Jewish Family & Children’s Services will hold a three-hour, community-wide ethical will writing workshop from 9 a.m.-noon on Tuesday, March 22, at the TMC Senior Services/El Dorado Medical Center, 1400 N. Wilmot Road.
Ethical wills began as a Jewish oral tradition centuries ago, a way to pass on values such as the importance of charity (tzedakah) from one generation to the next. Today, ethical wills, also called legacy letters, are written by men and women of every age and background.
The process of writing an ethical will is different from developing medical directives and living wills.
“Writing an ethical will is an opportunity to examine our lives, to notice what we hold as precious and meaningful at the core of our beings. What are the values that we have treasured in our living? Who are the people who have shown us the way? How have our mistakes shaped and enlivened us? What are the great questions we have asked in our lives? What are the answers we have discovered? Writing an ethical will is a process of life review, celebration and legacy,” says Rabbi Stephanie Aaron of Congregation Chaverim, who will facilitate the program.
JFCS’ Ethical Will Project is funded by an end-of-life grant award from the Shaaron Kent Endowment Fund held at the Community Foundation for Southern Arizona.
The project positions the writing of an ethical will as an integral part of end-of-life care. With Aaron’s guidance, JFCS is training staff members in the writing of their own ethical wills and will offer in-home, end-of-life care consultations for individuals and families for both care management resources and ethical will guidance. The project will culminate in an ethical will guide for individuals and families that will be available at jfcstucson.org.
JFCS will videotape the workshop and use some of the footage in an online curriculum or for other uses related to the topic. Participation is free but seating is limited and reservations are required by March 15. Light refreshments will be served. To make a reservation, call 795-0300, ext. 2213 or visit jfcstucson.org.
