WRJ: Today & Tomorrow

Over the years, I've worshiped in many places, the most memorable being in the hills of North Georgia, at Camp Coleman. My children attended Coleman - our regional URJ camp - but I never had the opportunity to go to a Jewish camp when I was growing up. So, when I went with the WRJ Southeast district, it proved to be special. The Interim Kallah held there in 2006, and it was one of the most amazing journeys of my life. I celebrated an occasion that most girls today do at 13 years old; I became a bat mitzvah at 52.

This event resoundingly drove home the fact that I found a place in Sisterhood and at my temple not because I had sought it out, but because many years prior, the women of the Temple of Israel Sisterhood asked me to join them. Those women were wise enough to know that I needed Sisterhood as much as Sisterhood needed me. They didn't know then that they gave me the gift of feeling less isolated and feeling part of my temple family.

That wonderful gift of persistence led me to become active in WRJ, serving on the district and North American boards. I found sisters not just here in Greenville, South Carolina, but from across our country who worked for their sisterhoods, their congregations, and their communities. I even found the courage to do things I never imagined, like traveling to unknown places to speak before people I'd never met, delivering sermons, leading workshops, telling WRJ’s story, and yes, eventually reading from the Torah.

I will always remember that feeling as I stood before the Torah in the camp dining hall because of the weather. The ark was there, the table with the Torah on it was there, the eternal light hung over the ark, and most importantly, my "sisters" were there. My joy mixed with real fear. Reading Hebrew certainly did not come easily to me. I began the Torah blessings enveloped in the spirit and serenity that is Camp Coleman. My hands shook as I held the Yad. A journey of many years, and there I was reading Torah surrounded by supportive Sisterhood women from across the Southeast. They were there simply because they asked me to join. Believe me when I say that day will always be a cherished memory. I thank every "sister" who led me to that day.

When we combine our spirit, our energy, our efforts, and our voices, we can all be women approaching Torah, practicing traditions, and ensuring Reform Judaism for many years to come. God said, “And let them make Me a sanctuary, that I will dwell among them."