New Roles, New Journeys

By Anise Parnes, WLCJ Consulting Services Vice Chair

When spring arrives, I think “transitions.” I think of school graduations and commencements. June brides and grooms. New jobs. New journeys. It’s the time of year when I moved more times than I can count. It’s when I changed professional positions a number of times. It’s when I joined a volunteer board for the first time. It’s when I became a Sisterhood leader. It’s when I joined my Women’s League Region Board.

As my Sisterhood and Women’s League experiences developed, “sisters journeying together” best described the women I met and bonded with as I made connections within my Sisterhood community, my Women’s League Region and throughout the entire organization.

For me, the epitome of “sisters journeying together” began the first week in June, nine years ago, when I met a number of inspiring women from throughout the continent, and became a member of a cohort who attended Region Torah Fund Vice President training in New York City. During a three-year term, we supported one another as we worked towards goals, negotiated challenges and celebrated our accomplishments. Many of us continued our journey, together, becoming part of a new cohort who met the first week in June, in New York City, three years later, this time as newly installed Region Presidents. Tasked with a new set of goals, we continued to support one another as we navigated newer challenges and marked newer achievements. We reunited in person, last summer during Convention, and shared the excitement of continuing to journey together as members of our newest cohort, in our newest leadership roles, addressing our newest challenges and looking forward to future successes. 

Along the way, we’ve dined and danced together, traveled for pleasure together, celebrated simchas together, and shared hardships and sorrows together. We are sisters who have been journeying together! 

For the last few weeks, I’ve been thinking about the newest cohorts of Region Torah Fund Vice Presidents and Region Presidents who visited New York City for training this week. Their journey together has just begun. I hope it’s fulfilling and enriching, and that they’re able to nurture meaningful relationships as sisters journeying together!

Shabbat shalom!

Anise Parnes
aparnes@wlcj.org
WLCJ Consulting Services Vice Chair