Local Stories
By Virginia Ring, with Deborah Fripp, 4/03/2018
Yom HaShoah is typically a somber time to reflect, and for me personally, to be angry at the world. It is not generally a holiday to which I look forward. A small part of me wants the day to hurry up and be over, but I know that this day should be observed, so I do. This year was different, however. My congregation, Congregation Kol Ami in Flower Mound, TX, hosted a very unique ceremony, designed to commemorate not only the terrible things that happened but also the strength with which we met them, to celebrate our survival while mourning our dead. My experience at this Seder-like ceremony... Read More
By Delaney Cotton, 2/22/2018
Engineers around the world are constantly shaping our future. They are behind the big curtain making the technologies that change our lives. Unfortunately, in a field dominated by men, half of the United States’ population is severely underrepresented. With only 11% of engineers in this country being women, we are drastically limiting our own perspective. From a young age there is an unspoken bias against women in engineering and science. I personally still remember selecting electives in middle school and discovering I was the only girl in my coding class, as well as my editing lab.... Read More
By Alyson Malinger, 2/01/2018
On January 20, 2017, at 12:00 p.m. ET the 45th president of the United States was sworn into office. The next day, throughout the world, women and men alike joined together in the streets to march against hatred, sexism, persecution, and bigotry among other points of division. Many WRJ women took part in those protests and demanded equality for all and a stop to oppression. One year later, women and men once again entered the streets to continue this fight. We asked a few WRJ women to share their experiences at the 2017 march and to look back and reflect on this year of change... Read More
By Rabbi Sarah Reines, 11/13/2017
Perhaps you are like me – stumbling through my days in a perpetual state of exhaustion. It could be for many reasons: long hours of work, the weight from our personal lives due to matters we are facing individually, and, perhaps even weightier, issues our loved ones are facing, which we can’t help but carry with us. We are exhausted from the human and natural disasters in our immediate communities, in our nation, and lands across oceans; the tentacles of these tragedies reach as close as the smart phones in our pockets, and the news alerts literally flashing before our eyes, even as we close... Read More
By Alyson Malinger, 10/19/2017
“Please keep our students safe.” “I am 85. This is for women NOW and of the FUTURE. We must help this basic humanity.” “We fought long and hard for these protections. We needed them…and still do.” “I am in Naples, FL, dealing with the aftermath of Hurricane Irma, but my sensibilities have not been demolished. Students need protection, without political gamesmanship. I add my support for this petition.” “What's the alternative? Letting sleeping dogs lie is not an option. There's no analogy to dogs here, and lying never was the best policy.” These are only some excerpts from the... Read More
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