Pacific District and Its Sisterhoods Honored with
2025 WRJ Or Ami "Light of My People" Awards
Mazal tov to our Pacific District 2025 winners and recipients!
This year we are especially proud that WRJ has awarded five Or Ami Awards and two honorable mentions to the WRJ Pacific District! We are grateful for our district's outstanding commitment to creating extraordinary programming.
We are equally proud of our Pacific District Sisterhoods and Women's Groups who won four Or Ami Awards! Mazal tov to Miriam's Circle Sisterhood, Women of Temple Israel of Hollywood, Women of B'nai Israel, and Congregation Ner Tamid Sisterhood!
The WRJ Or Ami “Light of My People” Award recognizes exemplary social justice, community service, and educational programming that serves as a model for other WRJ Districts and sisterhoods.
To learn more about WRJ's Or Ami Awards and about the Pacific District winning programs listed below, click here. Download the WRJ 50th Anniversary Brochure here.
To learn more about WRJ's Or Ami Awards and about the Pacific District winning programs listed below, click here. Download the WRJ 50th Anniversary Brochure here.
2025 Pacific District Or Ami Awards:
Gold
- WRJ Pacific District - Trauma on Campus: Free Speech v. Antisemitism: Examining the Israeli-Palestinian Protest Narrative
In response to the Gaza-centered antisemitic protests that rocked college campuses in the Pacific District and throughout the U.S. and Canada, the Pacific District hosted a Zoom two-part series: “Trauma on Campus: Free Speech v. Antisemitism and Trauma on Campus: Examining the Israeli-Palestinian Protest Narrative.” Outstanding speakers provided members with real-time updates of protests on campuses in SoCal, discussed strategies for dealing with antisemitism, and studied the complex subject of freedom of speech in the context of campus protests. Participants also gained a deeper understanding of the history of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. - Miriam’s Circle Sisterhood - A Warmer Winter for Willard Students
Miriam's Circle, founded five years ago by Jewish women in Orange County, CA, is an independent sisterhood rooted in Tikkun Olam and Jewish values. Without synagogue affiliation, members unite to support each other and the wider community through social action and meaningful connection. The Social Action Committee led efforts to support schools like Willard Middle School in Santa Ana, CA, with supplies, clothing, and essentials. Since the population of Willard School is 99% minority, and 79% of students come from economically disadvantaged families with 50% of the student population experiencing homelessness, there are tremendous needs. In previous years, they provided blankets, shoes, and socks to students at Willard School, and in the winter of 2024, they provided sweatshirts to over 150 students. Miriam's Circle is a true community of sisterhood in action. - Women of Temple Israel of Hollywood - Women's Health Symposium
The Women’s Health Symposium at Temple Israel of Hollywood was a day-long community event designed to empower and educate individuals through a holistic approach to women’s physical, emotional, and spiritual well-being. The event featured expert-led sessions on nutrition, caregiving, humor and resilience, breath work, poetry, and spiritual reflection. Health-focused organizations hosted informational booths, and a panel of medical professionals and thrivers shared their insights and stories. The Symposium provided a nurturing space for connection, support, and education while addressing the unique healthcare needs of women.
Silver
- WRJ Pacific District - With One Voice: A Celebration of the High Holidays
“With One Voice: A Celebration of the High Holidays” was designed to provide Pacific District members with a unique experience during the most solemn days of the Jewish year, those in which we approach God in prayer as one people. In this singular experience, participants were joined by leaders of the major Reform and Progressive movements, as well as vocalists from countries around the world, including all three major streams of Judaism. - Women of B'nai Israel - Welcoming the Stranger Project for Refugees
This project consisted of several parts related to relevant opportunities. Women of B’nai Israel, in conjunction with Sacramento Area Congregations Together, took a main role when Venezuelan migrants were dropped off in Sacramento in June of 2023. Women of B’nai Israel sponsored a Shabbat dinner to raise funds and their migrant guests volunteered to cook and serve a delicious dinner of traditional Venezuelan food. The Sacramento Refugee Resettlement Circle was matched with a Jewish family from Ukraine. The Women of B’nai Israel delivered a Shabbat Welcome package and hosted a Chanukah luncheon with the family. To further help the family, they raised funds, as discussed below. To assist their congregation’s Immigration Committee, the Women of B’nai Israel co-sponsored a fundraiser “A Taste of Afghan Culture” in which they enjoyed a delightful afternoon tea with a taste of Afghan food prepared by an Afghan refugee family. - Congregation Ner Tamid Sisterhood - Women’s Health Conference
The “Women’s Health Conference” featured a group of 14 presenters to educate on and discuss various topics related to women and their well-being, self-care, and health. The conference was complemented by catered breakfast and lunch. Videos were presented by Las Vegas Mayor Shelley Berkley and U. S. Senator Jacky Rosen (both are CNT Sisterhood members). In addition to a multitude of learning opportunities, all attendees were also trained to recognize and respond to an opioid overdose and were given the medication needed to do so in case of emergency.
- WRJ Pacific District - All Things Hanukkah
From the chanukiah smuggled into the Western Wall to rolling your own Hanukkah candles and learning the fascinating history of the latke, All Things Hanukkah leaned into its ties with WRJ, the Religious Action Center for Reform Judaism, Women of the Wall, and HUC-JIR Jerusalem to present a unique educational and inclusive tour of the holiday of Hanukkah. - WRJ Pacific District - Shabbaton on Social Justice
The WRJ Pacific District Shabbaton on Social Justice was created to promote new district-wide efforts to focus on social justice issues. The Shabbaton included nationally recognized and distinguished speakers, WRJ CEO Rabbi Liz P.G. Hirsch, former U.S. Ambassador-at-Large for International Religious Freedom and former Religious Action Center of Reform Judaism Director/Chief Counsel Rabbi David Saperstein, and RAC Assistant Director of Organizing Lee Winkelman. They provided educational and motivational talks on WRJ’s historic role in pursuing social justice; the importance of fighting for social justice from a Jewish perspective; and the nuts-and-bolts of working social justice programs at the local level. Inspiring opening and closing prayers in honor of Shabbat were presented to further motivate attendees. - WRJ Pacific District - Say YES to WRJ Game Day
“Say YES to WRJ Game Day” was planned as a SoCal, Long Beach/Orange County Area Event. The goal was to educate attendees about WRJ and the YES Fund through games and videos. Opening with a mixer—bingo style sheets where the attendees had to find someone in the room who fit a square—the event featured the 2025 WRJ video and an associated trivia game with 10 questions, the answers to most of which could be found on the WRJ Benefits Flyer. Pacific District post-it pads were given as prizes. The YES Fund video was shown and a pitch made before YES Fund Bingo (where questions were drawn rather than numbers), where answers could be found on associated informational flyers—YES Fund Allocations sheet, What is a Lifeline, and What is the YES Fund. Uniongrams were given as prizes. This Pacific District event concluded with an interactive Taste of Convention and singing “I Have a Voice.”
Honorable Mention
- WRJ Pacific District - The Proposed American Takeover of Gaza: Blueprint for Peace or Flashpoint for War
“The Proposed American Takeover of Gaza: Blueprint for Peace or Flashpoint for War?” was a timely educational program with dynamic speakers responding to President Trump's proposal to take over the Gaza Strip, a move that could have added to the rising antisemitism within the Pacific District and around the world. The Zoom program was packed with fresh, nuanced information, and the format allowed members to discuss the issues with Jewish experts through a Jewish lens. - WRJ Pacific District - War in Israel: A Special Episode of Diaspora Diaries
In the wake of the brutal October 7 attack, the Pacific District gave its members the unique opportunity to speak and pray with members of the Jewish community in Israel in an extraordinary episode of their travel series, “Diaspora Diaries.” “War in Israel: A Special Edition of Diaspora Diaries” aired just eight days after the tragedy and featured the Movement’s Jewish sisters at Women of the Wall, as well the Executive Director of Hand-to-Hand: Center for Jewish-Arab Education in Israel, who discussed the impact of the tragedy on his bicultural school community. Furthermore, they presented an Anti-Defamation League expert in the U.S. to explain how folks could protect their digital footprints because of the expected rise in antisemitism. Organizers also provided resources for self-care during this difficult time and information on how to provide assistance to the people of Israel.
