President’s Message – March 2023
Gathering in community was a piece of the message in last Saturday’s drash, from Parashat Vayakhel, and it made me grateful to be part of this wonderful community, where so many people came together at the loss of Barbara Luck. Each person brought a talent or gift of food for our reception, and the way everyone worked together it made such a loving gift and recognition of Barbara’s talents. Charlie is still in awe of how everything was skillfully and lovingly taken care of – and I hope we can continue to show him this caring as he adjusts to her loss.
We are also gathering in community and bringing our skills to make things right at our synagogue – curing dry rot problems, light repairs, scraping and painting where needed, stapling in ceiling tiles – thanks to Martin Gewing, Mike McGinnis, Ron Nathan, and our crew that will be continuing to spruce up our building for our celebration. What gifts do you bring to our community?
The purpose of our community is to build, to nourish, and to make right and do our part to repair the world. Through supporting each other and our community, we can be strong enough to go out and make right in the communities we live in.
I will be joining a busload of Common Ground members on a road trip to Fresno next Sunday for a statewide meeting of organizers, looking at the politics of the California economy. We’ll be building relationships, sharing local strategies, and learning how we can act to make our communities places where everyone can live and thrive. Common Ground, our local group, wants to learn how the current economy is affecting you and your family. We hope to have some small meetings around our area, to learn what the different pressures on families are here. Then we will see what action we can take to participate in an economic recovery strategy.
We hope to have some CBI members attend a discussion on the Vallejo Economic Development Strategic Plan, hosted by two City Council representatives at 6 p.m. on March 30th at The Lodge at Glen Cove. They are looking for community input on how to move forward using the assistance of American Rescue Plan Act funds, and we want to make sure they include Common Ground’s priorities.
You may see some cars in our back parking lot on Sunday – we hope to offer secure parking to Common Ground members taking the trip with me to Fresno on Saturday. If you have any questions, let me know.
– Cheryl Gewing