Please Join Us
Women of all ages and interests at Congregation Beth David are invited to join us. In fact, we consider all women at Beth David to be a part of our group – we do not charge annual dues (although many women do provide a small donation each year). Please email women@beth-david.org to be added to our roster, offer suggestions, ask questions, or provide comments. We would love to hear from you. Without you, we are one woman short!
The Beth David Women Hanukkah Luncheon was a fun and delicious time for all. Thanks to Seema for preparing and coordinating a wonderful meal, to all those who helped make the event flow beautifully, to Rabbi Kunin for leading us in blessings, and to all those who came out to schmooze and socialize. And, best of all, we were able to donate $895 to JFS Silicon Valley’s Embrace-A-Family program! See all lunch photos
Women Who Walk
Tuesdays 8:30 am. No walks either Tuesday of Passover (April 23 and 30). The next walks after Passover are May 14 and then May 28 and June 2. The group meets on Tuesday mornings at 8:30 am in Los Gatos in the VTA Parking lot near the Safeway end of the lot. You can hike the Park and Vasona Creek Trail and walk up to the little dam or perhaps, if people are feeling energized, all the way to Lark Avenue and then back to your cars. The little dam is about a 3.5-mile round trip. Los Gatos residents who want a shorter walk can park in the Vasona parking lot and meet the group where the train tracks meet the trail. Contact Wendy J Glasser wjgcbd@comcast.net if you are interested in joining or to confirm.
CRAFTERS’ GUILD (BEIT MIDRASH)
Sunday, May 5, 9:30 – 11:30 a.m.
Monday, May 20, 3:00 – 5:00 p.m.
Hosted by Ricki Gafter and Ann Tavan. You do not have to be a crafter; social members are also welcome. To add your name to the list, contact Ann Tavan (ann@tavan.com).
Empty Nesters Coffee & Chat (offsite)
Tuesday, May 7, 10:00 a.m.
The group meets the first Tuesday of the month at 10 am, Paris Baguette, Cupertino. Contact Dafna Mizrahi (dafi.sorokin@gmail.com) for additional information or to be added to the mailing list.
Moldaw residences lunch and tour (Offsite)
NEW DATE: Thursday, May 30, 12:00 p.m.
Moldaw Residences has extended an invitation to a lunch, presentation and tour at Moldaw Residences in Palo Alto. The purpose of the event is to give interested women – and men – the opportunity to learn about this senior living facility. To sign up, click here. Please advise in the Comments if you would like to carpool and if you are willing to drive. For more information, contact women@beth-david.org.
Dames Who Dine (Offsite)
Thursday, May 23
Pacific Catch, Cupertino
Thanks to Susie Weitzman for arranging the May DWD, at Pacific Catch in Cupertino. Look for sign up genius coming soon.
OTHER EVENTS
- SAVE THE DATES!! Women’s League NxNW Region Spring Conference: Rodeo of Life. May 19-20, 2024 at Congregation Neveh Shalom, Portland OR. Join Karen Fihn, Emily Gannes, Wendy Glasser, Jane Jacobson and others in Portland for this exciting gathering, as women of the NxNW Region share ways to wrangle life’s ups and downs through education, friendship, and spiritual nourishment. Registration materials and link coming soon! For more information, Beth David members can contact Wendy Glasser (wjgcbd@comcast.net) or Jane Jacobson (jane.j.jacobson@gmail.com). Here is the event flyer
- Torah Fund –Torah Fund has just added some beautiful new e-cards to their online selection. You can find an e-card for most occasions. The artist is working on a Mother’s Day card now. If you want to see or send an ecard you can use this link https://torahfundecards.jtsa.edu. Be sure to put Beth David Women/Sisterhood in the affiliate line so that the purchase is counted towards our fundraising goal. Paper Cards are still available, reach out to Rhoda Bress if you want to send a paper card. Women’s League is on a July to June fiscal Calendar so if you want to make a pin level donation there is still time for the beautiful heart shaped pin with Arevim in Hebrew letters on it. Please let me know. This year’s theme is All Israel is responsible for each other. Arevim means responsible. Little did we know when we picked this theme how important it would be. Torah Fund supports the 5 conservative seminaries which are responsible for educating our Rabbi’s, Cantors, and Jewish Educators. Please consider Torah Fund cards or a pin level donation of $180 or more to support our seminaries.For full explanation about Torah Fund and this year’s campaign, click here. To view the flyer, click this link: Torah Fund flyer 2023
- Hillel Shabbat Dinners –Jane Jacobson coordinates these dinners on Friday evenings during the academic year, mainly at Hillel of Silicon Velley. Please contact Jane if you are interested, to find out which dinners are still open (as of this writing, April 26 (Passover day 4), and May 17). Hillel supports students at SJSU, Santa Clara University, Mission, Foothill, West Valley, Evergreen, and the other community colleges in the valley. For each dinner, you would put together a group of at least 5 people to provide a nourishing Shabbat dinner – including a salad/soup course, main course, dessert, and challah. Meals may be dairy, meat or parve. Hillel maintains a Kosher-style kitchen meaning that donors may cook in their own homes but should follow Kashrut laws by not mixing meat and milk, providing dishes in throw-away serving containers. Hillel can provide serving utensils. There is no need for clean-up – the kids do it. Set up is either that delivery person/people set out their dishes or put them into the ovens to be heated. The Hillel staff and volunteers set everything out on the serving counter. There is really very little to be done other than cook at home and deliver to the person in charge of taking food to Hillel House or taking it there yourselves. Alternatively, if a Havurah wants to sponsor an evening, the professionals at Hillel will take care of providing a nice dinner. Here is a link for complete details and how to get involved with this wonderful project Here is a link for complete details and how to get involved with this wonderful project: BDW Hillel Shabbat Dinner Program
- Beth David Women brochure photos – if you have good photographs from a Beth David Women event you can share, please send them to women@beth-david.org so that we can change them periodically to reflect our events.
- Welcome role – We would like to have someone to Welcome new members and help them get integrated and acquainted at BDW functions.
- Photographer(s) – can be more than one person, to take pictures at BDW events and submit them to Lynn Crocker for use in marketing.
About Beth David Women
Beth David Women is a diverse group of women who draw strength from each other in our commitment to Jewish ideals. Our mission is to bring women together to support and benefit our Congregation and community, and to enrich our lives through personal and spiritual growth and friendship. We accomplish this mission through social and educational programs, worship, social action, and leadership development.
Beth David Women is affiliated with Women’s League of Conservative Judaism (WLCJ), a voice of Conservative Jewish Women all over the world and is a proud participant in WLCJ’s annual Torah Fund Campaign. Torah Fund supports the education of Conservative rabbis, cantors, educators and scholars through scholarships and programs.
Support For Beth David and Our Larger Community
Beth David Women is dedicated to supporting our Congregation and making it a vibrant and welcoming place where our members can share in friendship and worship. We often partner with Men’s Club to share in events and fundraisers and to make contributions that meet the religious and financial needs of our Congregation. Some of the ways we make an impact include:
- Presenting each B’nai Mitzvah with a Kiddush Cup
- Supporting the religious school
- Funding some of the musical Shabbat services
- Sending Torah Fund cards to congregants who experience a life cycle event
- Providing flowers or other decorations for the bima on the high holy days
Beth David Women also offers opportunities to serve our larger community and make it a better place to live. Some of these opportunities include:
- Hosting Shabbat dinners each year for Hillel students at San Jose State University
- Holding an annual event to support the Torah Fund Campaign
- Supporting Beth David’s team at the American Cancer Society’s annual Relay for Life
- Contributing to the Safe Car Park program
- Assembling hygiene kits for shelters with AAi
- Providing financial support to charitable causes such as shelters, food banks, JFCS, etc.