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Mourning one of our own...

2/26/2016

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I have to admit, I had really hoped we would never have this day - when we would mourn the loss of one of our own. I know this is VERY difficult and scary time for many you in the ROH community. We are absolutely devastated to have lost a wonderful friend and beloved member of our group. Baruch Dayan HaEmet, blessed is  the ultimate judge. In Judaism, we say these words upon learning of a death. They are, in fact, often THE hardest words to stay at exactly that time - at the time you most want to CURSE God. I have always taken this as Judaism way of reminding us, even in our lowest moment, that while this point is low, all of life is not that low and we will, eventually, be reminded that despite the bad, the sad, the evil, or unbelievable -there is going to be good again. Right now, we sit in mourning, but I want all of my ROH teens to know that now matter HOW bad they feel right now, there is always hope that they will feel better, be in a better place, and that they are ALREADY loved by their ROH community. If you need to talk, of course, I will also have my cell phone on and ready to receive your call (message/email me any time to get my number). But you can also always call the Trevor Project. The Trevor Project is the leading national organization providing crisis intervention and suicide prevention services to lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and questioning (LGBTQ) young people ages 13-24.

If you’re thinking about suicide, you deserve immediate help - please call the Trevor Lifeline at 866-488-7386.


With sadness and in mourning,
Rabbi Sarah
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Five Years - and still growing

7/29/2014

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Rockville Open House celebrated its five-year anniversary in April. What a blessing these five years have been - we have never had an Open House go unattended in all of our years! In addition to growing our community to a regular 8-10 friends each month, this year, we have also begun a new friendship with the Rainbow Youth Alliance. We've held a joint pizza & movie evening and a cookout so far. And we look forward to more joint programs in the coming year as well as making new friends, and (of course!) catching up with old ones.

New to ROH? Come check us out - first Wednesday evenings of every month, September - June (except March, when it's 2nd Wednesday!). See you at the JCC!
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A look back at the first year of Rockville Open House

6/5/2011

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This is my second attempt at writing this blog. The first attempt was deleted by accident. I wanted to look back on the year and write about some of my favorite highlights from the past year of gatherings, so here goes:
1. The very first Open House when the students who came were so excited that Rockville Open House existed that they immediately started thinking of ways that ROH could expand - such as with a queer prom in Montgomery County.
2. When one of the more artistic students involved with ROH came to my rescue and redesigned a promotional flyer I was trying to make but was actually butchering.
3. I was speaking at a local synagogue about LGBTQ concerns with a Hanukkah theme (see the previous post) and students from ROH came to hear me speak. 
4. The time Seth and Lindsay joined us from Sonic Promos to discuss PR and Marketing for ROH, and the student input at that Open House led to the expansion of our mission to include "friends and allies," and the strengthening of our program. 
5. When I accidently came across this youtube video (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rZOaS5kbwPE) made after the very first Open House a year ago by one of our students that sang the praises of ROH and encouraged others to attend.

This has been an incredible year. I'm hoping to do some real outreach over the summer to local synagogues, youth groups, and LGBT organizations in the area to ensure that everyone knows about ROH. If you have a highlight from ROH you'd like to share, please feel free in the "Comments" section below. And I look forward to another great year with Rockville Open House! Thanks for making this year great!  Love, Rabbi Sarah
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Banishing the Darkness

12/11/2010

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This sermon was given on 12/10/10 at Temple Beth Ami in Rockville, Md by Rabbi Sarah Meytin.
“Nobody tells Latino kids in the high school that nobody cares if they're Hispanic so long as they keep it to themselves. People don't tell black kids they should put up with racism because they've come so far from when they were slaves. They don't have to defend why there is black history month, or why people want black studies included in the curriculum. People don't say, "That's so Korean!" when they mean something is stupid or weird. People don't tell disabled kids that the community isn't ready to defend their equal rights and inclusion yet. You never hear anyone argue that breast cancer is God's way of killing off the women, and it's a good thing. If a teacher hears anyone use a slang insult for a Chinese kid, they jump on it. When foreign exchange students ask teachers about dating in the school, they aren't sent to see a guidance counselor. 

But every day in the high school, I hear it's okay if I'm gay so long as I stay in the closet, that I'm an abomination against God, that I can change if I want to, and that people like me shouldn't be taught about in school. I'm told I should be satisfied because our school is far better than it used to be, and that I shouldn't push for my equal rights and inclusion because the community isn't ready yet. I hear, "That's so gay!" all the time, and I hear that AIDS is my punishment for being who I am, like I hear the word "faggot" all the time. It's hard not to walk around angry all the time.”

--Anonymous Massachusetts High School Student


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First Post!

11/3/2010

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Hi ROH-ers! My name is Jessa and I am active teen member of Rockville Open House.  I find that having a safe space within the Jewish community is comforting and I like to know that I have people to turn to when I need someone to speak with or support me.  Tonight is our 6th time meeting. I love the Kosher pizza and Coca-Cola.  But the real reason I come to Rockville Open House is that I have the opportunity to express and be myself around people who are expressing and being themselves.  
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