Laugh and do yoga

Looking for more joy in your life?

Jewish Family Services of Silicon Valley is presenting a laughter-filled wellness workshop led by Claire Powell, who is certified by the American School of Laughter Yoga and the Laughter Yoga Institute. Laughter Yoga practitioners claim it can reduce stress, anxiety and depression, and help build a stronger immune system.

The workshop begins 1:15 p.m. Wednesday, March 12 at the Chai House multi-purpose room, 814 Saint Elizabeth Drive, San Jose. The workshop is free (donations accepted).

For more information and to RSVP, call Avital Agam at (408) 357-7450.

New sex ed site for teens

The Orthodox Union is responding to the dual social forces of excessively sexually advertising aimed at teenagers and the need for education about sex with a new Web site, Negiah.org. The OU is billing the Web site as “the First Jewish Abstinence Web site for Jewish Teens,” and the Union of Reform Judaism’s recently released sexual ethics curriculum, “Sacred Choices.”

This comes on the heels of a nine-year study, conducted on behalf of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, which concluded last year that federally funded abstinence-only programs “had no impact on rates of sexual abstinence and did not serve to delay the age of first sexual intercourse.”

According to its creator, NCSY program director Rabbi Jack Abramowitz, Negiah.org is aimed at all Jewish teens, not just those who are already observant. “We created the Web site because we saw a need,” Abramowitz said. “NCSY is an outreach organization — we deal with a lot of kids from across the spectrum.” — wisconsin jewish chronicle