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| March 2010 | |
| What's Happening |
| Helping Victims in Chile - As everyone knows, another massive earthquake struck in February, this time in Chile. Our hearts go out to the victims, and many of us, more productively, send some of our money as well. We are asking anyone who is interested to donate through our sister organization, Masorti Olami, the umbrella group for Conservative/Masorti Jews throughout the world outside North America and Israel. (There are six Masorti/Conservative congregations in Chile, and Masorti reports on their status here.) We are still collecting money for the victims of the monstrous earthquake in Haiti, too; those funds will go for more long-term projects. Deepen Your Congregation¹s Connection to Israel - Through our Ma'alot program, United Synagogue¹s Israel Commission and Nefesh B¹Nefesh offer grants of up to $3,000 for programming aimed at nurturing congregtions¹ ties to Israel. The application deadline is March 22. Learning With United Synagogue - We offered three teleconferences in February; if you couldn't make them (or even if you did!) you can listen to them now, at your leisure. Lisa Harris Glass, our Mid-Atlantic district director, suggested 10 ways to raise $10,000; Jewish media guru extraordinaire Steve Rabinowitz talked about marketing your shul, and Metny district director Rabbi Charles Savenor explored the benefits of a midyear review of a synagogue's professional and lay staff. Wernick on Women of the Wall - Answering questions put to him by journalist Shmuel Rosner, our executive vice president, Rabbi Steven Wernick, wrote about his concerns at the way Israel treated the Women of the Wall in Rosner's Jerusalem Post blog. Strategic Planning Update - As a letter from the strategic planning committee lays out, we have taken the next step toward the future by beginning to work with Dr. Jacob B. Ukeles and Dr. Steven M. Cohen, who will do the analysis that will point to the next steps in our transformation. Hire a High Holy Day Cantor Now? Really? - Really, it's not too early to start hiring a cantor for the high holy days, or for chazzanim to look for congregations. How to Hire a Synagogue Professional - Once you (assuming you are a synagogue leader) have found the right person for your shul, what are the next steps in the hiring process? Find out with our new Guide to Contractual Relations. Blogging Policy - As your synagogue tries to establish its policy on blogging for its employees, you might find it helpful to take a look at ours. |
| Bragging Rights |
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Billie Jean King in New Jersey - Legendary tennis star Billie Jean King, who is founder of the Women's Sports Foundation, was the keynote speaker at Hagalil's midwinter kinnus, which was hosted by Temple Beth Shalom in Livingston, New Jersey. Here, wearing a red scarf, she stands with youth director Michelle Rich and regional USY officers.
Hazak in Israel - In January, 72 Hazakniks, ranging from 60 to 80something years old, went to Israel. Here, Rabbi Moshe Edelman, foreground at left, leads mincha on top of Masada. Information and registration forms for the next trip, set for November, already are available; so are application forms for Hazak's summer retreat.
Jews in Cuba - In February, 30 people from United Synagogue-affiliated shuls went to Cuba. Harry Silverman, Seaboard/Southeast's associate director, directed and wrote about the trip.
Taste of Torah - For the last five years, Atlanta's Conservative community – seven congregations, Camp Ramah Darom, the Solomon Schechter-affiliated Epstein School, the Seaboard/Southeast district, and the regional Rabbinical Assembly - co-sponsored a day of learning. The keynote speaker was our executive vice president, Rabbi Steven Wernick, shown here, and Arlene Brightman of Congregation Shearith Israel was named synagogue volunteer of the year. The award comes with a fully paid roundtrip ticket to Israel, accommodations there, and a week of study at the Conservative Yeshiva at United Synagogue's Fuchsberg Jerusalem Center.
Cantor, President, President - Our international president, Richard Skolnik, at right, joins Cantor Alberto Mizrahi of Anshe Emet Synagogue, left, and Dr. Hal Lewis as Dr. Lewis is installed as president of the Spertus Institute in Chicago. |
| New Ideas |
| A Day School Conference Unites Jews Across the Spectrum |
| Calendar |
| This Year in Florida (or Las Vegas) - Tired of changing all your dishes, hunting down every last crumb, and then trying to figure out what else to make with matzah? Do it differently this year. Join us for a luxurious Passover vacation retreat at the Westin Diplomat Hotel and Spa on the beach in Hollywood, Florida, or at the Ritz Carleton Resort and Spa in Las Vegas. The food is kosher for Pesach, the sedarim are Conservative, the (optional!) lectures and classes are intellectually challenging, and the facilities, views, beaches, pools, spas, and services are superb. Sell Your Chametz - And support Koach! The first Pesach seder is March 29! There really isn't that much time left! Sell your chametz to Koach online. Home for the Holidays - Kol dichfin, the haggadah tells us. Everyone who is hungry should come and eat. Through Project Reconnect, and working together with NAASE, Women's League,and Koach, we offer college students, unaffiliated young adults, and alumni of our programs who find themselves away from home help in finding a seat at a seder table. If you need a place to go or represent a shul that has room at a community seder or at members' home, please let Project Reconnect know. Boot Camp for New Presidents - Sulam, our intensive training program for new synagogue presidents and vice presidents, will meet April 22 through April 25 at the Pearlstone Conference and Retreat Center in Reisterstown, Maryland. Workshops for Educators - United Synagogue education consultants Wendy Light and Susan Wyner lead two workshops in Vancouver; on April 25 they'll look at issues confronting teachers, and on April 26 they'll tackle questions that bedevil education directors. Email Susan Wyner for information or an application. New Directors' Institute - United Synagogue's program for new education directors and principals at schools affiliated with Conservative synagogues will run from Tuesday, June 22, to Thursday, June 24. New this year, the program will meet at the Pearlstone Conference and Retreat Center in Reisterstown, Maryland, and it will cost only $450 if you share a room ($500 if you do not). Email our education consultant Susan Wyner for more information and to register. Hazak Goes to Camp - Hazak, for people 55 and older, invites you to camp at Block and Hexter Vacation Center Center in Poyntelle, Pennsylvania, for a week of fun, friends, music, learning, and food, from June 30 to July 7. Email Jo-Anne Tucker-Zemlak for more information or a reservation. |
| USY |
| Jews Around the World - USY's Pinwheel region's spring kinnus will focus on Jews Around the World: The Faces and Places of Our Tribe." It's set for March 19 through March 21 at Congregation Beth Shalom in Seattle. Register for 2010 Summer Programs - Early-bird registration for the summer has begun. High-school students can explore the spectacular natural wonders of the northern Pacific coast in our new four-week USY on Wheels, Pacific Northwest, spend five weeks exploring Israel in new ways on USY Israel Adventure Plus, or chose any of our other programs. For new high-school graduates who want to spend a year in Israel before heading off to college, USY's Nativ offers options – the classic program and Nativ Gesher, where students spend the first semester in Jerusalem and the second in Masorti communities in Europe. |
| Koach |
| Conservative Yeshiva and Koach – Perfect Together - Rabbis Daniel Goldfarb, Shmuel Lewis, and Jim Lebeau, all of the Conservative Yeshiva at United Synagogue's Fuchsberg Jerusalem Center, will visit the University of Rochester, Columbia, UC Santa Barbara, Binghamton University, the University of Delaware, and the University of Pennsylvania; the trips have begun and will go through March and were scheduled by Koach. |
| Fuchsberg Jerusalem Center |
| Summer Programs - The Conservative Yeshiva at United Synagogue's Fuchsberg Jerusalem Center offers intensive Hebrew and Jewish text study. This summer, the first session will run from June 27 to July 15 and the second will be from July 18 to August 5. The Yeshiva, which is open to all students, from beginners through advanced learners, is accepting registration for both summer and full-year programs. |
| Reconnecting |
| Share What You Know - Project Reconnect invites people with professional knowledge to share it with others. It is a wonderful opportunity to network, to befriend, to help, and to grow yourself. Become a mentor! Seeking Pinwheel Alums - USY's Pinwheel region is looking for alumni so they can get together for reunions and other special events. (All information will be stored securely and used only by Pacific Northwest regional staff.) Email Andréa Milman for more information. Seeking New Frontier Alums - And if you were one region over, in USY's New Frontier region, please send your memories to Mishkie Barnea-Smith. They'll go up on a scrapbook or Facebook wall, and maybe even lead to a New Frontier reunion. USY Love Connection - Project Reconnect is looking for couples who met in USY. Send us your stories! We'd love to know your names, the years you were in USY, your home region, and the story of how you met. Pictures would be great too! |
| Around the Movement |
| Questionnaire for Conservative Women - Women's League for Conservative Judaism asks all Conservative women to fill out a survey that will help it craft Women's League's future. The stakes are high – please help. There is a hard-copy version in the center of the spring issue of our magazine, CJ, which is now in people's homes; you also can fill it out online. |
| Celebrating with United Synagogue |
| United Synagogue Tallit - You can celebrate a simcha by giving your synagogue president – or treating yourself! – to a personalized United Synagogue tallit, with United Synagogue's logo, your name, and, if you like, your synagogue's logo. |
| With Just One Click |
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| The United Synagogue of Conservative Judaism |