Chevra Kadisha News - Published by Kavod v'Nichum

 Kislev 5764 - November - December 2003 - 658 subscribers

Why a Chevra Kadisha Study Tour to New York City, Prague and Israel? How else can you experience first hand the history of the Chevra Kadisha, hands on learning in Israel, with extensive networking? We're planning for a June 2005 trip. Let us know if you are interested. Please e-mail Lynn at lgreenhough@shaw.ca.

SCI settles Menorah Gardens lawsuit for $100 million - Palm Beach Post – “The settlement calls for SCI to assemble a "blue ribbon panel" that will include rabbis who will "resanctify" the mostly Jewish cemeteries”

SCI stock up with plans for settlement – Houston Chronicle  - Share of SCI went up 10% after the settlement.

Funeral firm that dug up bodies pays families $100m -The Guardian  - SCI, … said yesterday it had agreed to settle all but one of the actions

SCI settles Florida lawsuit - Houston Business Journal - As of Sept. 30, the Houston-based company and its affiliates operated 2,236 funeral service locations, 429 cemeteries and 190 crematoria in eight countries.

Families await terms of SCI offer – Sun Sentinel - Fort Lauderdale attorney Neal Hirschfeld, … said work began Wednesday to establish a panel of experts to monitor the fixes. He said they are hiring a nationally known cemetery expert, an engineer, a rabbi and possibly a funeral home director to serve on the panel.

Menorah Gardens owner still faces suits - Palm Beach Post - SCI still faces a separate suit filed in Palm Beach County as well as felony charges.. It still might have to pay millions in a securities fraud lawsuit filed in 1999 by stockholders who lost money when the company's shares plummeted. And SCI's insurers might balk at paying the company's settlements

Menorah Gardens' parent company settles with families of dead for $100 million – Miami Herald -The bulk of the damage awards will likely go to families whose loved ones were buried in the wrong place or those whose remains were desecrated. Gonzalez has previously estimated that number between 500 and 750 plaintiffs.

SCI to pay $100 mln in body-dump case – CBS MarketWatch - In a note to investors following the settlement, Raymond James analyst John Ransom said that the terms were "within the realm of our original expectations" but that "we would not expect insurance to cover the payment given the alleged criminal activity involved." Still, "to put the settlement in perspective," Ransom continued, the company generates about $200 million in frees cash flow annually and had $164 million cash on the balance sheet as of September 30.

Upcoming conferences…

The National Association of Jewish Chaplains will convent their 2004 National Conference on Sunday January 11 through Wednesday January 14, 2004 at the Embassy Suites in Boca Raton, Florida. Presentations and discussions on Chaplaincy in the Context of: Confidentiality (HIPAA), Health (JACS) , Ethics/Morality, Ethical Wills, Prisons, BioEthics, and Tshuvah. Highlights and additional programs will include: the Sunday night Opening Ceremonies, limudim sessions, a Healing Service, community chaplaincy, charting, verbatim clinic, certification information, financial savvy, retired chaplains, association meetings, professional discipline meetings, the annual business meeting, daily services for Traditional and Egalitarian minyanim, and much more .

The Academic Coalition for Jewish Bioethics will hold a two-day Inaugural Conference at the Wyndham Hotel In Philadelphia on Sunday, February 29 & Monday, March 1, 2004. The conference theme is Addressing Quality Of Life: A Challenge For Jewish Bioethics. Academic centers foster Jewish approaches to biomedical issues: this coalition explores new expressions of Jewish healthcare ethics. A major national conference presents current research, fresh viewpoints, and progressive interpretations of traditional ethics texts. Coalition members include: Kalsman Institute, HUC-JIR; Center for Bioethics, University of Pennsylvania; Reconstructionist Rabbinical College; HUC-UC Center for the Study of Ethics and Contemporary Moral Problems; University of Judaism; the Louis Finkelstein Institute for Religious and Social Studies, Jewish Theological Seminary; and the Shalom Hartman Institute in Israel. 

Jewish Orthodox Feminist Alliance  Fifth International Conference on Feminism & Orthodoxy, "Zachar u-Neqevah Bara Otam: Women and Men in Partnership," will take place on President's Day Weekend, February 15-16, 2004. 

Wrestling with the Angel, A Plain Pine Box, Tahara Manual of Practices and other books are available for purchase from Kavod v'Nichum. For orders over $100, shipping is free and you will receive a bottle of Monsel's solution and a Chevra Kadisha Conference t-shirt. Go to the web site at www.Jewish-funerals.org and click on the link to books and other products. 

Do you enjoy reading Chevra Kadisha News? Is it helpful and useful? We hope so and also hope you'll contribute to support our work.  We need your financial contribution to continue to provide you services. Donations of any size are welcome. Make your check out to Kavod v'Nichum and send it to 8112 Sea Water Path, Columbia, MD  20145 or call David Zinner at 410-799-8070 or e-mail to donate@jewish-funerals.org for more information.