From Rabbi George 

Are you looking for a meaningful response this election year to the deluge of calamity across the United States? Living in the bubble of Sonoma County, it is hard to know how to act to save our democracy and the progressive values so many of us share.

With the help of the Social Action Committee, Congregation Shomrei Torah members can do more than mark our ballots and yearn for a way to make a difference beyond our county and state. The SAC will connect us to "Postcarding for Democracy", a non-partisan nationwide campaign to bolster democracy in areas rife with voter suppression. Completing postcards is easy to learn, is stress-free, can be done in the comfort of home, and has proven to increase registration and voting in these targeted areas.

To kick off this five-month project, Shomrei Torah has committed funds to purchase
postcard packets that are available to CST members at no charge. Look for the basket in Shalom Hall that includes packets and instructions. 

I encourage you to get involved. As Jews, we are especially aware of the possibility of redemption, even from the most dire situations. Every time we sing Mi Chamocha (“Who is like You?”) during services, we recall the moment in our mythic past when we struggled to escape Egypt. You recall the scene: With the Red Sea ahead of us and Pharaoh's army behind us, we were stuck in a dangerous and frightening place. And then, as Torah tells the story, Divine intervention parted the waters, and we walked to safety “in the midst of the sea on dry land.”

But according to Jewish legend, God did not immediately step in and part the sea. It took the action of an activist named Nachson, who walked into the water, one step at a time, until it came up to his neck and he was about to drown. Only following Nachshon’s courageous action did God split the sea. The story of Nachson illustrates the idea that we are “the hands and feet of God.”

Stuck now in a dangerous and frightening place, we can’t wait to be saved. We must take action ourselves. “Postcarding for Democracy” is one way to start.

January

Our new chairperson, Judy Kay, came aboard.

March

“They Have Arrived. Now What?” We initiated a program in conjunction with Passover to encourage donations to immigrant organizations.

April

Members helped plan the Sonoma County Yom Hashoah Commemoration

We presented an Earth Day Climate Forum via Zoom.

May               

Several committee members worked on social justice legislation with The Religious Action Center of California and also met individually with elected officials, including state Sen. Mike Maguire, state Assemblymember Cecelia Aguiar-Curry and state Sen. Bill Dodd. We advocated for the AB 731 criminal justice reform bill, among other issues.

June               

We presented the “Life After Incarceration in the Age of Covid” Zoom panel.

August           

Several committee members met with Assemblyman Marc Levine and Sen. Bill Dodd advocating for the “Time Done” criminal justice bill.

 We encouraged the congregation to contact our representatives in Washington to protect voting rights.

October         

We organized congregants to march under the Shomrei Torah banner in the Women’s Reproductive Rights Rally Santa Rosa.

We held a Zoom “Conversation with Senator Mike McGuire.”

December      

We helped with the Toy Drive of the North Bay Organizing Project and Christ United Methodist Church.

We organized our annual Winter Clothing Drive for Elisha’s Pantry

We presented “The Challenge of Mass Incarceration,” a Zoom forum with the Equal Justice Initiative.