MAY 2022 / ISSUE 20
Upcoming Events

WED • MAY 18
Partakers
7:00 PM • ZOOM

SUN • JUN 5
Prison Nation: A photography art exhibit
1:00 PM • Wellesley College Davis Museum

MON • JUN 6
RJI Quarterly Meeting
7:00 PM - HYBRID

WED • JUN 8
Civil Rights Journey - Info Session
7:00 PM - HYBRID

THUR • JUN 23
GBIO Delegates’ Assembly
7:00 PM - HYBRID
RJI Quarterly Meeting, Hybrid
Returning Citizens: Barriers and Opportunities
Tribute to Rabbi Philip Sherman
June 6 • 7 PM - HYBRID
Join us as we deepen our understanding of the many complex barriers facing returning citizens AND say farewell to Rabbi Philip Sherman who inspired the formation of the Initiative in 2016. A tribute to Rabbi Sherman will set the stage for our end of the year session entitled: Returning Citizens: Barriers and Opportunities. Our distinguished panelists will include Alan Epstein, member of the GBIO Strategy Team and long-term leader of GBIO’s efforts focused on criminal justice; Gabe Zimmerman, Harvard Law School graduate and author of "Far from Home: Reducing Barriers to Subsidized Housing for People with Criminal Records in Massachusetts"; Leslie Credle, Founder of Justice 4 Housing and co-author of the "Far from Home" report noted above; and John Yang, Returning Citizen and graduate of TBE’s Partaker’s program. Learn what we can do collectively to ameliorate these odious barriers and ease returning citizens’ entry into our communities. This will be our first in person meeting in two years; however, zoom attendance will be an option.
GBIO Action
You can Make a Difference! GBIO Delegates Assembly Scheduled
June 23 • 7 pm
Rooted in our listening sessions last spring and taking shape through the mayoral forums in Boston last fall, GBIO’s new platform centering on racial and economic justice is already making a difference: a fair chance for people returning from incarceration, affordable and decent housing, and mental health access. Much is happening and our participation here at TBE matters. Of particular interest to our TBE group, are the efforts to eliminate parole and probation fees, provide access to IDs more freely, and provide an Office for Returning Citizens in Boston with a budget of $1.9 M instead of the meager $300,000. Join us for this exciting Delegates Assembly! Contact GBIO Liaisons: CONTACT BUD SCHRAM OR  CONTACT SHERI KASSIRER
Partakers Mentoring Opportunities AVAILABLE!
Info Session and Re-Entry Mentor Training May 18, 2022, 7- 8:30 pm, Zoom
Partakers continues to provide TBE Congregants with unique opportunities to engage in transformative volunteer experiences to mentor incarcerated individuals and recently released returning citizens. WE ARE ACTIVELY RECRUITING NEW PARTAKERS MENTORS FOR OUR JUNE RE-ENTRY SESSION! 

Please join us on Wednesday, May 18, from 7pm to 8:30pm, for a Partakers Info Session and Re-Entry Mentor Training. At the Info Session (7:00pm-7:30pm), hear Executive Director Arthur Bembury speak about Partakers’ two unique Criminal Justice-involved mentoring opportunities: Partakers College Behind Bars Mentors - mentoring individuals working on college degrees while incarcerated in MA State Prisons Partakers Empowerment Program (PEP) Reentry Mentors — mentoring returning citizens as they participate in the 12-week PEP Re-Entry program and navigate the challenges and opportunities of the post-prison transition. 

At the Training Session (7:30pm-8:30pm), participants who are ready to dig deeper and/or start the process of becoming a Re-Entry mentor, will hear in detail about logistics, time commitment, how-to’s, and what to expect of being a re-entry mentor, including best practices and available support for mentors teams. Following the Re-Entry Mentor Training, you will have a chance to sign up to become part of new Re-Entry Mentor team and get matched with a Partakers Re-entry program enrollee.

For more questions, CONTACT AMY
By Popular Demand: Civil Rights Journey is being Planned for Nov. 17-20, 2022
Information Session, Jun. 8, 7 pm, Hybrid
Back by popular demand…the Racial Justice Initiative is planning another Civil Rights Journey for Nov. 17 -20, 2022. In 2019, 79 congregants shared this inspirational trip to explore not only the poignant history of the Civil Rights Movement but also the continuing legacy of slavery, Reconstruction, Jim Crow and Mass Incarceration today. Our trip will include visits to the Rosa Parks Museum, Equal Justice Initiative’s Legacy Museum and Lynching Memorial, the Birmingham Civil Rights Institute, and The King Center among other highlights. We will attend Shabbat services at Montgomery’s Temple Beth Or, and Sunday morning services at MLK’s Ebenezer Baptist Church. The trip will be scheduled if we reach a threshold of 25 congregants! An Informational Session is planned for June 8 at 7 pm, hybrid! 
Wellesley College Davis Museum
Prison Nation: A photographic art exhibit
June 5 • 1 PM
Meet TBE congregants at Wellesley College’s Davis Museum to experience Prison Nation: A photography art exhibit that strives to heighten empathy and political awareness about incarceration in the US. More than 2 million people are currently incarcerated in the US, which has the distinction of having the highest level of imprisonment in the world. This exhibition addresses the unique role photography plays in creating a visual record of this national crisis and examines how photography can capture a reality that disproportionately affects people of color. This exhibit is a prequel to the June 6th RJI Quarterly Meeting. INFORMATION & REGISTRATION
Temple Beth Elohim | tbewellesley.org/RJI