Metro Briefs June 4

Metro Briefs June 4

The Jewish Chronicle’s Organization Directory will be running June 25. Revisions and new listings should be sent to orgsdirectory@thejewishchronicle.net by noon on June 17.

The Hebrew Free Loan Association is sponsoring Financial Literacy 101 for high school students and their parents on Thursday, June 4 at 7 p.m. at the Anathan House, 1620 Murray Ave. The program is geared toward high school students who want to learn how to better manage their own money and those students preparing to head to college. Learn from experts from Dollar Bank and Commonwealth Bank for free. RSVPs are requested but not required to info@hflapgh.org or 412-422-8868.

The Art of Food, an event presented by the Squirrel Hill Center for Rehabilitation and Healing, will be held on Thursday, June 4 from 5:30 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. at 2025 Wightman St. All proceeds from the event will benefit the Squirrel Hill Community Food Pantry, and attendees are encouraged to bring a nonperishable food item to donate as well.

The evening’s highlight will be a group exhibition of The Pittsburgh 10, which features new works by artists Zivi Aviraz, Lila Hirsch-Brody, Joel Kranich, Lilli Nieland, Jane Ogren, Phiris (Kathy) Sickels, David Sparks, Susan Sparks, Dirk Vandenberg and Francine Vandenberg. The Pittsburgh 10 takes its name from the Philadelphia Ten, a group of women artists from the Philadelphia area who exhibited together between 1927 and 1945.

The artists will celebrate their artistic diversity and friendship in this benefit pop-up exhibition, and attendees will get the opportunity to talk with the artists about their work. The evening will also feature food and wine pairings, additional art on exhibit and available for sale, live entertainment and raffle prizes. 

Tickets to The Art of Food are $25 per person.

Contact Coty Alan at 412-421-8443 for more information. Tickets will be available at the door. Visit sqfoodpantry.org or call 412-421-2708 for more information about the Pantry.

Cantor Nahman Rachman will be the guest during New Light Congregation’s services on Friday, June 5 at 7:30 p.m. Nachman, who attended an African yeshiva, is in the United States briefly for a program involving young Jewish leaders from across the world. He has recently been working with Somali refugees in Uganda and works as program manager for Little Light Children’s Center in Kampala. Rachman is visiting from a small village of Abayudaya Jews in Uganda. Services are open to the community.

Judaism: A Summer Sampler is a short course that will be presented by the Reform rabbis of the Greater Pittsburgh area for anyone thinking of conversion to Judaism or seeking to increase knowledge of Jewish subjects. All classes will be held in the back room at Panera, 3401 Blvd. of the Allies, on Thursdays from 7 p.m. to 8:15 p.m. There is no charge.  

Dates, topics and teachers are: June 11, Torah with Rabbi Paul Tuchman; July 16, Shabbat with Rabbi Sharyn Henry; and Aug. 6, High Holy Days with Rabbi Stephanie Wolfe.  The regular Reform Judaism conversion classes will resume in the fall; details will be announced. Contact Rabbi Barbara Symons at rabbi@templedavid.org for more information.

Hillel Academy of Pittsburgh will hold its 68th annual dinner on Sunday, June 14 at 6 p.m. at the Marriott City Center. Female students and alumni will be honored, and there will be a tribute to Fayth Aronson Berkowitz. The Chantze and Donald Butler Teachers Recognition Award will be presented to Yikara Levari, and Fred Davis will be honored for his 15 years of service to the Hillel Academy family.

Tickets for the dinner are $180 per person. Contact hillelhappenings@hillelpgh.org for more information.

The Task Force on Jewish Residential Alternatives for Adults with Disabilities will begin a webinar series on Wednesday, June 17 at 1 p.m. with Emerging Adulthood: Successful Transitioning from School to the Adult Community.

Deborah Fisher, strategic change consultant at Jewish Foundation for Group Homes, will present this webinar focused on the elements of a program that promotes individually determined transitions of young adults with disabilities from the safety and familiarity of their schools to the adult community. The Jewish Foundation for Group Homes of Rockville, Md., created the Meaningful Opportunities for Successful Transitions (MOSTTM) program in order to address the growing need for adults who either do not fit into existing programs or who prefer to take time to focus on a particular skill or skills that would open up more opportunities for future jobs, school or living and social arrangements. The webinar will address typical developing young adults’ transitions, planning for successful transitions, the MOSTTM program and outcomes.

The series is offered free of charge to all AJFCA network professionals and available to clients of AJFCA members and professionals and clients at nonmember organizations for a fee. Registration for the entire series is $30, and individual sessions are $10. For more information and to register, visit AJFCA.

Chabad of Western Pennsylvania and its centers invite the community to an evening of inspiration, “Seizing Life’s Moments,” with Rabbi Moshe Bryski, executive director and spiritual leader of Chabad of the Conejo in Aoura Hills, Calif., on Monday, June 22 at 7 p.m. at the Jewish Community Center, Katz Auditorium. There is no charge to attend, but RSVPs are requested at chabadwpa.com/rsvp or 412-697-7479.

Blind & Vision Rehabilitation Services of Pittsburgh is in need of teenage volunteers for its summer youth program, from July 6 to Aug. 7. The program helps young adults who are blind or vision impaired prepare for college or a career. Teenage volunteers accompany students to such places as Kennywood, Pirate baseball games and Camp Kon-O-Kwee, or just spend time with them in the evening. Volunteer schedules are flexible, and training is provided.

Contact Nancy Schepis, volunteer coordinator, at 412-368-4400, ext. 3430 or nschepis@pghvis.org for more information.

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