Community brings book club to Country Meadows

Jewish Family Service held the inaugural Country Meadows Book Club in partnership with Temple Beth El Sisterhood and the Hadassah Study Group on June 7.

Organizers Marilyn Claire and Gail Eisenberg had reached out to Jennifer Oxfeld, volunteer coordinator for JFS, to organize the program with Country Meadows. As enthusiasm grew, Beth Kozinn and Margie Strauss came on board as volunteers.

The short story “Second Blood: A Rosh Hashonoh Story” by Jo Sinclair was distributed to participants prior to the meeting. Country Meadows invited Jewish residents to come for an afternoon of community and friendship.

Eight residents attended, all of whom read the story in anticipation of the meeting. Oxfeld gave a brief introduction about how the book club came to be, then turned the program over to volunteer facilitator Maxine Klein.

To provide context for the story, Klein shared a brief biography of the author, a Jewish woman born in Brooklyn in 1913. A discussion of the story followed, focusing on the characters and relationships, and how the themes resonated with the participants. Following the discussion, Country Meadows provided refreshments.

“I was so happy to help coordinate this program with our community partners for the residents of Country Meadows,” said Oxfeld. “From the staff of Country Meadows to the volunteers who help keep our community connected, the program was a win.”

“We have individuals who have been active in the book club and study group for years, who now have challenges attending our meetings,” said Claire. “So, why not bring the book club to them?”