Rachael Freedman - Moishe House MoCo

Our evolution as a group has been pleasantly surprising and amusing to experience. In addition to its entertainment and insight value, this process has enriched my own leadership, and I've watched the effects of this permeate other programming roles I hold and professional relationships in which I am involved. It has been interesting to realize that my e-mail communication style in quasi-professional situations has been influenced -- molded, even -- by my Moishe House e-mail involvement -- and, yes, "involvement" is an appropriate expression of the exponential number of e-mails exchanged within the house. (It's a good thing we aren't charged for those by the kb. ['There goes our month's MH budget....']) One of my favorite Moishe House leadership development gleanings is courtesy of our housemate Leana: our tradition of "Around the Rooms", wherein we take turns at the end of each meeting to share fun and positive (usually), though sometimes mundane or even troubling, "current events" in our lives. I love what this brings to our relationship: a chance to connect on a personal level, to be friends, to know each other as people the way friends and acquaintances get to know each of us: through a more causal lens of who we are, and less of how we operate. It's a perfect way to unwind after an hour-plus of programming discussions, teasing out house-related matters, and evaluating longer-term goals, and this other-side perspective strengthens us as a team. From a macro-MH perspective: the regional, national, and newly-introduced learning conferences have been absolutely invaluable. Thanks to the very first MH Pesach learning retreat held this past Spring, I acquired tools in a warm and friendly, casually observant, Jewishly enriched, fully experiential learning format I'd never yet experienced in all my Jewish leadership and educational training and involvement...tools that bolstered my understanding of, connection to, and passion for Pesach and our family's seders...tools that instilled in me and polished my confidence, knowledge base, and improvisation skills enough to enable me to lead a seder for my extended family that incorporated family tradition, elements I pocketed from non-family seder experiences, and gems from this retreat that brought new joy and inspiration to our family seder and, without my asking for it, crowned me the new seder leader for our four-generation clan -- a role I accept with honor, and with deep gratitude to Moishe House.

Aaron Gunning - Moishe Kavod House Boston

Transformative Sex Ed in Action: The Ethical Sexuality Retreat The Sex Ed Team at the Moishe Kavod House in Brookline, MA had our first ever (first annual?) team retreat ten days ago. We wanted to spend a whole day talking together about sex, sexuality, and relationships in our lives and in our communities so that we could create a safe space in which to really dive into the trickier, stickier, more complex questions that came up during our workshops this past year. We had 18 people in attendance, including people who had been integrally involved in the team for the past year or more as well as people for whom the retreat was their first team event. Many people wanted to join us but couldn’t make it, so I thought I’d provide here a little taste of the questions we asked each other: *How does your Judaism [religion, spirituality] impact your sexuality? How does your sexuality impact your Judaism [religion, spirituality]? *What happens when I don’t fit into the question you’re asking? *What are the two most salient pieces of your identity? How do these identities make you feel powerful, powerless, or both at different times throughout your life? *Do your sexual ethics change in different relationships? *What personal needs does sex ed meet for you? What personal needs could sex ed meet for you in the future? *How can we broaden and deepen our impact on the world through sex ed? We also had three small groups break out for an hour in the afternoon. Their discussions focused on three different themes: jealousy, asexuality, and body image. By the end of the day, I could feel that the people in the room were very excited and ready to take on leadership of the team in the coming year and get some great work done. We want to do a thorough revision of our six-part curriculum, paying special attention to issues of power, privilege, and identity in framing the activities and informing the discussions, as well as working to integrate Judaism and Jewish learning in a variety of ways. We will also continue to make space for structured and unstructured conversations in our community about relevant topics related to sex, sexuality, and relationships. In addition, we will explore the process of building power so that we can engage in outreach work, take action, and have an impact on the world at large.

This Too Shall Pass - Vancouver

Today is Thursday – I move out on Friday. This is clearly a bitter sweet moment for me. I am leaving Vancouver for a year – my partner and I will be living in Terrace, BC. As far as I can tell, there are zero Jews in Terrace. Look at it on the map. It’s in the middle of nowhere. I am so excited to be living in a place where nature is an everyday occurrence, not just something you do on the weekend. It will truly be an adventure. But what will life be like without a Jewish Community? I have come to rely on my community in Vancouver, much of which revolves around Moishe House. Last Friday we had a spiritual and magical Kabbalat Shabbat Service. To me it felt the like culmination of years of community building. I am involved in a Jewish Community that is meaningful to me. And to be a leader in this community is such a gift. Not only am I involved in a meaningful local Jewish Community – I am part of the Moishe House Community. I didn’t really ‘get’ Moishe House until the annual retreat in Austin, TX. Here I realized how innovative and revolutionary the Moishe House model is. And here I made some great friends. Little did I know that one of these people would help me get through the toughest experience of my life. Recently – Emly and I spent three days rock climbing in Squamish, BC. The first day we climbed together and then the last two days – Rama, Jade, and Baruch (Moishe House community members) – joined us. It was an awesome time. On the second day we climbed from about 10am until 9pm. On Friday – Emly and I got up early to do a climb called Star Chek. I will spare you all the climbing lingo. But basically, it’s about a 300 foot climb that you break into three sections. At the top of each section you create an anchor and attach yourself to that. It was a beautiful day and the climb was picturesque. I was about halfway up the final section – climbing was a bit tricky here – as I pulled on a hold with my right hand, my shoulder dislocated, and I fell. I knew immediately what had happened. Between my screams, I told Emly that I had dislocated my shoulder. She was able to lower me back to the anchor and I clipped in. I was in the worst pain of my life – and was stuck on the wall with a dislocated shoulder. Thank God I brought my cell phone and we were able to call for help. After about 4 hours of waiting – we were rescued by Squamish Search and Rescue. When I got to the ambulance – I saw Rama and Baruch. And it was so good to see them. Emly and I felt so isolated on the wall – and to see my two good friends was amazing. They all then followed me to the hospital – where I ate the best Subway sandwich of my life. To be in the hospital with my good friends, was actually kind of fun. I was released from the hospital and made it back to Vancouver just in time for Shabbos. To be safe and sound with good friends on Shabbat was such an amazing moment. This too shall pass…

MHLA - Jon Shoer

Recently, for the first time, I had the pleasure of spending a Shabbat at a different Moishe House, one that is not even in my country. I am approaching my one year anniversary of living in the Los Angeles Moishe House on September 1, 2012 and I have been thinking about how far my community has come in that time, and where I would like to see it go in the year ahead. Being able to spend a Shabbat at the Moishe House in Vancouver B.C. was a great way for me to take a step back from my house and asses my time... as well as experience one of the most amazing Shabbats in my life! It was significant for me to be there while approaching my 1 year anniversary, but it was also significant as this was one of the last Friday night Shabbat dinners the original residents of this house were having together. I have to give a huge shout out to Moishe House Vancouver; Kiki, Baruch, Jacob, and Rotem - It was a beautiful Kabbalat Shabbat service in their garden with guitars, bongos, and violins followed by a huge pot luck dinner followed by more sing-a-longs and dancing. A truly amazing night. While our cities and communities may vary, our general role as community leaders is universal. I always ask the same question to new comers at our events and that is, "How did you hear about us?" and I always get interesting stories about how a friend, of a camp friend's sister, met her fiance at a Moishe House event somewhere and they have been meaning to come for a long time. I live in a city where there are a lot of Jews... A LOT... and three different Moishe Houses all within 30 minutes of each other. When asking this question in Vancouver, people spoke to me about how there is a big Jewish community, not as large as LA but still pretty big, and Moishe House is the only place for them to gather in such a fun and organic way. Many thought it was the only house of its kind and were shocked when I told them that I live in one too and there are over 40 houses, in 14 different countries. It really put things into perspective for me and reminded me of the responsibility we have as Moishe House residents and as Jewish community leaders. When you get those guests who drove 45 minutes, or an hour, just to be at your event to share time with Jewish peers, that is when we are doing our best work. I found Moishe House by having a resident (who is now my roommate) spill my drink in a bar on accident. I was brand new to the city and Moishe House soon became the center of my world. I now take it on myself to not only provide a venue and events for Jews to gather, but to get the word out there and make people aware of what we do. I love being apart of the Moishe House family and I truly believe that we are a family in a big worldwide Moishe House! Much Love, Jon Shoer MoHoLA

Roman Kobrin- MH Chicago RSJ

I can't believe it! Its been 2 years since I have moved into the Moishe House Chicago - RSJ. People tend to look back and say 'it feels like it was yesterday'. Not the case at all with me. So much has happened in the last 2 years... Between all the events, the drama, the fun, roommate changes, relationships, and overall experiences, it feels like I was an entirely different person then. We actually got around to celebrate our House's 3rd birthday at the beginning of July and I thought a lot about how I found myself here. It was a completely random series of events that led me to meet my roommate, Ross. It's incredible how one quick dialogue with someone could spark such a change in your life. By joining the Russian Moishe House, I have changed my career, met people I would have never met otherwise and have had experiences that I will never forget. I am grateful for the Russian Moishe House for all these changes as well as some lessons that I have learned. Now that we are 3 years in, 2 for me, I believe that by next year, we will need a little change. I think its time to move on to events we haven't done before and bringing in people who have never been. The 4 of us have gotten older and our next big project is to find young blood to begin filling our shoes so that we can pass the torch down. I would love to know that 10 years from now, Chicago RSJ is still throwing events that brings together a Russian Jewish community in Chicago. Its great to know that you have created and passed down a legacy. To the next 10 years!

Danny Kaplan- MH Chicago

Community Last week, Moishe House Chicago hosted a zero-waste Shabbat. Together as a community, we made blessings, broke tree-shaped challah, and caught up on each others’ lives. We also inaugurated our new compost machine, disposing of organic scraps and spinning them around in its tumbler. We chose to do a zero-waste Shabbat because of the value of environmental stewardship in Judaism. In Hebrew, the word for the first man (אדמ) derives from the word for soil, or earth (אדמה). Moishe House Chicago focuses on programming that pursues social justice, but much of our mission resonates strongly with me when I think of the values underlying environmental stewardship. We tend to the earth in order to both cultivate the fruits of our labor and foster a healthy, sustainable environment for our global community and our posterity. This is what MHC seeks to accomplish when we minimize waste, but also when we advocate for more equitable mortgage practices, better public services, and political agency for marginalized groups in Chicago. The Jewish value of צדק (Justice) is a predominant theme in MHC programming. In a way, environmental stewardship ties directly into all of our צדק programs. Even if we are not directly working to improve the earth in the sense of אדמה, every program we do works to create cultivate a healthier, more sustainable life for our community. Sometimes the community we try to foster is global in scope. Other times it extends across the city of Chicago or even just the people in our living room on a given night. While אדמה and םעול are two different concepts, in the end they both mean the same thing: earth. Their interrelatedness demonstrates how social justice and environmental justice are intertwined. I’ve realized that lessons we can learn from a zero-waste Shabbat can be directly applied to addressing the social issues facing our community. At the end of this month, I will be leaving Moishe House after one year as a resident. This last zero-waste Shabbat has given me much to think about as I prepare to leave this space. As we tend to the earth, so too does the earth nurture us and teach us important values. Moishe House residents foster vibrant Jewish communities wherever they live, but we also become more enriched through the people that embody our community. I am incredibly appreciative of the people in Chicago who regularly attend our events, shape our program content, and provide valuable spiritual and intellectual insights. I’ve made valuable friendships with Moishe House community members, and I’ve grown and matured in unexpected ways through knowing these people. It’s been a pleasure living inside of the Moishe House walls, but this experience would have been only a fraction as valuable if we didn’t have the incredible people who make up our community. They are a crucial part of making Moishe House what it truly is. Though I’m leaving the actual “house” of Moishe, I look forward to continuing to attend programs and take part of this special Moishe House community.

Jaycee Greenblatt- MH Dallas

Wow! What a great first month! It has only been one month since Elissa, Karli and I aka the Moho angels began our journey to become leaders in our community and provide meaningful Jewish experiences to Dallas' young adults. Only one month prior to signing our lease, Karli, Elissa and I met for lunch to discuss the Moho program, and instantly felt a connection with each other, and this bond has only grown stronger. Our fist official event was a collaboration with the Intown Chabad, to celebrate Tu B' av - the festival of love. Co-sponsoring this event was a first for Moho Dallas, and provided us with the opportunity for our first collaboration. Although we all come to the table with different experiences, opinions, and perspectives, when like minds with similar goals come together, great things can happen. With over 250 attendees at the the event, it was the perfect collaboration and way to kickoff and introduce ourself to the community. Our first official home event also exceeded our expectations. We anticipated a showing of 20 for our welcome brunch, yet ended up welcoming over 40 young Jewish adults into our new home. The energy in Dallas is amazing!! We are all so impressed by the community, and excited to plan unique, fun, and engaging activities. From our late night planning sessions, to creating the first Moho mailer, to meetings with Jewish community agencies and leaders who are eager to work with us, we all feel very honored to be chosen for the role of Moho resident, and the fun has only just begun for the three of us!