Committees and Circles

Board members at Romemu are strong community leaders and big thinkers. They are dedicated to the heart and soul of the Romemu mission.

Co-Chairs: Jonathan Fassberg and Staci Levine

We believe that all children are whole and made in the image of the Divine, that all children should feel safe &  honored for exactly who they are, and that it is our responsibility to guard children’s wholeness. It is therefore our responsibility to prioritize the wellbeing of children through practices that keep them safe and help them thrive. The Child Safety Committee is working to engage the Romemu community in child safety and build of culture of accountability and investment in child safety at Romemu.

Co-Chairs:  Maggie Jacobs, Batia Eyob-Serrette, and Lauren Ahava Jacobs,

The Romemu Chesed Committee helps to create a caring community that centers acts of chesed (lovingkindneess).

We aim to assist everyone in our community who requests help.

Co-Chairs: Elliot Figman & Jamie Phillips

Visit our Chesed web pages to learn more about chesed at Romemu, what this Committee does and how you can engage in cultivating a culture of chesed at Romemu.

In need of Chesed assistance? Email chesed@romemu.org

A holy society to take care of those members of the community who have just died. The practice involves sitting vigil with the body of the deceased while reciting psalms and other prayers. 

We commit to:

1. To take on the holy service of the rituals of Shmirah (guarding) and Tahara (cleansing) as holy mitzvot in our tradition.
2. To build a strong Chevra Kadisha, to teach and to guide the Hevra in the ways of our ancient tradition while exploring the depth and meaning this has for us today, especially during this pandemic,  so as to make these rituals Living Prayers of Kedusha.
3. To educate our larger community about the work of the Chevra as a way to lift up Kedusha in death as in life, and to be a source of anonymous comfort to the Bereaved.
4. To deepen our skills and practices that we might be vessels for Divine Spirit to move through us as we provide tender care for the once living flesh, and companion the souls on their journey into Yichud.
5. To be a vessel bridging Heaven and Earth, in the name of Eternal Life.

Our core values are:

1. To work together in conscious kedusha.
2. To practice deep team holy commitment.
3. To cultivate respect, love, presence, kindness, comfort and to practice together in prayer.
4. To work together in mindfulness, love, flexibility, support and care for the living and the dead.
5. To recognize that death, dying and Eternal Life are topics of discussion to be honored and celebrated.

Chairs: Nili Weissman.

Interested in learning more about the Chevra Kadisha? Email Nweissman@live.com

Bring your musical talents to the Community Band. 

The Community Band provides a vehicle for the musicians in the congregation who supplement the professional musicians accompanying Friday night services, add music to our monthly Communal Shabbat Dinners and play some special occasions such as the Purim Spiel and B-Mitzvah or birthday celebrations at a kiddush.

After an interruption due to the COVID pandemic, the Community Band has now restarted under the leadership of Romemu’s Director of Music and Family Programs, Shimon Smith.

Current members of the Band include:
Jeffrey Cahn
Jonathan Goldstick
Ellen Shapiro
Farnoush Safavi
Want to join the Band? Contact shimon@romemu.org.

The Development Committee supports fundraising for Romemu to ensure the community has the resources necessary to fulfill its mission.

Co-Chairs: Nancy Levin, Marc Schiller, and Jade Netanya Ullmann

For inquiries about the Development Committee, please contact Jeff Cahn at jeff@romemu.org.

If you read Torah or would like to participate in Ritual leadership, please reach out to Rabbi Dianne Cohler-Esses at dianne@romemu.org.

Get involved in Climate Change Activism in the Romemu community. The Green Team promotes individual and shared environmental responsibility in the Romemu Community through education and action. We find inspiration and direction for our mission from the teachings and traditions of Judaism. Kedusha (holiness( is inherent in God but also can be created by people’s actions. Individuals can strive to live a life of kedusha. In Jewish environmental ethics, one of the most important ways that a community can express kedusha is by greening their sacred space. A Jewish community practicing sustainability cares about leaving the world better for the next generation. Our community can be an inspiration, a symbol, and a center for kedusha.

The Green Team is not currently active. If you are interested in leading its revitalization, please contact membership@romemu.org.

We want to make it easier for out-of-town members to join us onsite. Toward that end, we are seeking to form a Host Circle – a group of local members open to hosting out-town guests occasionally for lodging and/or Shabbat meals. If you live near the Romemu campus and want to join the Host Circle, please complete this form.

Once we have several members of this circle, we will share how out-of-town members may request to be hosted.

We regularly evaluate and enhance our security procedures and infrastructure at both the West End Presbyterian Church and the Romemu Center.

Co-Chairs: Jennifer Goldman Wexler

To learn more about Romemu security or get involved, email Jeffrey Cahn at jeff@romemu.org.

Shabbat Greeters help ensure that everyone feels welcome when they enter. Shabbat Greeters provide a welcoming smile and wishes of “Shabbat Shalom,” and that welcome adds to the Shabbat experience. Greeting people is an easy way to meet new people and catch up with old friends. Greeters are asked to arrive at services 20 minutes early to be ready to welcome all spiritual seekers as they arrive at our doors. A Romemu staff member will greet you when you arrive and help you prepare to greet others.

The Social Action Committee unites the actions of Gevurah (Strength) & Hesed (Lovingkindness) into Courageous Compassion through a lay-led committee that will embody Asah (Taking Action) toward Tzedek (Social Justice) on a Community, Inter-Community and City-wide scale. Learn more about Social Justice at Romemu and the Romemu Social Action Committee.

Co-chairs: Lauren Jacobs and Tal Siegel

Managed by the Social Action Committee, every other Sunday, Community Food Pantry volunteers pack and distribute food for our neighbors. During the winter, they also collect and distribute winter outerwear.

Virtual Group: The Spiritual Eldering Circle 

Romemu’s Twelve Step study group meets on Wednesdays at 7 PM on Zoom. If you are interested in learning about this group, please contact Judy Gray at jagny_10025@yahoo.com

The Yad B’Yad Committee weaves our individual member “threads” into a sacred community fabric, with an awareness of and attention to the complexity and diversity of our membership. We engage members within the Romemu community, person by person, hand in hand, by deepening connections through smaller programs and broadening networks grounded in Romemu’s missions and values.

Yad B’Yad Programs

Romemu Ambassador 
Give the gift of welcoming others. Become an Ambassador at Romemu.

Chair: Jeremy Rosenshine.

Home Hosting
Romemu Home Hosting committee convenes 20+ hosts across Romemu to create an evening of community. Would you like to volunteer to help with planning home hosting, host an evening, or share new ideas for this initiative? 

Co-Chairs: Joyce Babik, Renee Sutin, or Marilynn Jacobs.

Volunteer to Host

If you have previously participated in a Home Hosting event you know that meeting in small, intimate groups, whether in person or virtually is an excellent way to get to know other Romemu members, building community bonds and relationships. We are excited to announce that this year, we are expanding the program to include not only the successful in-person and virtual themed Shabbat dinners but also less formal get togethers that are more family inclusive.

Are you willing to add your name to our list of potential hosts for either  in person or virtual gatherings?  Can you welcome other Romemu members into your dining room, your living room or even your Zoom room? The Home Hosting Committee does all of leg work and organization.  We provide the support you need and will even match you you with a co-host for your event, if you’d like.

Putting your name on our roster of potential hosts does not obligate you to be available to host every event.

Interested? Please complete this form, for more information and to volunteer to be a host, helping us keep the Romemu community strong, vital and connected, right from the comfort of your own home.

New Member Orientation
This two-part program provides a path for new members to connect with other members and learn more about Romemu. Interested in learning more about this program or volunteering to help with it?

Chair: Barbara Siesel

Shabbat Candle Lighting
Each week, we gather to welcome Shabbat together (on zoom) with song, poetry, and blessing. The link to join is emailed to all Romemu members every Friday.

Chair: Asher Chaim

Interested in getting involved Yad B’Yad and/or any of its programs? Email membership@romemu.org

Help guide our evolving efforts to create programs that kids and parents LOVE  including Romemu Seekers Holistic Hebrew School, B Mitzvahs, Sha’Baby, Family Shabbat, and more.

Co-Chairs: Maggie Jacobs and Dena Gittelman

Interested in learning more? Contact Shimon Smith at shimon@romemu.org

While all Romemu members are encouraged and welcome to engage with all of our committees and circles, the Romemu Brooklyn community committees and circles are specifically designed to facilitate our members building connections with others in Brooklyn and those connected via the Brooklyn global community.