03/02/2018

Federation, Board of Rabbis to Host Opioid Epidemic Events

Article reprinted with permission from the Cleveland Jewish News.

by Amanda Koehn

Ten synagogues in Northeast Ohio will focus on the opioid epidemic during Shabbat weekends between March 9-24, in an attempt to break the silence around addiction and to serve as a starting point to help those struggling.

Northeast Ohio is the first Jewish community to come together in such a way to address the epidemic, according to a news release from the Jewish Federation of Cleveland.

In 2017, 822 people died from drug overdoses, according to Dec. 31, 2017, data projections from the Cuyahoga County Medical Examiner. Of those deaths, 522 died from heroin, fentanyl or a combination.

A partnership between the Federation and the Greater Cleveland Board of Rabbis, the events will feature discussions about opioid misuse and addiction in the Jewish community.

“The roles that the rabbi and synagogue can play cannot be underestimated,” said Rabbi Allison Vann of Suburban Temple-Kol Ami in Beachwood and president of the Greater Cleveland Board of Rabbis, in an email. “In these initial stages of the Jewish community coming together, it is my hope that the shame of addiction is nullified within the Jewish community.”

Ira Kaplan, community planning committee chair at the Federation, said in an email that the Shabbat programming stems from an opioid abuse working group made up of social service professionals, clergy, family members of those suffering from addiction, people in recovery and Federation staff.

“When we spoke to experts in addiction, they said one of the major challenges for our community is the perceived stigma around getting help,” Kaplan said. “Synagogues are the pillars of our Jewish community. Rabbis are trusted resources to so many members of our community. This series is meant to show people that it is safe to break the silence and ask for help from any of the clergy.”

Rabbi Zachary Truboff of Oheb Zedek-Cedar Sinai in Lyndhurst said he’s counseled multiple families whose children have died from drugs and has seen older congregants struggle with addiction. Although Truboff has spoken about opioid addiction from the pulpit on other occasions, for the Shabbat series he will moderate three panelists speaking briefly after services. The panelists are congregants Diane Smilanick, assistant Cuyahoga County prosecutor, Mimi Becker, a psychologist working in substance abuse treatment, as well as Sheryl Hirsh, a community advocate fighting the opioid epidemic.

“It’s something I’ve seen firsthand and know that the issues are worse in Ohio and in Cuyahoga County than they are just about anywhere else, and everybody really needs to be aware of it,” Truboff said.

Truboff also said when he has spoken about opioid addiction from the pulpit, he addresses the stigma surrounding it, which may be harder to alleviate in the Jewish community versus the general community, and potentially even more so in the Orthodox world.

“The Jewish community doesn’t like to admit when these things are a problem because we like to have this image of ourselves being better than others, or perfect,” he said, adding that such thinking is “dangerous.”

“Sometimes in the Orthodox community it results in a desire to kind of cover it up because we don’t want to make ourselves look bad … and not talking about it tends to make the problem even worse.”

Kaplan also noted that a barrier to helping addicts is assuming others will think differently about them for admitting they have a problem – something he hopes the series will begin to dispel.

“The rabbis want to make it clear that addiction is a medical problem and that they are here to help counsel and connect congregants to resources,” Kaplan said. “If we break this silence, families of people dealing with addiction won’t feel as isolated but receive support from the community and from other families who have gone through the same thing.”

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Participating synagogues

For Vann, however, this will be her first time speaking about opioid addiction at the pulpit, and she’s hopeful it will be a helpful first step.

• Suburban Temple-Kol Ami in Beachwood, Shabbat evening services

“My sermon is to teach about the Jewish response, and to begin to end the shame for families that are struggling with a loved one, or struggle themselves, with addiction,” she said.

• Beth El Congregation in Akron, Shabbat morning services
• B’nai Jeshurun Congregation in Pepper Pike, Shabbat morning services
• Beth Israel-The West Temple in Cleveland, Shabbat morning services
• Oheb Zedek-Cedar-Sinai Synagogue in Lyndhurst, panelists speaking after morning services

March 16

• Anshe Chesed Fairmount Temple in Beachwood, Shabbat evening services at 6:15 p.m.
• The Temple-Tifereth Israel, Shabbat evening services

March 17

• Congregation Shaarey Tikvah in Beachwood, speaker
• Kol HaLev in Pepper Pike, Shabbat morning services
• Park Synagogue East in Cleveland Heights, Shabbat morning services

March 23

March 24