Podcasts – Jewish Sacred Aging

Rabbi Richard Address-Jewish Sacred Aging

Jewish Sacred Aging podcasts are podcast programs featuring news and interviews on the subject of Jewish sacred aging.

  • 36 minutes 22 seconds
    Seekers of Meaning 5/17/2024: Reb Simcha Raphael, author of “Musings With The Angel Of Death: Poems of Love, Life and Longing”

    On this week’s episode of the Seekers of Meaning TV Show and Podcast, Reb Simcha Raphael, Ph.D., discusses his new book of poetry, Musings with the Angel of Death: Poems of Love, Life and Longing.

    Intense and deeply personal, this compilation of poetry, grapples with the reality of death, loss, and finding meaning in the face of life’s finitude in contemporary times. For more than three decades, Simcha Paull Raphael has written scholarly books on death and the afterlife, including his groundbreaking study Jewish Views of the Afterlife. In this collection of thirty-six poems, Raphael invites us into the inner sanctum of his own intimate wrestling with death and loss. As Rabbi Jill Hammer writes in the Foreword: “Raphael has done the brave work of exposing his own emotional life, the inner workings of his drive to address mortality and immortality. In a sense, he has let us know the behind-the-scenes of his academic and spiritual work.”

    These poems reflect and wrestle with a spectrum of topics: the gamut of Jewish death rituals (funeral & shiva, Kaddish & Yizkor); personal tributes to the author’s deceased parents; his journey of making meaning in the face of grief and loss; challenges of love and marriage; the vicissitudes of family life; and thoughtful poetic reflections on the state of the world today. As a book mirroring the universal journey of awakening to the reality of life’s finality and eternity, Musings with the Angel of Death speaks to the heart and soul.

    Seekers of Meaning TV Show and Podcast Now Available on Roku Streaming Service

    You can add the Jewish Sacred Aging TV channel to your Roku streaming subscription by visiting this page: https://channelstore.roku.com/details/600964/jewish-sacred-aging.

    You can also watch this week’s show in the player below. The shows now include closed-captioning for the deaf or people with a hearing loss. Click the “CC” button on the video player to activate closed-captions.

    Listen to the Audio Podcast

    You can listen to the audio podcast version in the player below, or subscribe to the podcast in one of the popular platforms by clicking one of the buttons below the player.

    About the Guest

    Rabbi Simcha RaphaelRabbi Simcha Raphael

    Reb Simcha Paull Raphael, Ph.D.

    SIMCHA RAPHAEL, Ph.D., is the Founding Director of the DA’AT INSTITUTE. He has worked as a death awareness educator, bereavement counselor and hospice chaplain for over twenty-five years. Ordained as a Rabbinic Pastor by Rabbi Zalman Schachter-Shalomi, he received a doctorate in Psychology from the California Institute of Integral Studies, and has written extensively on the topics of death, bereavement and the afterlife

    The post Seekers of Meaning 5/17/2024: Reb Simcha Raphael, author of “Musings With The Angel Of Death: Poems of Love, Life and Longing” appeared first on Jewish Sacred Aging.

    17 May 2024, 12:00 pm
  • 41 minutes 14 seconds
    Seekers of Meaning 5/10/2024: Rabbi Mark Washofsky, author of book, “Reading Reform Responsa”

    On this week’s episode of the Seekers of Meaning TV Show and Podcast, Rabbi Mark Washofsky, PhD, discusses his new book, Reading Reform Responsa: Jewish Tradition, Reform Rabbis, and Today’s Issues, now available from CCAR Press or Amazon.com.

    The responsa literature, in which rabbis answer questions about halachah (Jewish law), is a vast treasury reaching back nearly fifteen centuries; Reform rabbis have been writing responsa since the 1800s. In Reading Reform Responsa, Rabbi Mark Washofsky, PhD, presents a deep dive into this literature, boldly arguing that Reform Judaism is indeed a movement fundamentally based on halachah. By inviting and guiding readers to understand Reform responsa with a critical eye, he shows that our movement has always been informed by Jewish law as well as Reform history. A teacher and mentor of generations of students at Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion, Rabbi Washofsky gives us a peek inside his classroom, making Reform responsa — and their history, framing, and context — engaging and accessible for all.

    Seekers of Meaning TV Show and Podcast Now Available on Roku Streaming Service

    You can add the Jewish Sacred Aging TV channel to your Roku streaming subscription by visiting this page: https://channelstore.roku.com/details/600964/jewish-sacred-aging.

    You can also watch this week’s show in the player below. The shows now include closed-captioning for the deaf or people with a hearing loss. Click the “CC” button on the video player to activate closed-captions.

    Listen to the Audio Podcast

    You can listen to the audio podcast version in the player below, or subscribe to the podcast in one of the popular platforms by clicking one of the buttons below the player.

    About the Guest

    Rabbi Mark Washofsky, Ph.D.

    Rabbi Mark Washofsky, PhD, is an emeritus professor of Jewish Law and Practice at Hebrew Union College–Jewish Institute of Religion in Cincinnati. He served as chair of the Responsa Committee of the Central Conference of American Rabbis from 1996 to 2017. He is currently the chair of the Solomon B. Freehof Institute of Progressive Halakhah. His publications include Jewish Living: A Guide to Contemporary Reform Practice, Reform Responsa for the Twenty-First Century (CCAR Press, 2010), and Reading Reform Responsa: Jewish Tradition, Reform Rabbis, and Today’s Issues (CCAR Press, 2024).

    The post Seekers of Meaning 5/10/2024: Rabbi Mark Washofsky, author of book, “Reading Reform Responsa” appeared first on Jewish Sacred Aging.

    10 May 2024, 1:14 pm
  • 31 minutes 59 seconds
    Seekers of Meaning 5/3/2024: Shira Zemel, National Council of Jewish Women, on Reproductive Freedom

    On this week’s episode of the Seekers of Meaning TV Show and Podcast, Shira Zemel, Abortion Access Campaign Co-Director for the National Council of Jewish Women, discusses the organization’s efforts to protect women’s reproductive freedom.

    Since its founding, NCJW has been a leader in the reproductive health and rights movement, and while much advancement has been made in the past 100 years to legally secure a person’s right to abortion and contraception, there is so much more that needs to be done to truly ensure reproductive freedom for all.

    Seekers of Meaning TV Show and Podcast Now Available on Roku Streaming Service

    You can add the Jewish Sacred Aging TV channel to your Roku streaming subscription by visiting this page: https://channelstore.roku.com/details/600964/jewish-sacred-aging.

    You can also watch this week’s show in the player below. The shows now include closed-captioning for the deaf or people with a hearing loss. Click the “CC” button on the video player to activate closed-captions.

    Listen to the Audio Podcast

    You can listen to the audio podcast version in the player below, or subscribe to the podcast in one of the popular platforms by clicking one of the buttons below the player.

    About the Guest

    Shira Zemel

    Shira Zemel is the Co-Director of National Council of Jewish Women (NCJW)’s abortion access campaign, the coordinated Jewish movement for reproductive health, rights and justice. In this role, Shira activates and mobilizes the Jewish community to take action for abortion access.

    Prior to coming to NCJW, Shira was the Director of Youth Leadership Development at the Religious Action Center of Reform Judaism (RAC). There, Shira led the L’Taken Social Justice Seminars; these high school leadership conferences–focused on advocacy, Jewish values, and the legislative process–bring 2,000 students to Washington D.C. each year to lobby their members of Congress. Over nearly eight years at the RAC, Shira transformed these seminars into the centerpiece of a leadership development pipeline to foster the next generation of Jewish social justice advocates. 

    Shira serves as president of the ARCH board, a local abortion fund serving patients seeking care in northern Virginia. When not getting into good trouble and fighting for a just world, Shira enjoys curating feminist yard signs for her front lawn, listening to news and politics podcasts, and working on seasonal craft projects–preferably with her two young kids.

    The post Seekers of Meaning 5/3/2024: Shira Zemel, National Council of Jewish Women, on Reproductive Freedom appeared first on Jewish Sacred Aging.

    3 May 2024, 12:00 pm
  • 44 minutes 11 seconds
    Seekers of Meaning 4/26/2024: Rabbi Ammiel Hirsch discusses 2024 RE-Charging Reform Conference

    On this week’s episode of the Seekers of Meaning TV Show and Podcast, Rabbi Ammiel Hirsch, senior rabbi of the Stephen Wise Free Synagogue in New York, discusses the upcoming second annual Re-Charging Reform conference, being held at the synagogue May 29-30.

    The conference expects to consider these key topics:

    • Israel’s and world Jewry’s confidence in the importance of the Zionist enterprise and its most basic promise — to protect the lives, liberty and dignity of Jews;
    • Our liberal values and examine the partnerships we’ve spent decades building in pursuit of social justice;
    • Liturgy and spirituality, anchoring them to eloquent expressions of Jewish peoplehood and a yearning for Zion; and
    • Educational models that guide the next generation in valuing the significance of Israel and the Jewish people to our identity as Reform Jews.

    Seekers of Meaning TV Show and Podcast Now Available on Roku Streaming Service

    You can add the Jewish Sacred Aging TV channel to your Roku streaming subscription by visiting this page: https://channelstore.roku.com/details/600964/jewish-sacred-aging.

    You can also watch this week’s show in the player below. The shows now include closed-captioning for the deaf or people with a hearing loss. Click the “CC” button on the video player to activate closed-captions.

    Listen to the Audio Podcast

    You can listen to the audio podcast version in the player below, or subscribe to the podcast in one of the popular platforms by clicking one of the buttons below the player.

    About the Guest

    Shahar Azan Photo

    Rabbi Ammiel Hirsch

    Rabbi Ammiel Hirsch is the senior rabbi of Stephen Wise Free Synagogue in New York City. With a fiery voice, a listening heart and a brilliant mind, Rabbi Hirsch articulates a clear vision for the survival and success of American Judaism while tending compassionately to the needs of his growing congregation.

    Internationally recognized for his leadership in Jewish affairs, Rabbi Hirsch is frequently cited in the media. In 2018, The Jerusalem Post named him among “The 50 Most Influential Jews of the Year.” City & State praised him as “the borough’s most influential voice” for Manhattan’s more than 300,000 Jews and The New York Observer named him among “New York’s Most Influential Religious Leaders.”

    The son of Rabbi Richard G. Hirsch z’’l and Bella Hirsch z’’l, Rabbi Ammiel Hirsch grew up in the Washington, D.C., metropolitan area before moving to Israel for his high school years. From 1977 to 1980, he served as a tank commander in the Israel Defense Forces.

    Rabbi Hirsch earned his LL.B Honors law degree from the London School of Economics and is a member of the New York State Bar. He received his ordination at the Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion in New York City, where he was granted numerous awards for academic excellence.

    Prior to his arrival at Stephen Wise, he served for 12 years as executive director of the Association of Reform Zionists of America (ARZA), the Israel arm of the North American Reform movement.

    Rabbi Hirsch has served on numerous boards of national and international bodies, including the Jewish Agency for Israel, the World Zionist Organization, the Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations, and the Central Conference of American Rabbis. He is currently an officer of the New York Board of Rabbis, and a member of the Partnership of Faith, an interfaith body of New York religious leaders, and New York State Attorney General Letitia James’ Black-Jewish Clergy Roundtable.

    An accomplished teacher and public speaker, Rabbi Hirsch is also the co-author of the acclaimed One People Two Worlds: A Reform Rabbi and an Orthodox Rabbi Explore the Issues that Divide Them.

    The post Seekers of Meaning 4/26/2024: Rabbi Ammiel Hirsch discusses 2024 RE-Charging Reform Conference appeared first on Jewish Sacred Aging.

    26 April 2024, 12:00 pm
  • 17 minutes 8 seconds
    Seekers of Meaning 4/19/2024: A Passover Message from Rabbi Address

    On this week’s episode of the Seekers of Meaning TV Show and Podcast, Rabbi Address offers a Pesach message and some questions for conversation around the Passover table.

    Seekers of Meaning TV Show and Podcast Now Available on Roku Streaming Service

    You can add the Jewish Sacred Aging TV channel to your Roku streaming subscription by visiting this page: https://channelstore.roku.com/details/600964/jewish-sacred-aging.

    You can also watch this week’s show in the player below. The shows now include closed-captioning for the deaf or people with a hearing loss. Click the “CC” button on the video player to activate closed-captions.

    Listen to the Audio Podcast

    You can listen to the audio podcast version in the player below, or subscribe to the podcast in one of the popular platforms by clicking one of the buttons below the player.

    The post Seekers of Meaning 4/19/2024: A Passover Message from Rabbi Address appeared first on Jewish Sacred Aging.

    19 April 2024, 12:00 pm
  • 37 minutes 18 seconds
    Seekers of Meaning 4/12/2024: Rabbi Peter Kasdan and Dr. Liz Etkin-Kramer from Yodeah.org, providing genetic cancer counseling for Jewish families

    On this week’s episode of the Seekers of Meaning TV Show and Podcast, Rabbi Peter Kasdan and Dr. Liz Etkin-Kramer discuss Yodeah.org, their online portal for genetic screening and counseling of Jewish families for the BRCA gene and other genetic markers for cancer risk.

    Ashkenazi Jewish men and women are disproportionately more likely to carry hereditary genetic mutations that can markedly increase their lifetime risk of cancer. Most people are not aware, and most will not have a family history. Yodeah’s mission is to educate the Jewish community about hereditary cancer genetic mutations and provide access to affordable, clinical grade testing. Yodeah’s goal is to save lives. Knowledge is power. Knowledge saves lives.

    Seekers of Meaning TV Show and Podcast Now Available on Roku Streaming Service

    You can add the Jewish Sacred Aging TV channel to your Roku streaming subscription by visiting this page: https://channelstore.roku.com/details/600964/jewish-sacred-aging.

    You can also watch this week’s show in the player below. The shows now include closed-captioning for the deaf or people with a hearing loss. Click the “CC” button on the video player to activate closed-captions.

    Listen to the Audio Podcast

    You can listen to the audio podcast version in the player below, or subscribe to the podcast in one of the popular platforms by clicking one of the buttons below the player.

    About the Guest

    Liz Etkin-Kramer, M.D., F.A.C.O.G.

    Dr Liz Etkin-Kramer is a board certified gynecologist in South Florida.

    In addition to her private practice, she is an assistant professor of obstetrics and gynecology at FIU Herbert Wertheim School of medicine and she holds leadership positions in Florida’s district XII of the American College of Obstetrics and Gynecology. She founded Yodeah.org, a nonprofit dedicated to educating the Jewish community on their increased risk of carrying hereditary cancer genetic mutations and facilitating cost effective genetic testing.

    With the late Lauren Corduck,  founder of One in Forty, she co-founded the Prevent Hereditary cancer coalition. In 2020 she was appointed to the American College of Obstetrics of gynecology presidential task force on knowledge gaps in breast and ovarian cancer risk assessment, management and genetic testing, and created educational videos for practicing OB/GYNs.

    She is passionate about breast and ovarian cancer risk assessment, early detection and prevention.

    RABBI PETER E. KASDAN

    Rabbi Peter E. Kasdan was named Rabbi Emeritus when he retired in July 2001, after serving as Rabbi of Temple Emanu-El of West Essex, Livingston, New Jersey, for thirty years. Known, most widely, for his social justice work, he helped create and was the first president of both the Livingston Interfaith Clergy Association and the Livingston Interfaith Council, as well as the Founding President of NJRC AR (the New Jersey Religious Coalition for Abortion Rights). Taking the title “Rabbi-teacher” seriously, he relished the time he spent working with the B’nai Mitzvah students, as well as with his students in the Confirmation/Post-Confirmation Program.  He also taught more than a dozen Adult B’nai Mitzvah classes, helping 187 Adults study in a two-year cycle and enabling them to reach that unique moment in their Jewish lives that, as children, for whatever the reason, they never had the chance to attain.

    Since his retirement, Rabbi Kasdan has remained quite active in a variety of endeavors in which he remains passionate:  in the search for social justice, continuing his life-long efforts on behalf of the migrant worker community, specifically his support of, and personal friendship with the late Cesar Chavez and the multi-generations of the Chavez-Rodriguez family; in the growth and achievement of our children through his support  of NFTY, JFTY’s Urban Mitzvah Corps and the URJ’s Kutz Camp; in his bond with K’lal Yisraeyl, supportive of the welfare of the People and State of Israel, especially through the survival of the Ethiopian Jewish community now living in Israel. He served on the Commission of Social Action of Reform Judaism, on the board of ARZA / World Union, North American Board, as President (and now President Emeritus) of the Scholarship Fund for Ethiopian Jews, and as the Rabbinic Advisor of the Jewish Genetic Disease Consortium, the Canavan Foundation as chair of The Central Conference of American Rabbi’s Taskforce on Jewish Genetic Disease. He was the recipient of the UAHC’s Fund for Reform Judaism Distinguished Service Award, a NFTY Life Membership awarded in 1984 and, in 2007,  he was awarded the Central Conference of American Rabbi’s Rabbi Samuel Cook Award for Lifetime Service to Youth Work and, as he retired, Temple Emanu-El awarded him the Temple Emanu-El 2001 Shofar Award for his life-long work in the area of Social Justice and Tikkun Olam.

    Rabbi Kasdan and his wife Sheila have lived in Longboat Key, Florida since 2002. There he continues his life-long service to both the Jewish and general community.  He is Past-Chair of  the Longboat Key Policeman’s Pension Board and currently serves as Secretary of the Longboat Key Consolidated Pension Board and, because of Florida State requirements, is now a Certified Public Pension Trustee.  He served as President of his condo association and currently serves on the Bioethics Committee of the Sarasota Memorial Hospital.  He also serves as Chair of the Speakers Committee at his and Sheila’s local congregation, Temple Beth Israel of Longboat Key.

    The post Seekers of Meaning 4/12/2024: Rabbi Peter Kasdan and Dr. Liz Etkin-Kramer from Yodeah.org, providing genetic cancer counseling for Jewish families appeared first on Jewish Sacred Aging.

    12 April 2024, 12:00 pm
  • 41 minutes 4 seconds
    ENCORE BROADCAST: Seekers of Meaning 3/8/2024: Bill Fisher discusses Medical Assistance in Dying (MAID)

    On this week’s ENCORE broadcast of the Seekers of Meaning TV Show and Podcast, South Jersey resident Bill Fisher discusses his wife Carol’s terminal illness and decision to use New Jersey’s Medical Assistance in Dying (MAID) option.

    Carol had been a nationally recognized book editor until her retirement in 2016. (You can read her obituary in the Philadelphia Inquirer here.)

    Their lives took a dramatic change back in fall 2016, when Carol was diagnosed with brain cancer. Luckily Carol was able to take advantage of a clinical trial at Jefferson Hospital in Philadelphia. She responded well to the experimental vaccine which kept her cancer in check for 7 years. Less than 10% of patients with this form of cancer ever survive this long.

    However, in the past year, the Carol’s cancer re-emerged and difficult decisions needed to be considered for the final months of Carol’s life.

    Luckily Carol’s faith and support from medical professionals, family and friends helped Carol and Bill navigate the difficult decisions necessary in participating in New Jersey’s Medical Aid in Dying (MAID) program.

    With a diagnosis of less than 6 months to live and diminishing functionality, Carol chose to end her life in the comfort of her own home in the presence of her family. 

    Seekers of Meaning TV Show and Podcast Now Available on Roku Streaming Service

    You can add the Jewish Sacred Aging TV channel to your Roku streaming subscription by visiting this page: https://channelstore.roku.com/details/600964/jewish-sacred-aging.

    You can also watch this week’s show in the player below. The shows now include closed-captioning for the deaf or people with a hearing loss. Click the “CC” button on the video player to activate closed-captions.

    Listen to the Audio Podcast

    You can listen to the audio podcast version in the player below, or subscribe to the podcast in one of the popular platforms by clicking one of the buttons below the player.

    About the Guest

    Bill Fisher

    Bill Fisher is a retired real estate executive who was trained as an architect and spent most of his professional life managing the planning, design and construction of commercial, industrial and medical buildings in the mid-Atlantic and Southwest United States and London, England. He currently resides in South Jersey where he and his wife, Carol Fisher raised their two children Haddon and Lauren.

    The post ENCORE BROADCAST: Seekers of Meaning 3/8/2024: Bill Fisher discusses Medical Assistance in Dying (MAID) appeared first on Jewish Sacred Aging.

    5 April 2024, 12:00 pm
  • 37 minutes 18 seconds
    Seekers of Meaning 3/29/2024: Rabbi Joel Soffin, author of “The Mitzvah on Your Forehead”

    On this week’s episode of the Seekers of Meaning TV Show and Podcast, Rabbi Joel Soffin discusses his new book, The Mitzvah on Your Forehead: A Rabbi’s Journey to Improve the World.

    In The Mitzvah on Your Forehead, Rabbi Joel E. Soffin presents life stories that invite the reader to follow his journey as he shares his experiences and insights into family, community, and social action worldwide. Luminaries in the Jewish world as well as inspirational leaders from all walks of life provide commentary on each of his essays. From discussing personal ethical decisions to relating experiences such as those with Rwandan genocide widows and Ethiopian Jewish immigrants, the stories and essays in this book are thought-provoking, entertaining, and inspirational. Rabbi Soffin contends that each one of us has a unique mitzvah “on our forehead,” a special calling or ability to make life better for others. Here, you’ll discover many of them and perhaps, ultimately, your own. In a world where there is so much chaos and pain, this book is a helpful reminder that we all, both individually and collectively, can find ways to be of service in making the world a better place.

    Seekers of Meaning TV Show and Podcast Now Available on Roku Streaming Service

    You can add the Jewish Sacred Aging TV channel to your Roku streaming subscription by visiting this page: https://channelstore.roku.com/details/600964/jewish-sacred-aging.

    You can also watch this week’s show in the player below. The shows now include closed-captioning for the deaf or people with a hearing loss. Click the “CC” button on the video player to activate closed-captions.

    Listen to the Audio Podcast

    You can listen to the audio podcast version in the player below, or subscribe to the podcast in one of the popular platforms by clicking one of the buttons below the player.

    About the Guest

    Rabbi Joel E. Soffin

    Rabbi Joel E. Soffin has been a life-long social activist, addressing the needs of the poor and the vulnerable in many places around the world. He initially studied economics and has a PhD pending at Yale.

    In 1971, he began his studies for the rabbinate at Hebrew Union College – Jewish Institute of Religion in New York City where he was ordained in 1976. Three years later, he became the Rabbi of Temple Shalom in Succasunna, NJ. While there, he developed a long series of social action projects, rescuing and resettling Vietnamese boat people and Soviet Refuseniks, supporting the Argentinian Jewish community of Mendoza and the Zvenigorodka community of Ukraine and providing over a million meals to Ethiopian Jewish children waiting to make aliyah to Israel.

    Rabbi Soffin also created the Adult Mitzvah Corps of the Reform Movement and the teen Bonim Banim – Building Youth projects, organizing weeks of Jewish Religious Living in New Orleans and several other American cities, including home building and restoration projects.

    Upon his retirement from Temple Shalom in 2006, generous donors enabled him to create Jewish Helping Hands to continue his important social action work around the world, especially in East Africa and Israel. He often serves as a teacher, mentor and Scholar-in-Residence. 

    He has been at the Barnert Temple in Franklin Lakes, NJ, since 2006, serving as Sabbatical Rabbi, Torah and Talmud teacher.

    In his recent book, The Mitzvah on Your Forehead, he and some of his fellow travelers reflect on his personal and professional experiences and the lessons he has learned along the way. . Rabbi Soffin attributes his passion for social action and all of Jewish life to his mother, Sarah Soffin, may she rest in peace. He has been married to Sandy for more than fifty-five years. They have two sons and six grandchildren.

    The post Seekers of Meaning 3/29/2024: Rabbi Joel Soffin, author of “The Mitzvah on Your Forehead” appeared first on Jewish Sacred Aging.

    29 March 2024, 12:00 pm
  • 28 minutes 30 seconds
    Seekers of Meaning 3/22/2024: Linda Fodrini-Johnson, author of “The Empowered Caregiver”

    On this week’s episode of the Seekers of Meaning TV Show and Podcast, Linda Fodrini-Johnson, author of The Empowered Caregiver: Practical Advice and Emotional Support for Adult Children of Aging Parents, discusses strategies for families to engage in elder care discussions and decision-making.

    Taking responsibility for the healthcare, safety, and financial affairs of our parents as they near the end of their life is an immense undertaking and comes with challenges, logistics, and stresses that we don’t always know how to navigate. We want to provide the best care we can and make the right decisions for our parents, but we need tips, tools, and education around this and help and encouragement as we do it. The Empowered Caregiver is a pocket support guide specifically designed to provide you with strategies and solutions for caring for your aging parents. It offers useful interventions to frame your thinking, help you manage difficult situations, and reduce your stress as your parents decline and need greater assistance.

    Seekers of Meaning TV Show and Podcast Now Available on Roku Streaming Service

    You can add the Jewish Sacred Aging TV channel to your Roku streaming subscription by visiting this page: https://channelstore.roku.com/details/600964/jewish-sacred-aging.

    You can also watch this week’s show in the player below. The shows now include closed-captioning for the deaf or people with a hearing loss. Click the “CC” button on the video player to activate closed-captions.

    Listen to the Audio Podcast

    You can listen to the audio podcast version in the player below, or subscribe to the podcast in one of the popular platforms by clicking one of the buttons below the player.

    About the Guest

    Linda Fodrini-Johnson

    Linda Fodrini-Johnson became a licensed family therapist and professional certified care manager in 1984, was president of the National Association of Professional Geriatric Care Managers—now called Aging Life Care Association—and founded Eldercare Services, a full-service care agency in the San Francisco Bay Area that provides care management, home care/caregiving services, advocacy, counseling, support groups and education. She was director of the Dementia Respite Center—one of the first in the San Francisco Bay Area—and pioneered the multi-award-winning Early Stage of Dementia Program.

    Her eldercare expertise has been featured in newspapers like the Contra Costa Times, East Bay Business Times and San Francisco Business Times as well as national magazines including Consumer Reports, Forbes, Kiplinger’s, USA Today and The Wall Street Journal.

    The post Seekers of Meaning 3/22/2024: Linda Fodrini-Johnson, author of “The Empowered Caregiver” appeared first on Jewish Sacred Aging.

    22 March 2024, 12:00 pm
  • 29 minutes 44 seconds
    Seekers of Meaning 3/15/2024: Rabbi Dayle Friedman on Alzheimer’s and Dementia Care

    On this week’s episode of the Seekers of Meaning TV Show and Podcast, Rabbi Dayle Friedman, founder and director of GrowingOlder.net, a resource website for seniors, discusses her practice in Alzheimer’s Disease and dementia care for elders.

    Seekers of Meaning TV Show and Podcast Now Available on Roku Streaming Service

    You can add the Jewish Sacred Aging TV channel to your Roku streaming subscription by visiting this page: https://channelstore.roku.com/details/600964/jewish-sacred-aging.

    You can also watch this week’s show in the player below. The shows now include closed-captioning for the deaf or people with a hearing loss. Click the “CC” button on the video player to activate closed-captions.

    Listen to the Audio Podcast

    You can listen to the audio podcast version in the player below, or subscribe to the podcast in one of the popular platforms by clicking one of the buttons below the player.

    About the Guest

    Rabbi Dayle Friedman

    Rabbi Dayle is a spiritual guide, social innovator, chaplain, and scholar. She has been a leader in the fields of spirituality and aging, pastoral care, and Jewish healing. She is currently Special Advisor for Member Support and Counseling for the Central Conference of American Rabbis.

    Her publications include Jewish Wisdom for Growing Older: Finding Your Grit and Grace Beyond Midlife, and Jewish End-of-Life Care in a Virtual Age: Our Traditions Reimagined, which she co-edited. Her first book, Jewish Pastoral Care: A Practical Handbook from Traditional and Contemporary Sources, is recognized as a foundational text for its field.

    Rabbi Dayle was ordained by HUC-JIR; she earned Masters’ degrees in Social Work and Jewish Communal Service from USC and HUC-LA. She trained as a spiritual director with Yedidya Center’s Moreh Derekh program, and as an interim clergy person with the Interim Ministry Network. Her work has been recognized with awards from the Forward, the American Society on Aging, and Neshama: Association of Jewish Chaplains.

    The post Seekers of Meaning 3/15/2024: Rabbi Dayle Friedman on Alzheimer’s and Dementia Care appeared first on Jewish Sacred Aging.

    15 March 2024, 12:00 pm
  • 41 minutes 4 seconds
    Seekers of Meaning 3/8/2024: Bill Fisher discusses Medical Assistance in Dying (MAID)

    On this week’s episode of the Seekers of Meaning TV Show and Podcast, South Jersey resident Bill Fisher discusses his wife Carol’s terminal illness and decision to use New Jersey’s Medical Assistance in Dying (MAID) option.

    Carol had been a nationally recognized book editor until her retirement in 2016. (You can read her obituary in the Philadelphia Inquirer here.)

    Their lives took a dramatic change back in fall 2016, when Carol was diagnosed with brain cancer. Luckily Carol was able to take advantage of a clinical trial at Jefferson Hospital in Philadelphia. She responded well to the experimental vaccine which kept her cancer in check for 7 years. Less than 10% of patients with this form of cancer ever survive this long.

    However, in the past year, the Carol’s cancer re-emerged and difficult decisions needed to be considered for the final months of Carol’s life.

    Luckily Carol’s faith and support from medical professionals, family and friends helped Carol and Bill navigate the difficult decisions necessary in participating in New Jersey’s Medical Aid in Dying (MAID) program.

    With a diagnosis of less than 6 months to live and diminishing functionality, Carol chose to end her life in the comfort of her own home in the presence of her family. 

    Seekers of Meaning TV Show and Podcast Now Available on Roku Streaming Service

    You can add the Jewish Sacred Aging TV channel to your Roku streaming subscription by visiting this page: https://channelstore.roku.com/details/600964/jewish-sacred-aging.

    You can also watch this week’s show in the player below. The shows now include closed-captioning for the deaf or people with a hearing loss. Click the “CC” button on the video player to activate closed-captions.

    Listen to the Audio Podcast

    You can listen to the audio podcast version in the player below, or subscribe to the podcast in one of the popular platforms by clicking one of the buttons below the player.

    About the Guest

    Bill Fisher

    Bill Fisher is a retired real estate executive who was trained as an architect and spent most of his professional life managing the planning, design and construction of commercial, industrial and medical buildings in the mid-Atlantic and Southwest United States and London, England. He currently resides in South Jersey where he and his wife, Carol Fisher raised their two children Haddon and Lauren.

    The post Seekers of Meaning 3/8/2024: Bill Fisher discusses Medical Assistance in Dying (MAID) appeared first on Jewish Sacred Aging.

    8 March 2024, 1:05 pm
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