Shabbaton with the Hinenu Chevra Kadisha Registration
November 14-16, 2025 |
Hinenu’s newly forming Chevra Kadisha invites you to join them for a Shabbaton exploring Jewish death and burial practices. Jewish death educator David Zinner will join us for a series of programs and conversations, including a d’var Torah, Shabbat afternoon workshop, and all day tahara training. At this time the tahara training is open only to Hinenu members, but we encourage our wider community to join us for the rest of the programs!
Members of the Hinenu Chevra Kadisha will lead a Death over Dinner following Kabbalat Shabbat on Friday. There will be ample chocolate provided as we move through sacred Shabbat time and the spirited, sometimes sorrowful learning about death.
This weekend of learning overlaps with the bat mitzvah of Eleanor Jennings-Roche. Worry not, we will be celebrating the simcha and not doing too much talk at the bat mitzvah!
Biography of David Zinner:
For over 30 years, David Zinner has immersed himself in learning, writing, teaching and training in the field of Jewish end of life practices. David is the co-founder and President of the Jewish Association for Death Education (JADE), which provides monthly webinars and online end of life resources.
Previously, David founded, and was Executive Director of Kavod v’Nichum, which works to restore to Jewish death and bereavement practice, the traditions and values of kavod hamet (honoring the dead) and nichum avelim (comforting the bereaved). His 20 years of work for Kavod v’Nichum included traveling around the country conducting chevra kadisha trainings. During his tenure he coordinated 20 Chevra Kadisha Conferences, dedicated to sharing knowledge about Jewish end of life practices, and managed the jewish-funerals.org website, a website which includes hundreds of pages and resources of Jewish end of life practices.
David co-founded Kavod’s Gamliel Institute, a center for leadership training and advocacy of traditional Jewish practices in the continuum of care at the end of life. David wrote and/or coordinated the creation of curricula for five courses for leaders of the Chevra Kadisha (Jewish societies that care for the deceased).
David Zinner has been a member of the Maryland Advisory Council for Cemetery Operations (ACCO) for over 12 years, serving first as a religious representative and later as a consumer representative. As part of his work with the ACCO, he founded a new organization - Preservation and Rehabilitation Initiative for Neglected Cemetery Entities (PRINCE) to work with incarcerated citizens - teaching them cemetery maintenance skills, coordinating work crews at cemeteries, and beginning to work on job placement.
Additionally, David is the Vice-President of the Jewish Funeral Practices Committee of Greater Washington, participating in developing citywide contracts with funeral homes. He is also a past president, choir member, sukkah building coordinator and Chevra Kadisha Chair at the Columbia Jewish Congregation.
Members of the Hinenu Chevra Kadisha will lead a Death over Dinner following Kabbalat Shabbat on Friday. There will be ample chocolate provided as we move through sacred Shabbat time and the spirited, sometimes sorrowful learning about death.
This weekend of learning overlaps with the bat mitzvah of Eleanor Jennings-Roche. Worry not, we will be celebrating the simcha and not doing too much talk at the bat mitzvah!
Biography of David Zinner:
For over 30 years, David Zinner has immersed himself in learning, writing, teaching and training in the field of Jewish end of life practices. David is the co-founder and President of the Jewish Association for Death Education (JADE), which provides monthly webinars and online end of life resources.
Previously, David founded, and was Executive Director of Kavod v’Nichum, which works to restore to Jewish death and bereavement practice, the traditions and values of kavod hamet (honoring the dead) and nichum avelim (comforting the bereaved). His 20 years of work for Kavod v’Nichum included traveling around the country conducting chevra kadisha trainings. During his tenure he coordinated 20 Chevra Kadisha Conferences, dedicated to sharing knowledge about Jewish end of life practices, and managed the jewish-funerals.org website, a website which includes hundreds of pages and resources of Jewish end of life practices.
David co-founded Kavod’s Gamliel Institute, a center for leadership training and advocacy of traditional Jewish practices in the continuum of care at the end of life. David wrote and/or coordinated the creation of curricula for five courses for leaders of the Chevra Kadisha (Jewish societies that care for the deceased).
David Zinner has been a member of the Maryland Advisory Council for Cemetery Operations (ACCO) for over 12 years, serving first as a religious representative and later as a consumer representative. As part of his work with the ACCO, he founded a new organization - Preservation and Rehabilitation Initiative for Neglected Cemetery Entities (PRINCE) to work with incarcerated citizens - teaching them cemetery maintenance skills, coordinating work crews at cemeteries, and beginning to work on job placement.
Additionally, David is the Vice-President of the Jewish Funeral Practices Committee of Greater Washington, participating in developing citywide contracts with funeral homes. He is also a past president, choir member, sukkah building coordinator and Chevra Kadisha Chair at the Columbia Jewish Congregation.