Etzetera - November 2019

ETZETERA Growing Forward, Rooted in Tradition

November 5780

Cheshvan and Kislev 5780

1080 E. JANSS ROAD ● THOUSAND OAKS, CA 91360 Phone (805) 497-6891 ● Fax (805) 497-0086 ● www.templeetzchaim.org

Rabbi Ari Averbach rabbiaverbach@templeetzchaim.org

Rabbi’s Message I was recently given the unique opportunity to lead a Shabbat dinner while Dr. Denis Mukwege was in town. Last October, Dr. Mukwege received a phone call from Norway, letting him know that he had been chosen as the recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize. In the best way possible, his life was turned upside down, as he was finally given a global platform to continue the incredible work he has been doing for decades.

mission a few steps further. He worked to bring justice to anyone perpetrating the horrendous attacks, something that had not been done in more than twenty years. He also worked with the international community, including local nonprofit Jewish World Watch, to set up programs for the men to learn, refocus and grow as human beings. While the region is still in turmoil, it is incredible to see what one person with vision and passion can do to change millions of lives. Congo is safer now that it was before; the world is a better place for the work of Dr. Mukwege and his tireless team.

While Dr. Mukwege is a hero to many, he sees himself as a normal person, doing what anyone else would do. He is a gynecologist in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo. Through his diligent work, he has dramatically lowered the maternal mortality rate, the infant mortality rate, and is the sole doctor in that part of the world able to repair women who have been maimed in the ongoing atrocities of Africa’s Great Lakes region.

Jewish philosopher Martin Buber wrote, “God does not want to be believed in, to be debated and defended by us, but simply to be realized through us.” The work of Dr. Mukwege is God being realized through human actions.

While I will never be a Dr. Mukwege, I know that there are a myriad of ways I can help God be realized in the world. I can donate gently used clothes so others can look good for job interviews, I can donate blood to save lives of people I will never meet, I can volunteer my time in countless ways. What we do has the potentiality of bringing God into the world in beautiful ways. I am delighted to be part of this holy community, bringing God into every corner of our world.

But then he realized that it was not enough. In this one-sided war, women are overwhelmingly the victims – their bodies the battlefields. Even after surgery to fix them physically, the women had a hard time going home, unprepared psychologically to see their families again, since their families saw them as victims, ruined by the brutality waged against them. And the women did not feel safe anywhere. Dr. Mukwege and his team opened schools and work sites for the women to rehab, to learn, and to become financially responsible.

Rabbi Ari Averbach

Seeing that the attacks were not abating, Dr. Mukwege took his

Hazzan’s Message

Hazzan Pablo Duek hazzanpablo@templeetzchaim.org

Jewish, Art and Movement “ JAM” is back!

When?

Shabbat is always special, now imagine a Saturday morning time for our youngest ones filled with music, art projects, instruments and stories.

Saturday Nov. 23rd at 10 a.m.

Next one?

Saturday Dec. 14th, 10 a.m.

rd

As we relaunch J A M this November 23 at 10 a.m., I’m planning to bring back the soothing songs as well as the energetic ones, dancing with the Torah and making our own music playing instruments.

Let me share with you a quote from the Talmud (Pirke Avot 3:16) “Im ein kemach, ein Torah; im ein Torah, ein kemach” (“without bread [literally, ‘flour’], there is no Torah; without Torah, there is no bread”). The phrase is commonly understood to mean that without physical nourishment, it is impossible to engage in study, and without the guidance of Torah, our physical wellbeing is purposeless. The passage also affirms the significance and connectedness of both physical labor and spiritual pursuits.

Each time a new Art project takes place. Our children love to take home their art pieces. In the past we’ve done a ton of creative stuff including edible necklaces, ten commandments in a jar floating like snow, a giant Israeli flag, animal masks for Noah’s Ark and much more.

In other words, if there is no food in our stomachs or if we don’t have the physical or emotional essentials for life, then it is impossible for us to absorb the words of Torah or experience spirituality. And if we do not have spirituality in our lives, then we are missing the essential nutrition for our souls.

I make sure to include a fun Torah service in which we parade with stuffed Torah scrolls carried by our children, while their parents and grandparents dance as well. I read one Torah portion and we all say the blessing before and after the reading.

More singing and dancing takes place as we prepare to say the blessings over the Challah and Grape Juice, HaMotzi and Kiddush.

Everyone is invited to a light lunch after our program in which families get to know each other and have a good time.

Great things are happening every day at TEC, be a part of them!

Finally, as we enter the month of gratitude, please know that I am so very grateful for all of you! I’ll leave you with one of my favorite quotes on Gratitude: “If you’ve forgotten the language of gratitude, you will never be on speaking terms with happiness.”

This year Rabbi Ari Averbach will be joining us to share a Torah story or… You’ll have to come to find out.

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President’s Message

Jeff Solomon, President president@templeetzchaim.org

positive outcome. From previously working with Dan, I knew that he would hit the ground running and I expect we will begin to see the fruits of his efforts soon. If you have any background in communications, I am sure that Dan would welcome your assistance as he re-forms our Communications Committee. Dan can be reached at dan@templeetzchaim.org.

Shana Tova!

I hope each of you had a very pleasant and sweet new year. I received a lot of positive feedback regarding our High Holiday services, as we tried to blend existing traditions with some new ideas. As the calendar turns from October to November, many of us look forward to spending Thanksgiving with our families. If you have not attended before, I personally invite you to attend our Interfaith Thanksgiving Service at the United Methodist Church of Thousand Oaks (just across the parking lot from TEC) on Wednesday evening, November 27th. This has been an annual tradition for over 50 years.

Jen Elson started as Membership VP in July 2019 and she is already doing a great job as our membership numbers have been rising consistently. If you are a new member, I expect that you have already had a phone conversation with her welcoming you to Temple Etz Chaim and finding out a little bit more about her. For those new members, please come up and introduce yourself to me at an Oneg, Kiddush, or Temple event. I would love to meet you and get to know a little about your Jewish story that landed you here at TEC. If you are interested in helping Jen out with our membership efforts, please feel free to contact her at membership@templeetzchaim.org.

It is my pleasure to announce that the response to my Kol Nidre appeal has been great. We exceeded the $130,000 I was asking for and I thank each and every one of you who gave. However, we are not done. I would like to ask those of you who have not yet donated to our Kol Nidre campaign to consider doing so, as it is not too late.

Donations of any size are welcome. You can donate securely via our website, by check, or by contacting Jessica or Gideon in our Temple office. Your Board of Directors takes our job as fiduciaries of your charity very seriously and we will do everything in our power to treat your donations as if they were ours. Where we can, we plan to invest in additional programming in the hopes that it will benefit our congregants as well as the larger Jewish community.

As we approach Thanksgiving, I would be remiss if I did not thank the many volunteers that make Temple Etz Chaim run so smoothly.

I want to thank the members of our Board who put in countless hours to help manage our synagogue, the leadership of the Women of TEC and the Men’s Club, our wonderful Bingo volunteers, the members of our many Board sub-committees, our Gift Shop volunteers, and those of you who volunteer to help us with the many events we put on almost every week. I am sure that I have missed one or two people or groups because we have so many of you volunteering to help. And we can always use one more!

At our October 2019 Board meeting, the Board confirmed my appointment of Dan Lubetkin as our new Communications VP. This position has been vacant since Gideon Manzur resigned in May to take over as our Executive Director (while still maintaining a hand in communications). Dan was one of the volunteer co-chairs of our Rabbinic Search Committee and I think we can all agree we had a

Happy Thanksgiving, Jeff

TEC Pink Shabbat

This year, we are dedicating a Friday Night Shabbat service into a “Pink Shabbat” in honor of Breast Cancer Awareness month. TEC continues to honor and support those who have been affected by this disease. This will be taking place on November 22, 2019.

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Hazzan’s Message Executive Director’s Message

Hazzan Pablo Duek Gideon Manzur, Executive Director hazzanpablo@templeetzchaim.org gideon@templeetzchaim.org

I hope you all had a wonderful New Year, Sukkot and Simchat Torah holidays. For us here in the Administrative Office, while it has been a whirlwind of moving parts. I want to say an extra special thank you to Jessica Jacoby, Shane Silverstein, and Lindsey Alpert in the office, as well as the countless volunteers whom without you my first High Holidays as Executive Director would not have been such a success.

and his brother did on the weekend as children, he knows they are growing up fast and the time will come. “They’re scared but as they get a little bit older, they’ll be more ready and realize there’s nothing scary in the backyard,” he says.

“I’ll just have to remember to turn off the sprinklers.”

As we tend to always look forward to the upcoming holiday and events, I do not want to forget to look back at what had special meaning to me and how I can bring similar celebrations to my children. This last month I was fortunate to be able to tell the USCJ Journeys online publication about my families’ Sukkot traditions and how I am trying to continue them with my daughters. I hope that as we move into the next set of holidays, you take time to share cherished traditions with your families and make new ones to share with each other.

Meanwhile, they embrace the experience in so many other ways.

Some of Gideon’s favorite memories are of his daughters climbing the ladders to hang dried fruit and decorations. “They’re so excited to be part of the decorating and then to have the family over to share the traditional meal,” says Gideon. All week long, the family enjoys dinner together in the sukkah with the sun setting and stars appearing through the s’chach. Even before dinner is ready, the girls often make their way out there to play.

Article featured in USCJ JOURNEYS October Issue: As far back as Gideon Manzur can recall, he helped his father plan and build the sukkah in their backyard every year right after the high holidays in anticipation of Sukkot. First, the 10-by-10-foot structure would go up. Then, his father would take Gideon and his brother in the family truck to nearby train tracks lined with palm trees, where they would cut fronds for their s’chach (roof covering).

Back home, they would assemble the roof before the decorations would go up.

When Gideon thinks back on sharing special sukkah memories like these from one generation to the next, he is thankful to his father for not only teaching him how to be Jewish, but also the meaning of each of the Jewish holidays. “This is now even more important because this past May, my father passed away, so to have those memories and for us to continue them to keep his memory and joy alive even though he can’t be with us to celebrate is very special.”

“Part of the fun of decorating was we always hung pictures we did in grade school and Hebrew school,” Gideon shares. “Another tradition we did for many years was make paper rings out of any paper we could get our hands on, which was usually old magazines my father would cut into strips. Later, I worked for Kinkos so we would get paper for the rings from there. We did that every year—in fact, I’m already talking to the family about building it for this year.”

As Gideon grew into an adult, married and had his own children— two daughters who are now 6-and-a-half and almost 4 and attend pre-school at Temple Etz Chaim in Thousand Oaks, California, where Gideon serves as executive director— the sukkah has been a meaningful tradition he looks forward to sharing with them each year. As the family has grown, their sukkah has grown along with it to 21 feet long by 7-and-a-half feet wide. And like Gideon did with his own father each year, the family ventures out together to cut covering for their s’chach and then adorn the sukkah with dried fruits and other personally meaningful decorations.

One tradition Gideon and his wife have with their daughters is to take a photo in front of the sukkah each year and hang it alongside previous years’ photos. “You actually see the progression of the kids growing up in front of it,” he says. One of his eldest daughter’s very first—and most cherished—sukkah photos was when she was still in her mother’s belly.

While Gideon’s daughters have yet to sleep in the sukkah like he

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Early Childhood Education Thanksgiving is a special time of year. It’s a holiday about pilgrims, turkey and family – but it is also about giving thanks for everything from a parent and pets to sunshine and lollipops.

Feeling thankful invites young children to consider the warm, happy feelings they have about people, places, and things that make their world feel safe. It is an invitation to smile and be thankful. What are you thankful for?

Debbie Blumenthal, Director of ECE debbieb@templeetzchaim.org

Everyone is invited to join Rabbi Averbach, Hazzan Pablo Duek and myself for a fun, interactive Tot Shabbat service on Friday, November 15th at 6:15 p.m. in the sanctuary. We look forward to singing, stories and blessings with our TEC community.

Looking for a gift to bring your friends and family at Thanksgiving? Check out the preschool’s annual See’s Candies Fundraiser. Place your order by November 14th and we will deliver your order by Thursday, November 21st! We are raising money to replace some of our older and worn out tricycles! Thank you in advance for your support. Order forms are in the main Temple office and the School office.

At the preschool we are looking forward to enjoying our annual field trip to Underwood Farm to pick vegetables, and our Preschool Thanksgiving Feast. The entire preschool will celebrate Thanksgiving on Wednesday, November 27th. Miss Bobbie will lead us in our fun, interactive holiday sing-a-long before we all sit down together in the Social Hall.

November is our month of mitzvot, beginning with TEC’s Mitzvah Day on Sunday, November 3rd. On that day, our Gesher children will be visiting Hillcrest Royale Retirement Home to sing to and visit with the residents there. In addition, the ECE Center will be collecting food for Conejo Community Outreach to help our local families out during the holiday season. Starting next month, we will also be sponsoring some families in our immediate community with holiday gifts. Tikun Olam (repairing or helping the world) and tzedakah (charity) in Judaism are a couple of our values we want to teach.

Have a warm, delicious Thanksgiving holiday!

Debbie Blumenthal

Joyce Bronstein, Director of Religious School joyce@templeetzchaim.org

Religious School As I write this article, we have just completed observing Yom Kippur. The High Holiday Experience was created for students in grades TK-4 and Junior Congregation is offered for students in grade 5,6,7. Both of these programs run concurrently with the main service, taking place in our sanctuary. Students learn about the High Holidays through meaningful experiences and thoughtful discussions. Music, dance, challah braiding are some of the “extras” that create a unique experience for our children. We even provide snacks! I wish to thank the amazing teachers, specialists and teenage Aides who help make The High Holiday Program and Junior Congregation so successful!

By the time you read this article, Mitzvah Day will most likely have taken place – November 3rd. Each year, our Religious School Students look forward to being part of this special act of giving.

Students collect school supplies to benefit children at Casa Pacifica. In addition, we ask TEC families to donate $10.00 to offset the cost of the new school backpacks. This year, we even had an Amazon link that created the opportunity for everyone to purchase school supplies without ever having to leave the comfort of their homes. Thank you to Linda Friedlander for making it so easy for our congregants. On Mitzvah Day, Religious School students in grades K-7 will fill the backpacks with the new school supplies and decorate cards to put with them! Ultimately, 60 filled backpacks will be donated. This project is quite rewarding because it actively involves all of our students. Everyone’s efforts to reach out to the community and help others are a true reflection of our Jewish values. Let us always strive to participate in Mitzvot!

In the afternoon, Rabbi Averbach, Hazzan Pablo, music specialist Sue Epstein, Debbie Blumenthal, Shannon Tepfer and I led High Holiday Children’s Services. These services are open for our community to enjoy. A special highlight for me was greeting past Religious School students who are “now” parents themselves, meeting their spouses, and hearing them reminisce positively about their Religious School memories. It was a moment of me feeling gratitude….pure pride and joy!

The “Babka Bake” is scheduled to take place on November 20th. I know it is going to be an amazing and pleasurable experience for all who sign up with a delicious recipe and comradery with friends!

People regularly share with me that they had a great time at last year’s bake! So, don’t miss this next opportunity…..remember to sign up now for the “Babka Bake.”

So many activities and programming at TEC Religious School. I hope that you enjoy a wonderful and special Thanksgiving with family and friends.

Wishing all, life’s best this Thanksgiving season

A special time which captivates the moment of the Yom Kippur day’s finality is the Havdallah Service.

The sanctuary is lit dimly as our beautiful children walk from the very back of the sanctuary to the Bima holding a blue light-stick.

Todah Rabah to the Groden’s for providing the light sticks!

L’hitraot Joyce Bronstein

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We Proudly Congratulate our B’Not Mitzvah Rebecca Toporoff

November 2, 2019

Hi! My name is Rebecca Toporoff and I will become a Bat Mitzvah on November 2, 2019. I am an 8th grader at Los Cerritos Middle School. Temple Etz Chaim is a second home for me. I’ve been attending TEC since I was 2 years old in preschool. I love softball and play on a travel team going to lots of fun places to compete. In addition to anything athletic, I also love to draw and do anything creative. I would like to thank my family for supporting me and helping me to succeed in everything that I do, Rabbi Averbach, Hazzan Pablo, my amazing tutor Marv Friedman, and all the TEC religious school teachers I have had over the years for helping me along on my religious journey. I also want to thank all my family and friends who have travelled great distances to help me celebrate this important milestone. I can’t wait to become a Bat Mitzvah and a full participant in the Jewish community. I am looking forward to celebrating with my all

Hannah Silverstein

November 8, 2019

My name is Hannah Silverstein and I will become at Bat Mitzvah on November 8, 2019. I’m an 8 th grader at Mesa Verde Middle School. I love volleyball, cheer, and hanging out with my friends. I’m known for always having a boot on my foot because I’m very clumsy. I’ve been here at TEC since preschool. I am very grateful to my Hebrew tutor Rivka Moscovitch for her patience and understanding and spending so many extra hours to help me prepare for this. I’d also like to thank my parents and for driving me everywhere and being supportive.

I’m very excited to become a Bat Mitzvah!

Shannon Tepfer, Youth Director youth@templeetzchaim.org

USY & Youth November 3rd is a very special day for USY, it’s Mitzvah Day! We will have tables set up for everyone in the community to take part. We are collecting toys and books, cans and bottles for recycling, and a sack lunch station set up for all to come help make sack lunches for the homeless. When was the last time you cleaned out your closets? We are also collecting coats and jackets to be donated to Casa Pacifica. All sizes and styles are welcomed, from babies to adults.

November Activities: 11/03: Mitzvah Day- Coats for Casa Pacifica, Mannawich ( making sack lunches for the homeless Cans and Bottles for recycling, New Toys and Books (Sharsheret) 11/05: Kadima “Mitzvah Madness” Lounge @6:15 pm-7:45 pm.

Cost is $10. This is a 3rd -6th grader activity.

11/08-11/10: Encampment at Camp Ramah! This Far West weekend is for 9th-12th graders. We will take a bus to and from Camp Ramah. Kids will be dropped off and picked up at TEC. For more details please contact the Youth Office.

For our 9th-12th graders it's that time again. What time you ask?

Why..... it's time to sign up for Farwest Encampment at Camp Ramah!!!!!(screams, bells, whistles, fireworks!!!!) It's November 8th10th. We will meet at TEC for the bus ride up to Ojai. Email the Youth Department for more details.

11/17: Youth Commission Meeting 10:15 am-11:15 am. Parent meeting 11/17: Jr-Sr Lounge for 7th-12th Graders @pizza rev and Movies at AMC Thousand Oaks 14

Are you looking for friends, fun activities, leadership opportunities, a place to chill and be yourself? Become a member of our TEC USY Chapter and let the good times roll! As always feel free to email or call the Youth Department for any details on events and activities as well as any questions you may have about getting involved!

11/19: Kadima “Thankful” lounge @6:15 pm-7:45 pm. Cost is $10 11/23: Havdalah by the Ocean. 7th-12th graders invited for dessert, Havdalah, and glow fun on the beach. More info to come.

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Sukkot Family Dinner

This was Rabbi Averbach’s first year at TEC for Sukkot. We had lots of people stop by and help us build our Sukkah!

Benny Sommerfeld, VP Religion and Worship religion@templeetzchaim.org

Religion and Worship The High Holiday season is over and I can look back on a successful couple of weeks where we had over 1,500 congregants and guests coming to services for Rosh Hashanah, Yom Kippur, Sukkot, Shemini Atzeret, and Simchat Torah. It is a very busy time of the year with a lot of services/holidays and a lot of honors to hand out. As the saying goes, “it takes a village to raise a child” and it takes a great professional staff and dedicated board to run the High Holiday services. Besides the main services in our extended sanctuary, there were Family Services, Tashlich Walk, Sicha, High Holiday Child Experience going on at different times throughout the High Holidays. I’d like to thank our directors, Gideon, Joyce, Debbi, Shannon, and our office staff for their part in making the High Holidays a success, not to mention our Clergy who provided memorable sermons and music experiences. If you want to give me feedback on your experience, please write to me at religion@templeetzchaim.org .

We have now started the new Torah cycle with Bereshit. We are reading the first section of each Parashah of the triennial cycle. I invite you to come to our Shabbat services on Friday night and Saturday mornings to experience and learn with Rabbi Averbach and enjoy the Ruach from Hazzan Pablo.

Enjoy the fall season and upcoming Thanksgiving holiday, Bivracha, Benny Sommerfeld

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Mark Goldstein, Trustee-Community Outreach outreach@templeetzchaim.org

Community Outreach The goal with Community Outreach is to engage you to become active both at TEC and with other TEC members to expand our membership and build bonds among those in the TEC family.

addiction, LGBTQ support, end of life issues and hospice, and more.

Attending the interfaith Erev Thanksgiving Service at our neighboring United Methodist Church of Thousand Oaks with your TEC friends is a meaningful and moving experience. The service begins at 7:00 pm on Wednesday, November 27, includes songs by the church choir and our TEC third and fourth graders and is followed by great desserts. Hope to see you there.

WINE, CHEESE AND CHAT will be monthly community discussions about being Jewish and living Jewishly. This open community forum will be Friday nights an hour before services, Topics we’re considering including Jewish music, Jewish art, Jews in television/film, Israel, Jewish holidays, Jewish rituals, Jewish cooking, Jewish books and more. These will be led by members of our community with interests and expertise. If you’d like to lead a discussion, please let us know! TEC will provide veggies, hummus, pita, cheese and wine - BYOB encouraged! And please provide suggestions for an more meaningful and fun name.

When: Monthly on Sundays in TEC Library from 9:45am to 11:15 am; dates forthcoming

We are in the process of rolling out two new programs starting in January. We look forward to offering these impactful programs to support you.

When: Monthly, Friday nights 6:30 – 7:20 pm in the Wank entryway; dates forthcoming

TEC Cares will be a roundtable coffee talk discussion monthly on Sunday mornings led by professionals. TEC Cares will address life issues we’re all confronting or will be confronting. Coffee, fruit and bagels will be provided. Topics will include supporting friends and loved ones with aging parents, ailing loved ones, youth anxiety and destructive behavior, addiction to substances, video game

B’shalom, Mark Goldstein

Social Action

Judy Gindi, VP of Social Action socialaction@templeetzchaim.org

Thank you to all who participated in the Handbags for the Homeless project. Our synagogue collected over 150 purses that will be filled with toiletries and given to homeless women in Ventura and Los Angeles counties. Jackie Trueting, the organizer of the project from the Women’s Interfaith Network (WIN), called our synagogue a “superstar” for our generosity.

plan activities to help those in need. Our next meeting is October 23rd in the Kane Community Center Library. Please note the time has been changed from 7:30 to 7pm.

Mitzvah Day, Sunday, November 3rd

Jewish World Watch planning meeting is Tuesday, November 5th

Field Trips to Many Mansions, the Westminster Free Clinic and Mazon Tour these impressive organizations. Contact Judy Gindi to sign up.

Please refer to the flyer for all the activities of the day! There are projects for every age. Get involved helping those in need!

JWW is the organization that tries to stop genocides throughout the world.

The Blood Drive

This year’s event in the Conejo Valley will be at Temple Adat Elohim on April 16th. This is a joint effort with TAE, TEC and JWW. The first planning meeting is Tuesday, November 5th at 6:30 at Temple Adat Elohim. Please consider joining this committee to plan this important event.

Debra Levine is organizing the Blood Drive from 9 am to 1 pm during Mitzvah Day in Spiegel Hall. Please sign up immediately and help save a life. Contact dlevine@templeetzchaim.org Adopt-a-Family

Feeding the Hungry

Sign-ups are underway to “adopt” families for the holidays. Please consider adopting a senior or family for the holidays. This consists of providing presents or gift cards for those that cannot afford them for their loved ones. These residents of the Conejo Valley are either homeless, attend the Westminster Free Clinic who are extremely low income, or live at Many Mansions which is low income local housing, or are house bound seniors that have no relatives and are part of the meals on wheels program. Email Judy Gindi for further information or call or text her at (805)701-6861 to sign up.

Our synagogue feeds the hungry the 4th Tuesday of the month at the Calvary Community Church. Contact Lynne Katz at lynneradman@yahoo.com for further information and to sign up.

This is a wonderful opportunity for a Havurah or other group to do a mitzvah.

Shanah Tovah!

Judy

Social Action Committee The committee meets the fourth Wednesday of the month. We

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Cindy Scherr, WOTEC President womenoftec@templeetzchaim.org

Women of TEC I hope you all had a wonderful holiday time!

Shana Tovah to all of you!

September and October were busy months of Women of TEC! We kicked off our year with a Dollar-A-Dip potluck, planned by Sarah Karamas and Pam Friedman, hosted at Pam’s home. We ate, schmoozed, and raised money for our Torah Fund campaign. In October, we had our annual Paid-Up Membership Luncheon, planned by Elissa Lazarus and her committee. We welcomed many new WOTEC members, ate a wonderful meal provided by BSC Catering, and were entertained by the Starlight Singers, a talented group of children who perform with 5-Star Productions.. We also hosted a Shabbat dinner in the Sukkah, which was attended by almost 200 people!

TEC’s Mitzvah Day is November 3rd, and WOTEC will be making gift baskets to donate to Sharsheret, which is for women who are undergoing treatment for cancer. We are collecting items such as lotions, teas, magazines, and crossword puzzle books. If you have questions, please call Sarah Karamas or Pam Friedman. Items can be dropped off at TEC. Feel free to join us on Mitzvah Day to help assemble the baskets.

ASAP. Also this month, our Hanukkah Boutique will be held on November 24th. Come do all your holiday shopping – we have vendors selling clothing, jewelry, Judaica, children’s clothing and gifts, and so much more. The Judaica Shop will also be open, and most items will be on sale.

Our meetings are held on the first Tuesday of every month at 7:00 pm in the Adult Lounge, and all WOTEC members are welcome.

There are so many ways to be part of WOTEC, whether you serve on a committee, volunteer at an event or in the Judaica Shop, or simply come to an activity. Please feel free to contact me anytime with any questions at womenoftec@templeetzchaim.org.

Thanksgiving will be here before you know it, and I am so thankful to be part of such a wonderful shul and part of WOTEC, with so many amazing ladies. I look forward to seeing all of you at our many events!

B’Shalom, Cindy Scherr

Our challah bakes have been so successful, we thought we’d try something new! Coming up this month, we have our Babka Bake on November 20. This is a joint event with the Religious School.

The cost is $36, and space is limited, so please reserve your spot

Ken Leon, Men’s Club President mensclub@templeetzchaim.org

Men’s Club

3rd Men’s Club will be taking part in Mitzvah Day. This year the club is collecting gently used business attire including suits, dresses, shirts, slacks, shoes, socks, and belts. We will be donating the clothing to two different organizations who provide clothes to those in need to assist them with interviews and new jobs. If you have any questions, please contact Gary Katz by email at mensclub@templeetzchaim.org. You can also contact Judi Gindi at socialaction@templeetzchaim.org for more details.

L’ Shana Tovah. I hope that you’re holidays were safe, spiritual and fulfilling.

The Men’s Club Board welcomes Jon Hops as our new VP of Religion. Jon is a long-time temple member where he and his wife Lori raised two kids (Emily and Max) and has served on the temple’s Board of Directors.

Jon’s knowledge of Religion and Worship practices will be a great addition to the board.

On November 10th the club will host it’s first Speaker Brunch. Our first speaker is Edgar Feuchtwanger, author of Hitler. My Neighbor: Memories of a Jewish Childhood 1929-1939, and his topic is Bearing Witness to Hate.

September and October were active months for the Men’s Club. In September, a group of club members met at Tarantula Hill for drinks, pizza and comradeship. It was a lot of fun and everyone enjoyed the evening. We had rousing discussions, lots of jokes, and of course, pizza (or did I say that already). Definitely an even to do again. Thank you to Brian Tepfer for organizing the event.

Our third November event will take place on the Wednesday night November 13th. It will be our first Poker Night of the year. Buy-in is $25 for which you receive $20 in chips and snacks and drinks. The evening begins at 7:45 PM in the Wolfson Auditorium.

With October came the High Holidays. A big Thank You to Adam Ainley for his masterful scheduling and management of the ushers.

Also, congratulations to Rabbi Averbach on a phenomenal first High Holidays at Temple Etz Chaim.

Men’s Club calendars are now available in the Temple office. Have a great November, a Happy Thanksgiving, and we hope to see you at many Men’s Club events.

On Sunday, October 13th the club and other temple volunteers met at TEC at 9:00 AM to build the community Sukkah. Thank You to Mark Goldstein for organizing and running the building. It came out great and has been used every day since construction. Wednesday, October 16th, the Men’s Club and guests enjoyed steak, scotch and a rousing Torah learning session led by Rabbi Averbach. There were twenty-four people in attendance and our grill masters cooked up twenty-two steaks, two pieces of chicken, and piece of BourbonGlazed Salmon. There were scotches and bourbons aplenty, and everyone had fun. Vanessa Averbach joined our evening and provided many insightful and illuminating comments to our discussions.

Ken Leon

November is also a full month with three events. First, on November 9

Contributions to our Synagogue Temple Etz Chaim warmly thanks the below for their generous and kind contributions to our synagogue Rabbi Ari Averbach Discretionary Fund

Frances Portnoy

In memory of: Sandra Miller

Ed Portnoy

Harvey Mahler

The Saul Family

Ron Stein

Thank you to:

Susan Cohen

Harriet Wise Oberman

Susan Cohen

Robin Oberman Beatrice Treisman

David Went In honor of your wedding:

Robin Oberman

Sherri Finn and Mark Werber

Our condolences to:

Jonathan and Lori Hops

The Kaye Family

Isaac Edelman David Wank Our condolences to:

Yoakov and Janice Orlowski

Elizabeth Groden Hilda Stein

Joy Rosenberg Max Borman

Sally Lader

Alfred Morris

Errol Berk Florence Rosenberg

Phyllis and Joe Bayewitch

Maureen Levine

David Sachs Annabel Berk

David and Kathryn Unger

Doris Ruvman

Beau Mann Kenneth Sachs

Linda and Mike Jacobs

Gary Levine

Gary Scott Philip Mann

The Kaye Family

Samuel Levine

Shari Mark Jeffrey Scott

Our condolences to:

Marilyn and Norman Braverman

Robin Oberman

Religious School Fund

Michael Cher

In memory of:

The Saul Family

The Kaye Family

Herbert Friedlander

Janice and Dan Orlowski

Carl B. Friedlander

Gil and Lynda Kessler

Thank you to:

Ray Carlin

Alan and Susan Flaschner

Hazzan Pablo

Stuart Bass

Lynne and Elliott Smith Beryl and Beau Mann The Scherr Family

Sarah Orlin and Family In honor of:

Keith Zimmet Zane Averbach Thank you to:

Temple General Fund

Rabbi Averbach

Sara Zimmerman Weinstein

Lawrence Jaffe

Rachel Funk

Susan Cohen

Harvey Kern

Michael Wexler

Herb Goldin Lillian Kramer

Laurie Rudman

Rebeccah Schwartz Ira Goldfinger Robin Goldfinger Israel Weinstein

Ellen Stein

In memory of: Patricia Spielberg

Felicita Saiez

Marvin Natlin

Elisa Feldman Memorial Religious School Scholarship Fund Louis Spielberg

Herb Wexler

In memory of:

Oscar Goldin

Linda and Carl Friedlander

Doris Weinberg

Linda and Ken Leon

Leon Kaminsky

The Kaye Family

Joseph Bloom Mary Wexler

Robert “Robbie� Natlin

Our condolences to:

Risa Leonard

Sharon and Harold Seiden

Hazzan Pablo Duek Discretionary Fund

Myron Funk

Alvin Baslow

Shari and Ron Mark

Fred Cohen Sylvia Dallek

Sarah Kern

Terri and Joe Zwicker

Beatrice Cohen

Sofia Kobrin Sol Jaffe

In honor of your wedding: Sherri Finn and Mark Werber

Joshua Schwartz

Pauline Kaplan

Charles and Terri Stern Debbie and Les Feldman

Robynne Schwartz

Minnie Zamkoff

In honor of your installation:

Arlene Levenson Ellen Zucker

In memory of:

Sydelle Goodman Dorothy Rosengard

Dr. Jerry Ratzan

Bunny and Preston Beckman

Rabbi Averbach Sarah Orlin and Family

Benjamin Ratzan

Sandra and John Lutzker

Kendra and Steve Sternberg

Gladys Ratzan

Evelyn Feldman Ilean Kanter Debbie and Les Feldman Our condolences to: The Saul Family

Sofia Kobrin

Sheri and Jeff Schoenwald

Mazel tov:

The Scherr Family

The Marcus Family Debbie Blumenthal

Linda Natlin

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Wendy and Peter Margolis Speedy Recovery:

Contributions to our Synagogue Temple Etz Chaim warmly thanks the below for their generous and kind contributions to our synagogue Speedy Recovery:

Women of TEC Torah Fund

Arnold Organ Memorial Fund

Sheila Chadroff

In memory of:

In memory of:

Beatrice Cohen

Anne Organ

Sheri and Jeff Schoenwald Mazel tov:

Bruce Cohen

The Kaminsky Family Sheri and Jeff Schoenwald

Inbar Israel Travel and Education Scholarship Fund

The Scherr Family

In memory of:

The Chevnavsky Family Debbie and Les Feldman

Stanley Organ

Our condolences to: Liz and Ron Groden Tzedakah Fund

Ben Rutberg Barbara Nemet

Wishing you well:

Our condolences to:

Jotkowitz Camp Ramah Scholarship Fund

Elliot Sturman

The Kaye Family

In memory of:

Debbie and Les Feldman In honor of your wedding:

Herb Wexler

Sherri Finn and Mark Werber Wendy and Peter Margolis In appreciation David and Rose Handleman

Max Jotkowitz

In memory of:

Molly Jotkowitz

Mary and Michael Wexler Ritual Fund Our condolences to:

Susan Cohen

The Kaye Family

Lipnick Religious School Scholarship Fund

Emanuel and Janice Perlman Bertram Dallek Pauline Shechter

Nomi Freed

Rabbi Jack and Leah Shechter

In memory of:

Men’s Club Scholar-in-Residence

Marin Kroin

Our condolences to:

Harry Kroin

The Stern Family

Our condolences to:

The Schoenkerman Family

The Shoenkerman Family

Rose Frederick-Horowitz William Edelstein Judi Gill Our condolences to:

Mollie Helfand

Marc and Carole Firestone

Rabbi Jack and Leah Shechter

Wishing you good health:

Thank you to:

Rabbi Shimon Paskow

Rabbi Spiegel

The Kaye Family Ron and Sybil Goldstein

Ermiene Mallinger

Marc and Carole Firestone

Joe Jotkowitz

Men’s Club Silverstein Humanitarian Fund

Beautification of TEC Fund

Thank you to:

In memory of:

In memory of:

Joyce Bronstein

Neil Levitt

Harry Waters

Bonnie Rothman Early Childhood Education Fund

Ellen Levitt

Hattie Wolf

Gari and Richard Saly

In memory of:

Ner Tamid Education & Community Center Fund

Celia Cohen

In memory of:

Bruce Cohen USY Youth and Scholarship Fund

Charlotte Levitt Cindy Alpern

In memory of:

Fienberg-Lerner Chapel Minyan Fund

Perle Gil

In memory of: Barbara Krupin

Bela Orensztein Denise Rusiecki Esther Feldman Bruce Cohen Our condolences to: The Kaye Family Janice Tytell Zerlin Library Fund

Cynthia Lerner Elinor Fienberg Ruth Nathanson Lois Girsky Our condolences to: The Kaye Family Joyce Flescher Lois Girsky Beverly Sklar

In memory of:

Barbara and Harvey Scherr Memorial Fund

Esther Sloate Comis

Our condolences to:

Sadie Ione Sloate

The Kaye Family

Stuart Comis

Barbara and Al Ungar

Dunaier Music Fund

Happy birthday to:

Our condolences to:

Etta Weinstein

The Kaye Family

Barbara and Al Ungar

Sydelle Goodman

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Simchat Torah

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Kadima’s Shakshuka in the Sukkah

Kadima celebrated Sukkot by making their own Shakshuka!

It was a fun food filled even with lots of activities!

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Calendar

November 2019 Sunday

Monday

Tuesday

Wednesday

Thursday

Friday 1

3 Cheshvan

Saturday 2

4 Cheshvan

9:00 AM Parent and Me

10:00 AM Shabbat Services

11:00 AM Preschool Shabbat

Rebecca Toporoff Bat Mitzvah

7:30 PM Shabbat Services 3

5 Cheshvan

Mitzvah Day 8:30 AM Minyan 9:30 AM Chapel Service Grades 6 & 7 9:30 AM Religious School

4

6 Cheshvan 5

9:00 AM Parent and Me 4:00 PM Religious School 6:30 PM Religious School Confirmation 7:15 PM Minyan

7 Cheshvan

6

8 Cheshvan

7

9 Cheshvan

8

10 Cheshvan

Preschool Photos

Preschool Photos

Preschool Photos

9:00 AM New Infant Parent and Me

9:00 AM Parent and Me

9:00 AM Parent and Me 11:00 AM Preschool Shabbat

10:00 AM Tuesdays with Rabbi Spiegel

10:30 AM Melton Adult Ed 5:00 PM Bingo 4:00 PM Religious School

9:00 AM Parent and Me

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11 Cheshvan

10:00 AM Shabbat Services Hannah Silverstein

7:30 PM Shabbat Services Bat Mitzvah

7:00 PM Al Anon

4:00 PM Religious School

7:15 PM Minyan

7:30 PM WOTEC Board Meeting

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12 Cheshvan 11

13 Cheshvan 12

14 Cheshvan

9:00 AM Parent and 9:00 AM New Infant Parent and Me 9:30 AM Chapel Services Me grades 6 & 7 10:00 AM Tuesdays with 7:15 PM Minyan Rabbi Spiegel 10:30 AM Men’s Club Speaker Brunch 4:00 PM Religious School 8:30 AM Minyan

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5 Cheshvan

9:00 AM Parent and Me

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16 Cheshvan 15

9:00 AM Parent and 5:00 PM Bingo

11:00AM Preschool Shabbat

10:00 AM Melton Adult Ed Me 4:00 PM Religious School

17 Cheshvan

9:00 AM Parent and Me

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18 Cheshvan

10:00 AM Shabbat Services

6:15 PM Tot Shabbat

7:00 PM Al Anon

7:30 PM Shabbat Services

7:15 PM Minyan 7:45 PM Men’s Club Poker Night

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19 Cheshvan 18

8:30 AM Minyan

20 Cheshvan 19

9:00 AM Parent and Me

9:30 AM Chapel Services grades 6 & 7 4:00 PM Religious School 9:30 AM Religious School 6:30 PM Religious School Confirmation 10:15 AM Youth Commission Meeting 7:15 PM Minyan 7:30 PM Post Confirmation

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26 Cheshvan 25

27 Cheshvan

21 Cheshvan 20

9:00 AM New Infant Parent and Me 10:00 AM Tuesdays with Rabbi Spiegel

23 Cheshvan 22

24 Cheshvan 23

9:00 AM Parent and Me 9:00 AM Parent and Me

10:00 AM Melton Adult Ed 5:00 PM Bingo 4:00 PM Religious School

11:00 AM Preschool Shabbat 7:30 PM Shabbat Services

25 Cheshvan

10:00 AM Shabbat Services

6:00 PM USY Havdalah by the ocean Jr/Sr USY

7:00 PM WOTEC Babkah Bake

7:00 PM Book Club 7:30 PM TEC Board Meeting

7:15 PM Minyan

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7:45 PM Men’s Club Board Meeting

28 Cheshvan

9:00 AM Parent and Me

9:00 AM New Infant Parent and Me

8:30 AM Minyan

4:00 PM Religious School

10:00 AM Tuesdays with Rabbi Spiegel

6:30 PM Religious School Confirmation

4:00 PM Religious School

9:30 AM Religious School

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7:00 PM Al Anon

4:00 PM Religious School

8:00 AM WOTEC Hanukkah Boutique 9:30 AM Chapel Service grades 6 & 7

22 Cheshvan

9:00 AM Parent and Me

29 Cheshvan

9:00 AM Parent and Me

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30 Cheshvan 29

Thanksgiving Day

10:00 AM Melton Adult Ed ECE and Office 4:00 PM Religious School

Closed

1 Kislev 30

2 Kislev

ECE and Office Closed 10:00 AM Shabbat Services 7:30 Shabbat Services

7:00 PM Interfaith Services

7:15 PM Minyan

SAVE THE DATE December 9 Lifeline Screening

December 15 WOTEC Dinner and Movie 14

December 23 Hanukkah Candle Lighting

Upcoming Events

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Chailights - Our Sponsors

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Non-Profit U.S. Postage PAID Permit No. 131 Thousand Oaks, CA 91360

Temple Etz Chaim 1080 E. Janss Road Thousand Oaks, CA 91360

Temple Leadership Clergy

Board of Directors

Rabbi Ari Averbach

Jeff Solomon, President

Beth Meyer, Recording Secretary

Hazzan Pablo Duek

Shari Mark, Executive Vice President

Tom Milhaupt, VP Personnel/Legal

Rabbi Emeritus Shimon Paskow

Sherri Finn, Immediate Past President

Michael Roberts, Trustee Bingo

Rabbi Emeritus Richard Spiegel

David Ambramovicz, VP Ways and Means

Cindy Scherr, WOTEC President

Jennifer Elson, VP Membership

Larry Slomowitz, VP Building and Grounds

Administration

Eric Feigenbaum, VP Youth

Benny Sommerfeld, VP Religion and Worship

Gideon Manzur, Executive Director

Mark Goldstein, Trustee Community Outreach Felicia Toporoff, VP Religious School

Debbie Blumenthal, ECE Director

Judy Gindi, VP Social Action

David Yodkovik, Treasurer

Kathy Sharp, ECE Assistant Director

Robin Kahn, Trustee Business Services

Joe Zwicker, VP Early Childhood Education

Joyce Bronstein, Religious School Director

Elissa Lazarus, Corresponding Secretary

Terri Zwicker, Trustee Strategic Planning

Shannon Tepfer, Youth Director

Ken Leon, Men’s Club President

Gary Katz, Past President

Dan Lubetkin, VP Communications

Marshall Scherr, Past President

Wendy Margolis, Financial Secretary

Myles Simpson, Past President

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