REGISTRATION NOW OPEN!
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2023 WRJ Pacific District Convention
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Welcome to Bellevue! WRJ Pacific District invites you to our Pacific District 2023 Convention in Bellevue, Washington – “Reimagining Traditions: Finding Harmony and Balance.” This is the Pacific District's 56th Convention and thanks to the efforts of our convention planning team and our local convention host, Temple B’nai Torah, it promises to be a fun and educational four days!
This convention is being held as a hybrid event, so several of the main sessions will be broadcast on livestream and one workshop in each block will be available for virtual attendance. We hope that most of you will be able to attend in person to experience the full value of convention and connection. Keep watching the Chai Line and Yammer for more updates from the Convention Planning Committee.
Convention is all about sisterhood, spirituality and social justice: Meeting new people, seeing friends we have made over the years, learning about everyone’s challenges and successes, gathering new ideas and information, getting involved, giving back, and just having fun together.
This convention is being held as a hybrid event, so several of the main sessions will be broadcast on livestream and one workshop in each block will be available for virtual attendance. We hope that most of you will be able to attend in person to experience the full value of convention and connection. Keep watching the Chai Line and Yammer for more updates from the Convention Planning Committee.
Convention is all about sisterhood, spirituality and social justice: Meeting new people, seeing friends we have made over the years, learning about everyone’s challenges and successes, gathering new ideas and information, getting involved, giving back, and just having fun together.
At the Opening Session on Thursday evening, we will hear from our dynamic keynote speaker, Amelia Cramer. Ms. Cramer is a member of the Women of Kol Ami in Tucson, Arizona and is a retired attorney with a breadth of diverse experience practicing law in Arizona, California, Massachusetts, and Washington, D.C. During her legal career, she actively promoted civil rights for LGBTQ people. Additionally, she served for nearly 15 years as a reform-minded prosecutor in the position of Chief Deputy Pima County Attorney in Tucson, Arizona.
We have a great line-up of diverse workshops, many involving teachings from our local rabbis. Our Workshop Committee, led by Evelyn Lever and Tina Wolfe, has developed an engaging series of learning opportunities to touch our souls, reimagine traditions through a women’s lens, and help us find harmony and balance in our lives, interspersed with nuts-and-bolts informational workshops to help each of us as well as our sisterhoods/women’s groups thrive. See our workshop lineup here.
The WRJ PD Action & Advocacy Team has planned a special social justice track of workshops, including sessions on Judaism and Environmental Justice, a panel on the new WRJ Says Stop Initiative, Hot Topics in Social Justice, and a virtual program on the struggle for gender equality and religious pluralism in Israel featuring Yochi Rappeport, Executive Director of Women of the Wall.
Our Social Action project is supporting refugee resettlement efforts in collaboration with Jewish Family Service of Seattle by donating gift cards to the organization or contributing to the JFS Amazon Wish List.
A highlight of convention for many is the time to celebrate Shabbat together! Friday evening, we will be at Temple B’nai Torah, our host congregation, for a special worship service and catered dinner. TBT has created a musical service with a middle Eastern flavor that includes musicians and singers (some of our Sisterhood members). The service will be a blend of the annual Sisterhood Shabbat service and the musicians. Saturday morning, Janice Brumer has planned a meaningful and moving Shabbat morning service for us, with local service leader Mikayla Goodkin and including the beautiful voices of our WRJ PD Choir organized and led by Annette Kozicki.
WRJ Pacific District Past President Ellen Bick, along with other past District Presidents, are working on the installation of our new District Board that we will have elected on Friday morning and will coincide with our beautiful Havdalah service to end Shabbat. We are so very lucky to have caring, resourceful and dedicated women who choose to lead our District.
We will honor sisterhoods and women’s groups with Kavod Awards (district) and Or Ami Awards (WRJ). We will hear from several inspiring speakers. We’re excited to welcome our WRJ Guest, Jane Taves, WRJ Vice President of Engagement, from Madison, Wisconsin, who will share her wisdom with us in various ways during the course of the weekend. Rabbis from around our district will be joining us to lead Torah study sessions as well as workshops and worship.
Saturday evening, we are going to enjoy a live comedy improv show with Jet City Improv and a special sing-along song session with Annette Kozicki and Celia Curran Amancio.
This is an in-person event, but we also are planning a fully virtual option for those who are unable to travel or attend in person. Kudos to our amazing Tech Team – Shoshana Lewin Fischer, Julia Weinstein, Melissa Jakubowitz, and Lori Glasky – for helping to make this a truly hybrid event! Virtual Convention attendees will have access to all live-streamed plenary sessions, Torah study, worship services, and the beautiful Installation service. There will also be a dedicated virtual workshop track, pre-Convention webinars, and special Zoom chat rooms during Convention.
And as with all our conventions, it is a time to do the business of our Pacific District in our plenary sessions. We will vote on the new officers for our district, discuss and pass some changes to our bylaws to stay current, hear of our accomplishments from our President, Cher Krichmar, hear the vision from our incoming President, Carol Schuster, and much more.
And of course, we need volunteers to help. We are looking for volunteers to facilitate workshops, provide tech support, and provide general support and a welcoming smile. Specific details of what each job entails, and training for each will be provided.
To volunteer, please contact Debbie Braymer, our Volunteer Coordinator, at debbiebraymerconvention@gmail.com.
We are thrilled to be able to join together again in-person for our 2023 Pacific District Convention!
Karen Goldberg and Robin Plotnik, 2023 Convention Co-Chairs
We have a great line-up of diverse workshops, many involving teachings from our local rabbis. Our Workshop Committee, led by Evelyn Lever and Tina Wolfe, has developed an engaging series of learning opportunities to touch our souls, reimagine traditions through a women’s lens, and help us find harmony and balance in our lives, interspersed with nuts-and-bolts informational workshops to help each of us as well as our sisterhoods/women’s groups thrive. See our workshop lineup here.
The WRJ PD Action & Advocacy Team has planned a special social justice track of workshops, including sessions on Judaism and Environmental Justice, a panel on the new WRJ Says Stop Initiative, Hot Topics in Social Justice, and a virtual program on the struggle for gender equality and religious pluralism in Israel featuring Yochi Rappeport, Executive Director of Women of the Wall.
Our Social Action project is supporting refugee resettlement efforts in collaboration with Jewish Family Service of Seattle by donating gift cards to the organization or contributing to the JFS Amazon Wish List.
A highlight of convention for many is the time to celebrate Shabbat together! Friday evening, we will be at Temple B’nai Torah, our host congregation, for a special worship service and catered dinner. TBT has created a musical service with a middle Eastern flavor that includes musicians and singers (some of our Sisterhood members). The service will be a blend of the annual Sisterhood Shabbat service and the musicians. Saturday morning, Janice Brumer has planned a meaningful and moving Shabbat morning service for us, with local service leader Mikayla Goodkin and including the beautiful voices of our WRJ PD Choir organized and led by Annette Kozicki.
WRJ Pacific District Past President Ellen Bick, along with other past District Presidents, are working on the installation of our new District Board that we will have elected on Friday morning and will coincide with our beautiful Havdalah service to end Shabbat. We are so very lucky to have caring, resourceful and dedicated women who choose to lead our District.
We will honor sisterhoods and women’s groups with Kavod Awards (district) and Or Ami Awards (WRJ). We will hear from several inspiring speakers. We’re excited to welcome our WRJ Guest, Jane Taves, WRJ Vice President of Engagement, from Madison, Wisconsin, who will share her wisdom with us in various ways during the course of the weekend. Rabbis from around our district will be joining us to lead Torah study sessions as well as workshops and worship.
Saturday evening, we are going to enjoy a live comedy improv show with Jet City Improv and a special sing-along song session with Annette Kozicki and Celia Curran Amancio.
This is an in-person event, but we also are planning a fully virtual option for those who are unable to travel or attend in person. Kudos to our amazing Tech Team – Shoshana Lewin Fischer, Julia Weinstein, Melissa Jakubowitz, and Lori Glasky – for helping to make this a truly hybrid event! Virtual Convention attendees will have access to all live-streamed plenary sessions, Torah study, worship services, and the beautiful Installation service. There will also be a dedicated virtual workshop track, pre-Convention webinars, and special Zoom chat rooms during Convention.
And as with all our conventions, it is a time to do the business of our Pacific District in our plenary sessions. We will vote on the new officers for our district, discuss and pass some changes to our bylaws to stay current, hear of our accomplishments from our President, Cher Krichmar, hear the vision from our incoming President, Carol Schuster, and much more.
And of course, we need volunteers to help. We are looking for volunteers to facilitate workshops, provide tech support, and provide general support and a welcoming smile. Specific details of what each job entails, and training for each will be provided.
To volunteer, please contact Debbie Braymer, our Volunteer Coordinator, at debbiebraymerconvention@gmail.com.
We are thrilled to be able to join together again in-person for our 2023 Pacific District Convention!
Karen Goldberg and Robin Plotnik, 2023 Convention Co-Chairs
COVID POLICY
Women of Reform Judaism is committed to providing the safest and
healthiest environment for our members, participants, and employees.
All CDC and local Covid guidelines at the time of the WRJ Pacific District 2023 Convention will be followed.
In addition, we are requiring proof of vaccination at the time you register for convention.
24 hours prior to traveling to convention, we will also require you to fill out the WRJ Covid Covenant of Care.
This policy is subject to change as circumstances require.
healthiest environment for our members, participants, and employees.
All CDC and local Covid guidelines at the time of the WRJ Pacific District 2023 Convention will be followed.
In addition, we are requiring proof of vaccination at the time you register for convention.
24 hours prior to traveling to convention, we will also require you to fill out the WRJ Covid Covenant of Care.
This policy is subject to change as circumstances require.
Check out the 2023 PD Convention on Yammer, Twitter, Facebook with the tag #WRJPD2023
My Favorite Convention Memories
Lillian Burkenheim Silver
My favorite Convention memories are being with my Sisters exploring new experiences. My first Convention was in Oakland. We flew into San Francisco Airport and took the BART to Oakland. It was my first time leaving my family and trekking on a girls’ trip. And it was exciting, informative and fun. The seasoned members of our Sisterhood held nightly slumber parties for everyone, where we met and talked about what we learned, our lives and everything under the sun. There were so many exciting programs and ideas I remember being excited to come home and recreate some of them at our Sisterhood.
My second favorite Convention memory was at the Convention in Portland. There is just something so incredibly warm and embracing about being with friends you only see at Convention. The city, the convention, the people. I was inspired. Phyllis Bigelson gave a speech about getting involved with the District. I talked with her about opportunities and by the time we landed back in LA I was involved in planning the next Convention.
This year, there were no flights, no hotel, but there was still lots of opportunities to learn and connect. Can’t wait to find my next Convention memory!
My second favorite Convention memory was at the Convention in Portland. There is just something so incredibly warm and embracing about being with friends you only see at Convention. The city, the convention, the people. I was inspired. Phyllis Bigelson gave a speech about getting involved with the District. I talked with her about opportunities and by the time we landed back in LA I was involved in planning the next Convention.
This year, there were no flights, no hotel, but there was still lots of opportunities to learn and connect. Can’t wait to find my next Convention memory!
