Women of Reform Judaism, District 3 Records

Manuscript Collection No. 689

1924 - 1997. 5.2 Linear ft.

ACCESS AND PROVENANCE
The records of the Women of Reform Judaism, District 3, were received from the organization in February, 2001. The Women of Reform Judaism, District 3, by the act of donating the records to the American Jewish Archives, assigned the property rights to the American Jewish Archives. Literary rights are held by the individual authors of the documents or his/her heirs. Questions concerning rights should be addressed to the Director of the American Jewish Archives.
The records of Women of Reform Judaism, District 3, are open to all users and available in the reading room of the American Jewish Archives.
INSTITUTIONAL SKETCH top
The National Federation of Temple Sisterhoods (now called Women of Reform Judaism) was officially acknowledged by the Union of American Hebrew Congregations in 1912. In 1913, under the leadership of Mrs. Abram (Carrie) Simon, and Rabbi George Zepin, director of Synagogue and School Extension for the UAHC, local sisterhoods joined under the umbrella of the new national organization. There were 49 Sisterhoods and approximately 5000 members. The District 3 Sisterhood was formed in 1922. It encompasses Batavia, Buffalo, Chappaqua, New York City, Niagara Falls, Plattsburgh, Rochester, Schenectady, Westchester, and many other areas in the state of New York.

Women of Reform Judaism is the voice, the presence and the arena of action of the women of Reform Judaism in the synagogue, the Jewish community, interfaith groups and the general, local, national and international community. It is the women's agency and an affiliate of the Union of American Hebrew Congregations, the central body of Reform Judaism in North America. The founder of NFTY (the National Federation of Temple Youth) and the Jewish Braille Institute, WRJ is a member of the World Union for Progressive Judaism and works on behalf of the Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion. WRJ bands together more than 100,000 Jewish women in over 600 Sisterhoods throughout the United States and in Canada and other countries: Panama, Netherlands Antilles, Argentina, Brazil, the United Kingdom, Belgium, the Netherlands, Israel, the Republic of South Africa, India, Australia and New Zealand.

Devoted to a broad spectrum of Jewish and humanitarian causes, WRJ furthers the teachings and practices of Judaism. Its diversified activities include projects on behalf of the blind and visually impaired, education in international relations including the United Nations, religious and family education, intergroup relations and a wide range of vital, far-reaching programs in the field of social justice, the struggle for the freedom of Jews in Eastern Europe and support of the State of Israel.

WRJ represents Reform Jewish women to the Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations, Religious Network for the Equality of Women, Religious Coalition for Reproductive Choice, Leadership Conference on Civil Rights, National Interfaith Coalition on Aging, Interreligious Health Care Access Campaign and other coalitions and commissions dealing with social concerns in the interreligious and general communities. WRJ is an accredited representative to both the Department of Public Information and the U.S. Mission to the United Nations.

WRJ serves affiliated Sisterhoods through the preparation of materials to help the local Sisterhood function at its most effective level. This includes materials for: programming; continuing Jewish adult education; critical issues and community service; preschool Jewish learning; working with high school and college age youth; assisting the aging, the disabled, Jews of the former Soviet Union and other parts of the Jewish community; and organizational and leadership development.

WRJ affiliates are organized into thirteen District Federations, each of which develops a program of institutes, workshops, caravans and conventions meeting the needs of Sisterhoods within their respective areas. WRJ holds a biennial Assembly at which delegates representing local Sisterhoods make decisions regarding the program and policy directions of the WRJ .
WRJ is represented on the Board of Trustees of the UAHC, the Board of Governors of the Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion, the Executive Board of the World Union for Progressive Judaism, the Commission on Social Action for Reform Judaism and other committees and commissions of Reform Judaism.
SCOPE AND CONTENT NOTE top

The Women of Reform Judaism, District 3 Records fall into four series and contain the biennial convention programs, executive board minutes, reports and recommendations to the executive board, newsletters and other related materials.
Series A. Correspondence (1936-1993) contains correspondence between the leaders of District 3 and their membership and others. Quite interesting are the letters and telegrams sent in preparation for meetings or the biennial, especially in the earlier years as transportation and communication were sometimes difficult. The tenacity, endurance and resourcefulness of these leaders was exhibited in their letters to one another. There are also interesting conversations regarding the programs and the future direction of the sisterhoods in America.

The Biennial Convention series (1929-1996) holds useful information for the researcher by listing the names and dates of the membership on the rosters and questionnaires. The reports of the annual meetings are also useful for finding out who attended the meetings, and often give the reason for the absence of members whether it was due to illness, lack of transportation or the inability to abandon family duties. The newsletters also offer detailed information about the projects and programs completed by the district.

There are large gaps in the material, most of the missing items being from the late 1940s and 1950s. These records were not included in the donation from the Women of Reform Judaism, District 3.

ORGANIZATION & ARRANGEMENT top

The WOMEN OF REFORM JUDAISM, DISTRICT 3 RECORDS are organized into four series.

Series A. Correspondence (1936-1993) contains the correspondence of the leaders of District 3 with each other, the membership and others regarding the conferences.

Series B. Biennial Conventions (1929-1996) holds the rosters, programs, and delegate information sheets for the biennial conventions.

Series C. Minutes and Reports (1924-1997) contains the annual reports, committee recommendations, minutes, and material for the Executive Board meetings.

Series D. Miscellaneous (1940-1986) contains the District 3 newsletters and other material related to the functioning of the organization. There is also a speech given by Salo Baron in 1940.

The records are arranged in chronological order within each series. Prior to arrangement the records had been in chronological order within binders. The provenance was maintained and is displayed in the current series breakdown, with the exception of Series D. Miscellaneous, in which the items were in no order or binders.

BOX AND FOLDER LISTING top
 
Box      Folder  Contents

SERIES A. CORRESPONDENCE

1	1	Jan-Apr 1936.
	2	Apr 1936.
	3	1937.
	4	1937.
	5	Biennial acknowledgements. 1938.

2	1	Jan-Feb 1938.
	2	Mar 1938.
	3	Apr 1938.
	4	1939.
	5	1940.
	6	1940.

3	1	Hotel Astor. 1941-1942.
	2	Hotel New York. 1942.
	3	1942.
	4	1964.
	5	1968.

4	1	1976.
	2	Dec 1977-Nov 1978.
	3	Jan 1979-Oct 1979.
	4	Nov 1979-Jul 1980.

5	1	Oct 1982-May 1984.
	2	May 1984-Dec 1985.
	3	1986.
	4	1987-1988.

6	1	Jun 1988-Dec 1989.
	2	1990.
	3	1990-1992.
	4	1990-1992.

7	1	Jan 1991-Oct 1992.
	2	Jun 1992-Jun 1993.
	3	1992.
	4	1993.



SERIES B. BIENNIAL CONVENTIONS

8	1	Rosters. 1929-1939.
	2	Roster. 22-24 Apr 1934.
	3	Roster.  29 Apr 1935.
	4	Roster. 24-27 Apr 1936.
	5	Delegate information. 1938.
	6	Form letters. 1938.
	7	Questionnaires. 1938.
	8	Roster. 24-26 Apr 1938.
	9	Reports. 1939.
	10	Roster. 28 Apr 1939.
	11	Questionnaires. 1939-1940.
	12	Convention materials. 1940.
	13	Delegate sheets. 1940.

9	1	Delegate sheets. 1942.
	2	Form letters. 1942.
	3	Roster. 14-15 Apr 1942.
	4	Roster. Region #1 New York City. 26-27 Apr 1944.
	5	Roster. Region #2 Brooklyn. 26-27 Apr 1944.
	6	Roster. Region #6 Elmira. 26-27 Apr 1944.
	7	Roster. Region #7 Batavia, Buffalo, Dunkirk, Hornell, Lockport, Montreal, Niagara Falls, Olean. 26-27 Apr 1944.
	8	Convention material. 1960.
	9	Convention photographs. 1960.
	10	Program. 29-31 Oct 1962.
	11	Program. 23-26 Oct 1965.
	12	Program. 20-23 Oct 1968.
	13	Installation program. 1972.
	14	Program. 20-23 Oct 1974.
	15	Program. 24-27 Oct 1976

10	1	Program. 29 Oct-1 Nov 1978.
	2	Convention materials. 17-20 Oct 1980.
	3	Convention materials. 17-20 Oct 1982.
	4	Program. 17-20 Oct 1982.
	5	Convention photographs. 19-23 Oct 1982.
	6	Program. 21-24 Oct 1984.
	7	Program. 19-21 Oct 1986.
	8	Program. 31 Oct-1 Nov 1988.
	9	Program. 20-23 Oct 1990.
	10	Program. 23-26 Oct 1992.
	11	Rosters. 1995-1996.
	12	Kol Isha Biennial Awards. 1996.



SERIES C. MINUTES AND REPORTS	

11	1	Annual report. 1924.
	2	Annual report. 1925.
	3	Annual report. 1925-1926.
	4	Reports and Recommendations. 1936.
	5	Minutes. 1938.
	6	Annual report. 1939.
	7	Annual report. 1940.
	8	Minutes. 1940-1941.
	9	Reports and Recommendations. 1940.
	10	Minutes. 1942.
	11	Minutes. 1966-1972.
	12	Minutes. 1973-1976.

12	1	Material for Executive Board meeting.1979-1984.
	2	Material for Executive Board meeting. 1985-1993.
	3	Minutes. 1986-1993.
	4	Minutes. 1994-1997.

SERIES D. MISCELLANEOUS

	5	Newsletters. 1973-1977.

13	1	Newsletters. 1978-1986.
	2	Newsletters. 1987-1994.
	3	Courses at HUC-JIR. 1970-1979.
	4	Patterns. 1958-1973.
	5	Patterns. 1979-1981.
	6	Patterns. "Fundamentalism - Is it a Threat to our Freedoms?" 1980.
	7	Sabbath Service. 8 May 1964.
	8	Speech. Baron, Salo. "Women's Part in Shaping the Jewish Future." Temple Beth Zion [Buffalo, New York]. 5 May 1940.
	9	Workbook for district leaders. 1976.
	10	Workbook for district leaders. n.d.
Copyright © 2003
Jacob Rader Marcus Center of the American Jewish Archives

An Inventory to the

Women of Reform Judaism, District 3 Records Manuscript Collection No. 689

1924 - 1997. 5.2 Linear ft.

Women of Reform Judaism, District 3 Records

Manuscript Collection No. 689