We have an extraordinary Spiritual Leader who ministers to both our membership and to the larger Jewish community in our region. We have an adult education program so varied, extensive, and participatory that it has added the richness of Jewish life, culture and experience to many people and has won national recognition in a prestigious URJ award honoring us as a Congregation of Learners. We have a school program that is now bursting at the seams, with dedicated teachers bringing Jewish tradition and culture and Hebrew language to fifty six- to thirteen-year-olds. We are reaching out to share experiences and activities with other synagogues and Jewish organizations in our region. We have a variety of small-group activities within our congregation--Women of BAJC, a Rosh Chodesh group, a men's and a women's Chevra Kadisha, Israeli dancing, mah jong, a Significant Jewish Books club, a weekly ma'ariv service, and more. We have well-prepared youngsters bring their Jewish identity with them to all sorts of endeavors in this essentially non-Jewish part of the world.
However, the many successes of this past year have brought about some of this year's challenges. We are running out of space for Hebrew School and will probably have to split the school next year to two days a week in order to have room for all the classes. We need to hire a teen coordinator/program director to work with our post b'nai mitzvah young adults in order to maintain meaningful participation for them in our Jewish community and continuing involvement with each other and with other Jewish youth in our region. We have wonderful volunteers, but they will last longer and not fall prey to burnout if we can hire people for some of the tasks we now ask volunteers to do.
We need to start planning for an already-needed expansion to create a large sanctuary, more classrooms, and a social hall that will allow us to conduct b'nai mitzvah and other life-cycle events at our synagogue rather than in rented space elsewhere. We really need to expand our facility!
So where do we go from here with our little shul in our little town? This is our synagogue - we need to do more than simply sustain the status quo. Each of us must do whatever we can to promote its growth and to enable the congregation (meaning each of us) to reach its fullest potential. Our shul is where we mark the most important events of our lives--births and baby namings, bar & bat mitzvah, auf rufs and weddings, funerals and memorials. It is where we gather to grieve and to say Kaddish for those who have left us. The synagogue is where we hear the call of the shofar and pray to be inscribed in the Book of Life. This is where we educate our children and grandchildren about our tradition and beliefs and ethics. This is where we come together in a Kehilla Kadusha - a holy community of families and friends, who gather together for support and celebration, in times of joy and in times of sadness.
So let me first thank our volunteers; our teachers and administrators, our Board members and committee members; our oldsters who show us the way and our youngsters who show us the future, and a special thank you to all our members who give us the support, financial and otherwise, that we need to keep our very special synagogue moving forward. Then I ask each of you to find out about everything that the Brattleboro Area Jewish Community has to offer and consider taking advantage of at least one offering. We publish a newsletter and have a wonderful website. Both inform about programs and events and services. If you pick just one thing that you think you will like and become involved, you will be surprised at how addictive it can be and perhaps you will be inspired to become a member. Your membership will help us with our ongoing efforts to maintain and grow a holy community that truly is special and unique--a community that has something to offer everyone and that adds some measure of holiness to everyone who seeks it.
This, therefore, is my High Holiday appeal, as traditional at this time of year as round challah and apples dipped in honey. There is much more that we can do. We have tremendous talent and energy and intelligence and willpower; we have wonderful ideas and we have wonderful people who want to implement these ideas. We must not be held back by a lack of money. As a Board, we have discussed different options for raising funds at this time of year. Many synagogue budgets, for example, are based on income from selling High Holiday tickets. We prefer to welcome all to our services and simply appeal to you for support at this time--a time when the larger Jewish community comes together with our members to pray, to renew, and to be part of this larger whole.
We need more money, and I am asking each of you to help. You know what we have and you know what we want to do and what we need to do. What we have here is no accident. It should not be taken for granted. What we do takes time and effort and money. To meet the dreams and hopes of our congregation requires meeting the financial challenges ahead of us. Becoming a member and paying dues, to me, is the biggest win/win situation, but even if you cannot become a member, any amount of support you can give will help. Long ago, our sages said, " do not rely on miracles". More recently, Chaim Weizmann, Israelís first president, said, "Miracles sometime occur, but one has to work terribly hard for them." You can help miracles happen here!
Finally, I ask all of you to think of what this congregation means to all of the Jews in our region. On Greenleaf Street stands the first synagogue in the history of the Brattleboro area, a dream come true.
I am asking for your money, your energy, your presence and your support to keep this congregation alive, vibrant, and growing.
B'Shalom,
Paul
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