Dear Temple Shalom Family, 

There may be snow on the ground, but there’s hope in a cup.  Buried within the warm damp potting soil in the plastic cups on our window sill are tiny parsley seeds.  With the Divine Intervention of several miracles from God (and some helpful watering by us), they should germinate and start to grow in the weeks ahead.  In just about two months, we hope, they will become the karpas, the greens, on our seder plates for Passover.

We hope that the parsley will grow, bringing life and joy every time we see it as we walk through the Temple Foyer in the weeks ahead.  We know that if, for any reason, it doesn’t, we can always run to the grocery store in April if need be.  There is no replacement, however, for the sacred vessels that are each and every one of us.  We, too can bring life and joy to the Temple Foyer for Wine Down Kabbalat Shabbat this week, for Torah Study on Saturday mornings, for worship, for learning, for holidays and life cycle celebrations; for any moment when we’re willing to share our lives with the rest of our Temple family, but only if we keep our own cups filled with hope.  The challenges of our world are real, but our sacred tradition offers inspiration.  “Kol ha’Olam kulo gesher tzar m’od…” “the entire world is like a very narrow bridge,” wrote Rabbi Nachman of Bratslav.  It can seem dangerous and even scary at times.  “V’ha’ikar: lo l’fached k’lal,” “the most important thing is: not to be afraid.”  We must not let fear empty the hope from our own cups; we can refill them with the joy of our own accomplishments, whether great or small.  We can also help to refill the cups of our friends and neighbors with words of encouragement, acts of kindness, and our presence, love, and support.  

Here at Temple Shalom, we are blessed to be the inheritors of a wonderful home for vibrant Jewish life.  It was built by our ancestors, but sustaining it requires help from each and every one of us.  Through our worship, learning, social action, and socializing, we find the inspiration to answer the call to be partners with the Divine in taking care of our world, and all with whom we share it.  We look forward to seeing you again soon, here at the Temple.

WORSHIP

Wine Down Kabbalat Shabbat!  

THIS FRIDAY, February 21 at 5:00 p.m.

Join us in the Temple Foyer as we celebrate the Sabbath together!  The refreshments will be available at 5:00 p.m. and our light and lively service will start at 5:15.   Thank you to Barbara and Jonathan Lief for sponsoring the refreshments, including some fabulous Israeli wines!  Fear not, everything will conclude in time for you to enjoy Shabbat dinner with family and friends.  For those unable to attend, the service will be broadcast LIVE on our Facebook page.  If you are feeling ill, please stay home and watch online.

New Hearing Assistance at Worship:

If you use Bluetooth equipped hearing aids, you can download this app from “Listen Everywhere”

Then, select Temple Shalom by using the following code, and our sound board will be broadcasting directly into your own personal speakers!

We hope you’ll try it out this week at Shabbat services!

Rakefet Update!

Temple Shalom uses a special database called Rakefet to keep track of all of our membership data.  Thanks to a new upgrade, each member family is now able to log in online to their own account, enabling you to make payments, see announcements, check yahrzeits, and more!  

Use the link below to learn more!

https://vimeo.com/showcase/8613894

LEARNING

Religious School Continues in March!

Our Religious School meets on the first, second, and third Sunday of each month.  Please note that our next session will be Sunday morning, March 2 at 9:30 a.m.  We hope to see all of our students and parents for a wonderful morning of learning together! 

STOCK MARKET CIRCLE CHALLENGE

The Stock Market Circle Challenge is underway, and congratulations to our Week 5 leader: Terry Naughton!  You can see the full standings on our website: here!  

Remember, you can still enter new certificates; they just go in as “autocircle” picks!  We have printed certificates in the Foyer at Temple which you can pick up any time you’re at Temple; there’s also an electronic version attached to this edition of Temple Times which you can print, or forward to your friends and family.

Top Sellers So Far:

Rabbi Lief 74

Andy Schreiber 71

Jondavid Pollock 50

Roz Lando 38

Barbara and Carter Strauss 26

Richard Carter 25

Fred Horne 25

Harry “Moe” Rubenstein 22

Mort Slaven 22

Jonathan Lief 20

Shari McPhail 19

Lisa Allen 18

Andy Mendelson 18

Harold and Roanne Burech 15

Robert Dobkin 10

Nicoletta Villa Sella 10

Perri Pokorney Slosky 10

Stanley Burech 10

Will Green 10

Geoffrey Singer 7

Samuel Posin 6

Joan Berlow Smith 5

Greg Chase 5

Rachell and John Hruschak 5

Mia Porter 5

Daniel Shats 5

Dennis Burech 3

Phyllis Sigal 2

Karen Recht 2

Debra Edelman 1

Sheila Freimark 1

Rita Gallin 1

Barb Lewine 1

David Rose 1

THANK YOU

Thank you to all who helped to make our Tu B’Shevat Seder such a wonderful success!  Thank you to Joan Berlow Smith for the amazing decorations; the room looked so beautiful!  Thank you to Dr. Jonathan Lief for donating all of the symbolic fruits and nuts, and for helping to make the individual Seder plates.  Thank you to Chef Adam Luiso for a delicious dinner, and thank you to all of the many Temple members, friends, and guests, who attended and joined in the fun!

OUR FUTURE  

Temple Board Meeting – TONIGHT, February 19 at 7:00 p.m.

Wine Down Kabbalat Shabbat – FRIDAY, February 21 at 5:00 p.m.

Torah Study Breakfast – SATURDAY, February 22 at 9:45 a.m.

Erev Shabbat – Friday, February 28 at 5:00 p.m.

First Friday Celebration – Friday, March 7 at 6:00 p.m.

PURIM CELEBRATION! – Friday, March 14 at 6:00 p.m.

STOCK MARKET CIRCLE CHALLENGE IS UNDERWAY:

YOU CAN STILL ENTER CERTIFICATES!