19 Tishrei, 5777 This Week at Rochelle Zell
October 21, 2016
Zman Simchateinu Ingathering for Sukkot
Sukkot Happenings Sukkah Hop Mr. Griffith Honored DEAP News Rochelle Zell Kippot Fall Sports Wrap Up USY Guests Community News Alumni Trivia A Taste of Torah
Class Schedule ​Monday, October 24 No School Tuesday, October 25 No School
Lulavs were shaking, challahs were baking, obliging faculty members were tossed aloft at tefillah, and the rowdy sounds of Hallel filled the morning air: it's Sukkot at Rochelle Zell! Ms. Nadis' class colonized the "chilly but lovely" school sukkah for their divrei Torah about tzelem Elohim, while Dr. Berman's Hebrew class dutifully conjugated verbs and
Wednesday, October 26 A Thursday, October 27 C Friday, October 28 BB
Rabbi Greenberg's seniors considered why we read Kohelet on Sukkot, as per Emma Siegel's dvar Torah below! Modern Jewish Thought studied Torah from Rabbi Dov Linzer on the connection between Sukkot and Yom Kippur; says Dr. Schorsch, "On Yom Kippur we get in touch with our ideal selves and on Sukkot we learn the importance of shaping our environment to support us in the hard work of living out our ideal selves in the real world."
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Save The Date October 24-25 No School - Shemini Atzeret and Simchat Torah
Hoppin' at the Sukkah Hop Rochelle Zellians Hit the Road for Sukkot
November 1-6 Memphis Basketball Shabbaton November 1 Parent Teacher Conferences November 7 FermiLab Field Trip November 10 Parent Teacher Conferences November 11 No School - Professional Day November 18 1:15 Dismissal Begins
Nothing says community at Rochelle Zell Jewish High School quite like the annual Sukkah Hop. Yesterday, the entire school community journeyed from Sukkah to Sukkah to celebrate the holiday and join together during Zman Simchateinu, the festival of our joy. Many thanks to the Karoll, Ecanow, and Weisskopf families for opening up their
November 23 8:00 a.m. Start 1:15 Dismissal
homes to the community and to the Va’ad HaStudentim for all their hard work, planning, decorating, shopping, and making sure that no property was damaged in the tug of war!
November 24-25 No School - Thanksgiving Break November 26 Alumni Reunion​
College Visits Rochelle Zell is pleased to welcome admission representatives from over forty colleges and Israel programs this autumn! VIEW FULL SCHEDULE >>
Mr. Dale Griffith Honored University of Chicago's Outstanding Educator Award Rochelle Zell Jewish High School is thrilled to announce that the University of Chicago has bestowed the Outstanding Educator Award on our well-deserving English teacher and department chair, Mr. Dale Griffith! First-year students at the university nominate teachers who have changed the course of their lives, taught them to re-imagine texts, delve deeper into problem solving, and think beyond the bounds of the classroom as they further their education. Anyone who has ever been privileged to hear Mr. Griffith, in class, in tefillah, discussing philosophy, politics, or physics, will understand his worthiness to be a member of this select society. We congratulate our beloved teacher on his well-earned recognition, and the U of C congratulated the entire school on
our continued support of excellence!
DEAP Announces Year Project Tikkun Olam Team Devotes Resources to Homelessness On Sukkot, the Jews build and live in temporary structures. Luckily, Jews are able to celebrate Sukkot today by living in these temporary structures and then returning to our warm homes when the holiday concludes. We should keep in mind that some people do not have permanent structures to call home; these people have a lot to offer, but lack the resources to lead stable lives in comfortable living situations. This year, DEAP will work to help alleviate the plight of the homeless. DEAP president Arielle Small exhorts, "Sadly, it is impossible for the Rochelle Zell community to actually solve this tragic worldwide issue, but DEAP and the student body are going to plan and promote philanthropic events, educate the community on homelessness-specifically in Chicago--and participate in local volunteering opportunities."
Alumni Trivia Where is everyone's favorite outdoor rabbi, and who is that adorable baby enjoying the blazing heat in his sukkah?
Kippah It Real... Rochelle Zell Kippot Now Available Get your new Rochelle Zell kippot for the holidays! Handwoven kippot from Jerusalem are available through the development office for $20 each. Contact Michelle Friedman at 847.324.3720 or mfriedman@rzjhs.org to get yours today.
Fall Sports Wrap Up Tennis Goes Out on a Win! Rochelle Zell girls tennis players finished up the season with another win, this time against Beacon. Coach Finfer reports proudly, "All our seniors got the opportunity to play in this match: Lexi Levin, Nina Levine, Eliana Kaufman, and
Mollie Kramer. We had four girls who played almost until the sun set. It is very hard to play in a third set tiebreaker--great job Betsy Winick, Nina Levine, Sophie and Eliana Kaufman! Also, kudos to Hannah Kelly who played the last two matches despite a leg injury. It was a team effort, all around." The entire men’s soccer team stepped up its game for the final match of the season against a very tough JV squad from Niles North. The game really heated up in the last six minutes: we were only down by one and were dominating play and possession! Our two goals were solid, the first a tap in by Eli Simmons, always in the right place, thanks to Micah Brody fighting for the ball in the box and sliding it over to Eli. Our second goal and his twelfth of the season was scored by superstar Eli Gurin, assisted by Josh Levitas.
Coach Shannon concludes, “We finished the season with solid performances, and we played some fantastic soccer: playing more physical, playing smarter, and communicating more! This is a special team and a great group of kids, I am incredibly excited about the years to come.”
USY Visits On Friday, October 14, five Chicago United Synagogue Youth (CHUSY) Directors, including the Regional Youth Director, came to visit Rochelle Zell! They got to experience firsthand one of our Friday morning minyanim, followed by a delicious bagel breakfast and tour of the school from our own student body president! It is always great to have them in our building, and we look forward to many more occasions to work together in educating our youth!
Sponsored Breakfast Happy birthday to Hannah Kelly! Many thanks to her family for sponsoring breakfast this week. To sponsor bagels in honor of your favorite Tiger, please contact Diane Zidman in the front office.
Community News and Events Jewish Studies in Evanston
Alumni Trivia Interfaith Youth Corps maven Rabbi Ruven Barkan is still building bridges between different communities in his current and past positions since leaving CJHS. Rabbi Barkan now runs the religious school and USY chapters at Congregation Anshei Israel, delighted to be back in his hometown of Tuscon. Rabbi Barkan's wife Adina has finished her B.S.W. from Savannah
State; Rabbi Barkan and Adina received their foster license last spring, and have provided a warm and loving home for new baby Daniel since his arrival in June. Read all about Rabbi Barkan's journey in the Arizona Jewish Post, and email him to gush over the adorable baby pictures!
A Taste of Torah: Sukkot and Kohelet How much is enough? When can you say I have everything I truly need? Sukkot challenges us to reexamine our role as humans, whether we really need to live in a home with multiple rooms. On Sukkot, we ask: How many pairs of shoes do we really need? How many pairs of pants does one need? How many coats? Similarly, the book of Kohelet (Ecclesiastes) which we read on the Shabbat of Sukkot stresses this question of what value the physical world ought to have. After the intensity of Rosh Hashannah and Yom Kippur, sometimes we feel like we are on a higher spiritual level than the rest of the year. We feel close to God, especially as we mimic the angels on Yom Kippur and refrain from human acts like eating and drinking. As Sukkot begins, we transition to "real life" and in some ways we leave this state of spiritual holiness. On Sukkot, we celebrate the fall harvest and build temporary homes, something very physical and real. Sitting in a sukkah is a powerful reminder of what is important in life. We sit with our families, with friends, with guests. Human relations are at the heart of Sukkot. We expose ourselves to the elements by choice. We are also to be mindful of the fact that there are many people in the world who do not have the luxury of making a choice to live in a sukkah. Whenever I take the train, my father and I drive down a viaduct while I am getting on and off of Lake Shore Drive. Last year I used to count how many tents were under the viaduct, how many people were huddled together in the freezing winter. Sukkahs are everywhere, we should not close our own eyes to them. Kohelet speaks of this concept, asking when it is enough through nature and human’s own lack of satisfaction: “All things are full of weariness; a man cannot utter it; the eye is not satisfied with seeing, nor the ear filled with hearing. What has been is what will be, and what has been done is what will be done, and there is nothing new under the sun.” Kohelet also teaches that there is a time for everything under the sun. We are coming from a time where we are much more connected to God, and the heavens than we are to earth and to humanity. Kohelet very rarely discusses God. This omission of God, forces us as humans to reexamine our contributions to our world, and how we can remain humbled individuals even if we may have everything we need. There is a teaching in Kohelet that states, “ Guard
your steps when you go to the house of God; to draw near to listen is better than the sacrifice offered by fools; for they do not know how to keep from doing evil. Never be rash with your mouth, nor let your heart be quick to utter a word before God, for God is in heaven, and you upon earth; therefore let your words be few” (Kohelet: 5.5). This is one of the rare occurrences in Kohelet where God is mentioned. In this case, God is mentioned for the purpose of dividing the earthly and heavenly plains. We are to be cautious on earth because there is a God. We are to remain aware of the fact that there is a higher being in order to understand, that although Sukkot may be about sacrifices, it is only when one is able to listen, or lower themselves, that they can be earthly beings that understand how to refrain from evil acts. Kohelet forces each of us to reexamine our own role in the world. Yes, we can create change in the world. Yes we have the capacity to help those in need. Yes, we can better ourselves. Yet, we cannot change the world itself. We do not have the power to change that which is quite literally set in stone. On a day where we are to be most elated, when we sing Hallel and rejoice as a community, we are actually humbled by the blessings that surround us and made more sensitive to our environment. I hope as Sukkot comes to an end, we will be humbled by and grateful for the abundance that we enjoy and begin to look outside of ourselves, to connect to one another and to pay attention to those in need. Emma Siegel ('17)
In a deplorable moment of inaccuracy, last week's E-News attributed the beautiful Sukkot dvar Torah about Clouds of Glory, comfort zones, and zman simchateinu to Mr. Matt Cohen, when in fact, it was delivered by Mr. Bini Cohen. A moment's scrutiny will reveal that the two Mr. Cohens look nothing alike; the misattribution can only be ascribed to editorial negligence, possibly brought on by a bad case of The Berenstain Bears and Too Much Yuntif. To reread Mr. Bini Cohen's inspiring words on how to step outside our zone and be our best selves: READ MORE>> Judaic Studies Teacher Mr. Binyamin Cohen
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