Looking back and planning forward

Stan Alliker, President

It is hard to believe that another year has gone by so quickly and it is time to send our L’Shana Tova wishes for a joyous and healthy year to everyone in our community. As happens in life, this past year was a bittersweet one for JCMI due to painful losses of dear longstanding congregants soothed by both a joyful bat mitzvah and a sweet baby naming.

Here at JCMI, we have been “back to normal” from restrictions imposed by the COVID-19 pandemic. The COVID experience, however, left a positive legacy of livestreaming services that we have kept for those who join us for “long distance davening” using our “Satellite Sedur.”

During this past year, we have enjoyed coming together in person for weekly services along with our rabbi’s Torah Study and Lifelong Learning Series. We reveled in the return of our Book Club, Jewish Film Festival, weekly mahjong games, yearly mahjong tournament and, of course, our Monday Night Bingo.

Our Cultural Series gave us Gulfshore Opera’s “A Night in Italy,” Beatlemaniax, Charlie Blum’s “Sinatra’s Great American Songbook” and Elton John’s “Rocket Man.” The surrounding community has been very supportive, making each event a resounding success.

JCMI celebrated 40 years as the sole Temple serving Marco Island and surrounding communities. The Temple initiated a chess club that is open to the community. During the summer, we continued religious services led by Cantorial Soloist Hari Jacobsen and our resourceful, articulate congregational members who gave us their interpretations of the weekly Parashot. We celebrated July 4th together and provided, by popular demand, three additional Monday Night Bingo games.

The summer has also been a time of planning for our Temple. Our religious leaders have been busy preparing for the High Holidays and tickets may be purchased through our office at 239-642-0800. Planning is underway for the next thought-provoking and entertaining Jewish Film Festival and the always exciting Cultural Series. Our congregation’s superb bakers are beginning preparations for “Bubbe’s Bakery” open to the community on Sunday, Dec. 3. The ever-popular Monday Night Bingo will return beginning in October.

Again, I take this opportunity to wish our friends and supporters for the year 5784, “Leshanah tovah tikateiv v’teichateim — May you be inscribed and sealed for a good year!”