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To welcome interfaith couples, US Conservative synagogue hires cantor who can wed them

Jewish Journal of Greater Boston via JTA — Sarah Freudenberger has spent a lot of time being told “no.”
A year and a half out of college, the “no” came from cantorial schools when she applied for ordination. Months later, when she got engaged, it came from the three rabbis she had worked with at a Reform synagogue in Florida, when she asked if they would officiate her wedding.
Both refusals were because – like 42% of married American Jews, according to a 2020 Pew study – Freudenberger’s spouse i...

Growing "Food and Futures": Vertical Harvest Serves Its Community in More Ways Than One

“The way we farm and distribute food is a social justice issue, a public health issue, and an economic resiliency issue,” Nona Yehia said.

Yehia is the co-founder and chief executive officer of Vertical Harvest, a company that aims to be an all-in-one solution to these overlapping issues. Not only does the Wyoming-based company provide local, fresh, nutrient-dense produce year-round, but it also provides meaningful work for people with developmental disabilities, who are often confined to low-w
The Jerusalem Post | JPost.com •

To welcome interfaith couples, Conservative synagogue hires cantor who can wed them

(Jewish Journal of Greater Boston via JTA) — Sarah Freudenberger has spent a lot of time being told “no.”

A year and a half out of college, the “no” came from cantorial schools when she applied for ordination. Months later, when she got engaged, it came from the three rabbis she had worked with at a Reform synagogue in Florida, when she asked if they would officiate her wedding.

Both refusals were because – like 42% of married American Jews, according to a 2020 Pew study – Freudenberger’s spou...
The Forward •

To welcome interfaith couples, this Conservative synagogue hired a cantor to marry them

(Jewish Journal of Greater Boston via JTA) — Sarah Freudenberger has spent a lot of time being told “no.”

A year and a half out of college, the “no” came from cantorial schools when she applied for ordination. Months later, when she got engaged, it came from the three rabbis she had worked with at a Reform synagogue in Florida, when she asked if they would officiate her wedding.

Both refusals were because – like 42% of married American Jews, according to a 2020 Pew study – Freudenberger’s spou...
Jewish Telegraphic Agency •

To welcome interfaith couples, this Conservative synagogue hired a cantor who's allowed to wed them - Jewish Telegraphic Agency

(Jewish Journal of Greater Boston via JTA) — Sarah Freudenberger has spent a lot of time being told “no.”
A year and a half out of college, the “no” came from cantorial schools when she applied for ordination. Months later, when she got engaged, it came from the three rabbis she had worked with at a Reform synagogue in Florida, when she asked if they would officiate her wedding.
Both refusals were because – like 42% of married American Jews, according to a 2020 Pew study – Freudenberger’s spouse...
Jewish Telegraphic Agency •

To welcome interfaith couples, this Conservative synagogue hired a cantor who's allowed to wed them

(Jewish Journal of Greater Boston via JTA) — Sarah Freudenberger has spent a lot of time being told “no.”

A year and a half out of college, the “no” came from cantorial schools when she applied for ordination. Months later, when she got engaged, it came from the three rabbis she had worked with at a Reform synagogue in Florida, when she asked if they would officiate her wedding.

Both refusals were because – like 42% of married American Jews, according to a 2020 Pew study – Freudenberger’s spou
Litchfield Magazine •

Falls Village Gem

Adamah Farm produces over 50,000 pounds of food each year, while also hosting bi-annual cohorts to learn about sustainable agriculture and Jewish ecology

Tucked in a quiet corner of Falls Village is Adamah Farm—ten acres of diversified veggie fields, growing chestnut groves, and lush green pastures. Adamah is a part of the Isabella Freedman Jewish Retreat Center, which hosts Jewish events for people and organizations around the country. Over the course of the year, the farm produces over 50,000
Jewish Journal •

Seeking 'shalom bayit' during the 'Omer'

Rabbi Michael Schwartz of Marblehead’s Temple Sinai is sending out a daily email to help people count the Omer this year. Schwartz addresses a different theme each week, and crafts his emails with the goal of encouraging Jewish unity and democracy for the State of Israel. “I’m hoping that the spirit of this collective focus on what unites us will carry over to the leaders of Israel and to the people,” he said.

The list is currently going out to around 200 people, including members of his curren
Litchfield Magazine •

Fifty Gallons of Cider!

There was a time in Litchfield when it was considered a poor decision to buy a home that did not come with its very own orchard. A lofty goal, in today’s economy, but back in colonial times, Litchfielders and beyond—most of New England, in fact—depended on the production of fruit trees to live. Curiously, the culprit driving the widespread production of fruit and apples was the lack of safe water in New England at the time; water sources were often contaminated and unsafe to drink, so a reliable

The Same Farm in Production for Almost 300 Years? – Millbrook Magazine

Farming has never been the most financially sustainable career path, and farmland across the country is increasingly being forfeited by farmers in search of an easier life. Not so with Heermance Farm in Tivoli, which was first established way back in 1730, and has remained a fully operating farm since then. The property gets its name from the Heermance family, who built the property’s most historically notable feature in 1745: the 18th century Dutch stone farmhouse, which, in 1980, was officiall
Litchfield Magazine •

Connecticut Farm Energy Workshop Comes to Torrington

On February 9 in Torrington, Connecticut Resource Conservation and Development (CT RC&D) hosted one of three speaker sessions for the CT Farm Energy Program on farm energy and smart agriculture. The CT Farm Energy Workshop is part of a larger Climate Smart Ag event, made possible by the collective efforts of the Northwest Conservation District (NWCD), the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service, and Berkshire Agriculture Ventures. “Our hope is that the workshop allowed more farms to learn ab
Litchfield Magazine •

Ripley Waterfowl Conservancy Winter Tours

The Ripley Waterfowl Conservancy in Litchfield is offering guided tours all throughout winter. This is the perfect activity for those looking for ways to spend some more relaxed time outdoors in the next few chilly months. Now through May 5 (when the Conservancy opens its doors for the official season), experienced aviculturists will offer private guided tours of their diverse collection of waterfowl. All throughout the year, these aviculturists are helping to breed, research, and protect these
Litchfield Magazine •

Esther Thompson’s Memories

Esther H. Thompson’s (1851-1929) memories offer a key personal touch to recorded Litchfield history in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Thompson’s familial connection to the land dates back generations before her lifetime, when her great-grandparents began farming in Bethlehem. In the early 1800s, Thompson’s father moved to Litchfield, and built the house in which his daughter would spend her entire life. Thompson would go on to reflect her rich connection to Litchfield in her writing, do
Litchfield Magazine •

Adelaide Deming’s Visual Record of Litchfield

Adelaide Deming’s Impressionist Paintings Made Her Nationally Known for Her Depictions of Litchfield

Today, Litchfield’s breathtaking natural surroundings attract artists of all sorts. The same was true back in 1864, when Adelaide Deming (1864-1956) was born to William Deming and Mary Benton Deming, and went on to become a nationally recognized artist. Deming is known for her stunning oil landscapes, ensconcing the natural beauty of Litchfield on canvas for generations to come. Even before her

Rewriting the Nation: Dorothy Thompson on Women, Anti-Fascism and American Journalism in the 1930s

Throughout her life, Dorothy Thompson asserted that journalists, and women journalists in particular, had a responsibility to guide Americans towards the moral right. She embodied this responsibility herself, passionately so, and devoted her career in the 30s towards defending the U.S. from the threat of fascism, which she viewed as encroaching upon the world. This thesis explores how Thompson’s journalism contributed to a shifting journalistic paradigm and how she characterized journalists as moral guides in the U.S.; how Thompson’s feminist expressions, both lived and written characterized women journalists in the U.S.; how Thompson’s main through-line of anti-fascism and anti-isolationism shaped her characterization of Americans as morally obligated to oppose isolation; and how her reporting on Kristallnacht, and subsequent political activism, presented as a cohesive example of the culmination of her life's work, ideas and beliefs in the 1930s.

Copyright © 2022 by Gavi Klien
Boston Magazine •

Makeup Artist Joanna Petit-Frere Makes Every Bride Look Beautiful

Even before graduating from MassArt with a degree in photography, Joanna Petit-Frere was well on her way to becoming a fixture on the Boston makeup scene. She began freelancing in college and, two years in, decided to open Visage 1 Studios in 2003, with the goal of cultivating a place where everyone can look beautiful. Though she gave up the studio space during the pandemic, her work is still going strong. “I’m kind of the final touch,” says Petit-Frere, who specializes in makeup for all ethnici
Boston Magazine •

Where to Find Concerts under $30 around Boston

Where to Find Concerts under $30 around Boston

It’s no secret Boston can be a pretty expensive city to live in. But don’t despair: there are still ways to have fun around here that don’t break the bank. That’s where this guide to seeing concerts in Boston for less than $30 comes in handy. Gone are the days of scrounging around for that rare ticket under $100 dollars AND within eyesight of the performer. And despite the challenges of the last couple of years, Boston still offers plenty of smalle

When Sustainability Isn't Sustained: The Challenge of Environmental Activism in College

The Challenge of Environmental Activism in College

In the fall of 2014, Jay Feinstein was a Brandeis University sophomore taking a class called “Greening the Ivory Tower.” Professor Laura Goldin had been teaching the course for a decade and a half, having designed it to inspire students to create what she called an “environmental ethic.” Each semester, her students conceived and implemented an array of sustainability projects to solve environmental problems they saw on campus.

The class was re

Brandeis celebrates 10th annual Kindness Day

The Shapiro Campus Center (SCC) was decked out in pink and adorned with balloons spelling out the words “Be Kind” for Brandeis’ 10th annual Kindness Day on Thursday, where students, faculty and staff engage in different events that celebrate being kind to one another.

For Assistant Dean in the Dean of Students Office Stephanie Grimes, Kindness Day is a major pillar of the Brandeis community.

“If we aren’t being generally kind to each other,” she says, “how can we then have an expectation that

Global Bazaar displays community’s cultures

The more you know about someone else’s culture, the better it is for you to understand, communicate and appreciate them, according to Imani McFarlane, founder of House of Tafari Collections on Thursday evening at the Global Bazaar event hosted in the Shapiro Campus Center (SCC) atrium.

Many cultures, nationalities and traditions that make up the Brandeis community were represented at the event. Over a dozen tables filled the ground floor of the SCC, hosting signs, games, food and more from acad

Jewish Women Passing During the Holocaust

Editor’s note: The HBI Research Award program awards grants annually to support research or artistic projects in Jewish women’s and gender studies across a range of disciplines. In 2021, HBI gave out 16 awards totaling $62,000. This is one in an occasional series on past research award recipients and their ongoing work.

Most known stories about Jews hiding during the Holocaust focus on the physical act of hiding. Hana Green, 2019 Hadassah-Brandeis Institute Research Award recipient, finds the n
Her Campus | HerCampus.com is the #1 global community for college women, written entirely by the nation’s top college journalists from 380+ campus chapters around the world. •

Deleting Snapchat and Instagram: The Uncomfortable Comfort of Social Media | Her Campus

Whether you favor Instagram, Snapchat, Twitter, Facebook or any of the other social media platforms that exist on phones across the world, it’s hard to avoid having an account on at least one, if not more. I got Snapchat and Instagram around the same time in my freshman year of high school, and I got them hesitantly- excited, but a little wary of something in which I and everyone on it had so little guidelines and so much power in terms of our own and others images. I started off slow, rarely po
Her Campus | HerCampus.com is the #1 global community for college women, written entirely by the nation’s top college journalists from 380+ campus chapters around the world. •

“Save Myself,” the Culture of Confidence, Mental Health and Saving Others | Her Campus

“I gave all my oxygen to people that could breathe,” sings Ed Sheeran in the final song, “Save Myself” on his 2017 album “Divide.” I love this song. Sheeran sings about something that I have heard repeated countless times since then, in first aid classes, in advice to friends, to myself, in movies, TV shows, music– the message is prevalent in today’s culture: do not put yourself in a situation where your care for someone else will hurt yourself.

In 2018, it is safe to assume that you should be
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