SHOFAR - DECEMBER 2011 - Kislev/Tevet 5772

Shofar Kislev/Tevet 5772 Jewish Family Congregation December 2011

www.jewishfamilycongregation.org

From the Rabbi’s Desk page 1 Service Schedule page 2 December Oneg Hosts page 2 President’s Message page 3 Ask the Rabbi page 5 Donations to JFC page 6 Early Childhood Center page 7 The Religious School page 9 Mazal Tov, Michael Horwitz page 10 Yahrzeits/Annivs/Birthdays page 11

Ladies’ Bazaar Recap page 12 D’var Torah page 12 JiFTY page 13 Jewish Camping page 15 JFC Events/Fundraising page 15 Brenda Barrie page 16 Social Action Committee page 17 JFC Pot Luck Dinners page 18 Kids Ask the Rabbi page 22 Donations Form page 26

JFC Calendar page 27

From the Rabbi’s Desk

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On Erev Yom Kippur, Kol Nidre evening, I delivered a ser-mon about the fact that we all come to services as indi-viduals, and we each come bearing a burden of troubles that others don’t really know about. I listed some of the burdens people might bring with them: worries about kids; about aging parents; about jobs; about relationships; about the economy. And I reminded us all that the person sitting near you bears his or her burden along, just as you bear yours that way.

But our sages phrased all the public prayers of our tradi-tion in the plural. That is glaringly true in the confessions of sins that characterize Yom Kippur. And I made the point that it is very unlikely that anyone has committed all the transgressions we jointly confess to. But by reading them aloud, in the plural, we each cover the sins of which we are personally guilty, and we allow others to confess their own sins, using our jointly raised voices as “cover”, if you will.

The silent prayers we offer are expressed in the singular, because each person, praying privately, can take those words directly to heart. But the words we speak aloud are phrased in the plural, so we can all stand under their cover together.

We have been reminded, in recent weeks, that we really do not know what is going on in someone else’s mind, even while we are saying or singing words together. And we have been reminded of how isolating it is to keep those thoughts and feelings to ourselves.

When I wrote that sermon, the kernel of which was sug-gested by Cantor Ben David, I wanted to present the idea that, even though we are separate people with our own unique burdens, we are also part of a community, and that our salvation from isolation and tsuris lies in that sense of community.

The need for community has been experienced very sharply as we all reeled from the loss of the Friedlander family recently. Though we have each processed this trag-edy in our own way, and explored its significance from our own distinct perspectives, we also came together on sev-eral occasions to derive some comfort and strength from each other; that is community.

But the larger question is, what can we learn from and how can we make something meaningful of these losses?

One point that needs to be made clearly is that this trag-edy cannot be dismissed as an “act of God”. God had nothing to do with this. Our tradition teaches us that hu-mans have free will, that is, we make our own choices. This is reiterated on Yom Kippur morning in the Torah reading from Deuteronomy 30: 19, 20, which says, “I call heaven and earth to witness against you this day: I have put before you life and death, blessing and curse. Choose life, if you and your offspring would live, by loving Adonai your God, heeding God’s commands, and holding fast (to God)”. I teach our youngsters that we have been given the choices to make, and we are free to make good or bad choices. Our hope is that, with the right kind of parental and educational guidance, children will learn to make good choices. But because we are free to make those choices, there can be no guarantees.

We have chosen to perpetuate the memory of Molly and Gregory Friedlander by attaching their names to our Reli-gious School Scholarship Fund; this is very appropriate be-cause their mother, Amy, was very eager to make sure that her kids would continue to learn here, and this fund will enable other children to have that same opportunity.

(Continued on page10)

Page 2 Jewish Family Congregation Shofar December 2011

BOARD HOST: Mark Lavin (914) 232-0756

DECEMBER ONEG HOSTS

DECEMBER Friday, Dec 2/ Kislev 7 6:30 – 7:15 pm Family Service

Saturday, Dec 3 10:00 am Shabbat Morning Service

11:00 am-1:00 pm Lunch ‘n Learn^^^

Friday, Dec 9/ Kislev 14 7:30 pm Parshat VaYishlakh

Guest Speaker Brenda Barrie, author of The Rabbi’s Husband


Friday, Dec 16/ Kislev 20 6:30 pm Pot Luck Dinner***

8:00 pm Parshat VaYaishev


Friday, Dec 23/ Kislev 27 7:30 pm Chanukah Service ^^^ Since there is no service this Shabbat intended for adults, here is an opportunity to meet to

discuss a hot-button issue from a Jewish perspective. Please bring a bag lunch (veggie or dairy)

for yourself…we’ll do the blessings, eat and learn together! Please let rabbi Freedman know that

you are coming.

*** These pot luck dinners have proven to be fun…no need to register…just come with a veggie

or dairy dish to share with 6 people (please, no pasta, no pizza)…we do the blessings together, eat

and schmooze, and then sing some Shabbat songs; we do the Birkat haMazon, clean up and then

celebrate Shabbat at a service. This dinner is kid-friendly…

SERVICE SCHEDULE

Jewish Family

Congregation 111 Smith Ridge Road

P.O. Box 249 South Salem, NY 10590 Phone: (914) 763-3028 Fax: (914) 763-3069 e-mail: [email protected]

jewishfamilycongregation.org

Rabbi

Carla Freedman [email protected]

Cantor Kerry Ben-David

[email protected]

School Director Leslie Gottlieb

[email protected] Early Childhood Center Director Jane Weil Emmer

[email protected]

Temple Administrator Jolie Levy

[email protected]

Board Of Trustees Richard Mishkin,

President 914-764-8305;

Mark Lavin,

Vice President; Polly Schnell,

Vice President; Jeanette Sanders,

Secretary; Carrie Kane

Elise Serby Patterson Shafer Debra Verbeke

Elisa Zuckerberg and

Johanna Perlman, Past President

Shofar Editor Jolie Levy

Shofar Printer EnterMarket

Please find a substitute if you cannot host your assigned Oneg.

Please contact the JFC Office with the names of the new hosts.

Please contact your Board Host if you have any questions.

-- ONEG HOSTS --

PLEASE REMEMBER NO MEAT GOODIES MAY BE SERVED AT ANY ONEG

DECEMBER 2 Laurence Furic

Allan & Ellen Goldstein

DECEMBER 9 GRADE 5 SERVICE

DECEMBER 16

Jack Goldberg & Trudy Wood Edward & Martha Gordon

DECEMBER 23

Allen Gabor & Lisa Papernik Roy Goldman

DECEMBER 30

Michael Gitlitz & Rita Landman Lee Goldstein & Charles Dockter

Kislev/Tevet 5772 Jewish Family Congregation Shofar Page 3

President’s Message by Richard Mishkin

Adversity can break you or make you, and JFC has cer-tainly had its share this fall. As the President of your Board of Trustees, I am charged with the responsibility of “making us better and growing our community.” I knew assuming this responsibility would not only be challenging, but would also be rewarding. It seems that lately, with every step forward, we have gotten pushed back by some unexpected event requiring an even stronger commitment to carry us through. The purpose of my message is to share with you how we, as a community, have faced these challenges. We be-gan 2011-2012 in July, almost JFC’s 30th year, with a pro-jected budget deficit that is primarily the result of the worst economy any of us has ever experienced. We will not be able to solve the problems that have erupted around the globe, but we have risen to the challenges in our tiny community in significant ways. We had a very successful High Holy Day appeal alleviat-ing some of our budget deficit and easing the financial bur-den and concern of 27 JFC families who have been hit ex-tra hard by the economy. Without our policy to provide a welcoming Jewish community and education for everyone, these families would have nowhere to turn when, perhaps, they need it most. Leslie Gottlieb copied me on a message from a congre-gant expressing her gratitude for how our Religious School, through the innovative MARS (Madrachim-led Alternative Religious School) Program, has been doing whatever it can to accommodate people whose needs may be a little dif-ferent:

Hi Leslie; our daughter was so excited to tell me about the class with Andrew Blum. She cannot wait to go next Thursday!! I am thrilled you asked her to be a part of this extra help program. I think it is going to be a positive experience for her.

Leslie told me this new program has been so positively reviewed by all involved. Our younger members are mak-ing an impact; the Youth Group and the Kids Knesset (student government for grades K-6) help to organize some great social action programs that bring our commu-nity to the forefront with respect to caring projects. Also, whenever it comes to activities like the UJA Gift of Chanu-kah annual toy drive (going on now) and the JFC Book Fair...we are always pleased to find congregants who are happy to help run these programs.

Just when we were starting to get our heads above wa-ter with dues, ECC, RS payments being paid on a timely basis and “austerity” agreements by the Rabbi and Staff, we found ourselves drowning under the deluge of Irene. We got through the High Holy Days relatively dry, but it didn’t take long before our parade was rained on; the can-celations and inconveniences set us back, but also served to push us together. Our building was safe and dry, thanks to the new generator that finally went on line a week be-fore the storm, and the momentum continued. The plan-ning process for the year’s social events and fundraisers was under way, with the help and involvement of ener-getic, young families. The board was also identifying how they might best approach a decision on the Rabbi’s con-tract, whose term is up on June 30, 2012. Then, we unexpectedly experienced the loss of four of our congregants, and again the forward momentum was lost. The Rabbi, the Cantor, Leslie, Jane, and all our won-derful teachers were as overwhelmed as any of us. But, they instinctively knew that their role, as impossible as it must have felt, was not only to mourn but also to give comfort and support to our children, their parents and to the entire congregation and, with the help of professionals within our congregation and the community, make sense of what happened and to help people grieve. JFC became the focal point for the media. Rabbi Freedman was asked in TV interviews locally, regionally and nationally to explain the inexplicable. What came through was that because of the community we share, we all would come through this experience scarred but able to respect and honor the memory of the Friedlanders. A memorial service open to all was planned with the help of the Town of Lewisboro, but what wasn’t planned was two feet of snow and power outages that lasted, for some, over a week. I started this message by saying “adversity can break you or make you.” What stands out in my mind is how JFC weathered these challenges. The snow finally melted, it became autumn again, the leaves on the trees that were left standing turned red, orange and yellow, and we did what we had to do. In a way, we lost six weeks that at JFC would have been filled with meetings, school, services, focus groups, and Torah study. In our “outside” lives, some of us missed work, hot meals, a warm house, running water, showers, refrigeration. Ad-ditionally, we all, including JFC, spent money we weren’t anticipating spending. But we persevered, became closer and stronger as a community, maybe gained some humil-ity. We met the adversity head on and with the help of the JFC community and the local community we have come through these events and are stronger and wiser. As your president, I am proud to be part of this commu-nity and I promise to do my part in making us better and growing our community.

CAPITAL CAMPAIGN

STATEMENTS HAVE

BEEN MAILED.

PAYMENTS ARE DUE

BY DEC. 31.



ASK THE RABBI

Question: Is the dreydl game a form of gambling? If it is, why do we encourage our kids to play it?

Answer: I have always thought of the dreydl game as an educational device…we teach the kids what the four let-ters on the dreydl mean, in terms of playing the game, based on the Yiddish words associated with the letters: “nun” is for nisht, meaning nothing; “gimmel” is for ganz, meaning all; “hey” is for halb, meaning half; and “shin” is for sheet arayn, which means put in. So, depending on which letter is face up after your spin, you take nothing from the pot, all of the pot, half of the pot or you put more into the pot.

And since the “pot” tends to be made up of M&Ms or some similar candy, there is no money involved. As a kid I learned that everybody puts 10 (or some other agreed-upon) number of candies into the pot, and when all are gone, you start again; that means that someone distrib-utes more candies from the bag. So no one loses for long.

In order for this to be a form of gambling, I think it would

require a wager in advance of the spin, betting some num-ber of candies on a particular letter. But that is not how the game is played. All the action takes place after the spin and is really about dividing up the pot.

Since all start out on equal footing, and the game is re-started when the pot is empty, I don’t really see this as gambling. It might be reasonable to object to giving kids candy and encouraging them to try to amass a pile of it…but even kids with a sharp sweet tooth tire of this game after a while, because it is really a matter of luck, with no skill involved to determine who wins. The only skill resides in spinning the dreydl itself.

Judaism is not famous for being light-

hearted and frivolous. Yet on both

Chanukah and Purim, there are op-

portunities for just exactly that kind

of behaviour. So I say, let’s not get

too serious about a game of dreydl!

JFC Early Childhood Center

invites you to join us on the 2nd night

of Chanukah

Stories-Songs-Crafts

Chanukah Treats

Bring your own Menorah for our Community

Menorah Light-a-Thon

WED., DEC. 21 5:30-7:00


Recent Donations to JFC

IF ANY DONATIONS ARE NOT LISTED, KINDLY CONTACT THE JFC OFFICE AND LET US KNOW.

General Fund Michael & Rona Salpeter In Memory of Joseph Salpeter Stephen & Roberta Margolis In Memory of Rose Margolis Stephen & Roberta Margolis In Memory of Freda Shuler Jeffrey Klotz In Honor of Rabbi Carla Freedman David Wallick In Memory of the Friedlander Family

Molly & Gregory Friedlander Religious School Scholarship Fund Jamie Sirkin In Memory of Molly& Gregory Friedlander

Rabbi’s Discretionary Fund Renee Mendell In Memory of Edward Mendell Milton & Pearl Feldman In Memory of Abraham Feldman Marty Weisberg In Memory of Leopold Weisberg Jeffrey Klotz In Honor of Rabbi Carla Freedman Richard & Beth Sklarin In Honor of Julia‘s Bat Mitzvah The Henshaw Family In Honor of Rabbi Carla Freedman & Linda Paulding on the Occasion of Stephen Henshaw’s Bar Mitzvah Milton & Pearl Feldman In Honor of Diana Bell Allan & Alice Gottlieb In Memory of Gerhard Bendix Yvette Carp Alexander & Bonnie Wattles

Religious School Fund The Henshaw Family In Honor of the Religious School Staff on the Occasion of Stephen Henshaw’s Bar Mitzvah

URJ Camps Fund Larry & Leslie Gottlieb In Memory of Jerry Blum and Richard Glass

HIGH HOLY DAY DONATIONS/PLEDGES

Norman Alexander David & Phyllis Amerling Paul Amerling Sandra Apfel Richard & Sandra Auerbach Kenneth Aufsesser Samantha Berg Jeffrey Berg & Debra Paget Richard Bersch & Amy Selig Ted Bloch & Lisa Block Joshua & Michelle Blum Neal & Karen Blum Robert & Andrea Bolgar Steven Borden Marvin & Yvette Carp Edith Carson Richard & Jennifer Carter Jonathan & Rachel Clott Chuck & Ellen Cohen Adam & Robyn Cohen John & Karen Conti

Richard & Terri Davgin Jeffrey Dodes Jo & Roger Drawec Bella Emmer & Susan Davis Jane Emmer Stuart Feldman David & Sally Firestein David & Amy Fischer Rabbi Carla Freedman Laurence Furic Allen Gabor/Lisa Papernik Michael Gitlitz/Rita Landman Jack Goldberg/Trudy Wood Roy Goldman Allan & Ellen Goldstein Marvin & Chic Goldstein Edward & Martha Gordon Allan & Alice Gottleib Larry & Leslie Gottlieb Richard & Lyda Hellinger Doris Hettmansberger

Drew & Mindy Hoffman Michael Horwitz/Sandra Apfel Eugene Kahn Peter & Jamie Kaplan Emily Kingsley/John Stadler Ellie Klein Glenn & Deborah Kurlander Mark & Debra Lavin David & Erica Levens Gary & Paula Levine Wayne Lopkin/Julie Furo Lorraine & Paul Malamet Shelagh McLean Richard & Catherine Mishkin Mark & Tina Moss David & Leslie Moss John Mucciolo Daniel & Rochelle Papernik Sandra & Harry Rosenhouse Eveline Scheiner David & Iris Schiff

Gordon & Polly Schnell Tony & Jodi Senese Jeanne Shanin Alan & Lisa Sheptin Denise Simon Leslie & Susan Simon Steven Simons Victor Stein John & Barbara Stern Susan Stillman Robert & Barbara Strongin Rabbi Harvey & Meryl Tattel-baum Alexander & Bonnie Wattles Clifford & Sherry Wallach Michael & Emily Wein Linda Wildman Marjorie Schiff/Jack Wilson Hal & Laurie Wolkin Fred & Marcia Zuckerberg


The Early Childhood Center What do we do at Jewish Family Congregation Early Childhood Center?

We strive to create a learning environment that instills Jewish values by emphasizing the growth of the whole child. Our nurturing staff works to create an atmosphere, which meets the cognitive, social/emotional, physical, language, and self-help needs of the students. Teachers make informed decisions based on their knowledge of child development, individual children and cultural and social context. Cur-riculum integrates the content areas and provides for active explora-tion and concrete, hands-on activities.

What have we done this fall to support our mission?

We have been busy providing experiences for each child to grow and gain understanding of the world around them.

Our trip to Gossett’s:

Some of our classes visited Gossett Brother’s Nursery. They dug for worms; they planted

bulbs and picked pumpkins from the pumpkin patch.

They learned about the giant trucks and what they can do. We read a story about Sukkot

around the haystacks. We enjoyed a terrific hayride.

Brainstorming after the storm:

Most of our students and teachers lost power for several days after the October snowstorm.

When we returned to school, after our unplanned vacation, we listed the things we liked

about not having electricity.

The kids shared that they played with their siblings, eat all of the food in our refrigerator,

make a fire and help our friends.

The 4’s visited Katonah Museum of Art:

The exhibit is currently: New York New York the 20th Century.

The students learned about New York City (where all of them

have visited). The art depicts many places that the children

have been, and they appreciated the artist’s interpretation us-

ing a variety of techniques. The kids then had the opportunity

to create their own art in the learning lab. (Continued on page 8)


Fireman Tom visited: We had a visit from Fireman Tom. Tom Ritchey shared fire safety information, and we each had the opportunity to climb on the fire truck.

Farmer Dale Visited our Garden and our Classrooms: Farmer Dale helped us put our garden to bed for the winter. We pulled out the weeds, and covered the beds with straw… tucked the garden in cozy and tight for the harsh winter ahead. We also planted myrtle to use in our Sukkah some day.

Later in the fall, Farmer Dale returned to teach us about the cycle of plants. We planted indoor lettuce gardens in each class-room, and threw in some other seeds to see what happens.

We continue to learn in our regular Yoga class: We enjoy Yoga with Stephanie in the Garden Room. The combination of breathing and move-ment wakes up the whole body and offers inspiration for the learning we do in our classroom and out in the world.

All of these experiences support our day to day activities in the classrooms. Each day we read, create, imagine and inspire.

We will begin priority registration for next year on December 15th for current students; open to the general public on January 3, 2012.

Please share with your friends all of the exciting learning that is going on at JFC ECC!

(Continued from page 7)

The Early Childhood Center (cont’d)

Todah Rabbah from the ECC to:

The Early Childhood Committee – for organizing our 2nd Annual Ladies Bazaar. It was terrific night

and a great fundraiser. A special thanks to Luda Samuels and Elise Serby for chairing the event.

Rachel Clott and Dara Marceau for guiding the ECC committee.

Rabbi Freedman, Cantor Kerry, Jolie and Kathleen for all that they do to support the ECC.

Dale Saltzman (a.k.a. Farmer Dale) for teaching us about harvesting and planting.

All of the families who donated books to the ECC from the book fair… list to follow.

Jamie Kaplan for the tractor on our playground.

David Fried for making our shelves roll.

Meredith Rudin for the dress-up goodies for the 3s

We continue to enjoy Yoga with our Yoga specialist, Stephanie Goodkind.

December we will finally begin our weekly visits to the library… with special mystery readers!


This year, our Youth Group at JFC is focusing their atten-tion on global hunger; saving the orphaned children of Rwanda (Esther’s Aid) ; and getting books to needy chil-dren in our own neighborhoods (Open Door Family Medi-cal Centers). What is it we can do to participate to help recover damaged lives? Some don’t believe that one per-son can change the world, but we must put our faith in each other as global hunger, our main focus here, is a hu-manitarian crisis that requires human intervention until it disappears. There is no need for any person to be hungry, the kind of true hunger that steals life. We must commit ourselves as a culture to action. Several months ago, writer Peter Kimeu wrote an essay called, “Remembering a Hungry Childhood.” He posits, “Hunger is an unforgivable disease because it is the easiest one to cure. It is devastating to look east, west, south and north and see that there is nothing green that you can chew. During a drought everything goes yellow and dry. I would walk the roads and search the ground to see if someone has spat out a bit of chewed-up sugar cane. I am not ashamed to say that I would re-chew what I would find. Hunger is dehumanizing. It gets to a level where you do not know how you will survive and you will do anything for a simple kernel of corn.” I agree that this epidemic is particularly cruel because the cure for hunger is food and feeding people is something we can do without extraordi-nary advances in medical science… and it isn’t even that expensive. It is a travesty that involves complicit govern-ments and indifferent ones. Feeding the poor and under-privileged is the tenant of every religion. Why is it then that we never seem to advance much in this perennial fight? Kimeu is from Machakos, Kenya. He recalls that as a child his mother would direct him to keep water on the fire for hours in the hope that his father might come home with something that required cooking. Almost always, the fires would be put out as food was rarely brought back home. He writes that, “It is a traumatizing situation as a young child to be without food. You see the fear in the faces of your mother and father, despairing that they can-not feed their children. You feel afraid, too, because your parents can’t provide for you. Your stomach is so empty that even when you are thirsty and you take water it makes you dizzy. You get so nauseated your body wants to vomit, but you haven’t eaten. I think about this now as East Africa faces another drought. I think about all the children who are suffering as I did. We see terrible images of hunger, but I fear that we have not seen the worst.” JiFTY (JFC’s Jewish Family Temple Youth) is working under the direc-tion of its two Social Action Chairs, Sierra Shafer and Jackie Kalter (also JFC Student Mentors) to help focus

attention and garner support for our global hunger initia-tive. They are using information from American Jewish World Service (AJWS) which is trying to create Golbal Shabbatot around the world that includes prayers for those suffering—but more important than that, the ser-vices are supposed to awaken in us, as worshippers, a de-sire to get involved in the crusade. AJWS is also hoping to organize the American Jewish community to learn more about the U.S. Farm Bill that will directly impact the con-nection we have to local farmers in communities where starvation is a problem. Introducing free food to starving communities, it seems, is not always the best course of action as it eliminates the need for area farm production which in turn devastates the built-in business community there to support its people. If you teach a farmer to farm….

Global Hunger Shabbat is part of AJWS’s ongoing food justice campaign. This fall, the campaign is focusing on mobilizing the American Jewish community to reform policies in the U.S. Farm Bill that negatively impact communities across the globe.

The U.S. Farm Bill impacts food prices and the livelihoods of small-scale farm-ers in developing countries worldwide. From its guidelines on subsidies to its approach to food aid, this domestically-driven legislation is actually doing a lot of harm across the globe.The Farm Bill is up for revision in 2012 and we have the power to reform it for the better. Over the next two years, American Jewish World Service and our partners will be working to ensure that U.S. agricultural policy does not short-change the world’s small-scale farmers.

Below is a prayer to be recited by those who want to introduce this aspect to the traditions of Shabbat (which began on November 4); a global Shabbat will be adopted by synagogues around the world. Avinu she’bashamayim: On this and every day remem-ber your children, created in Your image, who hunger for bread and thirst for water. Take heed of all those who wander in search of food,whose worlds have gone dark through no fault of their own. We lift up our hands to You for the lives of the myriad children who faint from hunger. Show them mercy and kindness, God, and do not abandon them in their time of despair. Please, Lord, do not let the righteous want for food. Because You, Lord, provide the world with a bounty of food, while we have failed in our responsibility. We have stopped up our ears from the cries of the poor. Open our eyes, Lord, so that we see the suffering of the poor; open our ears so that we hear their cries. Re-move the calluses from our hearts so that we may pursue the mitzvah of tzedakah more carefully than all others; instill wisdom and courage within us so that we may em-power those living in poverty. Strengthen their hands so that they not be dependent on the gifts or loans of other people, but only on Your full, open, brimming, and gener-ous hand.

(Continued on page 19)

The Religious School by Leslie Gottlieb


From the Rabbi’s Desk (cont’d)

Another important thing we can do to lessen the pain of these losses is to be more attentive to each other, to be more present to each other, and to be kinder to each other. This means taking the time to talk to each other, to really listen when we talk together, and to make ourselves available as friends and supporters. It is too easy to as-sume that we know what is going on in another person’s life, and to judge that person. It is also too easy to avoid being in real communion with others. That means getting past the ways we keep others at a distance. It means get-ting past our fears of what real self-disclosure would mean.

And of course it is important that we continue to build community, for ourselves and for our children. Commu-

nity requires the support of all its members, though per-haps in a variety of different ways. But the first step must be the willingness to participate in that inclusive vision of Jewish community symbolized by all those prayers ex-pressed in the plural form.

So I encourage you to get involved in this Jewish commu-nity. Drop your own burden of woes at the door and come be part of something larger than yourself for a while. A service? A social action activity? An educational opportunity? A purely social event? Any or all of these? Your call. But come inside, under the canopy of Jewish life, and let your community warm your heart, sometime soon. And come back often.

(Continued from page 1)

CHOIR

If you would like to join the choir, or for more information, please contact Kathy Storfer at [email protected]

We welcome all adults -- 13 or older!

MAZAL TOV, MICHAEL HORWITZ

JFC’s in-house composer, Michael Horwitz, has been creating original music for our choir, and these often have a haunting and evocative quality to them. If you were in the tent on Yom Kippur afternoon, you heard Michael sing, with Kathy Storfer, his composition, Smoke, a chilling piece about the Holocaust. He has also composed some music for Shabbat, notably a version of V’shamru, and a new setting for the morning text, V’ha-er Eyneynu. And now, Michael is being honoured by having that last piece published in the 6th volume of Shabbat Music produced by the Reform Movement. This is quite an accomplishment, and puts our Michael in the company of such famous composers as Debbie Friedman, Ben Steinberg, Steven Richards, Benjie Ellen Schiller, Bonia Shur and Michael Ochs (among others who have influenced the music of Reform congregations worldwide). The book, which is accompanied by a CD (on which Kathy Storfer sings Michael’s composition) will debut at the URJ Biennial in December. We should all be very proud of this achievement, and we should certainly encourage Michael to keep up the good work! If you have not heard the composition that will be published, you are missing out! We will find a time, perhaps in the coming months, to hold a Shabbat morning service that will enable us top enjoy this remark-able musical accomplishment. Stay tuned. And do offer your congratulations to Michael when you next see him (he’s the tall fellow in the choir,

wearing the black hat!).


Richard & Sandi Auerbach

David Berger & Jennifer Fisher Kenneth & Cindy Carson

Jonathan & Iris Glass Mark & Debra Lavin

Have you considered celebrating signifi-cant birthdays and anniversaries with a

leaf on our Simcha Tree of Life?

Call the JFC Office for details.

Fran Apfel Karen Blum Neal Blum Cheryl Chess Ivy Cohen Samantha Dorf Scott Dorf Jo Drawec Jonathan Gabor Ariel Goodstein Tammi Jacobs Shulman Erica Levens Kenneth Levinsohn Daniel Levinson Michael Levinson Emily Lopkin Arel Meister-Aldama

Ted Okamoto Zachary Ozols Zoe Ozols Richard Perlman Ari Rackear-Sturm Emily Sanders Lisa Sheptin Richard Sklarin Peri Stevelman Ellen Strauss Zia Waldman Margot Weisberg Arman Weissman Bryan Wolkin Ella Zaslow David Zuckerberg Elisa Zuckerberg

Please call the JFC Office when any relevant information arises or changes so all Birthday, Anniversary and

Yahrzeit listings are accurate and up to date. JFC can only list names/dates that have been reported to us.

BIRTHDAYS ANNIVERSARIES

Aaron Blumenthal Ethel Feinleib David Sol Friedman William Goldman Arthur F. Karsch Lillian Kerner Charles Kingsley Jeff Lederman Isadore Lichtbach Belle Marcus Stern

Malvina Mendell Freda Ossher Alan Perl Rachel Rosenhouse Ruth Rosenthal Yale Rubin Jack Sher Raymond Slater Bertha Waldman

YAHRZEITS

-- SAVE THE DATE --

Mark your calendars NOW for the following upcoming events at JFC:

Sat., Dec. 17 Second Annual Talent Show Sat., Jan. 7 Progressive Dinner Sat., Feb. 11 Adult Comedy Night

….and more!

WATCH FOR MORE DETAILS!


This week’s Torah portion is called Chayei Sarah from the book of Genesis. I have written a d’var torah, or teaching of the Torah. Chayei Sarah means "the life of Sarah" and is about her death at age 127. She is bur-ied in the Machpelah Cave in Hebron and is accompa-nied by her husband Abraham and their two eldest children about 50 years later after paying the price of four hundred shekels of silver for the graves. This happens even though Abraham remarried to a woman named Keturah. He gains 6 boys from that short-lived marriage, though his heir to all his belong-ings is still Isaac. Sarah misses the marriage of her child, Isaac to Rebecca. Issac and Rebecca come to-gether when Eliezer is sent with gifts to Charan. Eliezer is given a sign from G-d when Rebecca ap-pears with water for his camel and as a result passes the test. Then Eliezer is invited to Rebecca’s home where he tells his story and later brings Rebecca back to Canaan to meet Isaac during his daily rituals. This is important because they marry after falling in love and he eventually forgets the grief of losing his mother, Sarah.

Looking further into the text, Chayei Sarah expands on what makes you happy in life.“Sarah lived to be 127 years old. These were the years of Sarah’s life,” (23:1). Could this mean that she lived life to the fullest. Was it simply an enjoyable life or simply a long and full life-- or is it both? All we can do in our own lives is to define the meaning of happiness and hope to see it come to fruition. “To be happy does not mean that you have everything you want or every-thing you were promised. It means, simply, to have done what you were called on to do, to have made a beginning, and then to have passed on the baton to the next generation.” I think the most important thing to be learned here is that we need to fulfill our duties to education and career—but we also must do our work of continuing to teach the generations to come. And maybe, if possible, we will make a lasting impression. After all, we are only human-- just like Sarah and Abraham.

D’var Torah

By Sierra Shafer Nov. 19, 2011

The ECC Hosted a Ladies’ Bazaar

On November 9, 2011, the ECC Committee hosted their “Second Annual Ladies’ Bazaar.” The bazaar featured over 20 vendors and many shoppers. The vendors varied from jewelry, children's and women’s clothing, bags, station-ery, exercise gear, scarves and a gold buyer. There were wonderful raffle items; we had many winners!

Thank you to those who found contributors to the raffle, those who sold the raffle tickets, as well as those who purchased the tickets. We exceeded the amount of money raised from last year.

Many thanks again to Luda Samuels and Elise Serby for organizing this amazing event and to all the volunteers. The bazaar could not have happened with out you!


JiFTY has quite a bit

going over the next few months. Our Social Action

Vice Presidents, Sierra Shafer and Jackie Kalter,

have found a few very worthwhile organizations to

donate to this year. The first one is Esther’s Aid. This

foundation was founded in 1999 and helps people who are homeless in both inter-national and local communities. In 2000, the founder Clare Effiong, went to

Rwanda and saw the devastation caused by the genocide in 1994. Children were homeless, without parents, living in dumpsters, poorly nourished, and in terrible

health. To raise money, JiFTY will be holding tricycle races in the spring and the students at JFC will be able to place bets on which board member they think will

win. All proceeds will go to Esther’s Aid. For more information, you can visit their

website at www.esthersaid.org. The other organization we will be donating to is Open Door Family Medical

Centers. Open Door, which was founded in 1972, helps families who do not have enough money to pay for health care. Every time a child comes in, they are pro-

vided with free health care and given a book to take home. Open Door started collecting books about five years ago and has kept their shelves well stocked

through donations. Please donate children’s books to this cause. For more information, you can visit their

website at www.opendoormedical.org.

DON’T FORGET:

CHANUKAH PARTY

DEC. 15, 7:15-8:15

JiFTY By Jessica Sheptin

Game Night November 18, 2011



I'm going to tell you a little bit of what I thought and felt about being at Eisner. I was a first-year camper; this was my first time at sleep away camp. I will tell you about the things I learned, participated in and signed up to do. I will tell you about my first day and many of my experi-ences, so read on. Eisner is an amazing Jewish sleep away camp in Great Barrington, Mass. On the first day, I had fun learning songs and meeting my bunkmates. Your parents help you set up your area and your bed. Once you are set, you kiss your parents good-bye and try to get them out of your bunk before they embarrass you. At Eisner you make wonderful friends! You can choose your instructional sport, art, or "Funsport." The funsport is called Chugs. The "U" is pro-nounced by its name. Some of the chugs I did were drama, tennis, biking and fun with animals. Some of the instructional sports I did were tennis, basketball, and soft-ball. I love tennis, so I brought my tennis racket to camp. If you don't have the sports equipment that you need, don't worry the camp has plenty! To sign up for a sport each week you get a piece of paper and a pencil. You number the page from 1 - 6. You write down the chugs you want, 1 being the one you want the most, 6 being the one you’re ok with but you would not mind or be upset if you didn't get it. Each week you rotate chugs.

In drama you do a fun play with other kids. This year's play for Chalutzim and Ofarim was Joseph and the Amaz-ing Technicolor Dream Coat. Though you can't do other art chugs, you still have fun. Sometimes you wish there were more hours in a day. On the first day of camp there is a special welcoming service. Everyone participates in this service. Each person passes the Torah down to each other in their group. On Friday nights there are shabbat services that the lower camp leads. When you lead a service, you either do a dance, a reading or art. After the service ends there is a song session where you sing songs in the Beit Am. After that there is Israeli dancing. On Saturday mornings there is a service and the upper camp leads it. The Torah read-ings are the only differences. Once or twice every session you have to do toranut. Toranut is when you set up and clean for every meal. You feel the life of the cooks are in the kitchen! The food is great. At the end of the day you go to bed. You love wak-ing up to the new day because you get to have that fun all over again. This was what life was like for me at Eisner. I hope you come here next year. If you come here, I hope you have the time of your life like me!

Jewish Camping By Ally Andrade

JFC EVENTS & FUNDRAISING UPDATES

The Committee kicked off the year with a meeting in No-vember. It was a great meeting with lots of enthusiasm and positive energy. There have been so many sugges-tions for fun events that we spent some time selecting the best ideas from the list and solidifying the calendar.

Here is what is in store for our members, your friends and families for the next few months. It is our hope that there is something on this list that appeals to just about every-one. Some of the items on the list are meant to be social gatherings, while others noted with ** have a fundraising goal.

January 7th - Progressive dinner ** January 29th - Family Skating Party Feb 11th - Adult Comedy Night ** March 11th – Family Bowling Night

April 28th – Casino Night ** May (tba)- Tag Sale ** June 3rd- Early Morning Fishing Excursion July 15th - Golf Outing **

We are also going to be starting two monthly events that we are seeking leadership for: A monthly game night where we hope to feature bridge, bingo, a variety of card games and board games; we are investigating the interest level in a monthly movie club. Please let us know if this appeals to you and if you can assist in the planning or want to participate.

Laurence Furic — [email protected]

Jeanette Sanders — [email protected]

Elise Serby — [email protected]


Brenda Barrie Launches “The Rabbi’s Husband”

Brenda Barrie recently launched her second novel, The Rabbi’s Husband, in her hometown, Winnipeg, where it achieved number one Best Seller status for two weeks.

Other launches for The Rabbi’s Husband will be held in Baltimore, Maryland, where Barrie and her husband lived for eight years. Barrie will also speak at book groups, synagogue and church groups in the Orange County and L.A. (California) area where she now lives.

The Rabbi’s Husband deals with characters which appeared briefly in Barrie’s first novel, The Binding.

In The Rabbi’s Husband, set several years after The Binding, Rabbi Tovah Feldner wakes one morning to find that her husband, Dan Goldin, has left her and their two children.

But, this is not a simple story of desertion. Readers know immediately that these two love each other. As the novel evolves, it takes readers from Minneapolis,

where the story begins, following Dan on a powerful personal quest to New York, while Tovah finally recognizes what action she must take to fulfill her promise as a rabbi, now in Southern California.

Barrie’s settings are generally places where she has lived, including: Madison, Wisconsin; Minneapolis, MN; and Orange County.

In an advance review of The Rabbi’s Husband, David Haynes, author of Somebody Else’s Momma and All-American Dream Dolls among other novels, said “Brenda Barrie does it again. Engagingly and with the deepest compassion, The Rabbi’s Husband explores the intricate connections that bind us together as families and communities. Barrie treats each of her characters with dig-nity and with such an open heart that I couldn’t help but be moved by every one of them. Their love is as palpable as is their pain, and I turned the pages eagerly, rooting for things to come out well for one and all. This is a truly find novel.”

The Rabbi’s Husband is available on Amazon and on Kindle. Barrie’s first novel, The Binding, (2005) is also available on Amazon. The Binding deals with the lives of three men who are the sons of Holocaust Survivors.

Friday, December 9, at JFC:

Copies of The Rabbi’s Husband will be available for signature that evening. As always, there will be a sign-up list for copies of the book. You will be billed later.


November 11th marked the annual JFC Blood Drive, and we want to thank all of you who came to give blood. The drive collected 26 donations, with 5 deferrals. The New York Blood Center was particularly appreciative. They had a greater than normal need because the October storm had caused the cancellation of a number of drives. If you missed the drive but can donate, please contact www.NYbloodcenter.org.

As we are moving into winter, we are mindful that it’s get-ting colder on the streets of New York. Talia Kaufman created a project for Girl Scouts organizing the Midnight Run garage. She was joined by friends and fellow scouts Erika Baron, Katie Strohmayer, Kate Russell and Samantha Lutt. They were able to do a lot of sorting, and washed some of the clothing that was soaked by water coming in from the leaky roof. The clothes were put into the bins and covered with tarps to prevent further soaking. Which brings us to another issue: the need for roofing materials to repair the roof.

Thank you to Talia and her friends. If you would like to donate materials or labor to help repair the roof and pro-tect the clothing, please contact Pat Shafer at 203 731 7641. We have our next Midnight Run scheduled in the spring. We always need clothing, especially backpacks, and volunteers to help prepare food the day of the Run. More information will be coming soon. Please feel free to visit www.midnightrun.org or reach out to Debbie Lavin ([email protected]) for more information.

JFC Social Action Committee by Patterson Shafer

The Tzedakah of the Month

For DECEMBER Is

HOMES FOR HEROES FOUNDATION Their purpose is to provide or coordinate financial assistance and housing resources to our nation’s heroes such as military personnel, police/peace

officers, firefighters and first responders in need.

Selected by the

JFC Social Action Committee

Want to help? Contact Debbie Lavin ([email protected]) or Jeanette Sanders ([email protected])

Next Midnight Run: March 17, 2012

Project Hope Chanukah Delivery

December 11th at 9:30

Anyone interested should contact Jeanette Sanders

([email protected])

JFC ANNOUNCEMENTS

If you would like to “announce” a Simcha in your family, please

send the text (pictures are welcome too!) to Jolie Levy at

[email protected].

Announcements must be received by the 15th of the month

to appear in the next month’s Shofar.

Please feel free to acknowledge your Simcha with an $18 donation to any JFC Fund or with a leaf on

our Simcha Tree.

Donation forms appear in every Shofar.

mailto:[email protected]

mailto:[email protected]


Pot Luck Dinners at JFC

Enjoy dinner with fellow members

before Friday night services.

Here’s what people are saying:

“I would have to rate it very high on the Zagat scoring system. An extensive menu (from contem-porary dishes of unique creativity to those that made me feel like I was sitting in my Bubby's kitchen), the quality of the cuisine worthy of 3 Michelin stars, very attractive decor and exciting and energetic ambiance comprised of a veritable whose who and who is not who at JFC. The Zagat rating would have been even higher if it were not for the service, which did not mirror what I have become accustomed to at most fine restaurants when I arrive. I was shocked when the Maitre D, Michael Salpeter, said my seat was available when I arrived as opposed to saying "your table will be ready in half an hour, why don't you have a drink at the bar.

Seriously, the dinner was filled with stimulating conversation, good food, shared experiences and joyful singing. The dinner was a totally open and casual way to spend time with existing friends and make new ones out of congregants who one may say a "Shabbat Shalom" to, but with whom you may have never really had the opportunity to en-gage in meaningful conversation. Like a family Shabbat dinner, the JFC dinner ( and we all know JFC is like a family) began the warmth and glow of Shabbat in a special way which carried through for the entire evening.”

Marty Weisberg

“Shabbat dinners proved to be an absolute deli-cious experience: even when the first dinner brought a carb overload, the company and singing made for burning it fast and easy! I enjoyed meet-ing my fellow congregants and clergy in an infor-mal setting, while we could be seated and discuss the different merits of grain.

I find it a really nice opportunity to end our very busy weeks and share smiles and the opening of shabbat in this manner. Food has this power to make us immediately more relax: no wonder there is a blessing for each category!

I will make sure I can attend others, hoping to meet new participants who won't know yet that I cheat with what I bring. So don't tell them, please (oops).”

Laurence Furic, the lazy cook (but my French dressing is always authentic)

NEXT POT LUCK

DINNERS: F

eb. 17,

May 18, June 2

"We had a marvelous time at the Shabbat pot luck dinner, trying everyone's dishes, catching up on everyone's news and sing-ing great songs. After a crazy week, we're so glad we mustered the energy to at-tend and in fact found the night tremen-dously relaxing and enjoyable, and a great prelude to the Shabbat service. It's a wonderful chance to make new friend-ships and strengthen old ones and we're looking forward to the next one. You're really missing something special if you don't give it a try. “

Deborah and Glenn Kurlander


The Religious School (cont’d)

A PRAYER FOR PEOPLE LIVING IN HUNGER AROUND THE WORLD

By Rabbi Shai Held

Oh God, speedily bring an end to poverty, so that “[the poor] shall not hunger or thirst, hot wind and sun shall not strike them, for Your mercy will guide them to springs of water.” Fulfill Your promise to those who re-vere You, as it is written: “God will wipe the tears away from every face.” Then shall we praise you, saying: “God has satisfied the thirsty, filled those who were hungry with all good things.” Amen, and so may it be Your will. Stay tuned to hear more about our Youth Group’s other initiatives like Esther’s Aid and Open Door (we’ll be col-lecting books at Chanukah for needy children in our area). We are teaching our teenage generation at JFC what it means to change the world… or is it that they are teaching us? Although we as Jews are instructed to teach the next generation (l’ dor va’ dor) it is sometimes hard to tell who is teaching whom… which is a good thing, I feel.

Todah Rabbah to…

The RS Committee for their ongoing support The JFC Youth Group (JiFTY) for all of their hard

work on last month’s Rock Shabbat The Kids Knesset for organizing the Bake Sale in

November to benefit Esther’s Aid

Don’t forget to check out the JFC Blog !

Go to www.jfc.rjblogs.org

Give the Gift of Chanukah

Please donate a new, unwrapped gift for a child, teen or senior.

Simply drop it in the wish bowl in the JFC entryway. (Please bring gift cards to

the JFC Office.)

Gifts will be brought to the Metropolitan Council on Jewish Poverty (a UJA-Federation beneficiary).

We now have a Facebook page!

If you are on Facebook, go to: http://facebook.com/

jewishfamilycongregation

and like us!

http://jfc.rjblogs.org

http://facebook.com/jewishfamilycongregation

http://facebook.com/jewishfamilycongregation



PLEASE SUPPORT OUR ADVERTISERS

WJCS to Host Chanukah Celebration for Develop-

mentally Disabled Persons

The WJCS Havorah Program and West-chester Reform Temple will co-host a Chanukah Celebra-tion for Persons with Developmental Disabilities on Wednesday, December 7 from 7:00 – 8:30 PM at West-chester Reform Temple at 255 Mamaroneck Road in Scarsdale. There will be music, crafts, refreshments and fun. All are welcome and admission is free. RSVP to Gail Oliver at 914-761-0600 X107.

JFC CLASSIFIED ALL ADS ARE A FLAT $18 AND MAY NOT EXCEED 50 WORDS. THEY WILL RUN FOR ONE MONTH ONLY.

To place an ad, submit the text and your payment to the JFC Office. You may email the text to

[email protected] and either drop off or mail your check (payable to JFC).

Credit card payments are also accepted.

Don’t forget to stop

in and check out the

JFC Gift Shop!

If you are interested in

purchasing anything,

please let us know in

the JFC Office.


Question: I am now a college freshman, living in a dorm, and we have been told that we cannot light candles in our rooms. I know that I will be home for Chanukah this year, but I was wondering what I would do when Chanukah falls earlier in Decem-ber. So I figured I’d ask the rabbi!

P.S. I love being at college!

Answer: I’m glad you love being at college…and also glad that you asked this question.

There are a few ways to handle this challenge. Probably the best way, if you want a menorah in your own room, is to get a little electric menorah, and add the lights each night as you would do with candles. If you think this is cheating because you are not lighting actual candles, consider that what the Maccabees lit was an oil lamp…so our coloured candles are not authentic either!

A different in-room solution would be to get a cloth menorah which comes with cloth candles and cloth flames, and treat this as your menorah. These can be found in Judaica shops, in Judaica catalogues, and also in places like Bed, Bath and

Beyond. It becomes a symbolic lighting, I know, but it is better than nothing….

Another solution, at many colleges, is for the Jew-ish students to assemble each night at the location of Hillel, or the Jewish Students’ Association, and, as a group, to participate in the mitzvah of lighting candles. This is a good way to get to know other Jewish students on campus, and it might just sup-ply you with some hot latkes or some sufganiyot (jelly donuts), also an important part of Chanukah.

If there is a synagogue in your community, you might round up a bunch of your campus Jewish friends and go to the Shabbat service during Cha-nukah. Be sure to call and find out the time. Synagogues welcome college students, and some-times they can connect students with families hosting a Chanukah dinner or something like that…so you could get a home-cooked meal out of that!

And, since you will be home for Chanukah this year, why not join us on December 23 for JFC’s Chanu-kah service, where we’ll sing all the songs you love?

Please keep in touch!

Kids Ask the Rabbi

Jewish Family Congregation Early Childhood Center

Where Family is our middle name

YOU CAN STILL REGISTER FOR 2011-12!

Please visit our website at www.jewishfamilycongregation.org OR call (914) 763-3028




- - - Lots of new vendors! - - - Check website for details.



Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat

1 K-3/CC/SMP/YG RS Staff Mtg. 6:15-7:15

Bd Mtg

2 ECC ECC Staff Mtg. 12:15

Creation Station

Family Service 6:30-7:15

3 Gr. 7 9-10:45

Lunch ‘N Learn

11:00-1:00

4 Gr. 4-6 9:00-12:00

5 ECC Gr. 7 4:20-6:15

6 ECC RS Talent Show Submissions Deadline

7 ECC

8 K-3/CC/SMP

9 ECC

Creation Station

Gr. 5 Service

Service 7:30 Tot Shabbat

10 Gr. 7 9-10:45

11 Gr. 4-6 9:00-12:00 NFTY Social Justice Day

12 ECC Gr. 7 4:20-6:15

13 ECC

Ritual Mtg

14 ECC

15 K-3/CC/SMP/YG YG Chanukah Party

16 ECC Creation Station

Dinner 6:30 Service 8:00

17 Gr. 7 9-10:45

Bagel Shabbat 9:30 a.m.

ALL ARE WELCOME

RS Second Annual Talent

Show 5:30-7:00

18 Gr. 4-6 9:00-12:00 Chanukah Cele-brations (last chance to use “fall” shekels)

19 ECC Gr. 7 4:20-6:15

20 ECC

Chanukah (1st Candle)

21 ECC

Community Chanukah & Candle Lighting 5:30-7:00

Chanukah (2nd Candle)

22 K-3/CC/SMP Chanukah Cele-brations (last chance to use “fall” shekels)

Chanukah (3rd Candle)

23 ECC

Creation Station

Chanukah (4th Candle)

Chanukah Service 7:30 Tot Shabbat

24


25


26


27


28 29 30

Service 7:30 Tot Shabbat

31

December 2011

JEWISH FAMILY CONGREGATION

W I N T E R B R E A K NO ECC OR RELIGIOUS SCHOOL

O F F I C E C L O S E D

K-3: 4:15-6:00 CC: 6:15-7:15 YG: 7:15-8:15

WINTER BREAK

NO RELIGIOUS

SCHOOL

DECEMBER 2-4:

EISNER AND CRANE LAKE CAMPS FATHER-SON WEEKEND

Jewish Family Congregation 111 Smith Ridge Rd/Rte. 123

P.O. Box 249

South Salem, NY 10590

Non Profit Organization

Postage PAID

White Plains, NY Permit No. 9022

CURRENT RESIDENT OR

Documents

SHOFAR - DECEMBER 2011 - Kislev/Tevet 5772