Hello Carol,

• President's Message
• Mid-Atlantic District Board Meeting
• Budget Vote
• WRJ Atlantic & Mid-Atlantic Pocono Mountain Retreat - Save the Date!
• Count Your Blessings!
• Mid-Atlantic District Innovations and Engagement Microgrants
• Save the Date
• More from the District and Beyond

President's Message

At my last Lilith Salon, it took our group quite a while to get to the magazine's content. We shared our deepest emotions concerning the state of our nation, and there was a common air of despair and even hopelessness. Many in our group described that they were pulling back to preserve their mental wellness. That included volunteering in the social justice sphere. A few of us pushed back and said that we found that by engaging with others towards a common goal, we found hope. I was able to share my experiences at the WRJ Social Justice Conference as my source of energy to move forward; another described volunteering on the upcoming Virginia election as a way to talk to people about issues that were important to her. We all left our two hours together more invigorated.

That joy was interrupted when I learned of the attack on the Reform Kehillat Ra'anan synagogue in Ra’anana, my temple’s sister congregation in Israel. I recalled an earlier visit to that synagogue with members of my congregation, where we learned that they had just finished repairs from a similar attack. The profound sadness and disappointment I felt upon learning that they were attacked by ultra-Conservative Jews came rushing back. And as I read accounts of the attack, I also learned that Orly Erez-Likhovski, Executive Director of the Israel Religious Action Center of Reform Judaism, who joined us at the SJC and recently delivered a D’var Torah at my temple, was injured by those who opposed this joint Israeli-Palestinian Memorial Ceremony. During her recount of the attack, Orly told us, “Our work is more important than ever before. We will keep fighting for our beliefs, to realize the dream of a better, more peaceful and just future for all, where we recognize one another's suffering, where we share disagreements without threatening and attacking one another, where we truly realize that all of us, all human beings are, as the Torah teaches us in one of its first and most important lessons, created in the Divine Image.“ To read Orly’s full article, click here.

So, what are the lessons learned? Despite the challenges we face, we must find hope and the perseverance to carry on the work. We should support each other’s initiatives through our unique network of diverse Jewish women as individuals, sisterhood and WRJ members, and last, but far from least, as Mid-Atlantic District members. We should make time to build and strengthen our relationships. Your district will work hard to present you with all opportunities – in-person and virtually. Won’t you join us? Won’t you pass the word to your communities? All are welcome. Together, we can find our collective hope and move forward.

In Sisterhood,

Andrea

WRJ MAD In-Person General Board Meeting

Sunday, June 8, 2025

11:00 AM – 3:00 PM

Beth El Hebrew Congregation

3830 Seminary Road, Alexandria, Virginia



For more information and to register, click here.

Sunday, June 8: Time to Vote on the MAD Budget 2025-2026! 

We need all members of our MAD General Board to vote on our proposed budget for the budget year beginning July 1, 2025 – April 30, 2026. That is a shorter budget year than we are used to seeing. There is only a 10-month budget because our new unified district, the Eastern District, will begin operations right after the plenary held at our Convention in May. A new budget will be adopted at that time.

There are some small changes to the proposed budget being presented on June 8 at our General Board Meeting. For instance, we have put a number in a Convention budget line as a placeholder. The detail behind that number has not been worked on yet because it needs to be created by both the Atlantic and Mid-Atlantic districts under the auspices of a Unification Convention Committee and will be shared when complete. 

So here is what you need to know:

• We will hold a Budget Office hour to go over the budget and answer questions on Tuesday, May 27 at 7:30 PM. We encourage everyone, but especially those who cannot be with us in-person, to attend this session. Register here.
• We encourage all General Board members to join us at Beth El Hebrew Congregation in Alexandria, VA on Sunday, June 8, 11:00 to approximately 3:00 PM to vote, hear updates on Mid-Atlantic District activities going forward, socialize and for all those interested in securing equal access to abortions for all employing our Jewish values, listen to our guest speaker, Allison Tombros Korman, founder and Executive Director of the newly established Jewish non-profit, The Red Tent Fund.
• Who can vote? Everyone is welcome to join our meeting and program, but only General Board members can vote. The MAD General Board is comprised of members of the Executive Committee, MAD Committee Chairs, Sisterhood Presidents or their designees, current WRJ Board members, past MAD presidents, and past WRJ presidents.
• There is a registration fee of $36.00 to cover lunch and any other incidentals. Register by June 5.
• If no one from your Sisterhood will be joining our June 8 meeting (we really hope that this is not the case), you will be allowed to vote by proxy. Please send an email to our Budget Chair, Jeanne Kahn that asks for your vote to be counted by proxy and state your name, position, sisterhood and your vote. Her email is jeannekahn@aol.com

Any questions? Please contact Andrea Stillman @ wrjmadpres@gmail.com

Click here for more information and to register for this event.

            EVERYONE CAN COUNT THEIR BLESSINGS   

Now more than ever, the Mid-Atlantic District believes in the importance of helping others, especially women and their children. Your support to the MAD General Fund will provide youth camp scholarships, meeting registration subsidies to leaders within our district, innovation & engagement grants to sisterhoods, and support for Area Days events.

Click here for more information.

Mid-Atlantic District Innovation & Engagement Grants

• Do you have an innovative program that will have a meaningful impact? or, 
• Do you have a program that engages in the areas of sisterhood/community building, spirituality, or personal enrichment and growth? or,
• Are you preparing a Social justice or advocacy program that includes WRJ resolutions and high-priority issues? or, 
• Are you preparing a program that will provide outreach to other groups?

The Mid-Atlantic Innovation and Engagement Grant is a rolling grant that will fund new social justice and engagement programs in an amount between $250-$750 and can be combined with other funding opportunities. Applications are being accepted now for Summer/Fall 2025 programs. 

We are excited to announce that the first Innovation and Engagement Grant was awarded to the Temple Sinai Women of Reform Judaism for their Tovanot Program. on Sunday, June 29, from 10 am to noon. Tovanot uses a dual-narrative approach to deepen understanding of Israel’s historical and political landscape while fostering empathy for both Israelis and Palestinians. Rejecting binary thinking and zero-sum assumptions, it encourages participants to engage with multiple perspectives—Israeli Jews, Palestinian citizens of Israel, and Palestinians—while recognizing Israel’s significance in the region.

For more information, see the article below. 



Click here for the application and criteria explanation. If you have any questions, please feel free to contact Marilyn Morrison at marilynmorrison1990@gmail.com or 703-989-7960.

Outstanding opportunities you don’t want to miss!  

• Wednesday, May 21; Noga Barlev in Concert, Har Sinai - Oheb Shalom Congregation, Baltimore, Maryland, 7 pm. Click here to RSVP and order tickets.



• Tuesday, May 27 - 7:30 pm - Budget Office Hour, register here.

• Tuesday, June 3; Joint Atl/MAD Engagement Program, Shavuot, Summer, and Sundaes;7:30 pm Shavuot, Summer, and Sundaes- Join members from Atlantic and Mid-Atlantic Districts on Zoom as we celebrate Shavuot, look forward to the summer, and make a sundae with your sisters. We will have an ice cream-making demo with vegan options too. We encourage you to gather as a group for our virtual ice cream party and bring some fun toppings to make a sundae. Register here!

• Thursday, June 5 - 8:00 pm ET - WRJ Climate Programming Kick-Off

• Sunday, June 22 - 1 pm - Beth El Congregation Sisterhood 1st Annual Mah Jongg Tournament Click here to register.

• Friday, July 11 – Sunday, July 13; Camp Harlam Retreat with Atlantic District; click here to register.

• Thursday, October 9; Understanding Microaggressions; 7:30 pm, details to follow

More from the District and Beyond ...

Tovanot 

Sunday, June 29, 2025 

10:00 am – 12:00 pm, Temple Sinai

Since October 7, 2023, conversations about Israel and Palestine have become increasingly polarized, leaving many feeling unprepared or conflicted. Tovanot offers a dual-narrative approach that deepens understanding of the region’s history and politics while fostering empathy for both Israelis and Palestinians. Rejecting binary thinking, it encourages engagement with diverse perspectives and acknowledges both people’s national aspirations.

Dr. Ruti Kadish grew up in Israel and moved to the U.S. after her military service, earning a BA in Women’s Studies and a PhD in Near Eastern Studies from UC Berkeley. She held a postdoc in Israel Studies at the University of Maryland and was a Fellow at the Mandel School in Jerusalem, where she developed progressive Israel curricula. A former diversity education consultant, Ruti has spent the past 15 years working in Jewish nonprofit education and resource development.

Contact Carole Brand for more information.

Thanks to a generous grant from WRJ's Mid-Atlantic District, there is no participation fee for this seminar. We expect the event to fill up to its maximum 40 participants quickly. We will keep a waiting list for those who register after the seminar is full.

Attention All Sisterhood and Women's Group Leaders!

The women in your sisterhoods and women’s groups are entitled to receive information from the WRJ Mid-Atlantic District. We also encourage you to share information with friends, relatives, and others in your community who may be interested. WRJ has individual memberships available.

To receive our monthly newsletter: Contact madmarketcom@gmail.com

Join the WRJ Information platform Mighty Networks

If you have not already done so, please sign up here to request an account on our new platform. This new site allows us to communicate with each other more freely with some privacy. You can ask other members questions, share events or fundraising ideas, or see what events are coming up in the district. We look forward to seeing you there.

Mighty Networks Video Tutorials 

Watch Video 1: Create Account 

Watch Video 2: User Guide 

If you encounter any problems, you can contact Heather Lorgeree at hlorgeree@wrj.org. 

Check out the Women of Reform Judaism page to find out what other sisterhoods are doing across North America.

Click here to see the latest WRJ program calendar.