We would like to start out this email with a warm "so glad you're feeling better" to Rabbi Kalfus, who was back leading Torah Study this morning!

We also like to take this opportunity to acknowledge our clergy for wonderful and inspiring High Holiday Services, with a special acknowledgement to Rabbi Dalia Samansky and Cantor Ken Cohen for jumping in at the last moment to make Yom Kippur services so special despite the absence of Rabbi Kalfus.

Can you believe we are half-way through October? Sisterhood had an amazing September with our fabulous program of Jewish Storytelling led by Phyllis Meyers on September 19 and our Emergency Kit making on September 22. By the way, for those of you who were unable to make your own emergency kit, we do have several fully packed kits in the Gift Shop available for purchase. Please stop in and take a look.
Our next event is our annual Sukkot meeting is THIS THURSDAY, October 17, 2019, 7pm at the home of Jo and Jim Schwartz. If you have not yet RSVP’d please confirm with Efrat that you will be attending. Email her at efratyg@yahoo.com. Please be sure to bring either an appetizer or a dessert. This event is always a highlight of the year, and is a favorite with many of our members. No cost to Members or Friends, $5 for guests. It’s also a great time to renew your membership if you haven’t done so already.

Upcoming Events
11/10/19 – 10am – Social Hall -- Sisterhood Paid-Up Brunch – your membership is your entry fee for food, fun and friendship
11/21/19 – 7pm, Social Hall -- General Meeting – Interfaith Panel
11/24/19 – 10am – Social Hall – Holiday Boutique – shop shop shop

Spotlight on our Board
This week we would like to introduce you to Tove Aitchison. Tove is our current recording secretary. She and her husband Robert are relatively new faces around TAS, having joined the Temple just about a year ago. Tove and Robert have two sons: David age 25 and Jordan, age 21.  Tove works full time as a science teacher, and in her spare time she is a master gardener, enjoys reading, jewelry making and playing the harp.
We are thrilled to have Tove on the Board, as she represents a new voice and fresh ideas that help keep our Sisterhood growing. Thank you, Tove, for jumping into Sisterhood and TAS life feet first!

​Sisterhood sends Rabbi Kalfus our best wishes for an easy recovery. We hope he is feeling 100% very soon. We also thank Rabbi Dalia and Cantor Ken for going above and beyond for our holiday services.

If you wish to send a get well tribute to Rabbi Kalfus, please contact Mel Birken at momel1@gmail.com and she will be happy to send one for a donation of $4.

We are coming up on a busy time for Sisterhood and TAS. Please be sure to put the following events on your calendar:

Thursday, September 19, 2019 is our first general meeting of the new year. The evening promises to be very special as we will hear from our own Phyllis Meyers, a Jewish educator as well as a teacher of special education, and the lovely wife of Rabbi Kalfus, when she leads us in a session on Jewish story-telling. The evening starts at 7 pm in the Social Hall.

Sunday, September 22, 2019 at 1 pm in the Social Hall we will be getting together to make our own emergency kits. Cost is $25 per kit for Members and Friends of Sisterhood, $35 for guests. Please bring your own backpack or other bags to hold all your emergency supplies, and we will provide the supplies. Make one for each of your family members, or for anyone else you choose. Please RSVP to Phyllis Bigelson at phyllis@bigelsoncpa.com and let her know how many kits you want to make. Payment can be made at the door.

Thursday, October 17, 2019 is our annual Sukkot celebration at the home of Jo and Jim Schwartz. Attendance is free to Members and Friends of Sisterhood, $5 for guests. This is one of our favorite annual events, and this year promises to be no exception. 

Spotlight on Sisterhood
For this week’s Spotlight on Sisterhood, we would like to introduce you to Joann Averill.

Joann is currently serving as co-Membership Vice President, and is in her second year in that position. She previously served as recording secretary. She joined Sisterhood two years ago looking for friendship and activities and, as she put it because “volunteering makes me happy.”

When her work schedule permits (she is a pharmacist and often on call), Joann can be found subbing as an Oneg Hostess, working the Mah Jongg tournament, or serving on one committee or another to help bring our extra programs to light.

Her hobbies include knitting, travelling and reading. She also makes jewelry and will be a vendor at the Holiday Boutique this year, so be sure and stop by to say hello and check out her beautiful creations.

Joann is a warm and caring individual, who never fails to help when she can. Our Sisterhood is truly blessed to have her on the Executive Board. 

By now you should have received your electronic membership packet, which includes our schedule of events and membership application. If you have not rejoined Sisterhood for this year, please be sure to do so. As you know, spouses and other non-Temple members can also be a part of Sisterhood by joining as Friends. For any questions, please contact Joann Averill (drjsaverill@yahoo.com) or Tammy Singer at tsinger630@gmail.com.  The membership application can also be found on our website at www.tassisterhood.org. Join Sisterhood and get free or discounted admission to all of our events!

UPCOMING EVENTS 

• Please join us on Thursday, September 19, 2019 for an evening hosted by Phyllis Meyers about The Ancient Art of Jewish Storytelling. We will be meeting at 7pm in the Social Hall. The evening is free to all Sisterhood members and friends; $5 to Guests.
• Sunday, September 22, 2019 is our Emergency Kit Making day. We will meet in the Social Hall from 1-3pm. Cost for each kit is $25 for all Sisterhood Members and Friends; $35 for guests. Please bring a backpack and we will supply items to help you fill it up. Questions? Feel free to contact Phyllis Bigelson at phyllis@bigelsoncpa.com, Alyce Schultz-Rosza at 818-787-9058, or Donna Zero at dzagendas@aol.com.

SPOTLIGHT ON SISTERHOOD MEMBERS               
This year we are trying something a little different. Each week we will spotlight a member of Sisterhood to help us all get to know one another a bit better.  This week, please get to know:
Robyn Blachman
For those of you who do not know Robyn, she is a true representative of Sisterhood. Robyn is currently our Sisterhood Treasurer, but in her 20 years of commitment she has served as Membership Vice President, Programming Vice-President, Education Vice-President and is a Past President as well. Perhaps her greatest claim to fame is that she has chaired, organized and produced our annual Holiday Boutique for more years than we can count.

Robyn is married to Joe, who himself is a past president of MoTas, and they have one son, Robert (age 28). Robert recently became engaged and a wedding is being planned for January 2021.

Meeting new people and having somewhere to volunteer her time, were the reasons Robyn got involved in Sisterhood. She stays involved because of the connections she has made, the ability to be creative in planning events, the joy she gets in organizing, planning and volunteering and the personal support she has found.

If you have not met Robyn yet, go up and introduce yourself. Go up and chat with her about mah jongg, theater, travel or TAS. Almost anyone can point her out to you, and she is welcoming and friendly. Robyn can probably answer any questions you have, and she is a great person to get to know.

Things are really starting to heat up at TAS. Religious School started on Sunday, August 18, and Sisterhood was there in full glory promoting registration, camperships and lulav and etrog.sales. If you have not yet renewed your Sisterhood Membership, you may do so online at he Sisterhood website: tassisterhood.org.  You will also be receiving an electronic packet with Membership materials shortly.  

The High Holidays are not far away, and Sukkot is right afterward. If you are interested in purchasing Lulav and Etrog for your own Sukkah, please contact Roseanna Sculler at rsculler@gmail.com to place your order. Details can be found on the Sisterhood website.

Our first event of the new year is set for September 19, 2019 in the Social Hall. It is a program lead by Phyllis Meyer, regarding Jewish storytelling, and proves to be an enjoyable event. Right after that, on September 22, 2019 is an opportunity to make your own earthquake kit. Just bring a backpack, and for a small fee, we will provide all of the other items you will want to have on hand in case a major earthquake strikes, as well as an informational session on what to do in the event of such an occurrence.

BUT - even before all of that, on September 1, 2019, our own Jackie Zev and her amazing husband Marc are hosting a fundraiser for Sisterhood at their home. They are presenting a dinner and concert entitled:
                                                 He Said, She Sang 
featuring award winning author and storyteller Alex Stein, and award winning songwriter and vocalist Amy Engelhardt (www.AmyEngelhardt.com). Here are the specifics:

Date: Sep 1, 2019 – The Sunday of Labor Day Weekend. The performance starts at 7pm.
Cost for the show: $20 - 100% will go to the performers

If you plan on coming to the concert and wish to eat at a convenient location, you can come by at 5:30pm for an amazing homemade (by Marc) Taco Bar
Cost for dinner and the show: $36 - 100% of the additional $16 for the dinner will go to TAS Sisterhood!  (Sorry, dinner without the concert is not available.)
Location: 10701 Baile Ave. Chatsworth
RSVP: Send an email to tas.jackiez@gmail.com or call 818-832-9099. Please, no walk-ins, seating is limited
 ** Marc will make an effort to accommodate all of your eating proclivities and allergies, but you must let us know about them by August 23. 
______________________________

Today's bio of an incredible Jewish woman is (of course) about: Amy Engelhardt. The Zevs know Amy because from 1998-2011 Amy was the sole female member of Grammy-nominated, genre-busting, amazing, a capella singing group The Bobs. But this is only one of a long list of her accomplishments (not all of which are listed here!)

As Mother Superior of the (satanic) Chattering Order of St. Beryl in Amazon Prime’s GOOD OMENS promo campaign, Amy recently led a gaggle of rock-belting nuns invading the series premieres in London, New York, and South by Southwest. Other vocal credits include the films Jurassic World, Real Steel and Dawn of the Planet of the Apes as well as live appearances. As a composer/lyricist, Amy made her Off-Broadway debut in 2017 with BASTARD JONES, an Off-Broadway Alliance Best New Musical nominee. 
 
She sings, she composes both music and lyrics, she has created a game show, she co-founded the LA Berklee Songwriters Forum. And, interestingly, she is the only honorary female member of the Vienna Boys Choir.

,It's July! Have you renewed your Sisterhood membership or Friend of Sisterhood status yet? The basic membership rate went up to $50 on July 1. But the Sponsor ($72) and Patron ($118) rates remain the same as last year. At any level, belonging to the TAS Sisterhood is worth the investment.

You can renew your membership or be our Friend online - go to our website, tassisterhood.org, and click "Join Us!" on the menu. You can pay online or by sending a check to the Temple. Or print the attached membership form and drop it off with your check at the Temple.

And while you are spending money to support Sisterhood, how about participating in our Rosh Hashonah honey fundraiser?! You can send a jar of honey to friends and/or family within the US for just $12. Shipping is free until July 31 ($5 if ordered after that.) Each jar is delivered just before Rosh Hashonah with your personal wishes for a Sweet and Joyous New Year. 

You can also send the clergy or member of our professional staff good wishes for a sweet and happy New Year for just $5 a wish. One honey jar will be sent to each clergy or professional staff member and your name will be listed on a greeting as a contributor of good wishes for a Sweet and Joyous New Year. 

To send honey jars to friends or family or to send honey wishes to the clergy and staff, print out the attached honey order form and mail page 2 to the address on the form or drop it off at the Temple with your check or credit card information.

In honor of Sisterhood's honey program, today's story about an awesome woman is about Hinda Kohn, a college student in Florida with an unusual hobby for an Orthodox Jewish woman - she is a beekeeper. As a beekeeper, she has faced a battle to enjoy her hobby fully, starting with her parents, who had safety concerns. Her interest in beekeeping began when she was a child and she got her first hive when she was 16. Now she is up to three beehives.

Kohn takes her work with God’s creatures seriously. “Any way that I can help [the world] is good. Maybe this is part of it.” She also feels more in awe of God’s creativity, seeing how the bees understand each other. It also brings her closer to God, as that her most religious moments come when the bees are angry, “I’ll start saying kriyas Shema. I mean it!”

​The umbrella organization for Reform Sisterhoods (including ours) is the Women of Reform Judaism (WRJ). Here are some of the benefits from our Sisterhood's membership in WRJ.
 
WRJ Consultant Program: This program was created to provide WRJ-affiliated sisterhoods with access to WRJ leaders who are knowledgeable in topics that our affiliates often find challenging.

WRJ Events:  WRJ hosts a variety of events for affiliated members and women of Progressive Judaism from around the world, which are meant to educate, inform, inspire, connect and elevate women’s leadership and spirituality. Several of our members recently attended the WRJ Social Justice Conference. An upcoming event is the WRJ Women's Journey to Israel , Feb 20-28, 2020.

WRJ Speaker's Bureau:  This WRJ service aims to help develop leadership skills, provide education, and bring spirituality to sisterhoods across North America by sending experienced WRJ leaders to lead special events and workshops for local groups.

WRJ Programs: WRJ Programs to foster women’s Jewish growth include Chai Mitzvah (we have a Chai Mitzvah group in our Sisterhood) and Lilith Salons.
 
WRJ Support for other Programs: WRJ provides generous support for the PJ Library program, the North American Federation of Temple Youth (NFTY) and grants to Sisterhoods to help them develop "outside the box" programs. WRJ also partners with the Religious Action Center (the RAC) to promote social justice and civil rights, and to fight antisemitism.

To personally experience the kind of high-caliber programs that WRJ promotes and develops, we urge you to attend Area Day on July 14 at University Synagogue. Here's a link for more information about Area Day: https://www.wrjpacific.org/southern-california-area-day.html

Speaking of WRJ support for activism, social justice and the RAC, do you know the story of Anat Hoffman? 

Hoffman was born on a kibbutz near Jerusalem in 1954. As a youth, she was a champion swimmer and competed in the Maccabiah Games, winning titles in nine events. In 1974, after she completed her service in the Israel Defense Forces, she and her husband at the time, Michael, left for the United States to study. She graduated from UCLA in 1980 with a B.A. in Psychology. While at UCLA, she was exposed to Reform Judaism and realized for the first time that Judaism was not limited to Orthodoxy.

Returning to Israel, she became an activist for religious pluralism. In the late 1980s, she led a campaign for consumer rights with regard to Bezeq, the Israeli telecommunications company, and her efforts were successful. Anat Hoffman is chair of the Domari Society of Gypsies in Jerusalem. She was the chairwoman of Women in Black, an international women's anti-war movement with an estimated 10,000 activists around the world. She was a member of the group that started Women of the Wall in December 1988. She has been arrested multiple times for wearing a prayer shawl at the Wall. Since 2002 Hoffman has served as Executive Director of the Israel Religious Action Center, which was founded in 1987 as the public and legal advocacy arm of the movement for Progressive Judaism in Israel. It is dedicated to promoting equality, justice, religious freedom.

The Jerusalem Post listed her fifth among its list of 50 Most Influential Jews, for forcefully and successfully bringing the issue of women's rights at the Kotel to the "forefront of the consciousness of world Jewry". 

2019-2020 dues for Sisterhood Members and Friends of Sisterhood will increase to $50 on July 1st. But if you renew on or before June 30, 2019 you can take advantage of last year's price.

Select one of the two easy options below to join or renew your membership today.
 
Option 1: Click here to view the Membership Form. Then print, complete and send it with your check payable to TAS Sisterhood, 18200 Rinaldi Pl., Northridge, CA 91326.
 
Option 2: Click on this link for easy on line registration: 
https://tassisterhood.org/join-us.html; complete the form and either hit “NEXT” to pay by credit card or Paypal; or send your membership dues to TAS Sisterhood and we will match your payment to your application. 

​The LOVE brunch Sunday was just "LOVE-er-ly"! The speaker was a lot of fun, Tracey, our Area Rep, did an awesome job installing the board, the waffles were VERY yummy, and the look on Carol Bizar-Morton's face when she found out she was this year's Woman of the Year was priceless!

Except for our MahJongg Tournament on June 23, our LOVE lunch was the last Sisterhood event for the 2018-2019 year. However, the 2019-2020 year is getting off to a fabulous start with the WRJ Pacific District event called Area Day on July 14. Area Day is a day of growth and development with workshops on leadership, spirituality and fun. The keynote speaker will be Ariella Loewenstein, Deputy Regional Director, ADL Los Angeles, who will be speaking on “Anti-semitism in our Contemporary Society” - what a timely topic! Workshops include an art project, a book discussion, martial arts, event planning, social justice, torah study, tech tools, and much, much more. Go to the Area Day website (https://www.wrjpacific.org/southern-california-area-day.html), click on the Individual Online Registration Form button, and see which workshops sound most interesting to you.

TAS Sisterhood knows that Area Day is an amazing day, and supports our members attending by reimbursing the registration fee. Contact Erika Barnathan for more information about Area Day.

Are you familiar with the ADL, the Anti-Defamation League? ADL is a leading anti-hate organization. Founded in 1913 in response to an escalating climate of anti-Semitism and bigotry, its timeless mission is to protect the Jewish people and to secure justice and fair treatment for all. Today, ADL continues to fight all forms of hate with the same vigor and passion. ADL is a global leader in exposing extremism and delivering anti-bias education, and is a leading organization in training law enforcement. ADL is the first call when acts of anti-Semitism occur. ADL’s ultimate goal is a world in which no group or individual suffers from bias, discrimination or hate.

Not only does the ADL fight anti-semitism both here and abroad, they promote immigrant & refugee rights, LGBTQ rights, women's equity, race and racial justice, Israel, and much more. In 2008, the ADL helped prevent an assassination attempt on President-elect Barak Obama. Ariella Loewenstein's keynote speech and follow-up workshop at Area Day are sure to provide an enlightening look at the current state of anti-semitism in today's society. We hope you can be there!