Jewish cemetery gathering looks at eternity

By Toshio Suzuki

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"To a lot of individuals, thinking of a cemetery, thinking of a burial is the last thing on their mind," said Harley Felstein.
Well, of course, by definition, it's the last thing, but informed advisors say we should think about it now.
Felstein is a member of Congregation Neveh Shalom and chair of the North American Jewish Cemetery and Chevra Kadisha Conference that will take place here June 11-13.
Felstein, with decades of cemetery administration experience, values cemetery preservation because without it, he said, "they will just become cow pastures."
This is only the third time a national Jewish conference has come to Portland and the first time a local congregation is co-hosting. The joint conference will be sponsored by Kavod v'Nichum, an organization that provides assistance and education in Jewish funeral practice for groups in the United States and Canada, and Portland's Congregation Neveh Shalom, with support from the Oregon Jewish Community Foundation and the Jewish Federation of Greater Portland.

Scheduled speaker David Zinner is the executive director of Kavod v'Nichum and is also vice-president of Jewish Funeral Practices Committee of Greater Washington, among many other posts that he holds.
"You'd think people working with death would be strange," said Zinner, who added that in his experience "they are such great people." Zinner said he thinks this group of professionals is so amiable because of their respect for life and their day-to-day reminder that it can end in an instant.
As the leader of the chevra kadisha at his synagogue, Zinner knows the significance of the holy societies is more than tahara, the ritual cleansing of the body before burial.
Zinner says that different chevra kadishas provide different services; combining often overlooked tasks such as cooking meals for mourning families with those of specific cultural importance such as hand-sewing burial shrouds.
"When someone dies, people tend to go back to what feels traditional and comfortable," said Zinner. It is his intention that people at the conference come away with increased confidence and knowledge about these deeply Jewish traditions so that they can share it with their communities when they return home.
The weekend of conference events is designed for cemetery staff or lay leaders and is meant to comprehensively educate on all aspects of Jewish burial. For those who manage cemeteries, discussions of zoning, financing and disaster management are important matters. Felstein thinks other topics such as intermarriage burials, or the discussion of how to handle gay and lesbian burials are issues that will cross boundaries and interest all members of the community.
The cemetery half of the conference will also cover the issues of contracts, perpetual care, governance and how to handle delicate issues such as cremated or abandoned remains.
Keynote speaker Rabbi Elliot Dorff directs the rabbinical and master's programs at the University of Judaism, where he currently is rector and distinguished professor of philosophy. Dorff is also a past winner of the National Jewish Book Award and is the halachic expert for Mount Sinai Memorial Park in Los Angeles.
Other speakers to include: Gary S. Cohn, executive director of three cemeteries in the San Francisco area spanning 65 acres; Mindy Moline Botbol, managing funeral director in Illinois and co-president for United Synagogue of Conservative Judaism; and Robert Levonian, internationally renowned cemetery architect.
The three-day conference is at the Hilton Portland & Executive Tower and ranges from $75 to $375, depending on day and meal packages. For more conference information, contact Neveh Shalom's Michelle Caplan at 503-246-8831, ext. 114 or mcaplan@nevehshalmom.org.
According to Felstein, all are encouraged to attend and embrace being educated about death, "because it's the last good deed you can do."