Elluminate E-News September 2024



Message from our CEO 

The future of women’s equality and advancement in America is at the center of the 2024 US elections, with party control of the White House, Congress, and statehouses at stake. And here in New York, the Equal Rights Amendment (ERA) will be voted on to be enshrined in our State constitution.

What the election results will be and how they will impact the future is on everyone’s mind. Our 2024 Convening on November 21st is strategically timed to provide all of us passionate about women’s empowerment the opportunity to gather to grapple with these issues and more. We would love to have you at the table and in the conversation!

We will also be introducing our Cohort 6 Collective members, all dealing with significant issues of concern to the Elluminate community, among them ending antisemitism on campus and beyond, elevating women in Israel, curbing human trafficking, and educating our emerging leaders. These also will be some of the major hot topics at Elluminate’s Convening. 

As always, we are working to keep Israeli women leaders' voices, experiences, and impact in front of our community. When we convene, we will feature the visionary Israeli women in our Collective Cohort 5 who are working to maintain and strengthen Israeli civil society, and remember and honor those harmed or lost on October 7th. We are pleased to continue to have our own representative in Israel support them and connect us with others working in coalition on these concerns.

As we head into the Jewish holidays, we wish you a happy new year. Our hearts are heavy with hostages still in captivity, Israel at war, and the well-being of all in the Middle East. We pray for peace, sustenance, and a strong Jewish people. We encourage you to join us in supporting women on the front lines, who envision a better world through a Jewish and gender lens.

When you gather with your family and friends, remember to remind everyone to get out and vote!

Shana Tova,

Melanie Roth Gorelick

CEO

Crown JEWEL Conversation, October 10 at 12:00pm ET

Leading During Wartime: Reflecting On Life in Israel Since October 7th

For the past year, women nonprofit CEOs in Israel have been holding up and strengthening civil society, advocating for international recognition of sexual crimes, and supporting women whose access to health care and family planning are primary concerns. 

As we mark one year since October 7th, we invite you to join us on Zoom for a special Crown JEWEL Conversation featuring three of our Collective Cohort 5 members in Israel who will share how this year changed their lives, how they pivoted to meet the moment of war and immense need, and where we go from here.

Elluminate President Stephanie Garry will be joined by Rina Ayalin-Gorelik, Executive Director of the Association of Ethiopian Jews, Dina Shalev, Executive Director of Lada’at - Choose Well, and Orit Sulitzeanu, Executive Director of The Association of Rape Crisis Centers in Israel.

Elluminate’s Crown JEWEL Conversations monthly webcast highlights our Collective members and how they are creating change. 

Please join us. Register here to receive your Zoom link. 

Register now to join us Thursday, November 21, in New York for an inspiring day as we elluminate women’s leadership, lighting the path forward to create an inclusive, equitable, and just society. Each year, Elluminate’s Convening brings together Jewish women philanthropists, advocates, and leaders in one room, tackling critical social issues and devising solutions through a Jewish and gender lens.

Convening highlights:

• An engaging session on the future of reproductive rights, the ERA, and LGBTQ+ protections 
• A critical discussion on Jewish women’s response to antisemitism 
• A networking lunch
• Interactive workshops on advocacy, Israeli women leaders, and ensuring an equitable and inclusive Jewish community

Among our conversations is a Panel on The State of Women in America Post-Presidential Election. Taking place directly after the U.S. and NYC elections, The Convening will focus on the results, their impact on women, and where we go from here.

Panelists include:

Idit Klein

President and CEO

Keshet

Yolanda Savage-Narva

Vice President

Union for Reform Judaism

Shira Zemel

Director, Abortion Access Campaign National Council of Jewish Women

Elluminate in The Times of Israel: Seizing the Moment to Secure Women’s Rights

In a powerful and personal thought piece published this week in The Times of Israel, Elluminate CEO Melanie Roth Gorelick makes an unassailable case for voter awareness and support of the New York State Equal Rights Amendment (ERA), which will appear on the flip side of state ballots as “Proposal Number One” on Election Day. 

“A New York State ERA will be up for voter approval in November, it is worrisome that so few are aware of it and the opportunity it presents to prevent the diminishment of women’s rights here, and more broadly throughout the country. It is imperative that we take this time to educate, activate and mobilize our daughters, sons, and voters in New York about the state ERA and the unprecedented opportunity it presents,” Melanie writes. 

Read the full piece here, and please share it to your networks. 

Photo provided by Joan Roth



Join a Visionary Circle, Deepen Your Impact

YOU can expand your philanthropic impact … elevate Jewish women leaders … and be part of a diverse, supportive community advancing social change and gender justice. 

By joining a Visionary Circle, you will be part of one of Elluminate’s signature initiatives bringing together Jewish feminists, advocates, and philanthropists shaping the future of Jewish women’s leadership by considering the next Cohort of The Collective — our leadership fellowship program and global network. 

Please contact Eva Stern, our Director of Strategic Initiatives, for more information. 

Applications are Open for Cohort 7 of Elluminate’s Collective

Elluminate invites entrepreneurial Jewish women nonprofit leaders with entrepreneurial spirits to apply for Cohort 7 of The Collective, our signature leadership initiative designed to empower and advance women working on solutions to society’s most pressing challenges. The program offers members a platform to amplify their work, increase visibility, grow leadership skills, and build connections with feminist philanthropists. Ten candidates will be selected through a competitive application process. Pre-applications are due by October 29th. For more information and to apply, click here, or contact programs@elluminatewomen.org with any questions.

Please consider making a generous gift to support Elluminate’s work and programming during this critical and challenging time.

Elluminate

elluminatewomen.org