Summer Institute 2023
Arrival and Departure
Friday August 4th
12:00 PM:You may arrive as early as noon to relax in the main building or explore the grounds. No lunch will be served.
3:30 PM: Earliest check-in to guest rooms
5:45 PM: Kabbalat Shabbat service
7:00 PM: Dinner
Tuesday August 8th
8:00 AM: Breakfast is the last meal served
10:00 AM: Latest time to check out of guest rooms
11:00 AM: Goodbye gathering
12:00 PM: departure
Click here for map and driving directions
Updated Schedule
Click here to add an updated schedule to your Google Calendar.
What to Bring
All guest rooms are air conditioned and have bed linens and towels. Here’s Pearlstone’s suggested list of what to pack. And we want to remind you to bring masks, covid tests, musical instruments, and warm weather supplies like a hat, water bottle, sunscreen, and bugspray.
NHC Office Hours
Saturday 9:15 PM- 9:45 PM in the Tree of Life Lobby
Sunday & Monday
8:45 AM- 11:45 AM in the tent
3:30 PM-5:00 PM in the Tree of Life Lobby
Pool Hours
Friday 1:00 PM -7:00 PM
Sat and Sun Noon- 7:00 PM
Monday 1:00 PM – 7:00 PM
Classroom Assignments
Liturgist-in-Residence
Weaving Water: Recreating Jewish Water-based Rituals. In sessions with this year’s Liturgist in Residence Sarah Chandler aka Kohenet Shamirah, we will investigate prayers for rain and dew, drawing up an understanding for their relevance (or lack thereof) to the water access of where we live. Participants will wade in the waters of the pilgrimage festivals during our workshop sessions, then in our community-wide program, design a unique ritual for their current climate or water protection activism.
Overview of Liturgist in Residence Sessions:
- Workshop 1 on Sunday morning will be a general introduction to ritual weaving with focus on the origins and practices of Jewish spiritual practices with water.
- Workshops 2, 3, and 4 will each illuminate a sample ritual for a specific Jewish holiday.
- The community-wide program will also include a brief introduction to ritual weaving, but will primarily be a workshop on how to design a ritual for a specific setting or target audience that takes place during the month of Elul and addresses climate or water protection activism. All institute participants will have access to the ritual we weave in this session.
Click here for more about Sarah, workshop handouts and complete schedule and details. These sessions are open to all attendees and you do not need to pre-register.
Covid Policy
As a community that values each member, we want everyone to feel safe, supported and respected. Therefore, the NHC Board and Core Team, with community feedback and the advice of the Covid Committee, determined to require self administered testing before arrival on Friday, August 4, and a second test, self-administered at Pearlstone on Sunday morning. We require masks while inside public spaces. We encourage people to wear N95 masks, which offer the best protection possible. Cloth masks are not allowed except for medical exemptions.
1. If you have a question about testing and what to do if you test positive, contact Janet Hollander
2. If you have a question about masking, including requests for mask exemptions, contact Darius Sivin
3. If you have a question about non-Covid medical issues that occur while we are at Pearlstone, Jeremy Golding is available to help.
There will be a small supply of masks available for adult participants, and a small supply of tests; we are expected to bring our own supplies.