The best place to stay up to date on all events and programming at JSS! This calendar is always up to date and includes all the information you need to get involved.
Jul
21
Sun
Jul 21 @ 4:30 pm – 5:45 pm
Join us for a special presentation and discussion with Rabbi Julia Watts Belser, author of Loving Our Own Bones: Disability Wisdom and the Spiritual Subversiveness of Knowing Ourselves Whole. She offers powerful insights into disability, ableism, and Jewish texts. This program is sponsored by Congregation Shaarei Shamayim and Jewish Social Services and will be led by Shaarei Shamayim’s havurah, Nechamah: Living With Chronic Illness.
Julia Watts Belser is a rabbi, scholar, and spiritual teacher who works at the intersections of disability studies, queer feminist Jewish ethics, and environmental justice. She is a professor of Jewish Studies at Georgetown University, Senior Research Fellow at the Berkley Center for Religion, Peace, and World Affairs, and core faculty in Georgetown’s Disability Studies Program. A longtime advocate for disability and gender justice, she currently directs an initiative on Disability and Climate Change. Her latest book, Loving Our Own Bones: Disability Wisdom and the Spiritual Subversiveness of Knowing Ourselves Whole (Beacon Press, 2023), won a National Jewish Book Award. She’s a passionate wheelchair hiker, an avid gardener, and a lover of wild places.
To join this session, you must register with this Zoom link. Feel free to share this link with friends and members of your community.
Please note: These times are in the Central time zone.
Aug
2
Fri
Please join your neighbors, volunteers and Jewish Social Services staff for candle lighting, challah, wine, songs and discussion to usher in Shabbat, along with the opportunity to recite Kaddish. We look forward to spending this special time together with you! We celebrate Shabbat at Capitol Lakes on the first Friday of each month, led by JSS Rabbi Renee Bauer, with assistance from JSS Staff and UW-Hillel student volunteers.
No tickets or registration required – if you have questions on the event, please contact Paul Borowsky at 608-442-4083.
Aug
8
Thu
Join JSS social workers Maya Garbuz and Kate Shenker for our monthly Memory Cafe! A meeting place for designed for people experiencing memory issues, dementia, or Alzheimer’s disease and their caregivers. Socialize, find support and build community without the stigma associate with dementia. Each month, we have a different presenter come in to lead activities with the group, plus snacks and a short stretching/movement activity. All are welcome at this free event.
Aug
15
Thu
Aug 15 @ 10:30 am – 1:30 pm
The Summer Levy Series has become a welcoming of summer, and an occasion to socialize, share a wonderful meal, and feed our minds with a variety of inspiring presentations and discussions. Please join us. The program and menu for this event is below – call 608-442-4081 to register at a cost of $25 per person.
Lauren Strauss – “American Jews and the Impulse Toward Social Justice”
When and why did America’s Jewish community begin to organize around issues of social and civic justice? During the 20th century, the community began to engage with many social issues of the day – from immigration, labor, free speech, and women’s rights to civil rights and racial justice. This talk analyzes Jewish American activism and organizational skills, which stayed constant even in a changing world.
Dr. Lauren Strauss teaches Jewish history and Israel studies at the American University in Washington, D.C., where she also serves as Director of Undergraduate Studies for the Jewish Studies Program. Dr. Strauss lectures widely and is a commentator at Jewish cultural events and in the press. She is active in “shared society” groups and academic organizations in the U.S. and Israel, and she has curated or served as historian for several museum exhibits. Her published articles focus on Jews and the arts, gender, and political activism.
Lunch: Nakoma salad, dinner rolls & mini muffins, Baked Cod with Toasted Spinach-Lemon Butter Sauce or Vegetable Phyllo topped with marinara and crème fraiche, roasted red potatoes, French beans and baby carrots. Dessert: Turtle sundae
Aug
16
Fri
A Friday erev Shabbat service led by Rabbi Renee Bauer, with assistance from additional JSS staff. Join us as we light candles, eat Challah, say Kiddush, and sing songs around the table, every third Friday of the month.
Aug
22
Thu
Join JSS social workers Maya Garbuz and Kate Shenker for our monthly Memory Cafe! A meeting place for designed for people experiencing memory issues, dementia, or Alzheimer’s disease and their caregivers. Socialize, find support and build community without the stigma associate with dementia. Each month, we have a different presenter come in to lead activities with the group, plus snacks and a short stretching/movement activity. All are welcome at this free event.
Aug
25
Sun
Join us this Sunday at 1pm for our 2024 First Responder’s Picnic!
Each year we organize this event in partnership with the Madison Police Department, along with Christ Presbyterian Church, who have generously allowed us to use their space. It is an opportunity to gather together to learn about emergency services and how they support our community. As always, there will be food, games, and fun activities, as well as a backpack giveaway. This event is free and open to everyone. Christ Presbyterian Church is located at 944 E Gorham St in Madison.
Aug
26
Mon
An annual tradition! We host this event each year to bring together the JSS community of seniors and other friends and family. There will be plenty of food at the beautiful Goodman Jewish Community Campus in Verona. The event is rain or shine.
$10 per person for lunch: Kosher hot dogs, hamburgers and veggie burgers, potato salad, coleslaw, fruit and dessert. All are welcome at this event, please RSVP to Paul Borowsky at paul@jssmadison.org.
Sep
6
Fri
Please join your neighbors, volunteers and Jewish Social Services staff for candle lighting, challah, wine, songs and discussion to usher in Shabbat, along with the opportunity to recite Kaddish. We look forward to spending this special time together with you! We celebrate Shabbat at Capitol Lakes on the first Friday of each month, led by JSS Rabbi Renee Bauer, with assistance from JSS Staff and UW-Hillel student volunteers.
No tickets or registration required – if you have questions on the event, please contact Paul Borowsky at 608-442-4083.
Sep
16
Mon
Join us for our weekly Lechayim series! Each event begins with yoga from a chair at 11am, followed by a lunch and a wide variety of programming that is different each week. The schedule for this week can be found below:
11:00 am -11:30 am: Yoga from a chair
11:30 am -12:15 pm: Roasted chicken w/ lemon-rosemary, (Veg option: seared tofu w/ lemon-rosemary risotto), turmeric rice, tzimmes, challah rolls, fruit salad & dessert
12:30 pm – 1:30 pm: Welcome Back
11:30 am -12:15 pm: Roasted chicken w/ lemon-rosemary, (Veg option: seared tofu w/ lemon-rosemary risotto), turmeric rice, tzimmes, challah rolls, fruit salad & dessert
12:30 pm – 1:30 pm: Welcome Back
If you would like a meal, contact Jewish Social Services at (608) 442-4083 or email: paul@jssmadison.org by Wednesday preceding the meal. If you are 60 years or older, a minimum donation of $4.50 is suggested, but please only pay what is comfortable for you. The cost of the meal is $17.20 for those younger than 60 years old.