTION REGISTRATION OPENED ONLINE
Check out the different packages being offered / get the early bird rate!
Go to the Women's League website - WLCJ.ORG - and Login to the member's area. (Click Login at upper right of screen and enter your email address and password where directed.) Need your password or help with login, contact Razel rkessler@wlcj.org or 212-870-1263
https://www.wlcjmembers.org/convention2020/index.php
READ ABOUT THE LATEST SPEAKER FOR WLCJ CONVENTION 2020!
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Shalom friends,
For the first time at Women's League Convention the Leadership sessions will take place before the Convention officially starts. This will allow all delegates to participate in Convention and not miss personal enrichment and educational sessions because they are in required sessions.
All Sisterhood Presidents should plan to arrive and be ready to start their session at 1PM on Sunday, July 12.
There will be separate registration available to enable those delegates to check in to Convention. Hopefully the hotel rooms will also be ready at 1PM.
Sisters Journeying Together,
Debbi
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Calling all Sisterhood Presidents, both new and experienced!
Our
Sisterhood Presidents' Zoom calls will help you navigate a path through the world of Women's League.
Our Zoom calls are designed for you to discover the essence of Convention and why so many of us are so excited to be spending three days with like-minded Jewish women from all over North America. Just think...you have the chance to meet other Sisterhood Presidents from the comfort of your home before Convention, so you will have new friends waiting for you when you get to Chicago. This is also YOUR opportunity to let us know what tools you feel you need so that you can return to your sisterhoods feeling energized and confident. We aim to please!
Click
here for the recording of the first session held on Wednesday, January 8, 2020,
Convention Starts NOW - I Did Not Know That!
Registration is now open for the following Sisterhood Presidents' Zoom Calls:
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Convention Starts NOW! Two Exclusive Workshops for Members!
Get a taste of Convention 2020!
This January, Women's League will offer two exclusive workshops for our members on the subject of tefillin. Then, join us for a Shehecheyanu Moment at Shacharit,
Monday, July 13, 2020
when many of our women will wrap tefillin together for the first time at a WLCJ Convention!
On
Thursday, January 30, at 8:00 p.m., Eastern time,
via Zoom, join us for "How Do You Put on Tefillin?" with Janet Kirschner. How do we wrap ourselves in tefillin? Janet will give us step-by-step instructions and we'll wrap together.
Call-in details will be sent upon registering.
Janet Coleman Kirschner
is the Treasurer of Women's League for Conservative Judaism. She sits on the WLCJ Board of Directors, the Finance Committee, and the Torah Fund Cabinet. Janet has served as a Vice President of Women's League. She is a Past President of Women's League's Southern NJ Branch, now the Mid-Atlantic Region. She was a co-founder of the Women's League Reads online book club.
She is a retired Certified Public Accountant and Financial Executive with over 30 years of experience in public accounting and corporate financial positions.
Janet is a member of Congregation Beth El, Voorhees, NJ and Temple Sinai, Cinnaminson, NJ. She is a regular attendee at morning
minyan
where she wraps her father's (
z'l
) Tefillin.
She loves to read and travel.
Janet and her husband Phil live in Moorestown, NJ. They have two children, Jonathan and Jennifer.
Where to obtain tefillin? Start shopping at your Sisterhood Judaica Shop. Order from Judaica House, judaicahouse.net, (201) 801-9001, 478 Cedar Lane, Teaneck, NJ or from Hecht's GotJudaica.com, gotjudaica.com, (718) 258-9696, 1265 Coney Island Avenue, Brooklyn, NY 11230.
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NEW!! Convention 2020 Social Justice Projects
Check out two of our upcoming
Convention 2020 Social Justice projects
with The Ark Chicago here and here in these new videos by WLCJ's Rachel Ferber and Edna Schrank, and don't forget to share with your friends on Facebook!
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Mishnah Berakhot, Chapter Six
with Rabbi Pamela Barmash, Thursday, February 27, 2020, at 8 p.m., EST.
Rabbi Pamela Barmash, Ph.D., has served on the Committee on Jewish Law and Standards of the Rabbinical Assembly since 2003 and on the Joint Beit Din of the Conservative Movement since 2008. She is co-chair of the new Disabilities Inclusion Committee of the Rabbinical Assembly. She served as the rabbi at Temple Shaare Tefilah, Norwood, Massachusetts, for eight years, and she taught at the Conservative Yeshiva in Jerusalem for many summers. She received her B.A. from Yale, rabbinic ordination from the Jewish Theological Seminary, and Ph.D. from Harvard. Rabbi Barmash is professor of Hebrew Bible at Washington University in St. Louis and has served as director of Jewish, Islamic and Near Eastern Studies there. She has been a fellow at the Hebrew University, Jerusalem, and at the Institute for Advanced Study, Princeton. In her rabbinic writing, she wants to inspire more Jews to observe more mitzvot, and she is the author of teshuvot (rabbinic papers) on contemporary issues in Judaism. In her academic scholarship, she addresses issues of law and justice in her book Homicide in the Biblical World and shows how Jews have transformed the story of the Exodus and the celebration of Passover to meet changing needs and concerns in Exodus in the Jewish Experience: Echoes and Reverberations.
Weekly Words of Torah goes PC (Parashah and Chesed) -
Parashat Beshalach (Shabbat 2/8/2020)
In
P
arashat Beshalach
, after the tenth plague has occurred, Pharaoh finally lets the children of Israel go. As they flee, Pharaoh has a change of heart, and chases after them. God splits the Sea of Reeds, so the children of Israel can cross on dry land. As the Egyptian army approaches the Sea, it settles and Egyptians drown. On the other side of the Sea, Moses sings the Song of the Sea in celebration. Traveling through the desert is hard for the children of Israel, and they complained bitterly. In order to bring water to the Rock, Moses hits a rock, and water flows. God provides manna so the people will not be hungry.
B'nai Yisrael,
the children of Israel, fight Amalek, who becomes a sworn enemy of the children of Israel.
In
Parashat Beshalach,
there are two instances of our leaders, Moses, and Miriam, leading the children in song. A
C
hesed
idea for
Parashat Beshalach
, is to bring some music and song, and perhaps in the form of just entertainment, or as a Shabbat service, to a local senior citizens home, or to some shut ins, who cannot attend services. Music brings joy, and bringing music and singing to others is a form of
Chese.
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Why is it important to vote for Mercaz?
Want to learn more about the best way to run a campaign in your Sisterhood? Have questions about the election? Have some good ideas to share with your sisters.
Please mark your calendars to join a special webinar for all Women's League for Conservative Judaism members, with Sarrae G. Crane, Executive Director of MercazUSA, on Tuesday, February 4, 2020 at 8:00 PM ET to learn more about the election for the World Zionist Congress and Mercaz - Slate #6. Register for webinar here.
The election for the World Zionist Congress began on January 21, 2020, and now it's time to get out the vote for the Conservative Movement by casting our ballots for MERCAZ - SLATE #6. Click here to vote.
Between January 21st and March 11th, American Jews can cast ballots. It's easy: You can vote by texting the word "VOTE" to 917-336-1162.
This election is the only direct voice we have in Israel. Once every five years we have the chance to send a clear message to leaders in Israel that egalitarianism, inclusivity, pluralism, democracy and equality are critical to creating a strong and vibrant Israel. This is a crucial opportunity for Jews in the Diaspora -- and particularly Jews in the United States -- to make our voices heard to support Masorti (Conservative) Judaism in Israel by voting for the MERCAZ Slate. For more information visit MERCAZ2020.org.
A strong showing for MERCAZ - Slate #6 will help us achieve three very specific objectives:It will send a clear and undeniable message to the leaders that pluralism, democracy and equality are critical to creating a strong and vibrant Israel, and that there is support for this position from the American Jewish community.
By casting your vote for MERCAZ, you will ensure that we will get our fair share of the $1 billion dollars in funding for programs, both in Israel and around the world. These are critical dollars that grow our movement and make sure our voice is heard!
Finally, the strength of our numbers will help determine leadership roles within important organizations - another way in which we can strengthen our influence and position in Israel.
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Holocaust Memorial Ceremony 1/27/20
75 years after Auschwitz
Submitted by Sandy Koppell, WL United Nations NGO
The United Nations observes Holocaust Memorial on January 27th each year in commemoration of the day that Auschwitz was liberated. This year the event recognized not only Holocaust survivors but included recognition of World War II veterans. The continuing theme of all the speakers was "Never Again."
The program opened with Rabbi Arthur Schneier telling us how he and his parents were sent from Hungary to Germany, and were then liberated. He then led us in kaddish.
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres emphasized the hate today, not only of Jews but Muslims and Christians as well. The UN supports human rights,
a major subject on its agenda.
His Excellency Danny Danon, Permanent Representative of Israel to the UN reminded us that this is the last generation that will be able to learn from survivors. The world opposed anti-Semitism but did nothing. Now is the time to act. We need to find a cure to vaccinate against hate. Legislation is written but now we must enforce it. Education is key. The days of Jews being defenseless are over.
His Excellency Christopher Norman-Chalet, Permanent Representative of Germany to the UN remarked that he was ashamed of the breakdown of civilization in his country, that he was glad to be standing here today to remember the past and that we must learn from history. Anti-Semitism is a cancer which was in remission and has now metastasized. All education of German students includes a trip to Auschwitz. History must not be forgotten.
The messages from the United States and Russian representatives echoed the same themes. Education! Never Again!
We were treated to a performance by Itzhak Perlman.
Dan Pavel Doghi, Senior Advisor on Roma and Sinti issues said these survivors are not speaking up.We should make an effort to include them in our programs.
Two holocaust survivors told their stories. Both were proud to have survived and have children and grandchildren to prove that Hitler has not won. Interesting that they both wound up in Israel, but via different routes. Irene Shashar escaped the Warsaw ghetto through the sewers and was a "hidden child." After the war she spent time in Paris and Peru, received a scholarship to study in the US and later moved to Israel to teach. Shraga Milstein was in the camps, was taken to Sweden by the Red Cross after being liberated, and then moved to Israel.
The keynote speaker was Judge Theodor Meron, also a survivor. He has served as a judge on International Criminal Tribunals. Meron reminded us Denmark was the country with the most "righteous gentiles" and hid many of its Jews. He could not understand how Hitler, the personification of evil, was able to rise in such a cultured nation. Anti-Semitism is rife and there is a rise in Genocide. He acknowledged the efforts of the UN with the Nuremburg trials, citing crimes against humanity.
The program closed with Cantor Shulem Lemmer reciting El Maley Rachamim and leading in the singing of Ani Mamim.
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Thank you for your contributions!
The following have donated recently to Women's League and its many initiatives. Donate here, or send checks to Women's League made out to "Women's League for Conservative Judaism." Please indicate the name of the program you are donating to in the memo line of the check (i.e. "Masorti"). All contributions are welcome.
Masorti Women's League Days of Study
Bet Torah, Mt. Kisco, NY
Suzanne B. Ducat
Lisa Ellias
Wendy Glasser.
Andrea Goodman
Irene Plotzker
Dr. Susan Rodgin
Diana Rosner
Carol Vogel
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NEXT WL READS - Thursday March 12 at 8:15 PM EST
The Third Daughter by Talia Carner
WL READS is pleased to announce that our next featured book and author is The Third Daughter, by Talia Carner. (HarperCollins, September 2019). Available in softcover and e-reader editions.
The author is known for exploring social-justice issues through novels told in the voices of strong women.
WL READS will interview Ms. Carner on Thursday March 12 at 8:15 PM EST.
In The Third Daughter, Ms. Carner has expanded one of Sholem Aleichem's short stories,
The Man From Buenos Aires
(part of
Tevye The Dairyman and The Railroad Stories).
Her novel depicts, with historical accuracy, the shameful Jewish-run prostitution cartel which, from the 1870s through the 1930s, trafficked young women taken from Russia and Poland to South America's commercial centers, where men greatly outnumbered women.
The title character's impoverished and naïve parents had trusted a suave stranger who promised a good Jewish marriage and comfortable life in "America" for their daughter. The awful fate that awaits the teen is tempered by occasional kindnesses and her own resourcefulness, as she plans for her escape along with rescue of other women. Also brought into the novel is another, more benevolent historical figure, the German-Jewish baron Maurice (Moritz) de Hirsch, who established safe havens for European Jews in rural areas of South America.
Learn more about the novel in this review:
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Will you be in Israel This Winter?
Join Masorti Women for Masorti Women's Study Day!
You are cordially invited to
The 20th Regional Masorti Women's Study Day
We Women Explore Attitudes to Ourselves and Others: Texts, Literature, Music, Spirituality
3 high-level, multi-themed day-long events focusing on Jewish Women and Gender Studies. Conducted in four languages: Hebrew, English, Spanish and Russian.
Northern Region:
Tuesday, March 3, 2020 at Kibbutz Hanaton (15:45-20:45)
Central Region:
Tuesday, Feb.11, 2020 at Kehilat Hod V'Hadar, Kfar Saba (15:45-20:45)
Southern Region:
Tuesday, Feb. 18, 2020 at Kehilat Eshel Avraham, Beersheva (16:30-20:55)
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FROM THE REGION TORAH FUND VICE PRESIDENT--MARILYN COHEN
As you all know, The Schechter Institutes of Jewish Study is one of FIVE educational institutions of higher learning, that Torah Fund supports. I am excited to share with you the latest achievements at the Schechter Rabbinical Seminary.
In a festive ceremony filled with music, Torah and song, the
Schechter Rabbinical Seminary
ordained its rabbis, marking 30 years of ordaining Conservative/Masorti rabbis in Israel. The moving ceremony was held December 12, 2019 at Kehillat Moreshet Avraham in Jerusalem. Following three years of training, these three new rabbis, David Arias, Yos Baruch Fromer and Matan Stein, join the leadership of the Masorti Movement, bringing the number of rabbis ordained by the Schechter Rabbinical Seminary to 101!
Creating New Spaces
A Torah Fund Campaign Special Project
NOTE: All Special Projects are fundraising initiatives
over & above the annual Torah Fund campaign.
Both Individuals or sisterhoods may donate
any amount to this project.
Help support the JTS Crossroads Campaign by building a
study space at the new Undergraduate Residence Hall, to be named:
Women's League Study Space.
JTS opens its new campus in the spring of 2020, and
Women's League will be part of this great project, as we have been aproud presence at JTS since 1918!
Help support a special course of training at the Ziegler School of
Rabbinic Studies in Los Angeles, concerning issues of gender bias and harassment, to be named:
Women's League Institute on Gender Bias & Harassment.
Ziegler is developing a ground-breaking educational program for
its students, to increase their awareness for gender bias and harassment issues.
Women's League is proud to support this program!
On July 1, "Creating New Spaces" or "Spaces," the new
Special Project of the Torah Fund Campaign was launched. Our
"Creating New Spaces" campaign supports the physical and professional needs of our students in exciting new ways!
For more details regarding Creating New Spaces,
please
click here.
WHY GIVE TO OUR "CREATING NEW SPACES"
SPECIAL CAMPAIGN?
BECAUSE OF JTS AND ZIEGLER, tens of thousands of Jewish children discover the joy of being Jewish at day schools, summer camps, congregational schools, JCCs, and other educational settings.
BECAUSE OF JTS AND ZIEGLER, over a hundred thousand Jewish students find vibrant Hillels on their college campuses.
BECAUSE OF JTS AND ZIEGLER, tens of thousands of people in hospitals and hospices find comfort and healing from skillful chaplains who combine the best techniques in pastoral care with the Jewish tradition of
bikkur holim.
BECAUSE OF JTS AND ZIEGLER, over a thousand Jewish organizations across both the US & Canada - synagogues, federations, JCCs, schools, camps, and more - engage North American Jews in support of the land and people of Israel.
Invest in the Jewish communities of tomorrow by giving to the "SPACES" Special Project Campaign today. Thank you.
Marilyn Cohen
INR Torah Fund VP
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FROM USCJ AND MERCAZ
Vote MERCAZ | Slate 6
The election for the World Zionist Congress opens today.
It's time to cast your ballot
in the World Zionist Congress Elections
Vote
MERCAZ ...
For Pluralism
For Democratic Values
For Equality
For Funding of Conservative/Masorti Programs
For Our Seat at the Table!
Don't stand on the sidelines.
Make sure your voice is heard.
This is the
ONLY election where American Jews can
formally voice their concerns and views. Let's make
sure that our vision of Israel as a thriving and
pluralistic homeland for all Jews is secure.
and follow the instructions.
Did you #VoteMERCAZ? Thank you!
Let everyone
know
they should too
by sharing on
social media ...
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TO ALL CANADIAN MEMBERS OF INR & WOMEN'S LEAGUE:
Did you know we are in the last phases of a crucial membership campaign? We have until FEBRUARY 27, 2020 to become a member of MERCAZ-CANADA because only those who are already members will be eligible to vote in the upcoming Canadian Zionist Federation election in the Spring.
We are grateful to those who have already included
MERCAZ
membership in their annual dues payments this year, so this message is written to encourage all of you who have not yet joined, to become part of
MERCAZ-CANADA
, our Masorti/Conservative Movement's party to the World Zionist Congress. You know, that Congress started by Theodore Herzl in Basel Switzerland 122 years ago - the Congress that laid the foundations for the modern State of Israel.
Through MERCAZ-CANADA and its affiliation with MERCAZ OLAMI (worldwide), we Canadian Masorti/Conservative Jews have a voice in the national institutions of the Jewish People: The World Zionist Organization(WZO), The Jewish Agency for Israel(JAFI) and Keren Kayemet L'Yisrael (The Jewish National Fund).
The stronger our MERCAZ-CANADA membership list, the more delegates we have proportionally to the other members of the Zionist Federation of Canada and the larger our percentage of leadership in the Congress. This impacts our ability as Conservative Jews to appoint leaders to the boards of the national institutions and allows us to influence the agenda, priorities and budgetary allocations.
Currently, the budgetary allocations amount to approximately four million USD, and we benefit as part of other projects and programs as well. In Europe, Africa, Australia, Asia and South America, funds support schools and education, youth movements, rabbis, life-cycle events, Jewish ritual, learning and conversions, synagogues, holiday celebrations, summer camps, young adult programming, Israel experiences and building relationships with local leadership to combat anti-Semitism. In Israel. funds also support the Tali school system, rabbis working in more than 80 Masorti communities, our Israeli youth movement (NOAM), young adult engagement (MAROM), the Conservative Yeshiva and more. In Canada, we benefit not only from these funds, but from our work with shlichim, shinshinim, educational programs, communal Israel activities, scholarships to Israel, gap year programs, MASA, Onward Israel and more.
Through MERCAZ-CANADA, we also advocate for religious Jewish pluralism in Israel with regard to marriage, conversion, the Kotel Agreement and public funding of communal institutions and rabbis. We support programs and initiatives to build bridges between the Diaspora and Israel while maintaining our value of klal Yisrael - the unity of the Jewish People. (Rabbi Wernick,of Beth Tzedec for example, is a member on the Committee for the Unity of the Jewish People.)
That's why
MERCAZ-CANADA
is so important. Adult membership is only $18, or $9 if you are between 18-25 years old. It takes less than five minutes to join and can be done
online
. It's easy.
We sincerely encourage you to join
MERCAZ-CANADA
by February 27 and in so doing, you will help increase our voice, our representation and our impact on the global conversations of the Jewish People.
With warmest wishes and deepest appreciation.
Marilyn Cohen - Past Executive Director of MERCAZ-CANADA & current Board member
Marion Mayman - Past President of MERCAZ-CANADA & current Board member as well as
our representative on JAFI (Jewish A
gency for Israel)
Fran Caine - MERCAZ-CANADA Board member
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NEED HELP?
HELP IS AVAILABLE ON THE WLCJ WEBSITE.
Programs, membership ideas, education material, and more available at wlcj.org
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Register for Convention Starts Now! How Do You Put on Tefillin? with Janet Kirschner here!
