The death of a loved one is a difficult time. Many decisions have to be made quickly. If friends and family are unsure of what to do, our Bereavement Team can provide guidance to make things easier. Following Jewish tradition, and where possible, the Bereavement Team can help by:

• Sending condolence cards.
• Identifying and helping to contact friends and relatives who can help set up meals, prepare for the funeral and the shiva (mourning) period.
• Sending shiva and obituary announcements to the WSJD community with family permission.
• Helping to arrange for lay leaders to conduct shiva minyans (brief religious services where a minimum of 10 people must be present).
• Helping to arrange for house sitters on the day of the funeral.
• Providing educational materials to help families understand the Jewish rituals and traditions of death.
• Suggesting where families can order food trays. Often, friends and family donate money towards the cost of the food in memory of a loved one.
• Providing guidance for those helping in the home with tasks such as staying in the house during the funeral, accepting trays, or helping to set up the shiva. It is a mitzvah for family and friends to do this.

Our Resource Team compiles and shares links and referrals on the WSJD website to include:

• Psychologists, social workers and therapists for individual, marriage, family counseling, family life education, child development, LGBTQ services, addiction, vocational services, aging, and other topics.
• Resources for seniors, including independent living communities, assisted living and nursing homes in the greater Washington DC area.

As our volunteer base increases, we hope to be able to provide the following types of support to members in need:

• Meals: TB-CC volunteers may provide a prepared meal for a member of the community who is homebound due to illness or physical injury or help find individuals who can prepare meals.

• Physical Presence: TB-CC may offer occasional companionship.

• Transportation: TB-CC may offer rides to people in need if possible.

• Errands: At times, TB-CC may run general kinds of errands (i.e., groceries, dry cleaning, etc) for people in need.

• Life Cycle Notifications: TB-CC may send congratulatory cards for happy Life Cycle events (i.e., birth, marriage, retirement).