Led by Sharon Ziff, Sally Churgel, and Ari Hilton

Session 1 of a 2 session series

In the near future, it is very possible that you will find yourself in a caregiving role. This can be an overwhelming thought, let alone the task itself. So, before the moment arrives, we want to help you prepare to be a Compassionate Caregiver, both to your loved one and to yourself. We’ll be offering a trifold approach to this process, learning how to lessen anxiety and stress while strengthening your ability to provide care. This 2-session series explores the physical, mental, and spiritual needs for caregivers. 

Sharon Ziff, RN will offer information and answer questions about the medical issues involved including resources and support systems. 

Sally Churgel will offer deep guided journeys that focus on how body awareness can help reduce overwhelm and triggers that may come up in a caregiving situation.

Ari Hilton will offer a Jewish perspective on caregiving and rituals from the Torah, Sages, and modern teachings about how our people embrace end of life issues.

Sharon Ziff, RN retired after 12 years working at Memorial Hospice. As a Hospice Nurse, she was drawn to learn more about how we, as a society and as individuals, have treated aging, illness and death. She has dedicated herself to breaking the taboo of speaking about death and to helping her community gain the knowledge to best prepare themselves and their families for a good final chapter and a death with dignity.

Sally Churgel is a lead player in Ner Shalom’s Poets’ Guild, a past president of the congregation, and our leader for Yom Kippur yizkor. She founded Call to Joy for those who yearn to live life fully and in a continuum of joy as the base note rather than a rare and random experience. Sally’s toolbox for teaching others how to access joy moments when in overwhelm, stress and imbalance includes: 20 years as a certified teacher of Integrated Awareness® (energy/body work); advanced classes in Internal Family Systems, Emotional Brain Training, Positive Neuropsychology, as well as Heartmath, Soul Collage creation, art therapy, numerous Jewish meditation retreats and the wisdom of cats and trees.

Ari Hilton is a speaker, writer, Biblical scholar, and part-time purveyor of pyrotechnics. His work includes the creation and teaching of religious education curricula, presentations on LGBTQI+ and gender subjects in undergraduate, medical, and faith settings, and serving as an Interfaith lay chaplain in New England for more than 25 years. Ari was the first openly transgender graduate of Bangor Theological Seminary, Bangor, ME earning a dual Master's of Theology and Ethics in 2007. His primary work focussed on medical ethics, hospice, death and dying, and transgender spirituality within the Jewish tradition. As a current student at the Chaplaincy Institute of Maine pursuing ordination as an Interfaith Chaplain, he continues this work, delving more deeply into Hospice care. Through compassionate one on one and group conversations, Ari seeks to bring faith and religious insight into the lives of the people he serves.