Z’man Simchateinu | Season of Our Rejoicing 2010/5771 The season of joy and thanksgiving is a welcome contrast to the Days of Awe. Let us celebrate and give thanks for all of life’s bounty. There is something for everyone. Sukkot Sukkah Decorating | Mon. Sept. 20, at 6.30 p.m. Erev Sukkot Service | Wed. Sept. 22, at 6 p.m. Congregation-wide Sukkot Morning Services | Thur. Sept. 23, at 10 a.m. Bring your lulav and etrog*. Creative children’s programs will be incorporated throughout the Service. After the Service, enjoy a festive kiddush lunch in the sukkah. Holy Chag Sukkot | Thur. Sept. 23, at 10 a.m. Students from Senior Kindergarten to Grade 6 are invited to join us for a day of Yom Tov programming. For more details and to register, please call Lisa Isen Baumal (ext. 242), at the Temple.
Annual Sukkah Party | Sun. Sept. 26, at 12.15 p.m. A special invitation goes out to all families with school-aged children. Enjoy pizza and edible sukkot for dessert and join in with the Halleluja Drummers!
Shemini Atzeret Erev Shemini Atzeret Service | Wed. Sept. 29, at 6 p.m. Shemini Atzeret/Yizkor Services | Thur. Sept. 30, at 10 a.m. The celebratory notes of the Festival are woven together with the sombre tones of our Yizkor/Memorial Service. Creative children’s programs will be incorporated. A special kiddush luncheon follows.
Simchat Torah Consecration Service | Thur. Sept. 30, at 6 p.m. All Grade 1 students receive their own little Torah Scroll to treasure. Simchat Torah Flag-Making and Parade | Thur. Sept. 30, at 6.15 p.m. Simchat Torah Service and Celebration | Thur. Sept. 30, at 7 p.m. Parade our beautiful Torah scrolls around the Sanctuary. Then dance the night away to the music of Judy and David’s klezmer band. *If you would like to order a quality lulav and etrog ($40), please call Elana Fehler (ext. 532), at the Temple.
Hasbara and our students | Our Schools by Debbie Spiegel Director of Education dspiegel@holyblossom.org
Hasbara (Public Diplomacy for Israel) is crucial for our students. With the constant barrage of information coming from the media, we often do not know what is true and what is not. It takes a discerning eye and even more discerning ear to parse news about Israel and the Middle East.
Alon (left) and Maya
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Holy Blossom schools take learning about Israel very seriously. Our students become more knowledgeable about and more invested in their relationship to Israel. We are fortunate that for the fourth consecutive year, we are partnering with the Leo Baeck Day School to host two teenagers from Israel: Maya Zrachya and Alon Shacham. (They are also co-sponsored by Makom and the UJA). We refer to these students as the Shinshinim, which stands for ‘shin-shin,’ an abbreviation in Hebrew for Shnat Sherut, year of service. Our Shinshinim, part of a much larger Toronto contingent in Canada postponing their army service, bring Israel front and centre to everything we do at Holy Blossom. Our students learn that teenagers in Israel are similar to Canadian teenagers
in many ways. It is interesting to learn about the similarities and differences in their outlooks and perspectives on life. In particular, our Grade 8 and 9 students will make Hasbara their theme for their upcoming Shabbat retreat, and as our Confirmation class prepares for their trip to Israel in March 2011, Maya and Alon will be invaluable to them. We say B’ruchim Haba’im, welcome. Maya and Alon will be housed by members of our congregation for the school year. After their stay with us, they will be going to Camp George in June 2011. Please introduce yourselves to Maya and Alon and make them feel at home. They will be in our Schools and in Family Services on a regular basis, as well as at all holiday celebrations and in various programs in the Temple.