Shofar- August 2011ne

Shofar Av/Elul 5771

Jewish Family Congregation www.jewishfamilycongregation.org

August 2011

From the Rabbi’s Desk Recently, I received an email from my colleague, Rabbi Aaron Brusso of Bet Torah in Mt. Kisco. He raised an issue which I have wrestled with for a long time now, and he has motivated the rabbis of our region to address it head-on in our congregations.

If you have a youngster who has recently been Bar or Bat Mitzvah, you know that, in their 13th year, the kids go to a lot of other Bnai Mitzvah services and celebrations, at various synagogues. Those who attend the party usually come home with some kind of souvenir, and the most popular of these is a sweatshirt of some kind, with the name, date and “logo” of the event prominently displayed on it. They wear the newest of their sweatshirt wardrobe to school on the following Monday.

This instantly establishes an “us” and “them”….the kids wearing the newest sweatshirt are the “in crowd”, and all the others feel left out.

Because our Bnai Mitzvah class meets on Mondays as well, this is even true here; if a bunch of the students show up in the most recent (and they are often day-glo colours, nothing subtle!) shirt, the ones without are every bit as conspicuous, but for the opposite reason.

And according to Rabbi Brusso and many other Westchester rabbis, this is a phenomenon experienced everywhere in the area.

If your youngster was ever, at any time, one of the kids without “the” sweatshirt , you know how dejected and alone s/he felt. This is not something we want done to our own kids, and it should not be something we cause to happen to others.

Rabbi Brusso also points out that, in a busy Bnai Mitzvah year, a student can acquire as many as 30 of these souvenir sweatshirts, surely more than anyone could possibly need.

He also tells the story of seeing one of these sweatshirts on a person walking in Mt Kisco…someone who got the shirt at the Community Center, where the owner donated From the Rabbi’s Desk Service Schedule August Oneg Hosts President’s Message Kids Ask the Rabbi JFCAdults JiFTY The Religious School Yahrzeit/Annivs/Birthdays

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it, having too many such items anyway.

And of course, these shirts cost some money to produce for the event.

We rabbis are distressed that, whether intentionally or otherwise, some of our kids are being made to feel left out.

Surely that is disrespectful, the opposite of “love your fellow-human as yourself “(Lev 19:18), which is the value we espouse at our synagogues.

So the rabbis of Westchester are working at changing this practice in our own communities. Rabbi Brusso has been in touch with MAZON, The Jewish Response to Hunger, an organization we support because it contributes to food pantries both in this country and elsewhere; we encourage congregants to contribute 3% of the cost of their celebration (weddings, Bnai Mitzvah, etc) so as to honour the idea of mitzvah as part of their experience. MAZON will provide a single sweatshirt to the B/Mitzvah student to announce that s/he has donated to this very important cause, and they will provide us with information to support this approach.

This way we accomplish many good things. The only one who gets the sweatshirt is the student who makes a donation to MAZON instead of spending the money on sweatshirts that no one needs, that cause bad feelings amongst their peers, and that wind up in the recycling bin all too quickly. At the same time, we teach the importance of hunger relief, of doing mitzvot, of treating our peers with respect, and of not wasting resources.

So I am asking those with Bnai Mitzvah in the near future to take up this challenge, and become role models for others by adopting this approach to your celebration.

I will be distributing materials about this in the coming months and can get info to you more quickly if needed.

This is a wonderful solution to a very unpleasant problem, and it is time that we acted upon our values with regard to this matter. I hope you share my interest in making this work!

Summer Fun pictures Early Childhood Center SITGO Information Social Action Committee Donations to JFC Ask the Rabbi Support-A-Walk Donations Form JFC Calendar

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Jewish Family Congregation Shofar

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: jfc@bestweb.net

jewishfamilycongregation.org

Rabbi Carla Freedman jfc@bestweb.net Cantor Kerry Ben-David cantorbd@aol.com

AUGUST Friday, August 5/Av 6

7:30 pm Parshat D’varim

Friday, August 12/Av 13

6:30 pm 8:00 pm

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 Beth Tessler Debra Verbeke Elisa Zuckerberg and Johanna Perlman, Past President

Shofar Editor Jolie Levy Shofar Printer EnterMarket

POT LUCK SHABBAT DINNER*** Parshat V’etkhanan

Friday, August 19/ Av 20

6:30 pm SITGO 7:30 Pm musical service With Cantor Ben-David and Kathy and Paul Sorfer

PLEASE NOTE: JFC OB OBSERVES SERVES TORAH TORAH--KASHRUT KASHRUT,, SO PLEASE: NO PORK, NO SHELLFISH, AND NO MEAT MEAT--AND AND--MILK COMBOS COMBOS,, EVEN OUTDOORS OUTDOORS!! THANKS!

Friday, August 26/Av 27 School Director Leslie Gottlieb lesliejo0312@gmail.com Early Childhood Center Director Jane Emmer jfceccenter@gmail.com Temple Administrator Jolie Levy jfcoffc@gmail.com

August 2011

7:30 pm

Parshat R’eh

***with this, we introduce a new program at JFC…a strictly voluntary pot luck Shabbat dinner.

Bring a (veggie or dairy, please…no meat, no shellfish) dish to share^^^…please provide enough to feed 6 people. We’ll begin with the blessings, share the meal, sing some Shabbat songs and clean up in time for the evening service. (Please note that this service will begin at 8:00 pm).

Adults and children welcome.

Got a guitar? Drum? Do bring it to enhance our singing!

Can’t make it to the dinner? Fine, come for the service!

Can’t stay for the service? Fine, come for the dinner anyway!

You can do both this month, maybe not next time?…whatever!

We hope you’ll choose to add this to your Shabbat experience…it will occur about once a month, to enrich our community life. ^^^ please, no pizza! Salads, pasta dishes, potato, rice or other grain dishes, grilled veggies, raw veggies with dip, fish salads or spread, crackers and cheese, fruit salad…but no pizza!

AUGUST ONEG HOSTS BOARD HOST: Beth Tessler (914) 767-0123

August 5 Roger & Jo Drawec Jonathan & Rachel Clott

August 19 - SITGO Rick & Bobbie Cohlan Jane Weil Emmer

August 12 Adam & Robyn Cohen John & Karen Conti

August 26 Jerry & Katie Davis Brian & Jillian Chipman

Please find a sub- Please contact the JFC Please contact your stitute if you cannot Office with the names Board Host if you have host your assigned of the new hosts. any questions.

Oneg.

-- ONEG HOSTS -PLEASE REMEMBER NO MEAT GOODIES MAY BE SERVED AT ANY ONEG (See page 21 for some oneg tidbits)

Av/Elul 5771

Jewish Family Congregation Shofar

The President’s Message Last night my wife and I were talking and she mentioned how fast the summer seemed to be going by -something a lot of us start to notice towards the end of July. To me, each interval of time -- seconds, minutes, hours, days, etc. -- is just a percentage of how long I have been alive. The older we get, the faster time seems to go by. So my wife’s comment came as no surprise.

Our conversation brought me back to summers when I was a kid and the summer seemed like a lifetime. My grandparents lived in Long Beach (Long Island) and, for as far back as I can remember, until I started summer camp, I spent summers on the beach.

“Me and my friends” would get together right after breakfast by the lifeguard chair on “our beach” and stay until our moms called us for dinner. After dinner, we rode our bikes on the boardwalk until it was time to go to bed. Those days seemed to last forever.

They had a rhythm that was definitely affected by the tides, the weather, out-of-the-ordinary events, and the more common events that were swirling around us, but none created pressure or angst.

As I think about those times, I know I never woke up with yesterday’s baggage, and I’m certain that I wasn’t worried about tomorrow. Each day was long enough so thoughts of going back to school or something planned for the weekend never interfered with our main occupation: having fun. That was our job and, you know, it wasn’t hard. We dug cavernous

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by Richard Mishkin

holes in the beach and covered them with wood to make a house that ultimately would fill with water no matter high up the beach we dug them. We climbed on the rocks, ventured up and down the shore invading other kids’ beaches, had secret places under the boardwalk, and helped to push the cars of “tourists” out of the sand when they got stuck. We then took the tips we earned and immediately biked to Izzy’s to get a knish or play ski-ball.

So after all that hard work, what did we accomplish? Probably nothing significant except that we can look back with fond remembrance when time went by slowly and there was only joy in our lives. My life has changed a whole lot since I was 7, 8 or 9 years old. Time flies by quickly, even in the summer. I think about what I did yesterday, and whether or not it was the right decision, and I worry about tomorrow. I worry about my kids, my wife, finances, my health, JFC, my job – I could go on as I know you could – but this summer I am going to take some time off from being “an adult.” Not all summer (who am I kidding?), not even for a day, but for a few minutes here and there, an hour if I’m lucky, just to allow myself to smile and remember how good life is no matter how bad it may seem. I think I may try this when I go to services – it might be a good time to let time slow down again.

Won’t you join me?

CHOIR If you would like to join the choir, or for more information, please contact Kathy Storfer at kstorfer@aol.com We welcome all adults -- 13 or older!

JFC WELCOMES RETURNING MEMBERS ERICA GOLDBERGER & FREDERICK SLOGOFF and their daughters ALEXANDRA & MADELINE SLOGOFF

Don’t forget to stop in and check out the JFC Gift Shop!

The items change frequently!

If you are interested in purchasing anything, please let us know in the JFC Office.

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Jewish Family Congregation Shofar

August 2011

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Jewish Family Congregation Shofar

JFC ď ˘ Adults

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By Jeanne Shanin, Adult Program Coordinator

Kids Ask the Rabbi Question: Why do we have three Torah scrolls?

The third scroll is the one we call the Tiny Torah.

It is about 300 years old, beautifully hand-written, Answer: Because we are lucky? and hard to read only because the letters are so That of course is true, but there are other antiny. It was written in Russia, and smuggled out in swers as well. Each of our scrolls has an interest- the late 1980s, to Israel. There, members of our ing story behind it. congregation, Renee and the late Edward Mendell found it and bought it. They also bought the silver The biggest and heaviest of our scrolls is the one ornaments that go with it, and at first they loaned in the round metal case, which we call our Sefardic the Tiny Torah to JFC. Later, they gave it to us as scroll, because the Jews of the Sefardic world a permanent gift.

(Spain, North Africa, Arabia) protect their Torah scrolls by keeping them inside metal cases. Our So that’s how we got three Torah scrolls.

Sefardic scroll was hand-written in the early 1980s by a scribe (someone trained to write a To- Each one is very special, because it represents a rah scroll and other Jewish texts) for JFC; it was Jewish community that has vanished. We are happy to keep the memory of each of these coma fund-raising project, and the money that was munities alive by using their Torah scrolls. It is a raised was used to pay for a Jewish family to get out of Syria, where Jews were being treated very great honour to be connected to these three different places which have been important to Jewish badly. history, and when someone reads from the Torah The other big scroll is our Czechoslovakian scroll or is called up to chant the blessings for the Torah (the one we use most of the time); it was written reading, that person is becoming part of the his(by hand of course) in 1838 in Brno, Czechoslovatory of the particular Torah scroll. kia, and was in use until the Nazis came a century We proudly use all three of our scrolls, and our later. They collected Torah scrolls, menorahs, me- Bnai Mitzvah students and other readers get to zuzahs and other Jewish ritual objects and at the pick which scroll they want to use. end of the war, their collection was discovered and Think about that for your Bar or Bat Mitzvah! sent to England. From the synagogue in England, the scrolls still useable have been distributed to congregations like ours all over the world.

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Jewish Family Congregation Shofar

August 2011

Jewish Family Congregation Early Childhood Center Where Family is our middle name

WE ARE CURRENTLY REGISTERING FOR 2011-12!

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

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STILL AVAILABLE - IF YOU ARE INTERESTED IN OBTAINING THIS GREAT OPPORTUNITY FOR YOUR CHILD, PLEASE CONTACT THE JFC OFFICE FOR DETAILS.

Av/Elul 5771

Jewish Family Congregation Shofar

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JiFTY is having its annual end of the summer party at JFC. Come to the fiesta! If you are going into 8th-12th grade, join us Thursday, September 1st from 5-6:30.

Play fun games, make new friends, and eat good food.

RSVP by Thursday, August 25th, to Leslie Gottlieb at lesliejo0312@gmail.com.

JiFTY

By Andrew Blum

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Jewish Family Congregation Shofar

August 2011

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Jewish Family Congregation Shofar

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The Religious School

by Leslie Gottlieb

How does Dolly Parton fit into a story about Jews, you might ask, and how could this possibly relate back to the Religious School? That’s easy. Years ago, Dolly Parton set up a library donation program that distributed books to families in her rural Tennessee and then to folks around the country and in Canada and Europe. Jewish philanthropist Harold Grinspoon, now 81, heard about Parton’s venture back in 2004 while listening to a public radio show.

Grinspoon has been donating millions to Jewish schools and summer camps for eons and decided it was time for him to organize and fund a Jewish library system that would send Jewish book titles around the country to young families who were just setting the course for family traditions in their lives.

Beginning in December of 2005, Grinspoon’s PJ Library was born. Starting with only 200 books, he now is responsible for mailing out 76,000 books a year. A few favorites include, It’s Challah Time Let’s Visit and Israel.

have paved the way for recognizing great Jewish teachers and leaders.

The illustrator for many of the titles the PJ Library distributes is Todd Parr. The Peace Book shares a theme that resonates strongly in Jewish life but is a secular title. His newest book, I Love Camp, was a challenge as Parr never attended sleep-away camp. After watching promotional videos on camps, he was able to put it all together. As the Jewish summer camp experience is central to many of our lives, this book is long overdue as a resource for parents looking to introduce the concept to their children at a very young age.

According to The Times article published last month written by Mark Oppenheimer that featured Grinspoon’s story about the library and his life, “Mr. Grinspoon, who was born in 1929, belongs to five synagogues, four in western Massachusetts and B’nai Jeshurun in Manhattan, but he rarely attends. His Judaism is not about religious observance. He is a Zionist, and he gives $100,000 of his own money, not his foundation’s, to the Jewish lobbying group the American Israel Public Affairs Committee, or Aipac, every year. He is worried about intermarriage. He believes his people have something special, and he hopes these free books will help that something persist.

I have met at least one JFC family who has taken advan‘I think the Jewish mind is an incredible mind,’ Mr. Grintage of the program, and they love it. It is a wonderful spoon told me when we chatted on Thursday in his backidea that was started with a small seed—just one man lis- yard. ‘We have 181 Nobel awards out of all the awards tening to the radio. Fortunately, this one man had the given out. I think the money I have made does not belong ability to fund a major program that has helped Jews all to me. I think I am a custodian of the Jewish people. My over to teach the younger generation about our shared entrepreneurial skills came from the tribe.’ culture and traditions. Visit www.pjlibrary.org to learn It is hard to check numbers on Nobel laureates, almore. though several estimates allow that Jews have won more If the name Grinspoon sounds familiar to you but you than 150 Nobel Prizes, between 20 and 30 percent of the just can’t make the connection, let me be of help here. total. It is easier to confirm Mr. Grinspoon’s substantial Two of our Religious School teachers are Grinspoonbusiness skills. Born outside Boston and an early failure in Steinhardt award winners, an internationally recognized ice cream vending and selling insurance, he finally got into honor. Michael Steinhardt, a local Westchester resident, buying and selling properties, and says he is now worth is the Jewish philanthropist (and quite secular in his prac- ‘over $500 million.’” tice of Judaism I have heard) who helps to fund this annual Maybe the Grinspoons would like to add a sixth synaaward for teaching excellence. gogue membership to their list? I am on the case! In any Ruth Ossher and Linda Paulding event, it is inspiring to think of what one person with one have both been idea can conquer given some initiative. We can all follow recipients. Ruth in Grinspoon’s footsteps; we can’t let money be the imwas honored at a pediment because, as you know, we can each help to lavish ceremony change the world, one person or one thing at a time. in California, and And that’s just the thing we try to teach our charges Linda was honhere at Religious School. Learning about Judaism, Hebrew, ored in Manhatour history—and all the rest--- is important, but learning tan. There is a to care about all of it and each other is another goal enrequired number of teaching hours per week to be nomi- tirely. We, at the school, take that responsibility very serinated, and these are our only two staff members who ously and can’t wait till our students return in the fall to qualify. But to be clear, there are thousands of applicants share our enthusiasm. Until then, have a safe and happy every year and very few winners. Winners are announced summer. in The Jewish Week newspaper. We are clearly very proud of Ruth and Linda and are grateful to the benefactors who (Continued on page 15)

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Jewish Family Congregation Shofar

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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.

ANNIVERSARIES Mark & Donata Albert Frank & Susan Andrade Jeffrey Berg & Debra Paget Theodore Bloch & Lisa Block Jonathan Clott & Rachel Africk-Clott Adam & Robyn Cohen David & Sally Firestein Allan & Ellen Goldstein Lawrence & Leslie Gottlieb Richard & Lydia Hellinger David & Erica Levens Harold & Ruth Ossher Linda & Douglas Paulding Harry & Sandra Rosenhouse Steven Sturm & Amy Rackear Steven & Judy Vandervelden David Warren & Lauren Zeltzer

Does your company match charitable donations?

JFC is a non-profit organization, and your contributions may qualify.

BIRTHDAYS Zachary Amerling Adam Andrade Charlotte Bellinson Ilene Benjamin Samantha Berg Richard Bersch Andrew Boies Barbara Boies Zachary Boies Cole Brand Jason Breslin Dan Brodoff Debra Cohen Benny Davis Matthew Duckett Jane Emmer David Firestein Dillon Firestein Sally Firestein David Fischer Lillian Gilbert Michael Gitlitz Allan Gottlieb Abbey Grzymala Dillon Haims Nicole Haims

Abel Hansonbrook Alexander Junquera Spencer Kane Peter Kaplan Spencer Kaplan Hillary Lavin Dylan Leitner Emily Malamet Sarah Raimondi Elisabeth Rich Emma Richman Alan Sanders Eva Schenk Anthony Senese Steve Shainmark Denise Simon Brian Smith John Stern J. J. Stevelman Robert Strongin Matthew Tessler Paul Tessler Zoe Vandervelden Marc Waldman Zarabeth Waldman

YAHRZEITS Rheba Albert Ferdinand Aufsesser Sadie Dutka Theresa Ehrman Sam Feinleib Abraham Feldman Julius Goodman Lila Gordon Edward Mendell

Dax Nemerov Kenneth Rosenthal Henry Salmon Joseph Salpeter Edith Sherr Hugo Sternberger Melvin Tessler Janet Treitman

Have you considered celebrating significant birthdays and anniversaries with a leaf on our Simcha Tree of Life?

Call the JFC Office for details.

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Jewish Family Congregation Shofar

SUMMER FUN

August 2011

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Jewish Family Congregation Shofar

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Early Childhood Center and Summer Fun

By Jane Emmer

Summer Fun at JFC is in full swing, and we are all having a blast. We are very proud that our summer program reflects the core principles of our educational philosophy.

From earliest infancy, play is the primary way children learn. Through play, children eagerly use all the “tools” they have at their disposal—their bodies, their relationships with their family and peers, and the world around them. Play, more than any other activity, fuels healthy development of young children. It is through play that much of childrens’ early learning is achieved.

Children play because it is fun. Play takes many forms, but the heart of play is pleasure. And with pleasure comes the powerful drive to repeat such activities. With repetition comes mastery. And mastery brings a sense of accomplishment and confidence. We encourage exploration and creativity within the context of our nurturing community.

And then there are the sprinklers…. This is when our amazing teens get to discover and play. They create water parks by combining our hose, sprinklers and play equipment. While our teeniest campers use water to discover truths about the world around them, our counselors are hydraulic engineers. Their goal is simple: to create the biggest smiles on the faces of our campers.

When we say that “Family” is our middle name we really mean it.

Each week we hike in the woods and create at the art table. We busily care for our organic garden and enjoy snacks that include some of our harvest. And, of course, our day ends with ice pops and water play.

We are blessed with wonderful teens (both paid and volunteer) in our congregation and beyond. The joy of summer fun is evident in the faces of our staff as well as our campers. This summer our teens include: Spencer and Elana Kaplan, Indy and Billie Li, Skyler Levy, Navi Weiss, Phil Levins and Scott Dorf. They are led by Kathy Weingarten, Dinah Radar, Jodi Waxman and me.

Todah Rabbah to:  Marjorie Schiff for planting our wonderful summer garden.

 Jason Breslin for playing the guitar for camp Shabbat.

 Jacob Breslin for driving his brother and joining Play, science and summer go hand in hand. Not many things could be better than messing about with water on a hot day. As kids dip, drip, dribble and pour they explore the wonders of water. At our water table, we provide a variety of materials that lead to deeper exploration. They invent water machines, play with bubbles, and make soup and fountains.

us for camp Shabbat.  Doris Hettmansberger for driving her granddaughter Billie to help us at camp.  Cheryl Chess for taping and painting the beginning of our new playground line.  Our staff and volunteers for making this a fantastic summer filled with SUMMER FUN!

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Jewish Family Congregation Shofar

Congratulations Jane!

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Jewish Family Congregation Shofar

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The Religious School (cont’d) (Continued from page 9)

Finally, we all warmly welcome Jane Emmer to the ECC (JFC’s nursery school) as its new director. Jane’s family has been part of the Religious School for too many years to count and we have a strong personal and professional relationship that can only help to make JFC’s school programs the best out there. We hope you’ll agree.

Todah Rabbah from the Religious School to…

 The Kaufman family for the library book donations  Jolie Levy for the fresh flowers every week over the summer

 Rabbi Carla Freedman for her ongoing support of our school programs

FOR SALE We have TWO of these units for sale. They are in very good condition and just need to be cleaned, as they have spent two years in the ECC classrooms. The manufacturer calls them “dress-up carousels,” but they would be great in any child’s room.

There are mirrors on both sides, pegs, and storage. They sell new for about $160. We’d LOVE to get $75 for each of them. First-come, firstserved. All monies received will go directly into the ECC fund.

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Jewish Family Congregation Shofar

JFC Social Action Committee It’s summer, and the Social Action Committee has wound down its activities. But the need for our outreach is still there. So what can you do?

Make a Difference There is plenty of opportunity to help those in our community, whether through donation of goods (clothing, autos), services (blood drives, bake sales) or financial support (tzedakah, disaster relief). It’s great if donations are through JFC. It’s great if they are direct. Help someone in need this summer.

Plan for the Future Those of you who are Bnai Mitzvah will be asked to do 2 Mitzvah as part of your passage to Jewish adulthood. I believe this is most rewarding. What will you do? Raise funds for a worthy cause, participate in Midnight Run activities, perform service for your community? Be thinking about how you can bring relief or joy to those around you, or to those in far-

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by Patterson Shafer away places, while at the same time taking steps toward your goal.

Provide Shelter We have transformed the decaying garage into the staging area for the Midnight Run. The problem is that the building needs our support – literally! One of the support posts needs jacking, and the roof needs to be resurfaced. We are looking for donations of roofing material: 1,000 sq feet of roll roofing, nails and roofing cement which should total about $700. Please think about helping procure the materials, or join us later in early August to apply the new roof. We’ll wait for a cooler day.

Participate As the summer passes, we move quickly into another year of action. The Social Action Team runs Midnight Runs, Project Hope and other acts of support for our community. Please get involved.

Want to help?

Contact Debbie Lavin (debbielav@aol.com) or Jeanette Sanders (crotonjan@aol.com) The Tzedakah of the Month For AUGUST 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

ShopWithScrip!

And help support JFC at no cost to you while shopping at the same stores you already visit!

If you have not yet created an account with ShopWithScrip, please contact the JFC Office and we’ll get you started!

It’s easy! It’s free! And there are many exciting offers!

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Jewish Family Congregation Shofar

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

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Jewish Family Congregation Shofar

Have you checked out the JFC Blog recently?

Go to www.jfc.rjblogs.org Zander Bolgar JFC is very proud of Zander, a member and former student mentor at JFC. This piece was made for a recent convention.

During the month of July in the Mt.Kisco Library, there was a small exhibit of some of his origami models. His work was in the hallway leading to the children’s library.

The items in the JFC Gift Shop have changed again.

Please stop in and take a look!

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Donations to JFC Last Month General Fund Matthew and Julie Portnoy Mark and Debra Lavin David and Sally Firestein Rabbi’s Discretionary Fund Drs. Howard and Irma Fiedler David and Dara Marceau Elizabeth Goodman

In Honor of Michael on the occasion of his Bar Mitzvah Contribution toward building improvements In Honor of Dillon on the occasion of his Bar Mitzvah

In Appreciation of JFC’s hospitality on the occasion of Claudia Smith's Bat Mitzvah In Honor of Rabbi Carla Freedman on the occasion of Benjamin’s Baby Naming In Memory of Julie Goodman

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

ASK THE RABBI Question: What is the origin of the custom of the Oneg Shabbat?

Answer: I presume that you are referring to the custom of gathering after the Friday evening service for some dessert-type goodies.

This custom is most likely an accidental result of the move in the late 19th century by Rabbi Isaac Mayer Wise, the founding father of the Reform Movement, to hold a service in the evening on Fridays, as opposed to the traditional pre-dinner Shabbat service. The custom in Orthodox and some Conservative congregations is to hold the Kabbalat Shabbat (welcoming the Sabbath) service at sundown, after which the worshippers (all men usually) go home to join their families in a leisurely and joyous Shabbat dinner.

But Wise observed that his congregants mostly worked in the retail world, and did not leave work until six pm, by which time, much of the year, they had already missed the (pre-dinner) Shabbat service.

Moreover, most of them also had to work at least half a day (the morning) on Saturday as well, so that they could not attend the Shabbat morning service.

So Wise “invented” the later service for Friday evening, and scheduled it to allow these men to return home, have dinner, and then come with their families to Temple. Once the service itself was over, people stood around shmoozing, and so the idea of offering

some food to enhance the social aspect of the evening was born.

That is not to say that it was a complete invention.

As you know, in the Shabbat text, Yismekhu, it says “the keepers of Shabbat, who rejoice in Your dominion, shall call the Sabbath a delight”. The Hebrew word for “delight” is oneg. The rabbis of old looked for ways to concretize Biblical ideas, and they taught that we should keep our best foods, clothes, etc for Shabbat, as a way of adding delight to the weekly day of rest (an example: our eastern European ancestors mostly could not afford to grind their grain into white flour, so for six days of the week, they ate dark bread, but for Shabbat they spent the extra pennies it took to produce fine white flour for their challah).

On Shabbat morning at a traditional service, Kiddush is made over wine and challah after the service, and herring, schnapps and honey cake are served; this is referred to as the Kiddush. But none of that seems appropriate for a late Friday evening treat, so the goodies on offer at a Friday evening Oneg Shabbat tend to favour sweets and fruit.

So it is both in keeping with tradition and in step with Reform innovation, to have an Oneg Shabbat after a Friday evening service.

When it is your turn to host, I encourage you to think in terms of delighting your guests with tasty, attractive..and yes, healthy…treats, to enhance the experience of the congregation’s Sabbath delight!

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Jewish Family Congregation Shofar

August 2011

Rabbi Carla Visits Camp Eisner Back row l-r: Jacob Furic, Renna Gottlieb, Ivy Cohen, Matthew Emmer, Daniel Bloch, Rabbi Carla Front row l-r: Andrea Shulman, Samantha Shulman, Shoshana Chipman

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If you have something funny you’ d like to share, please send an email to jfcoffc@gmail.com OR leave a note in the JFC Office.

These two matching bookend blue casts are both covering broken wrists.

They belong to two different JFC staff members. Can you name them?

(Sorry, no prize for the right answer.)

They happened on the same day at approximately the same time, but the two staff members were not together at the time.

HINT: There are additional staff members during Summer Fun!

Please let us know how you enjoyed your auction items. We’d love to hear about it.

Pictures are encouraged and appreciated!

Thanks so much to the Berland family of JFC for auctioning off their 4 bedroom condo in Vail, Colorado for a week’s summer stay!! Leslie and Larry Gottlieb were the lucky couple who got to enjoy this wonderful offer.

The Gottliebs also bought a photo session with JFC’s Jamie Kaplan and are enjoying the 500 family photos she took last fall.

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Jewish Family Congregation Shofar

August 2011

UJA-Federation of New York

Winter Family Mission to Israel Thursday, December 22, 2011 Sunday, January 1, 2012 Bring your family to Israel and see what few tourists see.

Experience the Old City of Jerusalem and Kabbalat Shabbat at the Western Wall.

Connect with the diverse cultures of Israel.

Visit local neighborhoods and sample their cuisine.

Reach new heights by taking the snake path up to Masada, and new depths by taking a dip in the Dead Sea. Explore lush, green, and freshwater nature parks or colorful sandstone mountains.

Survey the City of David.

Feel the excitement of Tel Aviv.

Touch the past at interactive museums, and so much more!

Whether this is your first time in Israel or a rediscovery, there is always something new and wonderful to experience!

For more information, please contact Hedy Levy at 1.914.761.5100 ext.109 or levyh@ujafedny.org.

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17th Annual Support-A-Walk Sunday, October 2, 2011 On October 2nd, Support Connection is holding their 17th Annual Support-A-Walk at FDR State Park in Yorktown Heights. Support Connection provides free personalized support programs for people affected by breast and ovarian cancer. The walk is held to raise breast and ovarian cancer awareness with all proceeds benefiting Support Connection's free services.

The three-mile walk begins at 10 a.m. with pre-walk activities starting at 9 a.m. Debra Paget and Jeff Berg are again forming a "JFC team" to walk together - men, women, and children are all welcome! If you'd like to walk with us, please contact Debra Paget (dpaget@aol.com). If you can't attend the walk but would like to donate to this worthy cause, please go to www.firstgiving.com, enter “Jewish Family Congregation” in the search box, and the 10/2/11 Support-A-Walk will be right there! The picture below is last year’s JFC Team.

PLEASE SUPPORT OUR ADVERTISERS

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Jewish Family Congregation Shofar

August 2011

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August 2011 Sun

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Special Congregational Mtg 7:30 Service 7:30 Bd Mtg 8:15 Tot Shabbat

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FOCUS GROUP 4:00 At JFC

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18 FOCUS GROUP 6:00 At JFC

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FOCUS GROUP 10:00 At JFC

28 JFC Adults 2:00-5:00

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Pot Luck Dinner 6:30 Service 8:00

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SITGO (Shabbat in the Great Outdoors)

6:30 Picnic 7:30 Service

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Service 7:30 Tot Shabbat

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31 THE SEPT. 2011- AUG. 2012 JFC CALENDAR WILL BE POSTED ON OUR WEBSITE WITHIN THE NEXT FEW WEEKS.

JEWISH FAMILY CONGREGATION

Jewish Family Congregation 111 Smith Ridge Rd/Rte. 123 P.O. Box 249 South Salem, NY 10590

CURRENT RESIDENT OR

Non Profit Organization Postage PAID White Plains, NY Permit No. 9022