Mental illness touches so many of us. Whenever I speak of my own experience and that of my family, there is often a crowd around me afterwards, needing to tell their own story or that of a loved one. Because of stigma and shame, we may not know that the person next to us the pew has a similar story. We become needlessly isolated, walking our journeys alone, suffering in silence. Speaking aloud about mental illness can create and enhance community. Embracing basic Jewish מידות/middot/values, such as הכנסת אוחים/hachnasat orchim/welcoming guests and ביקר חולים/bikkur holim/visiting the sick will help us open our doors to those who need us most.
I am committed to help lead the way as we open those doors.
CLASSES AND WORKSHOPS
Interviewed by Women Rabbis Talk, November, 2022. In the podcast, we talked about outreach to the mentally ill, as well as unique issues facing rabbis around mental health issues (theiir own and the members of their communities.) https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/women-rabbis-talk/id1481497572?i=1000586291854
Co-creator of “Mental Health and You,” a city-wide mental health conference, August, 2022
Speaker on Invisible Illness, Temple Sinai, 2022
Speaker on Caring Communities, City Shul, 2022
Featured Speaker, NAMI Clergy Conference, NAMI Queens/Nassau, May, 2021
Creating a Caring Community, Har HaShem, Boulder, CO April 2021
Visiting the Sick: Sources and Practice: What to Say and What Not to Say, Rodef Shalom, Fall, 2020
Mental Health and Visiting the Sick, Temple Jeremiah, Chicago, IL 2020
Mental Health Outreach and Visiting the Sick, Temple Beth Abraham, October, 2020
Creating Light in the Darkness, Workshop on Mental Health for Seniors, Kavod on the Road, Denver, CO, December, 2019
Interfaith Panel on Suicide in Religion, Good Shepherd Episcopal Church, September, 2019
Coordinator and Panelist, Hadesh Yameinu Mental Health Awareness Day, Rodef Shalom, Denver, Co, September, 2019
Bikkur Holim/Visiting the Sick Workshop: What to Say, What Not to Say; September, 2019
Creating a Caring Community for Teens, Winchester Thurston High School, Pittsburgh, PA, February, 2019
Creating a Caring Community Interfaith Workshop, Rodef Shalom, Pittsburgh, PA, February, 2019
Crying Out For Help: Mental Illness Among Us, Shaare Torah Orthodox Synagogue, Pittsburgh, PA, 2019
Created and Chair, Mental Health Committee, Rodef Shalom, Denver, CO
Scholar in Residence
Mental Health, Aging and Inclusion, Bonai Shalom, Boulder, CO February, 2020
Mental Health Outreach and Creating Community, Beth Evergreen, January , 2020
Mental Health Outreach at Rodef Shalom, Pittsburgh, PA 2019
Mental Health Outreach at Temple Emanuel, Denver, CO 2019
Mental Health Outreach in Detroit, MI, September, 2019 (Beth Israel, Ann Arbor; St. Luke’s Episcopal Church, Ferndale)
Mental Health Outreach at Solel Congregation, Toronto, Canada, 2019
Preached from the bima and/or taught chesed committees at variety of synagogues (Reform, Reconstructionist, Conservative, and Modern Orthodox), on Mental Health Outreach (2016-present)
Rabbi Sandra Cohen 