We are proud to work with dozens of partner organizations. We cannot do this work alone. We rely on our partnership to support our communities and improve the lives of women, children and families.

NCJW Chicago North Shore Coalition Partnership Leads

• Reproductive Health Access Coalition: Sarah Hirsen, Laura Welch, Diane Schaar, Jill Lexier
• Promote the Vote IL: Jill Lexier, Jan Schwartz
• Promote Equity IL: Carole Levine, Jan Schwartz
• One Aim (Gun Violence Prevention): Zehava Frankel
• Illinois Alliance to Prevent Gun Violence: Bev Copeland, Holly Smith
• Chicago Jews for Refugees Coalition: Elena Morone
• Courts Matter IL: Carole Levine
• IL Healthy Youth Act Coalition: Jill Lexier, Diane Schaar
• Equity Illinois: Shoshana Frank
• League of Women Voters: Beth Najberg, Sarah Hirsen
• Time to Care Coalition: Diane Schaar
• NOW: Laura Welch
• Compassion and Choices: Amy Sherman
• Illinois Families for Public School: Jill Lexier
• Keeping Youth Safe and Healthy Coalition: Jill Lexier, Diane Schaar
• Racist Free Schools: Jan Schwartz

We are proud of our NCJW Advocates, Board Members and Committee Chairs who have a wealth of knowledge on specific topics like Reproductive Health, Gun Violence Prevention, Policy Work, etc.  To request a speaker at an upcoming event, please email us at [email protected]

Honor the 2024 NCJW Chicago North Shore Awardees by making a gift today! To purchase tickets please see this page.

NCJW Chicago North Shore is proud to have Sheila Katz as our keynote speaker for the upcoming Awards Dinner where we will be Celebrating Women Advocates who will be honored for their work in strengthening our rights and fighting for democracy.

Sheila Katz is the CEO of National Council of Jewish Women (NCJW), a 130-year-old Jewish feminist civil rights organization with over 210,000 advocates working for the full equity and safety of women, children, and families in the United States and Israel.

Through meaningful education, strategic advocacy and partnering with 50 local NCJW sections in direct service, Sheila works to empower Jewish women and allies to engage in work that impacts those at the margins of society while centering the most impacted through partnerships and coalitions.

Under Sheila’s leadership, NCJW has responded to threats to abortion access, voting rights, childcare access, equal pay, and other issues of equity through protest, advocacy and new campaigns making it clear where Jewish women and allies stand on the most important issues of the day.

You can watch Sheila speak here

Sheila spearheaded the creation of Jews for Abortion Access, engaging more than 2.5 million people taking action. She also launched Rabbis for Repro, a network of more than 2,500 rabbis across every denomination teaching about reproductive freedom and Judaism.

Prior to NCJW, Sheila was the vice president of student engagement and leadership at Hillel International, the largest Jewish on-campus community in the world. In her 12 years at Hillel, she founded programs to expand student participation in Jewish and civic life including Ask Big Questions, an award-winning national initiative to guide diverse students in meaningful conversations, and MitzVote, Hillel’s successful non-partisan civic engagement campaign. Sheila was recently named as one of the top 10 faith influencers by Religion News Service and as one of the 50 most influential Jews in the world by the Jerusalem Post. In 2022, Sheila was the commencement speaker for her alma mater Ithaca College. She currently sits on the board of governors of Tel Aviv University.

Beverly Copeland’s favorite adage is, “Everybody’s got power, so use your power to make a difference.” Beverly has put that into action her entire life.

NCJW Chicago North Shore is honored to present longtime NCJW Chicago North Shore member, Beverly Copeland, with the 2024 Innovative Leadership Award. Beverly’s connections to NCJW began when she was introduced to our sex trafficking program. She immediately connected to NCJW because it was so involved in the many issues she cares about and does so with an action-oriented approach. She knows that everything and anything that you do makes a difference, and she continues to inspire others. Beverly doesn’t stop at starting a project. She quietly has worked on projects from inception to flourishing, and keeps projects going until they’re integrated into the community.

A native of Oak Park, Beverly’s foray into activism began when she became aware of social injustice. She joined the Junior National Council of Christians and Jews, while attending Oak Park River Forest High School. Later, She attended rallies for reproductive rights and welcomed home veterans of the Viet Nam war. When her four children were in school, she attended a local Brandeis University’s enrichment class on Contemporary Glass to view local collections. People said, “we want to learn more!” Beverly’s response was a  newsletter, Glass Focus: Your Window into the Glass World, that grew into an international quarterly, 20-plus page periodical.

When the Beverly’s daughter, Erin, tragically died in an automobile accident in 1993, Beverly needed to do something to assuage the pain of her great loss. Erin had always been an avid reader. Inspired by Erin’s love of books, she and her husband, Sheldon, founded the Erin Copeland Building Minds with Books Project, which is on-going. For over 28 years, books have been purchased with generous donations. On Erin’s birthday, the Copeland’s opened their home to the community to celebrate. She and Sheldon, helped by family and friends, then process and bring books to under-served communities, including schools, Juvenile Detention Facilities, organizations that assist children and families, etc. Think of the thousands of children who’ve been inspired thanks to this project!

The tragedy of Sandy Hook impacted Beverly’s deeply and renewed the pain and suffering she witnessed in her own family, the loss of a beloved family member and the brokenness they felt. She decided to turn her attention to preventing gun violence and saving children’s lives. She met Denyse Wang Stoneback, who later served as an Illinois State Representative.  Denyse started, a grassroots, anti-gun violence organization in 2013, People for a Safer Society. Beverly was a founding board member. She used her skills to help educate and involve others to advocate for gun safety laws. Beverly is the NCJW Policy Committee Lead on Gun Violence  to People For A Safer Society, the Illinois Alliance to Prevent Gun Violence, Honor with Action, and Jewish Women International. Her other priorities continue to focus on her commitment to women’s issues, including bodily autonomy and seeing the ERA passed, as well as issues concerning Racial & Social Justice and  Equality, Diversity, and Inclusion.

For decades, Beverly’s work has been a catalyst to all of us to get involved and make a difference as a team, particularly in the area of gun violence, both in our section and in the community. Thank you Beverly! You are a paragon of leadership. 

Are you concerned about book banning and censorship in public and school libraries?

Learn from a panel of experts what actions you can take right now to protect intellectual freedom in your community.

Sign up to join this free webinar on Tuesday, October 25, 2022, from 7 to 8:30 p.m.
https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_NXJlTn__QIKzWu_o5RH4fA

Co-sponsored by AAUW Naperville Area, LWV of Naperville, NCJW Chicago North Shore and IL NOW.

Speakers

Dominique Raccah

Publisher and CEO @Sourcebooks, Inc.

Dominique Raccah is the publisher and CEO of Sourcebooks, the company she founded in 1987. Widely recognized as a leader in innovation, Dominique was named Publishers Weekly’s Person of the Year in 2016. Sourcebooks proudly publishes an array of new, diverse voices, many of which are regularly banned and challenged across the U.S. for their thought-provoking content that challenges norms and changes lives. Sourcebooks produces everything from adult and teen fiction to children’s books, college guides, calendars and more. The company has over 200 employees and is proud to be one of the top book publishers in America, with numerous bestsellers to its credit. It is the largest woman-owned book publisher in the country and the largest trade book publisher in Chicago.

Barbara Posinger

Director @Sandwich (IL) Public Library District

Barbara Posinger, director of the Sandwich Public Library District, has served a total of seven years at the Sandwich Library and is going on year four as director. She received her Master’s in Library & Information Science (MLIS) from Dominican University in 2015. As a lifelong lover of books, libraries have been a consistent source of passion and joy for Barbara. She delights in building relationships with the Sandwich community, thoroughly enjoys participating in lively and eye-opening conversations about novels, and along with her remarkable team, dedicates herself to doing everything she can to help the library grow.

Dr. Kristina Weber

Intellectual Freedom Chair @Association of Illinois School Library Educators (AISLE)

Dr. Kristina Weber is the school librarian at Hampshire (IL) High School, and has 18 years of teaching experience. She serves as AISLE’s Intellectual Freedom Chair, as a member of AASL/ALA’s School/Public Library Cooperation Committee, and as President of the Fox River Valley Public Library District’s Board of Trustees. She holds a Ph.D. in Instructional Technology from Northern Illinois University. Dr. Weber lives in the northwest suburbs of Chicago with her husband, two sons, and their Shih Tzu, Bowie.

Kerry Clemm

Marketing Manager @Anderson’s Bookshop

Kerry Clemm is the marketing manager at Anderson’s Bookshop in Naperville, Illinois. Anderson’s is a popular independent bookseller with several stores in the western suburbs of Chicago. When not chasing three kids and running author events, she is incredibly passionate about the topic of book banning. Kerry has created several viral social media campaigns around the topic.

Shoshana Frank

Moderator

Shoshana Frank is a librarian and the Assistant Director of Administration & Events at a community center. When she is not reviewing for Booklist, Shoshana is busy creating a wide array of engaging programs. A huge audiophile, Shoshana loves bringing new listeners into the fold and discussing all things books! She has a B.S. in Air Traffic Management, an M.A. in International Public Policy & Conflict Resolution, an MLIS, and was named a 2022 ALA Emerging Leader. Outside of work, Shoshana is an avid community volunteer and organizational leader. She enjoys going on adventures around the world and one day hopes to visit all seven continents.

Thank you for registering to host a letter writing party during this critical time in America.

During these unprecedented times, our votes are are voices.  The 2022 Election will shape our lives, just as every other election in the past has.  NCJW Chicago North Shore will never stop fighting for the rights of women, children and families.  Thank you for helping us recruit others to Vote and speak up.

Here are the pdf’s needed to help you host.

Letter-Writing-Party

vote forward example

Donations to sponsor Staff Lunch volunteers

In response to the tragic Fourth of July Parade, Highland Park is setting up a Resource Navigation Center. Donation lunches are needed for the volunteer staff (15 people) while they do so.

NCJW Gives Back will be providing lunches from Curt’s Café on August 2nd.

Thank you for your generous donations! We exceeded our monetary request and were also able to give a donation to the Highland Park Community Foundation’s Shooting Response Fund

NCJW CNS has purchased a block of tickets for the Sunday, July 10th, 2:00 PM show

$45 price per ticket – proceeds go to benefit the Chicago Abortion Fund (CAF).

BYLAWS OF THE NATIONAL COUNCIL OF JEWISH WOMEN
CHICAGO NORTH SHORE SECTION, INC.
Last Revised and approved by NCJW, Inc. January 2022
ORGANIZED AND INCORPORATED UNDER THE LAWS OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS
(August,1951)

The NCJW Chicago North Shore Section Bylaws must be periodically reviewed. This year, a dedicated group of volunteers amended and updated our Bylaws. The proposed revisions to the Bylaws were approved by the NCJW, Inc. Committee on Bylaws and Policy & Procedures and approved by our Section’s Board of Directors. The final step is to present the revised Bylaws to the Section membership for approval.

Only members in good standing can vote. Each member is allowed one vote.

Please note that if you choose not to vote, your vote will be counted as an affirmative vote. Votes must be submitted by June 10, 2022, at 12:00pm.

Read our revised Bylaws here: NCJW CNS Bylaws 2022 – 2025 for membership vote 52422-1

To vote, click on the link: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSf3jqt3NI1fULAW2x5HwjT9091JABH2pO5HIFK3B-Gq3lwwJA/viewform?usp=sf_link