Our Volunteer Leadership

There’s a lot going on at Beth Jacob! If you have questions about how things work, or want to get involved in a project, take a look at the list below to see who’s doing what and how you can jump in!

*To contact our volunteer leaders use the form below.

BJC Committees

New Members: Phil Ross and Sue Proctor provide a range of services for new members from arranging hospitality and play-dates to providing tours of local supermarkets and delivery of a welcome basket when people join our community.

Buddy Families: Shelley Zak sees that each new member is paired with an existing BJC family or individual who can include the new member in social activities so that they quickly become integrated into the community, and who can act as a resource, answering questions about shul and local activities.

Shabbat Hospitality:  Ariel Siegel coordinates requests from out-of-town guests who are here for vacation or business trips and need home hospitality, and pairs them with BJC families for Shabbat meals and sleeping arrangements. Contact us at Bethjacobhospitality@gmail.com

Dor L’Dor / Bikur Cholim: BJC arranges visits between volunteers and the incredible seniors in our community who are homebound and can no longer come to shul.  If you’re interested in forming a meaningful friendship with one of these BJ seniors. Just one hour a month can make a difference. 

Chesed Meals: When members of our community have a new baby, face a difficult medical situation, or are sitting shiva for a loved one, Jen Blumenfeld can arrange for meals to be brought to them during their time of need.

Shiva-house set-up: Harriet Schiffer makes sure that the basics of food, drinks and paper goods are on hand when someone in our community is sitting shiva. 

Mikvah: The mikvah is an essential aspect of our community. Meira Albert coordinates and trains our dedicated mikvah volunteer attendants who enable the women in our community to properly fulfill the mitzvah of family purity. Additionally, she coordinates mikvah appointments to ensure that all users have a safe, pleasant and private experience.

Chevra Kaddisha:  The Chevra Kadisha of the East Bay is a society of men and women who perform tahara for a person who has passed on. Tahara provides a ritual washing and dressing for the mait (body) to be placed in the coffin. We also provide shmira services – guarding the body before burial by reading psalms. There are about 18 women and 16 men now in the chevra, and we are always looking for more people to be involved.

Mini-Drashes:  Whether you just learned something interesting, want to honor the memory of a loved one, or recall a nice tidbit from your long-ago Bar Mitzvah drash, and whether you’re 8 or 80, we love to have congregants add insights to our Shabbat learning.  The mini-drashot publications are attached to the Beat that appears on every pew, every Shabbat. Email your drash to  office@bethjacoboakland.org.