September / october 2011

Building Torat Yisraels Future

Report from Andrew Sholes TY Building Committee Chairman
Work on Site

elul / tishri 5771

The site construction is almost complete in preparation for commencement of the building construction. The asphalt pavement binder course has been installed. Final grading and loaming of the retention area in front of the house has been completed. An asphalt pavement sidewalk has been installed in the rear yard of the house to provide access to the chapel in the lower level from the parking area. The site contractor has cleaned up the site.

Update on Work with East Greenwich

The Building Plans have been approved by the East Greenwich Fire Department and are currently being reviewed by the Town Building Inspector. Our general contractor is awaiting final approval from our architects and their structural engineer for the steel shop drawings. We are ready to commence construction as soon as the Building Permit is available but the Building Committee has not given our general contractor the green light.

Status of Sale of our Cranston Building

In June, 2011, the Temple received an offer from a developer to purchase the Park Avenue building for use as a charter school. The RI Board of Regents rejected First Achievements application at its meeting on September 1, 2011. The members of the Board of Regents received a letter from Governor Chaffee approximately 2 hours before its meeting in which the Governor stated his opposition to a charter school being located in the Edgewood section of Cranston. That letter together with the Cranstons teachers union organized opposition swayed the Regents to deny the application 7 to 1. In the background, we have been negotiating with a church as a backup purchaser. Many of the Church parishioners visited our Temple at a special open house on August 30, 2011. Before making a final decision, their parishioners wanted to view the premises and experience the drive to our facility during the evening traffic rush hour. As of the writing of this article, we have not received a formal offer from them.

Financing Considerations

The Temple had obtained a loan commitment conditioned upon the Temple having a signed Purchase and Sale Agreement. If we receive an acceptable offer from the Church, we will be able to proceed with our construction on schedule. If not, our loan commitment needs to be renegotiated. We are also investigating obtaining financing with other financial institutions. We have paid the Site Contractor for its work to date and have ample funds to pay the general contractor for its work to date as well. Before the Temple proceeds with the building construction, it needs to finalize the financing of the East Greenwich project. If the sale of the building does not materialize, there are different financing alternatives available such as mortgaging both the Cranston and East Greenwich properties. The Building Committee and Finance Committee are optimistic that financing for the project will be obtained. The Building Committee will be reviewing the feasibility of different scenarios in an effort to keep the construction project on schedule.

Greetings from Susan Smoller, President

Shalom Fellow Congregants, As has been my custom, I will share my gratitude in this newsletter and allow myself the opportunity to expand on my thanks now to all the people who work tirelessly to support the temple. Together we bade farewell to Ronni Guttin, our Educational Director, who will continue to attend services with us, however, without the responsibility to ensure the education of our children. Thank you to our Officers and Board of Trustees and the many generous volunteers who work many hours within the Temple. The Executive Committee and many other lay leaders have put in many hours to determine our direction and it is with everyones support that we will grow and thrive. The building committee, under the leadership and the guidance of Andrew Sholes, pushed forward the clearing of the site for the foundation and the entire temple to be built. Our very able Capital Campaign Chair, Marc Davis, has been working hard to encourage us to make and fulfill pledges towards the building so that the building can be built. The goal is for all of us to join in and remain active Torat Yisrael members. Todah Rabah to David Wasser and Rabbi Levin for creating a very interactive website. Please access the website and feel free to comment on it by sending an email directly to the temple. We can now make dinner reservations for the Shabbat dinners, communicate with the leadership both professional and lay leaders - make donations and communicate at large through the website. This tool is interactive as are our Twitter and Facebook accounts. Please follow us and stay in touch! Thanks to Rabbi Levin for her work this year and her leadership. We are pleased that she has embarked on her 8th year with us! Our broader Rhode Island Jewish community continues to recognize Rabbi Levin as does the Rabbinical Assembly and The Jewish Theological Seminary of America which have appointed her to the Committee on Jewish Law and Standards, the body of Conservative Rabbis which determine current questions of halacha/Jewish law for the Conservative Movement. Mazal Tov and Yeshar Kochech! Andrea Epstein, our Social Worker, has been a valuable member of our professional staff and has assisted many of us through the vicissitudes of life. We have received additional funding that will allow her to continue in her role with Torat Yisrael. Hazzan Devin Goldenberg led us in services and trained our bar mitzva students. He continues to teach at the school, to tutor the bar mitzvah students and to inspire us with his melodies. He has created special melodies for our congregation and celebrated Shavuot with us by teaching us about the new Mahzor for the high holidays and introducing us to a new melody that he wrote. A special thanks to our Torah reader, Harold Labush. Harold continued to read Torah and the Megillah for us this year and we are grateful for his fluency and accuracy. This year, again, the office has been running smoothly thanks to Evelyn Nussenfeld, Sheryl Ponder and Stephanie Reinsant. Many thanks too to our constant volunteer, Anita Olinsky. The Temple facilities are well maintained thanks to the maintenance work of our volunteers and of Paul Pouler, our custodian. I would like to thank my husband David and our daughter Michelle for understanding the commitment I have made to Torat Yisrael and allowing me the opportunity to be President. I hope that you, my fellow congregants, will make the choice to be as active as possible within Torat Yisrael. I want to remind you that there will be a congregational shofar blast to end Yom Kippur on Saturday evening, October 8th so please bring your shofar and join us in making a lot of noise! This will be followed by our annual congregational break- the-fast in the social hall. This year the break-thefast is being sponsored by Andy, Barry and Suzanne Gilstein and their families in memory of Lillian and Benjamin Gilstein zl (zichronam livracha / may their memories serve as a blessing). On behalf of the officers, the Board of Trustees, clergy and professional staff, my family and me, I would like to express our wish that may we all be inscribed for a year of health, happiness and prosperity, and that it be a year of peace and security in Israel and the world over. Lets challenge ourselves to remain active Torat Yisrael members and to support each other in the coming year. Shana Tova and Gmar chatimah tovah. Please contact me at any time with any comments or questions. BShalom, Susan

The Cohen School News

Shalom, As we welcome the Jewish New Year, we welcome new beginnings at the Cohen School. Our goal at the Cohen School is to create a vibrant Jewish educational community. Each child is special in our school. We want to help each child succeed. We are blessed with a community of educators who are committed to that goal. Our vision is to provide the best quality education for our children. Our new curriculum is focused on creating an enriching atmosphere of learning where students will be engaged by teachings to gain a deeper understanding of their Jewish identity. An educational community that focuses on learning about our Jewish identity and building friendships within the community is very important for our children. The Talmud teaches us: Put yourself into groups to occupy yourselves with the Torah, for the Torah can only be acquired in company. (Talmud Berachot 63b) As our children learn together, the classroom community will be pivotal in their success as Jewish children inquisitive of the language, history, and spirituality of our People. If you have any questions about your childs education please contact me at 785-1800 X10. LShalom, Donna Tarutz Education Director

Kesher Corner: Andrea Epstein, LICSW

Andrea is Temple Torat Yisrael's part time social worker funded by the Kesher Program, a joint project of the Jewish Alliance of Greater Rhode Island, Jewish Family Service, and the synagogue. She can be reached at andrea@templetorat.org or (401) 369-0160 This months column focuses on reflection. It seems like the right time of year to be looking at oneself with the High Holidays and the changing of the seasons around the corner. Unfortunately reflection is often tied with emotions like guilt, self-reproach, and/or judgment. A successful and often-used model to facilitate reflection is the Taking Inventory step of the 12-Step programs. Although this was developed in the context of dealing with addiction, it is a helpful model to consider for general reflection as well. While there are specific criteria and suggestions for how to do this I want to focus on something quite general about the idea of taking inventory: the possibility that we can step back and assess our emotional/personal life and look at what is working, what we need more of, and what we may want to divest ourselves of. In fact, people do this all the time in business without any emotion at all. Think, for example, if you often feel terrible if you notice you need to order more pens? What would it look like to transfer this format to other areas of our life? What about, I need to call up more empathy for myself or Wow, need to cancel some of my sarcasm, I have overstocked that this month. What do you think would be on your list if you took an emotional inventory? In researching for this newsletter I found many websites that offer, for a fee, tests to take and score your emotional inventory and intelligence. Fortunately, Judaism builds into worship important time for reflection. But why bother being self-reflective? From a psychological perspective the evidence suggests that self-reflection is what pushes us to change and improve, to become the person we want to be. The key, the research says, is to take action from our selfreflection and set realistic goals. If you have thoughts about reflection or are looking for social service resources in the greater Rhode Island area please contact me at: andrea@toratyisrael.org or (401) 369-0160. Ideas for newsletters are always welcome!

Make Your Donations to Torat Yisrael On Line!

Supporting our Torat Yisrael community has become easier than ever. Youll find a link to a Donations page on the main menu on our Torat Yisrael website (www.toratyisrael.org). The links on the donation page will take you to the secure www.justgive.org website. When you open a free account with Just Give you will be able to donate to Torat Yisrael on line and you will receive a summary of all the charitable donations you have made to Torat Yisrael during the course of the year to make your tax preparation easier.

In Our TY Family
Mazal tov to everyone celebrating a Birthday in September!
Sylvia Shocket, Benjamin Kavanagh (1 years old), Harriet Saltzman, Bella Foster, William Guttin, Decker Thompson (10 years old), David Inman, Sally Pressman, Sylvia Safferson, Laurie Strauss-Inman, Diane Greenberg, Jeffrey Davis, Seymour Brooks, Jackson Kavanagh (4 years old), Barry Kaplan, Barry Golden, Elaine Shapiro and Harry Wasser (12 years old)

Mazal tov to everyone celebrating an Anniversary in September!

Marc & Robin Miller (10 years), Michael & Marilyn Smith (43 years), Matthew & Laura Kavanagh (5 years), Harry & Jeanne Pass (29 years) and Daniel & Rachel Silverman (15 years)

May God who blessed our ancestors, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, Sarah, Rebecca, Rachel and Leah, bring blessing and healing to: Trude Antin, Bella Foster, Pearl Gorden, Douglas & Barbara Greenberg (Diane
Greenbergs brother-in-law & sister-in-law), Myer Grossman, Harriet Landesberg, Peter Letendre (friend of Rochelle Ziegler), Judith Lubiner, Bonnie Lury, Morton Paige, Bev Prosnitz, Ron Richter, Harold & Sylvia Roggen (Barbara Karetnys parents), Louis Russian, Sylvia & Jimmy Shocket, Moe Wine and Eileen Winkler (Rochelle Zieglers mother).

Thank you . . . . Youve Saved Lives!

Thank you to everyone who donated blood at our Blood Drive in August. 7 units of blood were donated that day!

Temple Torat Yisrael Email Addresses, Facebook and Twitter

Rabbi Amy Levin: rabbi@toratyisrael.org Hazzan Devin Goldenberg: hazzan@toratyisrael.org Susan Smoller, President: president@toratyisrael.org Donna Tarutz, Education Director: tarutz@toratyisrael.org Andrea Epstein, Social Worker: andrea@toratyisrael.org Anita Olinsky (Dues Committee): dues@toratyisrael.org welcome@toratyisrael.org - Michael Field/Beth Salk (Membership Committee Chairs) facebook@toratyisrael.org twitter@toratyisrael.org and @ravlevin Sheryl Ponder, Bookkeeper/Office Manager: sheryl@toratyisrael.org Stephanie Reinsant, Rabbis Secretary: stephanie@toratyisrael.org

Are you raising Jewish children. . . . but youre not Jewish? Dont do it alone. Join us for Mothers Circle!

The Mothers Circle is a free educational and welcoming program empowering non-Jewish mothers to create Jewish homes. Mothers in all family constellations are welcome, and participants do not have to be affiliated with a Jewish institution or have any prior knowledge. The eight-month, fifteen-session interactive curriculum explores Jewish holidays, practices, rituals, and ethics while providing resources and tools for enriching Jewish family life at home. Our fourth Rhode Island group will be starting in November. For more information please contact Kit Haspel, Mothers Circle Coordinator, at 401.331.0956 x184 or khaspel@shalomri.org.

TY is Part of the USCJ Come Home for the Holidays Program

Come Home for the Holidays 2011 will once again provide free High Holiday tickets to young adults who grew up in the Conservative Movement. Torat Yisrael, along with many other Conservative congregations, offer home hospitality, including holiday and break-the-fast meals. Conservative Movement Kehillot in North America, Israel, Europe, South America and Central America will open their doors to help guests from all over the world 'come home' during this most sacred time of the year. If you need further assistance or have questions about Come Home for the Holidays, please email Daniel at support@projectreconnect.org. Project Reconnect is proud to work in partnership with NAASE (North American Association of Synagogue Executives), Women's League For Conservative Judaism and KOACH (USCJ's College Outreach Project) on this years program. If you have room around your holiday table for a few young Conservative Jews, please let Rabbi Levin know (rabbi@toratyisrael.org). Thank you!

Hug Nhamah: Circle of Consolation

Bereavement Discussion Group meeting Thursday evenings at 7:30 pm providing emotional and spiritual support. Facilitated by Torat Yisrael member, Dr. Judith Lubiner, a licensed psychologist, and Rabbi Amy Levin. TY members and non-members equally welcome. Meeting September 22nd and October 27th

September Lets Celebrate!

Elijah Coke will be called to the Torah as a Bar Mitzvah on Shabbat morning, Saturday, September 3rd at 9:15 am!
Mazal tov to Elijahs mother, Leah, sister Nuriya, grandmother Ruth Ross, aunt and uncle Gilda and Lou Beckenstein, great-uncle and great-aunt Harold and Jerri Labush and the whole family!

Eitan Vilker will be called to the Torah as a Bar Mitzvah on Monday morning, September 5th at 9:30 am!
Mazal tov to Eitans parents, Lee & Ronitte and the whole family!

Shalom to Shabbat: Unwind and Nosh Before Shabbat Services in Cranston Cohen School Students! Welcome Back!

Friday, September 9th, 7:00 pm: wine, cheese and a nice schmooze before our 7:30 pm Shabbat Service.

Sunday, September 18th - Opening Day of School Families and Students at the Village Lower School Tuesday, September 20th - First Day of Classes: Cohen School at the Village Lower School

East Greenwich Shabbat: September 16-17

Friday 6:00 pm early Shabbat Service for all. Enjoy an early Shabbat service and then arrange for a relaxed Shabbat
meal at home with your family and friends. Saturday, September 17th - 10:00 am: Family Shabbat/Learners Service. 11:00 am Kiddush Lunch

Selichot
Our spiritual preparation for the Days of Awe begins with the moving Selichot service. Please join Rabbi Levin and Hazzan Devin Goldenberg for this beautiful service. We will also dedicate the new memorial plaques for our sanctuary and change our Torah mantles to their austere white. Selichot 5771 will be our last in Cranston. So lets make it a memorable evening of remembrance. Saturday night, September 24, 2011 / eve of 26 Elul 5771 / 8 pm An evening of tribute to 330 Park Avenue: sharing memories and impressions of our communal and personal experiences in our almost-60-year-old building. Dessert Reception Dedication of Memorial Memorial Plaques Changing of the Torah Mantles We are interested in memorabilia of events, programs and people in our TY Cranston building. If you have: videos, still photographs, recordings, programs, menus, newsletters or if you are you willing to be interviewed about your memories and impressions please contact Rabbi Levin (rabbi@toratyisrael.org / 785-1800)

Memorial Service at Lincoln Park Cemetery

Join us on Sunday, September 25th at 5:00 pm to gather as a community to recite psalms and memorial prayers at the graves of our loved ones . . . a lovely pre-High Holiday tradition.

High Holidays 5772

Rosh Hashanah

Schedule of Services

Wednesday, September 28th / 29 Elul Maariv (Evening) Service: 6:30 pm Thursday, September 29th / 1 Tishrei Shaharit (Morning) Service: 8:30 am Family Service: 10:00 am Supervision for young children: 11:30 am Tashlich Picnic: 5:00 pm Minhah / Maariv (Afternoon / Evening) Services: 6:45 pm Friday, September 30th / 2 Tishrei Shaharit (Morning) Service: 8:30 am Supervision for young children (free play)

Yom Kippur

Friday, October 7th / 9 Tishrei Kol Nidrei / Maariv (Evening) Service:

5:35 pm

Saturday, October 8th / 10 Tishrei Shaharit (Morning) / Yizkor (Memorial) Service: 8:30 am Family Services: 10:00 am followed by supervision for young children: 11:30 am Minhah (Afternoon) / Nilah (Concluding) Services: 5:00 pm Group Shofar Blast, Havdalah and Community Break Fast: 7:10 pm

Sukkot-Simhat Torah

Wednesday, October 12th / 14 Tishrei: 6 pm Erev Sukkot Service Friday, October 14th / 16 Tishrei: 7:30 pm Erev Sukkot Service and CHOCOLATE ONEG SHABBAT TO FOLLOW!! Saturday, October 15th / 17 Tishrei: 9:15 am Shabbat and Sukkot Morning Service Thursday, October 20th / 22 Tishrei: 9:00 am Shemini Atzeret and Yizkor 6:00 pm Family Simhat Torah Service

Calling all shofar blowers!

Start practicing your tkiah gdolah!

We need YOU (any age, any stage) and your shofar To mark the end of the Yom Kippur Fast Saturday, October 8th at 7:10 pm!

Followed by . . . Torat Yisraels Annual Yom Kippur Break Fast

No need to worry about where your next meal is coming from! Join all of the Torat Yisrael Family for our truly delicious Yom Kippur Break Fast sponsored by Andy, Barry and Suzanne Gilstein and their families in memory of Lillian and Benjamin Gilstein. RSVP Monday, October 3rd; 785-1800 / www.toratyisrael.org.

October
SAVE THE DATE! Newport Trip
The Programming Committee is planning a trip to the Touro and Visitors Center in Newport on Sunday, October 23rd.

Our October Topic: Kippah and Tallit / Ill Show and Tell!! East Greenwich: Tuesday, October 25th

Each participant orders from the menu and we study Jewish sources addressing current issues. Everyone is welcome, bring a friend! 12:00-1:30 p.m. Lunch & Learn at Ts Restaurant, 5600 Post Road (in the Bennys Plaza), East Greenwich

Cranston/Warwick: Thursday, October 27th

12:00-1:30 p.m. Lunch & Learn at the Cozy Grill Restaurant, 440 Warwick Avenue, Warwick