WHAT’S HAPPENING THIS WEEK AT TEMPLE SINAI
November 30-December 6, 2025
Celebrating Jewish Peoplehood with Marjan Keypour
MAIN TRIP: MAY 24-30, 2026 | OPTIONAL JERUSALEM & DEAD
SEA EXTENSION: MAY 30 – JUNE 2, 2026 /// MAIN TRIP: $4,295
OPTIONAL JERUSALEM & DEAD SEA EXTENSION: $995
MAIN TRIP HIGHLIGHTS:
Engage with cutting-edge thinkers at Tel Aviv University.
Explore Jewish diversity and heritage at the ANU Museum of the Jewish People.
Tour Magen David Adom’s state-of-the-art emergency response and blood services center.
Reflect at the Nova music festival memorial.
Visit Sderot and Kibbutz Nirim to understand life along the Gaza border.
Discuss Israeli-Palestinian relations with activist Avi Dabush from Rabbis for Human Rights.
Meet educators and students at the Leo Baeck School in Haifa.
Witness northern Israel’s security realities and pioneering spirit on the Lebanese border.
Study Jewish texts with scholars linking tradition and current events.
Bake challah with a chef and learn about healing through food.
Discuss shared society with Jewish and Arab Israelis in mixed cities.
Celebrate Shabbat with Israel’s Reform community and bring the spirit home.
And much more…
OPTIONAL EXTENSION HIGHLIGHTS:
Walk Jerusalem’s Jewish Quarter, from the Cardo to Hurva Synagogue rooftops.
Visit the Western Wall and explore underground through the Western Wall Tunnel.
Ascend Masada by cable car and explore its ancient mountaintop fortress.
Float in the Dead Sea and unwind in nature at Ein Gedi.
And much more…
Friday, December 5, 2025 • 6:30pm
We look forward to seeing you at our meaningful Shabbat service in the Sanctuary.
Tonight, we are Celebrating Jewish Peoplehood with Guest Speaker, Marjan Keypour.
If you would prefer to join us virtually, click here to livestream the service.
REMINDER: to enhance security, a password is now required to view our livestream. The password and instructions to log in to the livestream will be sent to you in a separate email. If you have any questions, call the temple office at 516.621.6800.
Co-Chaired
by
Carol & James Rotenberg and Lauren & David Borkon
The notion of Jewish Peoplehood encompasses Judaism as a civilization with a collective story, religion, culture, language, ethical tradition, and dedication to community. Our goal in presenting this series is to strengthen the connection between Jews around the world.
our next program in the series: Friday, December 5 • 6:30pm during our Shabbat Service featuring the Community Choir & Temple Sinai Band
Guest Speaker: Marjan Keypour (Greenblatt)
This program will feature Marjan Keypour (Greenblatt), an Iranian-American human rights activist who specializes in causes of women and minorities in Iran. She is the founder of the Alliance for Rights of All Minorities (ARAM), an international network of activists dedicated to promoting equal rights for persecuted people in Iran. Marjan is also the founder of StopFemicideIran (SFI), the first interactive map and database documenting acts of femicide in Iran, memorializing the victims and raising awareness about this critical issue.
Beyond her grassroots initiatives, Marjan has contributed to the cultural landscape as a producer of HOMANITY, a compilation album featuring music from banned and underground Iranian artists. An initiative to shed light on Iran's restrictions on artists and promote cultural freedom.
Marjan holds advisory roles with the Atlantic Council's Iran Strategy Project and the National Union for Democracy in Iran (NUFDI). She is also an affiliate at the Middle East Institute (MEI).
Sinai Shabbat Saturdays
New Ways to Experience Shabbat at Temple Sinai*
Saturday, December 6, 2025 at 9:30am
Saturday Morning Minyan*K with Rabbi Ilana Schachter only via ZOOM
Shabbat is a time for reflection, gratitude, and enrichment.
All are welcome to Saturday Morning Minyan, where we blend ancient traditions and modern interpretations.
No previous knowledge of Hebrew, liturgy, or text required – join us as we learn from our tradition and from one another!
*Temple Sinai will always hold space for you to remember your loved one and say Kaddish for them. Please note that Kaddish will be recited during any program marked with *K.
Click here to join the ZOOM or dial 646.558.8656 (audio only)
Meeting ID: 824 5549 3238
PASSWORD: 3636
Our Photography Tribe Returns for its Second Year
Led by Bill Brickner
Whether you take snapshots of the family on your cell phone or travel photos on your camera, let’s take the next steps in photography together. We’ll visit local scenic spots to take images that, with editing, you will be proud to hang on your wall.
Photographers of all skill levels are invited to join us for our first meeting on ZOOM: Tuesday, December 2 at 7:30pm Check your email for ZOOM details
Attendees should submit five (5) images to Bill prior to the meeting at brick425park@hotmail.com. New members should email Bill for instructions.
Finding the Light: Honoring Both Loss and Growth
Temple Sinai members Caryn Hirshleifer and Jodi Efros are forming a new, very meaningful Sinai Tribe.
This intimate circle is for Temple Sinai members navigating the weight of loss—whether through the death of a loved one, a sudden life change, or the quiet griefs that go unseen. Co-facilitated by Caryn Meg Hirshleifer (Co-author, In the Face of Catastrophe), Jodi Efros, and her daughter, Sprout Society’s Danielle Efros Kastenbaum, the group offers a safe, compassionate space to share, reflect, and heal in community. Through storytelling, creative practices, and ritual-inspired moments, we will honor our losses while holding onto hope, resilience, and the sustaining power of connection.
All ages and genders welcome.
Please join them at the first session: Thursday, December 4 at 7:00pm in the Library
Conversational Hebrew with Morah Galia Shahin
next class:
Wednesday, December 3 at 7:00pm
Shalom! My name is Galia Shahin, and I will be teaching Conversational Hebrew for Adults. I am Israeli born and raised and have been teaching Hebrew for over twenty years. In every class, we are going to review the Hebrew alphabet and learn to read words and short sentences, utilizing the Hebrew vowels. In addition, we are going to engage in conversational Hebrew, learning words and phrases for everyday use. If you are traveling to Israel with Rabbi White, want to listen to Israeli news, or simply want to converse like a Tzabar, come join us and let’s learn Hebrew!
Morah Shahin, who is one of our wonderful Religious School teachers, will be at the helm for 18 one-hour sessions, on assorted Wednesday evenings from 7:00-8:00pm. Classes begin on October 29 and run through May. Specific class dates will be announced shortly.
The cost for the 18 sessions is $200.
To register, please visit mysinai.org/conversationalhebrew25-26
Trip to the Monday, December 8 • 11:00am
Identity, Culture, and Community:
Stories from the Collections of the Jewish Museum
Led by Sinai’s own, Docent Ronna Niederman
The exhibition includes a renovated double-height gallery crowned by a dramatic, monumentally scaled installation of more than 130 Chanukah lamps from around the world, and from antiquity to the present day, underscoring the central meaning of light as a symbol of enlightenment and hope across cultures.
If you are interested in joining the tour, please contact Adrianne Rubin by clicking here.
Being Jewish at Home
with Rabbi Ilana Schachter
Thursdays at 7:30pm in the
December 11 January 15 • February 12 March 12 • April 13
At these monthly gatherings, we will learn about the Jewish rituals that take place at home from Shabbat and holidays to the bedtime Shema. Together, we will create space to share the joys and oys of making a Jewish home for our children and explore meaningful, realistic ways that we can elevate Jewish life in our homes, as busy parents today.
Preserve Your Family’s Holocaust Story –A Special Opportunity from the Center for Jewish History
The Center for Jewish History, in partnership with Ancestry®, is launching an oral history podcast to document the stories of Holocaust survivors and their families. Through personal interviews and historical storytelling, this project seeks to preserve these vital memories for future generations.
We invite survivors and second-generation descendants to share their family’s experience. If you or someone you know would like to participate, please contact Miriam Malka Frankel at mfrankel@cjh.org, or reach out to gi@cjh.org.
Together, we can help ensure these stories live on.
Neighbors Helping Neighbors
Many families in our community will feel the impact of the federal government shutdown as SNAP (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program) benefits lapse. In addition, countless federal workers have gone unpaid for weeks, adding even more strain to household budgets.
Your support ensures that no one faces this hardship alone.
Help the JCC keep their Nikki Schwartz Memorial Community Needs Bank fully stocked. As a proud redistribution partner of Island Harvest and Met Council, they’re committed to supporting our neighbors through this difficult time.
This is a list of their most needed items. Click here for the complete list.
• rice
• pasta
• cereal
• tuna
• soups
• peanut butter
• shelf-stable milk
• personal care items
• household essentials
• canned vegetables
Gift cards to grocery stores and big-box retailers are another way to help families provide for themselves and their loved ones in a respectful way.
Donations can be dropped off in the bins in the temple lobby.
You can also click here to order items from the JCC’s Amazon Wish List to send the most-needed items directly to the Community Needs Bank.
For anyone who needs additional assistance of any kind and wants to reach out, please contact the JCC today. You do not have to be a member!
Join us to support those struggling during this pause in SNAP benefits as mentioned in the video by:
• Participate in the SNAP Challenge with us following the actual SNAP benefit guidelines that beneficiaries are requires to follow as outlined below:
• Individuals can only spend a maximum of $6 a day on all 3 meals
• Individuals may not purchase any hot (when purchased) food items (such as rotisserie chicken or other prepared foods).
• Individuals may not purchase any food items that are to be eaten in the store/location that it is purchased.
• Individuals may not purchase any alcoholic beverages.
Reach out to Rabbi Schachter at RabbiSchachter@mysinai.org or Dina Kwasnicki at DKwasnicki@mysinai.org for additional details and our link to donate and track our progress with Island Harvest.
• Help Stock the JCC’s Nikki Schwartz Memorial Community Needs Bank, drop off items in the bins at the Temple Sinai of Roslyn lobby all month long. You can find a list of most needed items here. You can also click here to order items from the JCC’s Amazon Wish List to send the most-needed items directly to the Community Needs Bank.
• Help Temple Sinai Support Island Harvest And Our Neighbors In Need Contribute to the Hunger Relief Action Fund: Every $1 helps provide 2 meals. Click here to donate or use the QR code.
•
2yearsold to 3rdgrade
CHALLAH DAY!
Friday, December 5, 2025
Drop-Off (for ages 3 & up)
Twos with a grown-up 4:15pm
Fun, animated, and enriching program for children!
Back Together at 5:00pm
Celebrate Shabbat with music, singing, laughing, and dancing! Parents, grandparents, and siblings are all welcome!
Winter Break
Monday, December 22 - Friday, January 2
ECC Closed
Religious School Closed
Wednesday, December 24
Offices Close at 1:00pm
Christmas Eve
Thursday, December 25
Building Closed
Christmas Day
Wednesday, December 31
Offices Close at 1:00pm
New Year’s Eve
Thursday, January 1
Building Closed
New Year’s Day