🌟 Save the Date: Let’s Show Up Big for Jewish Community Lobby Day!

Thursday, January 29, 2026 — Washington State Capitol, Olympia

Kol Ami family,

It’s time again to bring our collective voice, our values, and our Jewish presence to Olympia for Jewish Community Lobby Day — and this year, after seeing the results from the recent JCRC Policy Priorities Survey, it’s clearer than ever why we need a strong Kol Ami showing.

759 Voices from Across Washington

This fall, 759 Jewish community members from 96 organizations and congregations across the state shared their perspectives in the Jewish Community Relations Council (JCRC) Policy Priorities Survey. Their responses reflected the full breadth of Washington’s Jewish community — politically diverse, spiritually wide-ranging, and deeply committed to a safer, more compassionate world.

And they told us, loudly and clearly, what matters most.

Top Priorities Identified in the Survey

• Jewish safety, inclusion, and support – 75%

• Human rights and civil liberties – 65%

• Health, well-being, and basic stability – 42%

These priorities reflect exactly what we talk about, teach, and live at Kol Ami: a Judaism rooted in safety, dignity, justice, and care for our neighbors.

What We Achieved Together Last Year

Thanks to community voices — including many from Kol Ami — the JCRC secured major wins during the 2025 legislative session:

Jewish Safety & Inclusion

• Continued state funding for the nonprofit security grant program that protects synagogues, schools, and community centers.

• Funding for Holocaust education, expanding knowledge and ensuring memory in this critical moment.

Human Rights & Democracy

• New legislation allowing people facing online hate or harassment to take protected leave to recover, seek help, and work with law enforcement.

• Funding to strengthen anti-discrimination efforts in K–12 schools, including addressing anti-Jewish bias.

Health, Well-Being & Stability

• Coalition victories that protected funding for food banks, senior nutrition programs, free school meals, and SNAP.

These are real, concrete results — and they happened because our community showed up.

Now It’s Our Turn: Kol Ami Goes to Olympia

Lobby Day is where our survey responses turn into action.

It’s where legislators get to hear directly from us — from families, teens, clergy, elders, and allies who care deeply about Jewish safety, human dignity, and the well-being of all Washingtonians.

Save the Date:

Thursday, January 29, 2026

Washington State Capitol, Olympia

We want a big Kol Ami presence this year — visible, joyful, grounded, and determined. Whether you’ve participated before or this is your first time, your presence truly matters. Legislators listen when we show up as a community.

Who Should Come?

Everyone. Teens, parents, grandparents, curious community members, people who have never been to the Capitol before, and people who love showing up every year. Lobby Day is accessible, meaningful, and deeply empowering.

Why Kol Ami Shows Up

Because our values call us to.

Because our voices matter.

Because advocating for safety, justice, and dignity for all Washingtonians is sacred Jewish work.

Stay tuned for registration details, transportation coordination, and preparation sessions so we can go in feeling confident and connected.

Let’s show Olympia what Kol Ami stands for.

Let’s make our values visible.

Let’s show up together.

Kol Ami: A Center for Jewish Life — and a force for good in Washington State.

B'shalom,

Rabbi Kinberg