Dear Friends,
Shabbat Shalom. Tonight is the last Shabbat of a long 2008 summer full of activities and visitors at Or Hadash.
1. On August 15-16 a large group of friends from our sister congregation, Temple Beth Elohim of Wellesley, led by Rabbi Joel Sisenwine, came to visit Or Hadash. The group numbered 63 people and was one of the youngest groups that ever came to visit us.
They arrived at Or Hadash directly from the airport for our Kabalat Shabbat service. Some of the children even fell asleep in the arms of their parents during the prayers.
We concluded the lovely Shabbat together with Havdala and dinner at Or Hadash.
After the Israeli dinner that included salads, humus and falafels and an ice cream "festival", Rabbi Sisenwine emphasized how important it is for TBE to maintain a close relationship with Israel. For me it was especially important that their youth meet our kids and we made plans for our visit to TBE and Boston in October.
2. On Monday, August 18th, our friends Brad and Lauren Egna along with their children, Danielle, Nikki, Max and Austin from the Community Synagogue in Port Washington, NY, visited Or Hadash. They have been friends and supporters of our Social Action activities for many years. The Egna family had lunch with us and met with the refugee woman from Darfur supported by Or Hadash. It is our hope that the Egnas will return for their twin sons' bnei mitzvah in two years.
3. On Tuesday, August 19, a group organized by ARZA Tours of 38 Reform Jews, visited Or Hadash. We spoke about our Tikun Olam and Social Action projects. Our member Jesse Lachter, our Board member, spoke about the role of Reform Judaism in Israel and the importance of maintaining a connection between Reform Jews in the US and in Israel. One of our new members, Gershom Lichtenberg and his wife Bobbie spoke about their experiences making aliyah from the USA just one year ago.
4. Our Neil and Diane Exter Summer Camp in July-August was a great success with 78 children ages 6-8. Among the activities there was a karaoke; creating pizza "commercials"; learning about Tisha Be'av; a daily story hour; arts and crafts; ice cream celebrations; camping; having fun at the swimming pool and learning about the synagogue and the Torah scroll (see picture).
5. Now we are also preparing for the beginning of the school year. Next week, on Monday September 1st, our preschool children will return after two weeks of vacation. Most children are "old timers", but the little ones in our preschool for 1-2 year olds are new and we are excited to welcome them all. The preschool teachers and aides were working hard during the past week to prepare the preschools for next year. After some construction work was done in the preschools, the staff cleaned the preschools and decorated them. They look lovely now.
6. Tonight 25 teens from Netzer (the Reform World Youth Movement) are joining us for Kabalat Shabbat and dinner. Also, our friend Hans Benjamin and his family from Or Hadash in Zurich, Switzerland will join us. Two HUC students, Sarah Krevsky and Lauren Furman are coming from to spend Shabbat with us. We welcome you all.
This was not just an ordinary summer. We are thankful that there was no war and that unlike two years ago, children could enjoy themselves at Or Hadash. But this year we had a very busy summer with more visitors from abroad and many summer activities.
Wishing you Shabbat Shalom.
From Haifa,
Edgar
