Sisterhood

Welcome to Adas Israel Congregation Sisterhood!

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Please scroll down to the Calendar of Events to register for programs.

Special Events

Sisterhood 2022-23 Closing Event
ISRAEL AT 75: CELEBRATING ISRAELI WOMEN, PAST AND PRESENT

June 4, 10:30 am – 1:00 pm, Kay Hall
Click here and scroll down to Calendar of Events to register. The fee is $18 (no charge for Chavera members).

“Israel is a feminist utopia – especially the kibbutzim!” “Look at all those ‘girl’ soldiers!”
“Women can lead the country – look at Golda!”

The State of Israel – and the pre-state Yishuv – boast a long list of accomplished, path-breaking women whose stories form an integral part of the Jewish narrative. But the status of women throughout Israel’s history is often a mirror that reflects tensions between state prerogatives and individual identity.

All are welcome to join our closing event surveying different eras and sectors of Israeli society and celebrating incredible Israeli women. Dr. Lauren B. Strauss will explore the history of women in Israel, and a panel discussion will feature Israeli women leaders in various fields, including medicine and science, the military, and food and culture.

Dr. Strauss is senior professorial lecturer and director of undergraduate studies in American University’s Jewish Studies Program. A scholar of American Jewish political and cultural history, Dr. Strauss lectures widely and is a commentator at Jewish cultural events and in the press. Her museum work includes curating an exhibition on the history of modern Israel, serving as consultant to the Library of Congress exhibit “From Haven to Home,” and advising the forthcoming Capital Jewish Museum in Washington, DC. Dr. Strauss co-chairs the Greater Washington Forum on Israeli Arab Issues and is a board member of the Association for Jewish Studies and the Jewish Women’s Encyclopedia. She is also a founding member of Heart of a Nation, a group that encourages dialogue among Americans, Israelis, and Palestinians.

The panel discussion, moderated by Liat Arditi, a long-time educator currently teaching at the Charles E. Smith Jewish Day School,  will include:

• Dr. Shaked Lev-Ari, a post-doctoral research fellow at Lombardi Comprehensive Cancer Center, Georgetown University, and a medical oncologist at Israel’s Sheba Hospital;
• Vered Guttman, an Israeli chef and food writer living in Washington, DC, who brings modern Israeli and Middle Eastern flavors to private parties, diplomatic events, and even to the White House 2014 Passover Seder; and
• A lieutenant colonel (name withheld) who is a career soldier in the Israeli Intelligence and the highest-ranking military attaché at the Israeli Embassy in Washington, DC.  

Brunch, featuring Israeli food, will be served beginning at 10:30 am. A brief Sisterhood General Membership meeting to elect next year’s officers and board members will be held immediately preceding the formal presentation.

Click here and scroll down to Calendar of Events to register. The fee is $18 (no charge for Chavera members).

Join us for the Final 2022-23 “Sisterhood in Your Community” Brunch hosted by Rona Walters

June 11, 10:30 am to 12:00 pm
Click here and scroll down to Calendar of Events to register.

As we gather in Rona Walters’ beautiful garden to celebrate an eventful and successful year of Sisterhood programs, we will also have the opportunity to brainstorm about programming for 2023-24/5784.

All are welcome, so consider introducing a friend or prospective member to our “Community of Sisterhood, Joined by the Bonds of Friendship.” Space is limited, so don’t delay – register yourself (and perhaps also a friend) now.

Sunday, June 11, 10:30 am, Forest Hills, NW DC

Brunch hosted by Rona Walters

Special Past Events

2023 Garden of the Righteous Honoree: José Ignacio Burbano, Grandfather of Past Sisterhood President Betty Adler

On April 18, 2023, Adas Israel Congregation inducted José Ignacio Burbano into the synagogue’s Garden of the Righteous, which honors non-Jews who risked their lives to save Jews during the Holocaust.

Burbano was the grandfather of Betty Adler, a long-time Adas Israel member and a Sisterhood past president. With help from others, including her cousin Mariamelia from Equador, Betty eloquently told her grandfather’s story. 

José Ignacio Burbano (1890-1973), an Ecuadorian diplomat, was a man whose actions spoke of him as a humanist. During his mission as Consul of Ecuador in Bremen, Germany, from 1937 to 1940, Burbano worked diligently to save the lives of Jews, breaking the rules and challenging Ecuador’s anti-immigration policies. Putting his career and life at risk, he stood up to the Ecuadorian authorities, granting more than 200 visas to Jewish families and saving the lives of many German Jews whose lives were in extreme danger from the Nazi regime. Burbano courageously continued saving Jewish families until he was relieved of his duties and relocated to the Ecuadorian consulate in Houston, Texas.

Many years after Burbano’s actions in Bremen, his eldest daughter married Federico Adler, an Austrian Jew who had found refuge in Quito, Ecuador. Betty is their daughter. Thus – bringing Burbano’s heroic actions full circle – by saving Jewish families, Burbano unknowingly also saved his own future son-in-law, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren.

Sisterhood’s members are so pleased that our former President Betty Adler was able to celebrate this well-deserved family honor. Please click here for a link to Betty Adler's speech.

Torah Fund

Mazel Tov to TORAH FUND on its 80th Anniversary!!

As part of the Women's League for Conservative Judaism (WLCJ), Adas Israel raises dollars for Torah Fund, which supports five Conservative seminaries across the globe, educating clergy, cantors, scholars, and lay leaders. Your donation helps provide housing, tuition scholarships, and university infrastructure for the next generation of Jewish leaders.

The WLCJ 2022-23 Torah Fund Campaign is called Chazak v’Ematz, Hebrew for “be strong and courageous.” The Torah Fund Campaign supports scholarships and programming at five Conservative/Masorti institutes of higher Jewish learning:

• Jewish Theological Seminary (New York)
• Ziegler School of Rabbinic Studies (Los Angeles)
• Schechter Institute of Jewish Studies (Jerusalem)
• Seminario Rabinico Latinoamericano (Buenos Aires)
• Zacharias Frankel College (Potsdam, Germany)

Help strengthen Jewish education and ensure the vibrancy of the Jewish people for decades to come with your gift to Torah Fund.

Individual donors to Torah Fund at the Benefactor level ($180) or higher receive the distinctive WLCJ Torah Fund pin in recognition of their gift. Your Torah Fund Chair, Rona Walters, will deliver the 2022-23 pin to your door. And this year, please consider an additional pledge of $80 in honor of Torah Fund’s 80th Birthday!

The Torah Fund Pin 5783 (2022-23):

You can make donations online at the button below, or send a check payable to:

"Torah Fund"
c/o Rona Walters, Torah Fund Chair
5117 Linnean Avenue NW
Washington, DC 20008

Donations may not be charged to your Adas Israel account.

You can also send a greeting with e-cards to support Torah Fund.  Cards can be purchased on the JTS Torah Fund website (click here), and customized for any occasion.  The Torah Fund e-cards benefit the general campaign.  If you prefer a hard copy of a card, please contact Rona Walters by email at ronawalters@gmail.com or by phone/text at 202-744-2854.

Donate

RUTH & SIMON ALBERT SISTERHOOD GIFT SHOP 

Just because it's almost summer, don't think we have nothing new to share! We recently received several orders, including these gorgeous handmade challah covers. Please stop by and check out a number of new mezuzot and tallitot as well.

And don’t forget that if you became a Sisterhood member at the Chavera level in 2022-2023, you are still entitled to your one-time store credit. So be sure to come in and shop before it expires on June 30.

Please note that we have shifted to summer store hours: Tuesday, Wednesday, and Friday, 10:00 am-12:30 pm. If these times are not convenient for you, please email us at adasgiftshop@gmail.com, and we'll set up a special appointment for you. Finally, we're heading back to NY Now, the famous summer gift show in New York City, in August, where we'll shop 'til we drop – literally!

2850 Quebec Street, N.W.
Washington, DC 20008
202-364-2888
adasgiftshop@gmail.com

All purchases benefit Adas Israel Congregation.