Workshop Proposal Guidelines
About the Conference
Gather & Grow, The Kavod v’Nichum 2025 Conference, is an in-person gathering for those involved in Chevra Kadisha and Jewish communal responses to end-of-life care to learn, engage, connect, and be inspired.
This year’s conference will feature a variety of teaching spaces, from traditional classrooms to outdoor environments, inviting participants to explore sacred care through diverse modalities.
We welcome workshop proposals that honor our tradition, ignite creativity, and nourish sacred community.
Want to learn more about the conference? Click here to get all the details.
About Presenting at Gather & Grow
We’re building Gather & Grow as a fully immersive, community-centered experience, and that includes our presenters. We ask that anyone submitting a proposal plans to attend the full conference and participate as a fellow attendee.
We are committed to making Gather & Grow accessible to everyone, regardless of financial circumstance. Thanks to a generous donor, a limited number of need-based scholarships are available to help offset the cost of attending the conference. Scholarships may cover full or partial registration
fees. If you’d like to apply for a Gather & Grow 2025 Scholarship, please click here.
We warmly invite community members to consider the skills, stories, and wisdom they can offer. If you’d like support in shaping your workshop idea or crafting your proposal, we have volunteer coaches ready to help. Just let us know we’ll match you with someone to walk alongside you in the process: hello@kavodvnichum.org
Workshop Details
● Session length: 75 minutes
● Format: In-person at Camp Ramah in Ojai (indoor and outdoor spaces available)
● Compensation: $250 per in-person session
(Reminder: We’re building Gather & Grow as a fully immersive, community-centered experience, and that includes our presenters. We ask that anyone submitting a proposal plans to attend the full conference and participate as a fellow attendee.)
● Additional Opportunity:
Selected sessions may also be invited to participate in a virtual highlight event celebrating accessibility and community-building.
○ There is an additional $150 honorarium for online participation.
○ When submitting your proposal, you’ll have the opportunity to indicate if you are interested in adapting your session for the online gathering.
What We're Looking For
We are especially excited about sessions that are:
● Relevant to Chevra Kadisha work and Jewish end-of-life care
● Engaging and interactive, inviting participation
● Actionable with concrete takeaways for participants
● Grounded in Jewish tradition while open to exploration and innovation
You can propose sessions in any style, including lectures, panels, interactive workshops, art-based experiences, storytelling, nature-based rituals, or other creative formats.
Suggested Focus Areas (You are also welcome to propose something beyond these themes!)
● Text and Tradition: Jewish text study relating to death, grief, and communal care
● Ritual and Practice: Exploring or innovating Jewish end-of-life rituals
● Creative Expression: Art, music, writing, or movement practices connected to sacred care
● Community Building: Strengthening Chevra Kadisha groups, relationships across the Jewish end-of-life ecosystem (eg: funeral homes, end-of-life doulas, cemeteries, hospice), and community connections
Leadership and Sustainability: Skills for leading, growing, and sustaining sacred community work
Audience
Participants will include:
● Chevra Kadisha volunteers
● Clergy
● End-of-life doulas and midwives
● Chaplains
● Funeral professionals
● Jewish communal leaders
● Students and educators
● Those curious about Jewish end-of-life practice
Submission Information
Proposal Form: Click here to share your workshop proposal
Deadline: Thursday, July 3, 2025
Notification: You will be notified of your proposal status by August 8, 2025
Please note: we will only consider completed proposals. Any proposals that are submitted without a complete title, description, and learning outcomes will not be considered at this time.
Note:
Kavod v'Nichum retains full discretion to select workshops and facilitators. Submission does not guarantee acceptance. We deeply appreciate your willingness to offer your wisdom to this gathering.
Questions?
Contact us at hello@kavodvnichum.org
Learn more about the conference at: https://kavodvnichum.org/conference
Sample Workshop Description (200 words)
Title: Location, Location, Le’olam: Buying Your Burial Plot
You’ve planned your retirement. What about your forever home? In this workshop, we’ll explore one of the most important (and most avoided) decisions: buying a burial plot. Equal parts practical and philosophical, this session will cover why pre-need burial planning is one of the kindest gifts you can give your loved ones—and why Jewish tradition sees this choice as a sacred responsibility, not a morbid chore.
We’ll walk through common questions: Where do I start? What do I need to consider? What’s the difference between a cemetery and a burial society? And yes, we’ll even talk about what happens if you want to be buried near your ex (or not).
This workshop is for anyone navigating end-of-life planning for themselves or a loved one, synagogue leaders working with cemetery committees, or those who just enjoy a good plot twist. No prior experience required just a willingness to confront the eternal with a little humor and a lot of heart.
There will be stories, resources, and plenty of space for questions. You’ll leave with clarity, confidence, and maybe even a strong urge to invest in the afterlife market.