In August 2025, WRJ announced a new leadership development program called ”Hineni: Leadership for a Changing World.” WRJ sought applicants for the inaugural cohort to build on mission-driven talents rooted in our Jewish values. To participate, North American
On January 13, 2026, the WRJ Online Program Committee presented a program about prioritizing mental health in the new year, guiding rich and supportive conversations to help us start the year grounded, informed, and empowered.
Pattie Schreiber, Carly Coons, and
In 2000, when I was President of Beth Am Women in Los Altos Hills, California, our board was trying to decide what to do for our end-of-year event. One of our board members had previously belonged to a congregation in Massachusetts whose sisterhood had a
The Jewish mystical tradition, Kabbalah, teaches us that when the world was created, God’s presence filled the Earth. When God’s divine beings came into the world, God made room for us by contracting the divine light into vessels, but the vessels were too
My WRJ Leadership journey can be summed up by the three pillars of WRJ: sisterhood, spirituality, and social justice.
Sisterhood:
My Jewish journey began when I said “yes” to membership in the Temple Beth El Sisterhood in South Bend, Indiana. My husband and I
On the 754th day since October 7, 2023, I walked into the plaza of Hostage Square, the heart of community organizing and public support for families of those held hostage in Gaza. The place where so many gathered for over two years in prayer and protest.
I
As the sun sets on October 14, the 23rd of Tishrei 5786, so ends the day we know as Simchat Torah. It’s a holiday that always moves me. Simchat Torah is about joy. We dance with the Torah, but we also wrestle with it. We celebrate the wisdom it offers, but we
Some of my most meaningful memories of connecting with Judaism have happened at URJ Camp Kalsman, and this year’s WRJ Pacific Northwest retreat and area event was no exception. The Pacific NW region spans from Portland, OR to Vancouver, BC, and we were
My WRJ journey has been a natural progression of my overall Jewish journey, which began in Toledo, Ohio with a family deeply rooted in Reform Jewish tradition and history. My formative years were spent in a Zionist youth group, and in college I was an engaged
I’m not usually an organization or club joiner, or anything that involves extensive group planning, protocol following, or being with a group that involves women that I am not familiar with; i.e. what I thought a temple sisterhood represented.
Out of the