HUC-JIR in the Berkshires

“I Created the World”: Humans and the Environment in the Bible and Contemporary Art

2:00 p.m. – 4:00 pm.

On Tisha B’Av afternoon, come reflect on the environment and our place in it by studying the book of Job with HUC-JIR Bible professor Adriane Leveen, Ph.D., and touring the Humane Ecologies exhibit at The Clark Art Institute with curator Robert Wiesenberger, Ph.D. Following the program, guests are invited to enjoy self-guided hikes and tours on the grounds of The Clark. Advance registration encouraged.

Presenters:

Adriane Leveen, Ph.D., is senior lecturer in Hebrew Bible at HUC-JIR, having previously taught at Stanford University. She is also the co-founder of Jewish Climate Action Network NYC, Bronx Jews for Climate Change, and facilitates JTREE USA.

Robert Wiesenberger, Ph.D. is Curator of Contemporary Projects at The Clark Art Institute and lecturer in the Williams Graduate Program in the History of Art. His interests span modern and contemporary art, design, and architecture. From 2013–18, he was critic at the Yale School of Art, and from 2014–16, he was Stefan Engelhorn Curatorial Fellow at the Harvard Art Museums. He holds a B.A. in history and German from the University of Chicago and a Ph.D. in art history from Columbia University.

Location:

The Clark Art Institute, event begins in the Auditorium of the Manton Research Center
227 South Street, Williamstown, MA 01267

Loaves of Torah: A Challah Shaping Workshop

9:30 a.m. – 11:30 a.m.

Be inspired in this 2-hour hands-on workshop by Rabbi Vanessa Harper ‘22, Instagram innovator (@lechlechallah) and author of Loaves of Torah (CCAR Press, 2023). Rabbi Harper will show how challah dough can be shaped to interpret the week’s Torah portion and, in conversation with HUC-JIR Bible professor, Daniel Fisher-Livne, Ph.D., she will share what drives her to create such meaningful and delicious culinary creations. Advance registration encouraged.

Presenters:

Rabbi Vanessa Harper (“Lech L’Chala”), serves as Senior Director of Adult Learning at Temple Beth Elohim in Wellesley, MA and Reform-Rabbi-in-Residence at Gann Academy.  Ordained by HUC-JIR NY in 2021, she has been recognized as a Wexner Graduate Fellow/Davidson Scholar, a Be Wise Jewish Entrepreneurial Fellow, a UJA-Federation Graduate Scholar, and as one of the New York Jewish Week’s “36 Under 36.”  Vanessa is the creator behind @lechlechallah, an Instagram-based education project using challah as an artistic medium for interpreting and teaching Torah, which is soon to be published by the CCAR Press as Loaves of Torah: Exploring the Jewish Year Through Challah. 

Daniel Fisher-Livne, Ph.D. is Creative Director of HUC-JIR in the Berkshires. He is Assistant Professor of Bible at the College-Institute and Research Affiliate at the National Humanities Alliance. He is currently writing a cultural biography of the Ark of the Covenant, exploring relationships among objects, places, and collective memory in the Hebrew Bible and ancient Jewish literature through 200 CE.

Location:

Hevreh of Southern Berkshire
270 State Road, Great Barrington, MA 01230

Kabbalat Shabbat Worship Service

6:00 p.m. – 7:30 p.m

Join us for an uplifting and musical Friday night service with HUC-JIR alum Rabbi Neil Hirsch ‘10 and Rabbi Jodie Gordon ‘14, featuring HUC-JIR cantorial faculty, students, and alumni under the leadership of Cantor Jill Abramson, Director of the Debbie Friedman School of Sacred Music.

Presenters:

Neil P.G. Hirsch ‘10 serves as Rabbi at Hevreh of Southern Berkshire, in Great Barrington, Massachusetts, a role he has held since 2015. He earned his B.A. at Tufts University. He was ordained by HUC-JIR in 2010, and is currently a candidate for a Doctorate of Hebrew Literature from the College-Institute, researching the intersection between accountability and t’shuvah. His articles on that subject have appeared in the CCAR Journal: the Reform Jewish Quarterly. Neil holds leadership roles in the Berkshires and in the Reform Movement, having served on local non-profit boards and founded BASIC, a network of faith-based and human services organizations that ensures access to resources for the local immigrant community. He is currently the co-chair of the Religious Action Center of Massachusetts. He was a member of the Israel Policy Forum’s Bronfman Conveners Cohort in 2021. He is married to Rabbi Liz P.G. Hirsch, and they live in Lenox, Massachusetts with their two children.

Rabbi Jodie Gordon ’14 gained invaluable community experience building, programming and teaching in a variety of Jewish communal institutions, including Hillel at the University of Wisconsin and The JCC in Manhattan, and Ma’yan: Listen for a Change. Rabbi Gordon was ordained at HUC-JIR in 2014. In recognition of her academic excellence and leadership potential, Rabbi Gordon was awarded the Bonnie and Daniel Tisch Fellowship for Rabbinic Leadership during her time at HUC-JIR. Rabbi Gordon is passionate her work, helping individuals and families find meaningful ways to live Jewishly on Jewish time. She also serves locally on the board of the Berkshire Baby Box, an organization providing education and resources to new parents.

Rabbi Gordon is married to Joshua Bloom, and they are thrilled to live in the Berkshires with their daughters Lola and Goldie.

Location:

Hevreh of Southern Berkshire
270 State Road, Great Barrington, MA 01230

Shabbat Dinner

7:30 p.m.

Join us for a delicious and engaging community Shabbat dinner. The evening will include a discussion about Jewish leadership in a changing Jewish landscape, led by HUC-JIR academic leaders: Andrew Rehfeld, Ph.D. (President), Rabbi Andrea Weiss, Ph.D. (Provost), Rabbi Shirley Idelson Ph.D. (Director of the Zelikow School of Jewish Nonprofit Management), and Cantor Jill Abramson (Director of the Debbie Friedman School of Sacred Music). Advance registration encouraged.

Cost: $36 per person

Presenters:

Andrew Rehfeld, Ph.D., is the 10th President of Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion. Appointed in April of 2019, Rehfeld’s career has bridged the academic and Jewish professional worlds as a tenured faculty member in Political Science at Washington University (2001-2019) and as President and CEO of the Jewish Federation of St. Louis (2012-2019). The author of The Concept of Constituency (Cambridge University Press, 2005), his academic research focuses on the intersection of democracy, human rights, justice and institutional design. Other areas of published research include the history of political thought, and the philosophy of the social sciences. Rehfeld earned a Ph.D. in Political Science (2000) and a Master of Public Policy (1994) from the University of Chicago, and a B.A., Phi Beta Kappa, in the Philosophy Honors Program at the University of Rochester (1989). He held the Fulbright Visiting Research Chair in the Study and Practice of Federalism, McGill University, and had visiting faculty appointments at the Harris School of Public Policy Studies at the University of Chicago, and Libera Universita Internazionale Degli Studi Sociali (LUISS Guido Carli), Rome.

Rabbi Andrea L. Weiss, Ph.D., is Jack, Joseph and Morton Mandel Provost and Associate Professor of Bible at the Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion. She is the founder of the American Values, Religious Voices campaign, co-editor of American Values, Religious Voices: 100 Days, 100 Letters (University of Cincinnati Press, 2019) and the recently published second volume, American Values, Religious Voices: Letters of Hope from People of Faith. She was associate editor of The Torah: A Women’s Commentary (CCAR Press, 2008), which won the Jewish Book Council’s 2009 Everett Family Foundation Jewish Book of the Year Award. Her other writings include Figurative Language in Biblical Prose Narrative: Metaphor in the Book of Samuel (Brill, 2006) and articles on metaphor, biblical poetry, and biblical conceptions of God.

Rabbi Shirley Idelson, Ph.D. R. ‘91, is the new Director of HUC-JIR’s Zelikow School of Jewish Nonprofit Management (Zschool). Dean of the New York campus from 2007–2016, she returns to HUC-JIR after serving as Leon A. Jick Director of the Hornstein Jewish Professional Leadership Program at Brandeis University. Her past experience includes serving as Senior Advisor at the Harold Grinspoon Foundation and Visiting Rabbi at Dartmouth College; producer and newscaster for Minnesota Public Radio; Director of Arts and Religion in the Twin Cities; Associate Chaplain at Carleton College; and Director of Religious Activities and Chaplaincy Services at Vassar College. She earned her B.A. in History at Dartmouth College, her rabbinical ordination from HUC-JIR , her M.S. in Journalism from Columbia University, and her Ph.D. in History from the Graduate Center of the City University of New York. She has contributed to numerous books and publications and was recently appointed to the board of the Central Conference of American Rabbis.

Cantor Jill Abramson ‘02 is the new Director of the Debbie Friedman School of Sacred Music, having acted as Interim Director since July 1, 2022. Cantor Abramson previously served as the senior cantor at Westchester Reform Temple in Scarsdale, NY, cantor and director of education at Congregation Sukkat Shalom in suburban Chicago, IL, and sole clergy leader at Congregation Shir Ami in Greenwich, CT. She holds a B.A. in Anthropology from Grinnell College and a Master of Sacred Music and was ordained a cantor by HUC-JIR. Cantor Abramson has a strong commitment to international social justice work, having lived in Cameroon, West Africa, taught English in Indonesia, and conceived an Israeli and Arab teenage choir as part of the international peace program, Building Bridges for Peace.

Location:

Hevreh of Southern Berkshire
270 State Road, Great Barrington, MA 01230

Trails and Torah

9:00 a.m. – 10:30 a.m.

Join us for a restorative and thought-provoking Shabbat morning experience, choosing between two options at the beautiful Mass Audubon:

1. A torah study and gentle hike, led by HUC-JIR faculty members Rabbi Andrea Weiss, Ph.D. (Provost) and Daniel Fisher-Livne, Ph.D., Assistant Professor
2. A meditative exploration of nature and Jewish thought, led by Rabbi David Adelson (Dean of the HUC-JIR NY Campus).

Advance registration encouraged.

Location:

Pleasant Valley Wildlife Sactuary
472 West Mountain Road, Lenox, MA 01240

Presenters:

Rabbi Andrea L. Weiss, Ph.D., is Jack, Joseph and Morton Mandel Provost and Associate Professor of Bible at the Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion. She is the founder of the American Values, Religious Voices campaign, co-editor of American Values, Religious Voices: 100 Days, 100 Letters (University of Cincinnati Press, 2019) and the recently published second volume, American Values, Religious Voices: Letters of Hope from People of Faith. She was associate editor of The Torah: A Women’s Commentary (CCAR Press, 2008), which won the Jewish Book Council’s 2009 Everett Family Foundation Jewish Book of the Year Award. Her other writings include Figurative Language in Biblical Prose Narrative: Metaphor in the Book of Samuel (Brill, 2006) and articles on metaphor, biblical poetry, and biblical conceptions of God.

Rabbi David Adelson ‘99 and ‘16 is Dean of the New York Campus of Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion. Before coming to HUC-JIR, he served as rabbi of East End Temple in Manhattan for sixteen years. He serves as a spiritual director and is a leader in the Reform Movement’s justice organizing work. He was ordained in 1999 and earned a D.Min. degree in 2016. Rabbi Adelson lives in Brooklyn with his wife, Lynn Harris, and children, Bess and Sam.

Daniel Fisher-Livne, Ph.D., is Creative Director of HUC-JIR in the Berkshires. He is Assistant Professor of Bible at HUC-JIR and Research Affiliate at the National Humanities Alliance. He is currently writing a cultural biography of the Ark of the Covenant, exploring relationships among objects, places, and collective memory in the Hebrew Bible and ancient Jewish literature through 200 CE.

Israel at 75: Why Reform Judaism in Israel Matters Now More Than Ever

4:00 p.m. – 5:30 p.m.

Join us for a conversation with HUC-JIR President Andrew Rehfeld, Ph.D. about the influential, transformative work of the students, faculty, and alumni of HUC-JIR’s Israeli programs who are committed to creating dynamic, inclusive communities and inspiring Israelis to embrace their Judaism, while working hard to promote justice and democracy in Israel.

The event will be hosted in the Library. Please use this form to submit questions by July 27 for consideration in the Q&A portion of the discussion, about HUC-JIR’s work in Israel and why reform Judaism matters now more than ever in Israel.

Location:

Ventfort Hall
104 Walker St, Lenox, MA 01240

Presenter:

Andrew Rehfeld, Ph.D., is the 10th President of Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion. Appointed in April of 2019, Rehfeld’s career has bridged the academic and Jewish professional worlds as a tenured faculty member in Political Science at Washington University (2001-2019) and as President and CEO of the Jewish Federation of St. Louis (2012-2019). The author of The Concept of Constituency (Cambridge University Press, 2005), his academic research focuses on the intersection of democracy, human rights, justice and institutional design. Other areas of published research include the history of political thought, and the philosophy of the social sciences. Rehfeld earned a Ph.D. in Political Science (2000) and a Master of Public Policy (1994) from the University of Chicago, and a B.A., Phi Beta Kappa, in the Philosophy Honors Program at the University of Rochester (1989). He held the Fulbright Visiting Research Chair in the Study and Practice of Federalism, McGill University, and had visiting faculty appointments at the Harris School of Public Policy Studies at the University of Chicago, and Libera Universita Internazionale Degli Studi Sociali (LUISS Guido Carli), Rome.

Havdalah and Concert

6:00 p.m., concert begins 8:00 p.m.

Bring a picnic and the whole family to Tanglewood for an evening of contemporary music, beginning with Havdalah led by Cantor Jill Abramson (Director of the Debbie Friedman School of Sacred Music). During the Prelude, find the HUC-JIR area for craft packages and activities for children, in collaboration with PJ Library.

Please note: Guests will need to purchase their own tickets to the Boston Symphony Orchestra’s performance by visiting this site.  

Location:

Tanglewood Music Center
297 West Street
Lenox, MA

Presenters:

Cantor Jill Abramson ‘02 is the new Director of the Debbie Friedman School of Sacred Music, having acted as Interim Director since July 1, 2022. Cantor Abramson previously served as the senior cantor at Westchester Reform Temple in Scarsdale, NY, cantor and director of education at Congregation Sukkat Shalom in suburban Chicago, IL, and sole clergy leader at Congregation Shir Ami in Greenwich, CT. She holds a B.A. in Anthropology from Grinnell College and a Master of Sacred Music and was ordained a cantor by HUC-JIR. Cantor Abramson has a strong commitment to international social justice work, having lived in Cameroon, West Africa, taught English in Indonesia, and conceived an Israeli and Arab teenage choir as part of the international peace program, Building Bridges for Peace.

Justice Shall You Pursue: A Dialogue on Making Change, Followed by Tour of Tzedek Boxes Pop-up Exhibition

10:00 a.m – 11:30 a.m.

Come be the change you want to see in the world. Join Rabbi Shirley Idelson, Ph.D. R. ‘91 and recent alum Rabbi Andrew Kaplan Mandel, Ed.D. R. ‘23 for a conversation about the future of the clergy and Jewish leadership, followed by a pop-up exhibition of Tzedek Boxes currently on display at the Bernard Heller Museum at HUC-JIR’s New York campus. Light lunch will be provided. Advance registration encouraged.

Location:

Hevreh of Southern Berkshire
270 State Road, Great Barrington, MA 01230

Presenters:

Rabbi Andrew Kaplan Mandel, Ed.D. R. ‘23 (he/him) has spent his career supporting leaders of social change. Andrew graduated magna cum laude from Harvard College, earned his masters in educational technology from the Harvard Graduate School of Education and received his doctorate from Columbia’s Teachers College in adult learning and leadership. Before entering rabbinical school at HUC-JIR, he spent 18 years at Teach For America, starting as a seventh grade English teacher on the Texas-Mexico border and ultimately designing the organization’s national leadership development program. Andrew is the inaugural spiritual leader of the Neighborhood, Central Synagogue’s global online community, and the founder of Tzedek Box, a new reflective ritual responding to the Jewish call for justice.

Rabbi Shirley Idelson, Ph.D. R. ‘91, is the new Director of HUC-JIR’s Zelikow School of Jewish Nonprofit Management (Zschool). Dean of the New York campus from 2007–2016, she returns to HUC-JIR after serving as Leon A. Jick Director of the Hornstein Jewish Professional Leadership Program at Brandeis University. Her past experience includes serving as Senior Advisor at the Harold Grinspoon Foundation and Visiting Rabbi at Dartmouth College; producer and newscaster for Minnesota Public Radio; Director of Arts and Religion in the Twin Cities; Associate Chaplain at Carleton College; and Director of Religious Activities and Chaplaincy Services at Vassar College. She earned her B.A. in History at Dartmouth College, her rabbinical ordination from HUC-JIR , her M.S. in Journalism from Columbia University, and her Ph.D. in History from the Graduate Center of the City University of New York. She has contributed to numerous books and publications and was recently appointed to the board of the Central Conference of American Rabbis.

Connect and Create: WRJ and Lilith Salon and Writing Workshop

12:00 p.m – 1:30 p.m.

Get your creative writing juices flowing with HUC-JIR alum and incoming Executive Director of Women of Reform Judaism Rabbi Liz Hirsch ‘15 and Sarah Seltzer, Executive Editor at Lilith Magazine, for a salon conversation (30 min) and writing workshop (60 min). We will write together based on prompts, share our experience, and leave inspired and ready to put our pens to paper this summer! The conversation will jump off from Sarah Seltzer’s story “Ironing” in Lilith’s brand new fiction anthology, but ABSOLUTELY NO PREPARATION is required. Just bring your willingness to write!  Advance registration encouraged.

Location:

Hevreh of Southern Berkshire
270 State Road, Great Barrington, MA 01230

Presenters:

Rabbi Liz P.G. Hirsch ’15 is Executive Director of Women of Reform Judaism (WRJ), a role she has held since 2023. WRJ is the women’s empowerment affiliate of the Union for Reform Judaism. Previously, Hirsch was the rabbi of Temple Anshe Amunim in Pittsfield, MA. Hirsch writes frequently on social justice, spiritual practice, and trends in Jewish life, with recent chapters included in The Social Justice Torah Commentary (CCAR Press, 2021) and Prophetic Voices: Renewing and Reimagining Haftarah (CCAR Press, 2023). She was ordained at HUC-JIR in New York. In recognition of her academic and leadership achievements, she was honored as a Wexner Graduate Fellow, a Tisch Fellow, and a WRJ Scholar during rabbinical school. She completed her undergraduate education at Brown University with a degree in Environmental Studies. Rabbi Hirsch lives in Western Massachusetts with her husband, Rabbi Neil P.G. Hirsch, and their two children.

Sarah Seltzer is the executive editor of Lilith magazine and a widely-published writer and writing teacher. Her debut novel, The Singer Sisters, will be published by Flatiron press in 2024.

American Values, Religious Voices: Speaking Religious Truth to Political Power

3:30 p.m. – 5:00 p.m.

For the first 100 days of the Biden administration, a multi-faith group of religious studies scholars sent a letter a day to our elected officials in Washington, DC, just as they did in 2017 at the start of the Trump presidency. The project’s creator, Rabbi Andrea Weiss, Ph.D., will facilitate a conversation with some local letter writers who contributed to the recent publication of American Values, Religious Voices: Letters of Hope from People of Faith (University of Cincinnati Press, 2023). Advance registration encouraged.

Location:

Norman Rockwell Museum
9 Glendale Rd / Rte 183
Stockbridge, MA

Presenters:

Rabbi Andrea L. Weiss, Ph.D., is Jack, Joseph and Morton Mandel Provost and Associate Professor of Bible at the Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion. She is the founder of the American Values, Religious Voices campaign, co-editor of American Values, Religious Voices: 100 Days, 100 Letters (University of Cincinnati Press, 2019) and the recently published second volume, American Values, Religious Voices: Letters of Hope from People of Faith. She was associate editor of The Torah: A Women’s Commentary (CCAR Press, 2008), which won the Jewish Book Council’s 2009 Everett Family Foundation Jewish Book of the Year Award. Her other writings include Figurative Language in Biblical Prose Narrative: Metaphor in the Book of Samuel (Brill, 2006) and articles on metaphor, biblical poetry, and biblical conceptions of God.

Daniel Fisher-Livne, Ph.D., is Creative Director of HUC-JIR in the Berkshires. He is Assistant Professor of Bible at HUC-JIR and Research Affiliate at the National Humanities Alliance. He is currently writing a cultural biography of the Ark of the Covenant, exploring relationships among objects, places, and collective memory in the Hebrew Bible and ancient Jewish literature through 200 CE.

Casey Bohlen, Ph.D., is the Mellon Visiting Assistant Professor in History and Public Discourse at Smith College. He is a historian specializing in the history of religion and public life in the modern United States, and the director of the Faith and Social Action Oral History Project. He received his Ph.D. in History from Harvard University in 2016.

Marc Z. Brettler is Bernice and Morton Lerner Distinguished Professor in Judaic Studies at Duke University and conducts research focused on the Hebrew Bible and its interpretation. He co-edited The Jewish Annotated New Testament, The New Oxford Annotated Bible, and The Jewish Study Bible; he co-authored The Bible and the Believer (2012) and most recently, with Amy-Jill Levine, The Bible With and Without Jesus: How Jews and Christians Read the Same Stories Differently. His other works include How to Read the Jewish Bible (Oxford, 2007), as well as op-eds on the place of the Bible in American public life.

Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institue of Religion (HUC-JIR) is the center of innovation for Jewish life and North America’s leading institution of Jewish higher education and the academic, spiritual, and professional leadership development center of Reform Judaism. The College-Institute educates leaders to serve North American and world Jewry as rabbis, cantors, educators, and nonprofit professionals, and offers graduate programs to scholars and clergy of all faiths. Based in Cincinnati, Jerusalem, Los Angeles, and New York, its resources include the Klau Library, Jacob Rader Marcus Center of the American Jewish Archives, museums, and publications. Learn more about HUC-JIR.

This program is open to all members of the community. Jewish identity and community extends beyond religious practice, and the topics for discussion are intended to be of interest and accessible to everyone.

HUC-JIR in the Berkshires is four days of place-based programming, grounded in the Berkshires and drawing out big cross-cutting Jewish questions. These events bring together community members, HUC-JIR faculty and alumni for discussions around Jewish life and to engage with arts and culture creators and institutions in the Berkshires. Programming is designed to be welcoming, building community around learning and engagement with Jewish culture.

View our list of inspiring presenters who will be leading the various programs.

Access the registration page to register you and your guest(s) for any of the events. Please register early, as some of the venues have capacity limitations.

Thanks to the generous support of a donor, all events are complimentary with the exception of the Shabbat dinner. (Please note: The Havdalah hosted prior to the performance at Tanglewood does NOT include entrance tickets to the venue. If you plan to attend, you must purchase your own ticket to the concert here).

During registration, you will have an opportunity to make a gift to HUC-JIR to help us continue to provide meaningful and educational programs for our community, like this. Please consider making a meaningful gift of $180; $360; $500; $1,800 or more.

Registration will close as capacity is reached for each program. Advance registration closes on July 16. After this date, please email events@huc.edu for additional information and availability.

Yes, capacity is dependent on limitations at each venue. Please register early to ensure availability, and email events@huc.edu if your plans change after you have registered.

Email events@huc.edu with the exact changes you would like made to your registration, including the full names for each registered guest.

Throughout each day, HUC-JIR professionals will stop by the Hevreh of Southern Berkshire. If you misplace an item during an event, a lost and found box will be available at the Hevreh. If you have questions on the day of the event, please call 212-824-2207 to speak with a member of the HUC-JIR professional team.

Programming was designed to be intergenerational and open to all. There are two specific family-friendly events: Kabbalat Shabbat Worship Service and Dinner and the Havdalah and concert (note, tickets to the Boston Symphony Orchestra performance are not included with registration on the HUC-JIR site).

You can attend one, many, or all of the programs. We encourage you to join us for as many as possible to contribute to and learn as much as possible during the weekend.

Unless noted on the individual registration pages, all programs are being generously funded by an HUC-JIR donor. We hope you will consider making a donation to HUC-JIR to help make community programming, like this, available in the future. HUC-JIR will purchase entrance tickets for the venues of the following programs based on advance registration numbers, so please make sure to register in advance and let us know as soon as possible if your plans change:

• “I Created the World”: Humans and the Environment in the Bible and Contemporary Art at The Clark
• American Values, Religious Voices: Speaking Religious Truth to Political Power at Norman Rockwell Museum

All events will take place rain, shine, or other. When possible, outdoor activities will be relocated to covered venues, if needed. All registered guests will be alerted of the change as soon as a decision is made. For this reason, it is important that each guest provides individual emails and day-of phone numbers during registration.

We suggest that you wear comfortable clothes and shoes appropriate for walking and standing outdoors. Sunscreen and a hat are recommended. If the forecast calls for light rain, we suggest a jacket or umbrella.

Unfortunately, HUC-JIR will not be issuing refunds for those guests who register and pay for but are unable to attend the Shabbat Dinner.

All food will be kosher style, either dairy or meat depending on the meal, and vegetarian options will be available.

All guests should adhere to the policies within at each venue. Masks are always optional, and we encourage guests to do whatever makes them feel most comfortable.

No; light snacks and beverages will be provided at all events, unless a meal is noted.

We are not reserving blocks of hotel rooms, but this Berkshires tourism website provides a variety of suggestions for where to stay.

All program venues offer options that are accessible for all abilities. Please visit the individual venue websites if you are interested in additional details.

This Berkshires tourism website offers a variety of information related to traveling to and throughout the Berkshires.

Safety is of utmost importance to HUC-JIR and we are in contact with our local community partners about how best to serve our constituents at our events.

In order to create an historical record of the HUC-JIR in the Berkshires programming, some of the proceedings will be photographed and video recorded.