Please join us this Friday night, December 5, 2008, at 8:00 p.m., for Shabbat services at Congregation B’nai Israel. Members of the Vallejo Hadassah chapter will be participating in this Sabbath service and will be speaking about what Hadassah means to us.
If you would like more information, please feel free to contact us at: vallejohadassah@gmail.com. Hope to see you there!
Categories: Events
Tagged: Shabbat services
The Asilomar Educational Kallah will be taking place at Asilomar (Monterey) from February 27 – March 1, 2009. Topics that will be discussed include:
There will also be music and plenty of time for socializing. The registration fee covers two nights of lodging, Kosher food, tips for the wait staff, registration fee and materials. People from our chapter who have gone in the past have found it very inspirational and fun. The price goes up after December 30, so if you are interested in going, sign up before then. You may download the registration brochure off of the website for the Central Coast Pacific Region.
Categories: conferences
Tagged: Central Pacific Coast Region Hadassah
On Tuesday, November 18, 2008, Marla Gilson, Hadassah’s lobbyist came to Vallejo and spoke to a group of about 25 people. She discussed the recent elections and what we may see in the future under President Obama’s administration. I am going to mention some of the highlights of her talk.
She began by stating that the 2008 election was a historic election for a couple of reasons. First, she noted that this was an election in which an incumbent was not running. We have not had that kind of election since 1952. Another similarity between 2008 and 1952 was the way technology changed the election. In 1952 television changed the way in which we saw the candidates. In 2008, it was the use of the Internet in the campaign and specifically Obama’s ability to raise funds using the Internet. (Maybe our chapter should try this!) This election was also historic because we have not had a senator win the presidency since 1962. Finally, this election was historic because of the large percentage of people voting. In this election 62% of eligible voters voted. We have not had that kind of turnout since 1962.
Ms. Gilson believed that Hadassah will be helpful to the new President on the important issue of health care because of Hadassah’s experience in health care both in Israel and in the United States. She senses that there is an interest in Israel’s health care system and Hadassah may be involved in advising the President’s staff on this issue.
Also on the issue of health, Ms. Gilson stated that the new President will likely sign an executive order permitting embryonic stem cell research.
Although we live in areas in which our Congressional representatives are supportive on the issues of concern to Hadassah, Ms. Gilson encouraged all of us to become involved in getting to know our Congressional representatives and their staff. Many of the representatives have hired new personnel and it is important to educate them as well. We cannot assume support and we should make our Congressional representatives aware of our opinions.
Categories: Events
Tagged: Hadassah's lobbyist
