 L.A. Teen Co-Hosts New Radio Show with her Mom: “The Chelsea and Lisa Show,” with Guests, Live on Global Internet Radio, Tues., 10/17, 4:00 pm PST
Los Angeles, CA (PRWEB) October 15, 2006 Chelsea, 14, is a busy eighth grader at a prestigious all-girls school in Los Angeles. Having recently launched her own radio program, she is combining schoolwork, sports, and producing the next installment of “The Chelsea and Lisa Show.”
Sitting across from her in studio as co-host is her mother, children’s book author Lisa Dunn-Dern. The two have developed a unique format for the show, dealing with subjects of interest to both young teens and their parents, with viewpoints – some different, some the same – expressed by both generations. The one-hour live program features both teenage and adult guests, plus a special feature, the monthly “Hit List.” Listen at http://www.globaltalkradio.com, Tuesday, October 17, 4:00 p.m. Pacific Standard Time.
Kids are notoriously self-centered. How can parents get them to be generous to others? What kinds of giving experiences help youngsters focus on the needs of others and how they can help? How do you choose the charitable or philanthropic activity that’s best for you and your family? In Tuesday’s segment, titled “Give Till It Hurts: The Joys of Philanthropy,” three guests will share their experiences with kid-oriented giving.
Lisa Bittan is on the board of The Riviera Foundation, formed four years ago by several Riviera Tennis Club members to provide tennis opportunities for disadvantaged youth in the Los Angeles area. Throughout the year, the Foundation funds tennis clinics and instruction for kids who could not afford private lessons in the lush setting of the country club. Throughout the Foundations programs and activities, hundreds of children have been introduced to tennis, according to Bittan. “We are opening the doors for many of these kids – to lifelong fitness, social, college and even potential employment opportunities,” she says. Another Foundation goal is to get the Westside community of Los Angeles – particularly children and teens – more active in this community service program.
When the Barta sisters of Los Angeles were cleaning out their outgrown children’s videos, Marni Barta recalled how, a few years earlier, a friend who was being treated for leukemia watched videos in the hospital to pass the time. Marni and her three sisters delivered their videos to the Pediatric Oncology department at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, where their friend had been treated. The reaction was astounding. In fact, they were told that “movies are the first thing kids ask for when they are in the hospital.”
As students in Hebrew School, they were taught about “mitzvot” (good deeds) and “tzedakah” (charity) and learned from their parents that the Jewish community takes care of those in need. The sisters decided to collect as many videos as possible and donate them. They named their new organization Kid Flicks. To date, they have donated over 6000 movies to 60-plus hospitals across the US – with the end nowhere in sight. Each hospital receives a 100-video “movie library” of films appeaingl to both boys and girls from toddlers to age 18.
About Chelsea: At the ripe age of 14, Chelsea has many accomplishments to be proud of. An eighth-grader at a leading all-girls school in Los Angeles, her favorite subjects are history and math. Discovered by a top modeling agency at age nine on the beach at Martha’s Vineyard, Massachusetts, Chelsea set aside her burgeoning after-school career in front of the cameras because the auditions conflicted with her team’s basketball practice. Coming from a family with a strong tradition of philanthropy, Chelsea finds many ways to be of service to others. For example, immediately after Hurricane Katrina, Chelsea spearheaded a drive to collect enough bottled formula and diapers for 100 babies and brought it to a truck leaving for New Orleans. Finding herself among dozens of contributors being turned away because the truck was full, she found a secret way to get close to the driver and persuaded him to load the baby goods on the truck.
About Lisa: If there’s a faint glow around Lisa Dunn-Dern, it might be because she has so many irons in the fire. Wife, mother, theater director, writer, and passionate advocate for children’s learning and literature, Dunn-Dern has been a TV series writer, has produced and directed large-scale children’s theater productions in Los Angeles, and is the author of a series of children’s books, the second of which will be published this October. Dunn-Dern’s commitment to children’s learning and literature has been recognized with awards and an endowment in her name at Seeds/UES, the laboratory elementary school on the UCLA campus. Her unique, upbeat outlook and parenting style are sure to become a favorite with listeners.
Listen to the show Tuesday, October 17, 4:00 p.m. PST, at http://www.globaltalkradio.com. To contact Chelsea or Lisa, write to derngoodbooks @ aol.com. Upcoming monthly segments will be announced.
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Judaism 2.0 – A New Generation of Synagogue Websites
Greenfield, MA (PRWEB) August 3, 2009 In past generations, the synagogue building served as the physical, social, spiritual and educational hub of a Jewish community. Today, interactive websites are fulfilling some of those purposes and helping an increasing number of synagogues to facilitate 21st-century kinds of connections, from the rabbi to members, from members to members, from members to their Jewish faith and from the synagogue community to the larger interfaith community.
According to Tamar Schanfeld, director of Shofarsites.com, a company that specializes in creating websites for Jewish organizations, interactive features including videos, blogs, participatory forums, member pages, audio downloads, newsletter subscriptions, community calendars and newsfeeds, along with the ability to accept online donations and membership payments, all become manageable for the typical synagogue because of a content management system that requires little or no technical knowledge to update.
The company works with clients in New York State, California and throughout New England, representing a range of denominations.
“With the sites we create, the Rabbi can provide his Dvar Torah, his weekly talk on the Torah portion, online either as text or a podcast,” says Schanfeld. “The Hebrew School can list special events and enable parents to register their children for it. Teenagers, who often drift away from congregations after their Bar or Bat Mitzvah, can connect with each other on the site’s teen forum. Congregation members and their extended family can come to the site and check Yahrzeit dates or when the candle lighting should take place on Friday night.”
Schanfeld notes that Shofarsites.com is the only company specializing in interactive websites for synagogues using the Joomla! content management platform. With very little training, volunteers and staff members can easily upload, delete or change documents, pictures and other content on the synagogue website.
“Congregation Adath Israel in Middleton, Connecticut told us that the website we created for them was a tremendous asset in their successful recruitment of a new rabbi,” adds Schanfeld, “while Congregation Beth El in Norwalk, Connecticut is getting donations through their site.” Beth El’s site, created by Shofarsites.com, won a 2009 Solomon Schechter Silver Award from the United Synagogue of Conservative Judaism for excellence in the website category.
Synagogue packages from Shofarsites.com start at $ 2,500. The company provides a free initial consultation upon request and a free report, “11 Tips for a Great Synagogue Website,” at http://www.shofarsites.com.
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Teen Spirit: One World Many Paths, by Paul B. Raushenbush
(PRWEB) November 15, 2004 In a new book the author of the hugely popular beliefnet.com column “Ask Pastor Paul” takes teen readers on a hip, nonjudgmental tour of the world’s major religions.
Like friendship, sexuality, fashion and music, claiming a spiritual and religious identity is fundamental to the teen experience. With the turmoil in the Middle East and the rising popularity of evangelical Christianity, teens have more questions than ever about religious beliefs and seeking spiritual guidance. And that’s where “Pastor Paul” comes in.
Author Paul Rauschenbush’s popular beliefnet.com column “Ask Pastor Paul” answers teens’ questions about major religions and their influence in teens’ lives.
In his new book, Teen Spirit: One World, Many Paths (HCI Teens, HCI Books -$ 11.95), Pastor Paul uses teens’ letters and questions as springboards for greater exploration of the different religions teens encounter and how spiritual diversity effects their lives: be it on their sports teams, in their relationships, their friends’ homes, in the school cafeteria.
Teen Spirit is replete with basic tenets, celebrity testimonies, teens’ own stories on why they like practicing their particular religion, specific roles and rites of passage for young people, etiquette for how to behave when invited to an unfamiliar religious event, and more.
Also included are interviews with celebrities from diverse spiritual and religious backgrounds including Ja Rule, Hakeem Olajuwon, Adam Yauch, Christy Turlington, Moby and Bono, as they offer their own personal view of spirituality and religion.
From questions about traditions and conversion, to interfaith dating and tough times, Pastor Paul demystifies misperceptions and shows teens how to embrace and accept different religious beliefs while remaining faithful to their own core values.
“There are a lot of books for young people that concentrated exclusively on one faith tradition, but none that acknowledge that we are living in a pluralistic society and that young people want to know about the diverse traditions that exist side by side in America,” said Pastor Paul when asked what motivated him to write Teen Spirit.
“Often times teens are playing soccer on a team with people representing three or four different religions but they don’t know anything about each others traditions and are afraid to ask. I wanted to create a fun and cool way for young people to be able to learn about each other’s faiths. Ultimately, the reason I wrote this book was the real sense of need I got from the thousands of questions I have received from young people at my advice column Ask Pastor Paul on Beliefnet.com. There was clearly a lot of spiritual questions out there that needed some answers.”
When asked how he resolves his ordination as a Christian minister with his explicit acceptance of non-Christian faiths Pastor Paul responded: “Jesus calls me to love God and to love my neighbor  period. As I read the stories about Jesus, I see him reaching across boundaries to treat people with respect and love. In the story of the good Samaritan, Jesus himself uses someone different from his own Jewish tradition to exemplify what helping our neighbor really means. I look for ways to increase love and harmony among religious traditions and in doing so I believe I am fulfilling my work as a follower of Jesus. It is an added bonus that learning about other religions increases my own store of wisdom and inspiration.”
In a world fraught with religious tension and intolerance, Pastor Paul shines a guiding light for the next generation to encourage acceptance, understanding and cooperation.
About the author:
Paul B. Raushenbush is the Associate Dean of Religious Life at Princeton University. His work is focused on religious diversity on campus and supervising a multi-faith student organization called the Religious Life Council. Prior to this position, Paul was the Minister to Young Adults at The Riverside Church in New York City. He has established himself as an expert in the field of multi-faith advice for teens through his popular column, “Ask Pastor Paul: Spiritual Answers to the Multi-Faith World,” which appears on htttp://http://www.beliefnet.com.
To order directly from the publisher:
Telephone: (800) 441-5569 or online at:
http://www.hcibooks.com/book-description.asp?BookID=662 (trade) or http://tinyurl.com/6k96h (consumer)
ISBN: 0-7573-0119-3, Paperback, 252 pages, $ 11.95
Media Contact:
Kim Weiss (800) 851- 9100 x 212
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ChangeWorks Publishing Debuts Jewish Leader’s Guide for ‘Please Stop the Rollercoaster! How Parents of Teenagers Can Smooth Out the Ride’
Acton, MA (PRWEB) May 2, 2007 ChangeWorks Publishing, the publisher of the nationally acclaimed “Please Stop the Rollercoaster! How Parents of Teenagers Can Smooth Out the Ride” book for parents of teenagers, announced today the immediate availability of a Jewish leader’s companion guide to its parenting book. The Jewish Leader’s Guide for Please Stop the Rollercoaster! is designed for Jewish Schools, Synagogues and Parent Groups who want to discuss and learn about parenting teenagers within the context of the Jewish faith. (more info: http://www.PleaseStoptheRollercoaster.com).
Please Stop the Rollercoaster! How Parents of Teenagers Can Smooth Out the Ride is a guide for busy parents of teenagers who find themselves unsure of their changing role. Grounded in research, this book offers a wealth of practical, succinct information. It guides parents to examine and discuss the most important issues they are likely to face. The hands-on approach helps parents understand their developing adolescent. The Jewish Leader’s Guide for Please Stop the Rollercoaster! is coauthored by Sue Blaney and Robin Shiffrin M.S.ED., M.S. MFT , a Jewish Educator and practicing Family Therapist.
“The Judaic component to the program is exactly what parents of Jewish teens need in order to view the curriculum through a Jewish lens,” said Lisa Soble Siegmann, Associate Director of Jewish Experiences for Families/Informal Education with the Jewish Federation of Metropolitan Detroit. “Within the comfort of Jewish text, holiday and cultural experiences, parents will relate to the Jewish components while experiencing the secular. It is an excellent mix.”
“I saw that parents were often frustrated and lost dealing with their teens and hungry to talk with other parents. And there is no better place for parents to come together to get support for these issues than in their synagogue or Jewish school,” said Robin Shiffrin M.S.ED., M.S. MFT and coauthor of Please Stop The Rollercoaster! Jewish Leader’s Guide. “
Ms. Shiffrin, who has spent 18 years as the Education Director of a synagogue and is a practicing family therapist, continued, “I was drawn to the Please Stop the Rollercoaster! program because the materials are based on up-to-date research and offers the view that parents are the experts and have much to learn from one another.”
Set out in chapters that are organized as discussion sessions, the program provides a framework for parent discussion and learning, and provides Jewish text readings to deepen the Jewish context for each discussion. The program helps parents improve communication, understand “normal” adolescent behavior and examine their role in keeping kids safe from risky behavior. It guides parents to examine key issues before being faced with a crisis, to stop reacting and to learn how to be intentional in words and actions. Designed for typical families facing typical issues, it has been developed for parents raising teens in grades 6 – 11, and it helps parents and teens improve their relationships.
The program is comprised of eight two-hour meetings, although it can be run as a shorter program. Designed to be similar to a book group, participants utilize Please Stop the Rollercoaster! How Parents of Teenagers Can Smooth Out the Ride for course material while the discussion leader facilitates the discussion using the Jewish Leader’s Guide. Promotional materials are included with the Jewish Leader’s Guide to aid Jewish family educators and others in promoting the program. In addition, optional training is available for discussion leaders.
The introductory bundle price for the Jewish Leader’s Guide and a copy of Please Stop the Rollercoaster! is $ 59.00, with quantity discounts available for the Please Stop the Rollercoaster! books.
Detailed information and free excerpts are available at: http://www.PleaseStoptheRollercoaster.com
About ChangeWorks Publishing
Founded by Sue Blaney, ChangeWorks Publishing delivers programs and products that educate, empower and connect parents of teenagers and those who work with them. Sue Blaney is the author of the nationally acclaimed “Please Stop the Rollercoaster! How Parents of Teenagers Can Smooth Out the Ride,” a parent discussion group program in a book. Additionally, Changeworks Publishing has developed corresponding Leader’s Guides for parents and professionals who run secular, Christian and Jewish “Rollercoaster Parenting Groups” across the United States. Other “rollercoaster” programs include tele-seminars, leader training and a parenting blog at http://www.PleaseStoptheRollercoaster.com. As a communications specialist and the parent of two teenagers, Ms. Blaney speaks frequently to parents, educators, and other professionals about parenting issues, improving communications, increasing parent involvement and creating parent discussion groups.
For further information contact Sue Blaney at 978-264-0692 or 1-800-234-2150
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Teen Dating Violence Dating violence is a pattern of abusive behaviors that one person uses to have control in a relationship with someone else. The abuser uses feelings of fear, humiliation, and degradation to control the other person. Abuse is not limited to physical abuse. Types of abuse include physical abuse, sexual abuse, emotional abuse, verbal abuse, psychological abuse, spiritual abuse, and financial abuse. Any of these types of abuse can create an unhealthy and/or violent relationship. Victims and abusers can be anybody. Statistically, most victims are women and most abusers are men, but not all. Men can be abused and women can be abusers. Dating violence is also not limited to heterosexual couples. It can happen in both gay and straight relationships. Research has shown that physical and/or sexual abuse happens in 1 in 3 high school relationships. In the world, 1 in 3 women have been or will be physically or sexually abused in their lifetime. About 28% of high school and college students experience dating violence at some point. 40% of girls ages 14-17 know someone their age who has been hit by someone they were dating. 70% of female rape victims and 74% of male rape victims knew the person who raped them. How can you tell if you are in an abusive relationship? Answer these questions and find out. Does the person you are dating hit you? Are they jealous or possessive or are they constantly checking up on you and wondering where you are? Are they really mean sometimes and then really sweet other times? Do they try to control whom you talk to or where you go? Do they scare you or threaten you? Do you feel forced into sexual activity? Do they threaten to commit suicide if you leave them? Do they embarrass you or put you down in front of people? Do they call you names, insult you, or make you feel bad about yourself? Do they promise to never hurt you again or say that it’s no big deal? Do they blame you for their abusive behavior? If you have answered yes to any of these questions, you might be in an abusive relationship and may need to seek help. Myth Myth Not all abusers are men either, though 95% of them are. Myth Myth Myth Myth If the person you are dating is abusing you in any way, it is not your fault. Abuse doesn’t end just because your boyfriend or girlfriend says it will stop. It only gets worse. It is very important that you get help. It is also important to follow these safety tips. If you cannot leave the relationship safely right now or if you decide to stay in the relationship: * Go out with your partner to public places If you have left or are leaving your boyfriend/girlfriend: * Break up with your boyfriend/girlfriend in a public place Recognizing Abuse and Helping a Friend Abusers and victims can be anyone. And most likely they are not going to come out and tell you that they are being abused by or are abusing their significant other. They themselves may not even recognize what is going on since abuse does not always happen physically. These are some traits that victims and abusers may exhibit to help you recognize an abusive relationship. Traits of Victims * Becomes isolated from friends and family Traits of Abusers * Checks in on boyfriend/girlfriend constantly If you think someone you know is being abused or is an abuser, get help before it gets any worse. Lisa Spitzer, CSW, MSW, CRC, is the energy behind AAA Attorney Referral Service. Lisa is a graduate of NYU School of Social Work and consulted at psychiatric, geriatric and physically disabled facilities for 10 years. She also did an undergraduate internship at a facility for the criminally insane and family court in downtown Brooklyn. Lisa Spitzer worked as a director of a geriatric facility for 3 years. Ms. Spitzer understands the frustrations of crisis situations. Life has become so complex that virtually everyone needs to consult with a lawyer at some time. In short, a well-chosen lawyer can be one of your greatest assets.
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