USCJ eNews: The United Synagogue Electronic Bulletin
May 2012
In This Issue:
What's New for You
Meet United Synagogue’s New Board - In March, when we voted in our new bylaws, we also installed a new board of directors. On the weekend of April 20, many board members spent Shabbat in New York City, hosted by Park Avenue Synagogue. They were joined by our CEO, Rabbi Steven Wernick, and our senior staff. There was great energy in the group, Rabbi Wernick reports, as its members discussed United Synagogue’s new goals, mission, and direction.
Taglit-Birthright Israel Trip Is a Go! - We are – or to be more specific, our young adult outreach department is – partnering with Israel Experience to offer the first Conservative Taglit-Birthright Israel trip. Connect-1 is for 22- to 26-year-olds, who will have the opportunity to see the country through our uniquely pluralistic lens.
Water, the Source of Life - The Schechter Day School Network has created Mekor Hayyim: A Source Book on Water and Judaism, written by Rabbi Lawrence Troster. The book, an oversized paperback with texts in Hebrew and Aramaic, color photos, line drawings, and commentary from around the Jewish world, looks at water as both symbolic and real. It includes excerpts from the Bible, the Talmud, environmental activists, and both modern and classic American writings, among other places. It is fascinating, creative, relevant, and thoughtful, useful both to the middle schoolers for whom it was created and the rest of us.
Sulam for Current Leaders
A healthy partnership between kehilla volunteers and staff is crucial if the community is to flourish. On Wednesday, May 30, at noon eastern time, the fifth Sulam webinar will examine how to manage those relationships in the Volunteer Staff Partnership Plan. This webinar will help you define roles and responsibilities, establish lines of communication, and learn to appreciate and support each other. Please register and we’ll email you login information on Tuesday.
The Accountability Plan - In April, Sulam looked at accountability between leaders, other volunteers, and staffers in our kehillot, examinging how to set realistic goals, track progress, give constructive feedback, and acknowledge success. The webinar, the Accountability Plan, is now available on our website, along with the earlier webinars.
Comprehensive Property and Casualty Insurance - We join with the Philadelphia Insurance Companies to offer comprehensive property and casualty insurance to our member kehillot as part of our Membership Advantages Programs and Services.
Schechter Residency in Educational Leadership - Thanks to an extremely generous anonymous donor, the Schechter Residency in Educational Leadership has chosen the Chicagoland Jewish High School as its residency school this year, and the school has hired Rabbi Zachary Silver as its rav beit sefer, or school rabbi. The SREL program benefits the member schools of the Schechter Day School Network.
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What We've Been Doing
Rabbi Wernick on the Future of 21st Century American Judaism - Our CEO, Rabbi Steven Wernick, represented Conservative Jews as one of four panelists, drawn from the main Jewish streams in North America, considering that provocative question. The panel, in Philadelphia, met twice, once for rabbis only, the other time for the whole community.
Rich Moline at Ideas Café in Chicago - Richard Moline, our chief outreach and interim chief education officer, spoke at the Ideas Café at Congregation Beth Shalom in Northbrook, Illinois. He tackled Conservative Judaism at the Crossroads; the discussion soon will be online.
Technology at Schechter - Representatives of 21 Jewish day schools met in Jacksonville, Florida, for edJEWcon, designed to help educators incorporate twenty first-century technology into their classrooms and their lives. Many of the day schools represented at the conference are members of the Schechter Day School Network; among them is the school that hosted the meeting, the Martin J. Gottlieb Jewish Day School.
Pinwheel USY in the Pacific Northwest - Ninety USYers came from across the Pacific Northwest, USY’s Pinwheel region, to Congregation Har El in West Vancouver, British Columbia, in March. Their spring kinnus, themed Jews in Sports, included Saturday night glow-in-the-dark bowling, creative Shacharit services, and a Skype video call with Trevor Smith of Har El, who plays for the Tampa Bay Lightning.
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Calendar
Sulam for Presidents - This year's second Sulam for Presidents meets in suburban Chicago May 3-6; the first, in Newark in March, was a sold-out success, as this one seems likely to be as well.
New Directors Institute - Our education department offers the New Directors Institute, a three-day institute and yearlong coaching program for new educational directors, from June 19 to June 21 at the Pearlstone Retreat and Conference Center. For $500, brand new or sort-of-new directors can gain a toolbox of useful strategies and a network full or other professionals. For more information or to register, email educational consultant Susan Wyner.
Camp Hazak - From June 28 to July 5, people 55 and over are invited to Camp Hazak in Block and Hexter Vacation Center in Poyntelle, Pennsylvania, for three daily lectures, arts and crafts, boating, shuffleboard, swimming (in a heated pool), entertainment every evening, and good food at every meal. It’s everything your kids had a summer camp – and then some. For information or to register, email Jo-Anne Tucker-Zemlak.
Family Trip to Israel - Join Rabbi Charles Savenor, our director of kehilla enrichment, and his wife, Julie Walpert, on a multigenerational trip to Israel from July 30 to August 10. The trip can include the celebration of a bar or bat mitzvah ceremony; it costs $3,800 per person.
Find A High Holiday Cantor (Wait. What?) - It's not too early to look for a cantor for the high holy days, or for cantors to find a kehilla that requires their services. We can get you started; we also can help with placement for other Jewish professionals.
USY International Convention - United Synagogue Youth’s next convention is set for December 23-27 in Boston. Email for more information.
Koach Kallah - Koach’s 2013 kallah has been set for February 14-17 at the University of Pennsylvania, thanks to support from Women’s League for Conservative Judaism.
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News from Our Kehillot
Kol Shalom in Rockville, Maryland - Kol Shalom in Rockville dedicated its new building in April.
Knesset Israel, Pittsfield, Massachusetts - In April, a fire demolished the home of Rabbi David Weiner of Congregation Knesset Israel; Rabbi Weiner lived there with his wife and their three children. Everyone escaped safely, but the fire destroyed most of the family’s property along with the house.
Rodef Sholom Temple, Hampton, Virginia - Rodef Sholom Temple in Hampton celebrated Israel all day on Sunday, April 29; participants danced in Tel Aviv, left messages at the Kotel, and interviewed at a kibbutz. The program was funded by Ma’a lot, our partnership with Nefesh b'Nefesh.
Toronto Kehillot - Twenty volunteers from kehilllot in the Toronto area joined with habitat for Humanity in March to help build housing for low-incomes families.
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USY
It’s Almost Summer! - Hundreds of USYers already have signed up for one of our summer programs, but there still are a few spaces left. They’re going fast, though, so sign up now.
You can tour the United States on USY on Wheels, Mission Mitzvah, where you go from New Jersey to Los Angeles, seeing the country and making a difference in every city you visit. Or spend four weeks in Israel, both sightseeing and working on social action programs, in L'Takayn Olam. See the world and help fix it at the same time!
International Convention in Boston - USY’s 62nd annual international convention will be in Boston from Sunday, December 23, to Thursday, December 27. The theme will be God and Spirituality, and the emphasis will be on learning, social action, friendship, and fun. We'll keep you posted; feel free to email us if you have any questions.
TIkum Olam Contribution Cards - Support USY and our Tikun Olam tzedakah fund by using our cards to celebrate a simcha or send condolences. Cards come in a package of 10; a package costs $18. To order, send a check payable to USY Tikun Olam to USY Tikun Olam Cards, 820 2nd Avenue, 10th Floor, NY NY 10017.
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Koach
Next Year’s Kallah - Still high from this year’s kallah, Koach has set the date for its next one – February 14-17 at the University of Pennsylvania. Thanks go this year to Women’s League for Conservative Judaism, as they did last year.
Koach’s Grants and Internships – Building For Tomorrow - Students and professionals are invited to apply for grants of up to $1,000 to support and enrich Conservative Judaism on campus. And there are just a few spots remaining for student interns, who undergraduates who want to make a difference.
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USY at 60
Back to the Beginning - USY was born 60 or so years ago in Minneapolis/Saint Paul. USY@60 will recognize that birthplace in the fall at Temple Beth el with dinner, dancing, and remembering. Please note that the date has been changed, but the intention is the same. In the meantime, we welcome your ads. And if you have photos, please send them!
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From the Conservative Yeshiva
Find Yourself in the Heart of Jerusalem - The Conservative Yeshiva, part of our Fuchsberg Jerusalem Center, offers Jews of all ages and backgrounds the chance to study classic Jewish texts in a vibrant, open-minded, egalitarian community. Study can be full- or part-time, for a short or a long time.
Leadership Scholarships - There are a few Leadership Scholarships available for the 2012-13 academic year; they provide free tuition and a stipend for living expenses. Applications are being accepted now; email the yeshiva’s associate director, Rabbi Gail Diamond, for more information.
Summer Programs at the Yeshiva - The Conservative Yeshiva's summer programs offer intensive Hebrew and Jewish text study for students on all levels. Session I is July 1 to July 19, and Session II is July 22 to August 9; the sessions do not repeat. The program includes five levels of Hebrew ulpan, advanced Talmud study, classes in rabbinic texts, Tanach, tefillah, and halacha. Students can study all day or they can spend half a day at the Volunteer and Study program, which is run in cooperation with Skilled Volunteers for Israel. Email Rabbi Gail Diamond for more information or an application.
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Voices of Nativ
Students on Nativ, our gap-year program that’s headquartered at the Fuchsberg Jerusalem Center, made a video for Yom HaZikaron and Yom Ha’Atzmaut.
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From Our Book and Media Center
Celebrate Shavuot! - As we count the omer and make our way toward Shavuot, which begins this year on the evening of May 26, why not enhance the season with Celebrating the Jewish Year: The Spring and Summer Holidays. It is a rich source of texts, poems, stories, prayers, and rituals to enhance these important weeks.
Celebrate Mom! - We have so many gift choices for everyone, from the mother-to-be, the new mother, to the veteran. Welcome to the World is a beautifully illustrated Jewish baby journal for all of those memorable firsts. And elebrate the women who paved the way for us all. With Strength and Splendor and Hear Her Voice! are two volumes of inspiration.
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Around the Conservative/Masorti World
Magevet Comes to Israel - Magevet, a Jewish a capella group from Yale, will perform at Kehillah Moreshet Yisrael in Jerusalem as it kicks off its first tour of Israel. Magevet (yes, it means towel, and members claimed it was formed in a sauna) performs a diverse repertoire, from liturgical Renaissance arrangements to Abayudaya folk melodies, and includes more familiar material as well. The concert is Thursday, May 24, at 8 pm at Moreshet Yisrael. For reservations, call Esther Twicken at 972-2-625-3539.
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Around the Jewish World
Be the Match - The right match is the difference between life and death for many people suffering from diseases that can be cured only with bone marrow transplants. Often, the right match for a Jew is another Jew. All you have to do to begin the process is a simple swab of your cheek. Register from your computer. Be the match.
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Web Hosting
Take advantage of free Internet hosting services to affiliated synagogues, USY chapters, and afternoon/day schools. We now also can provide your synagogue with a free template CMS website.
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Two Minute Torah
Got two minutes? Get some Torah! Enjoy our weekly podcast and sign up for email alerts. www.koach.org.
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