By Sharon Wisch-Ray
sharon@tjpnews.com

Janis Levine Music Women and Children’s Endowment Fund celebrates 20 years

It has been 20 years since the inception of the Janis Levine Music Women and Children’s Endowment Fund of the Dallas Jewish Community Foundation. For the family of Janis Levine Music, Janis’ passion to help all women and children could have ended with her death, but thankfully the love and support from family and friends has enabled her legacy to become larger than life. It was quintessential to see Janis’ passions honored, and her memory kept alive. By setting up a fund at a the Dallas Jewish Community Foundation, Janis Levine Music’s name and interests, her passion of helping women and children, are living on through the fund in perpetuity.
The advisory committee, still with many of the original members, maintains high standards for grant making, and has a genuine concern for promoting the mission of the fund. Initially, the fund received grant requests from a handful of agencies. However, as a wave of interest and demand increased steadily, it led to the recent decision to organize a more focused giving approach. Each year there will be a different theme to guide the allocation process. In the spring of 2016, the Janis Levine Music Women and Children’s Fund will grant awards to organizations that provide exceptional health and/or welfare services benefiting women and children. The application will be available for the entire month of March. Grant distributions will range from $2,500 to $12,000 maximum (with grants funding up to 80 percent of a program cost).
Details on eligibility requirements, grant award specifications, and important dates can be found at www.djcf.org.
The Janis Levine Music Women and Children’s Endowment Fund of the Dallas Jewish Community Foundation has touched the lives of many who desperately needed help and set the standard for charitable giving. At this important milestone of the fund please show your love for Janis through a commitment to the Janis Levine Music Women and Children’s Endowment Fund of the Dallas Jewish Community Foundation. If you are interested in making a donation to this fund, or would like to learn more about how you can build your own legacy, contact the DJCF at 214-615-9351.
— Submitted by Mona Allen

Adat Chaverim embraces a new committee to help individuals with disabilities

A special “Kulanu” service took place at Adat Chaverim Friday, Feb. 12, to introduce a new committee to the congregation. According to Suzanne Ginsburg, committee chair, “Kulanu means  all of us together — and is intended to build understanding, awareness and support for people in our community with disabilities and special needs.” A hands-on, family-oriented program was held following the service to familiarize everyone with what it is like having various impairments. Children and adults participated in this special program, which gave them a heightened awareness of coping with challenges such as blindness, hearing loss, dyslexia, and other limitations. The committee hopes to meet the needs of its own congregants with special needs as well as reaching out to others in the surrounding community. The committee will be sponsoring future programs and meets regularly. For further information, please contact the Kulanu Committee of Adat Chaverim at Kulanu@adatchaverim.org.
— Submitted by Sharyn Diamond

DATA of Plano starts women’s group

Women’s Partners in Torah is off to an incredible start with two packed Monday night programs so far! P.I.T. runs every other Monday night from 7:30 to 8:30 and already has captured the imaginations of many Jewish women from the Plano community, with over 10 chevrusas (learning partners) already in place and others in the process of being formed. Rebbetzin Tova Nissel, who spearheaded the program shares that “it’s all about getting women together, learning and developing relationships.” Women learning together creates a special power, the rebbetzin explained.
Women have shared that there have been topics that have interested them for so long but P.I.T. finally presented them an outlet to study those topics. Each chevrusa chooses the topic they are interested in studying, with the study of the siddur and prayer, self-growth, the laws of lashon hara (evil speech), parashah, Jewish history and marriage being studied by various learning partners. Some of the dyads are studying a topic together for the first time, while others pair a mentor with a student. “One of the amazing elements of P.I.T. is that women who never thought of themselves as having the ability to teach or the knowledge needed to teach are discovering that they have so much to offer to someone else who has less experience in study or observance,” Tova shares.
“P.I.T. reminds mentors of where they came from and how much they’ve grown!”
Mrs. Ilana Panush and Michelle Lubin are study partners. “I have so much to learn and so many questions,” Ilana shares. “Anything I can learn is wonderful. I just wish we did it more often!” Ilana is interested in learning how to make her home kosher and to learn from Michelle’s experience “becoming religious without becoming overwhelmed.” Chana Miriam Barak is learning the laws of proper speech with Tova Ruderman and is enthusiastic about P.I.T. “I’ve really enjoyed P.I.T. It’s wonderful to have a set time to learn with someone. Seeing the room filled with women from our community, all gathered for Torah, is a really powerful thing! I’m really appreciative of Tova for arranging it!”
Interested in joining P.I.T.? We’ll help you find a topic of interest and a study partner. Email Rebbetzin Tova Nissel at tepstein93@gmail.com for info.
— Submitted by Rabbi Yogi Robkin