Or Chadash Newsletter January/February 2017
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In This Issue
Service Schedule
In Our Community
Yahrzeits
Donations
Rabbi's Message
President's Message
Educator's Message
Cantor's Message
What You Might Have Missed
Registration Quick Links
Shabbat  Service Schedule
Shabbat Window 

Jan 13: Celebrate Shabbat at home with friends and family

Jan 20: Shabbat Family Service and Naming Shabbat, 7 PM

Jan 27: Shabbat Services, 7:30 PM

Feb 3: Shabbat Experience, Falafel and Film - Israeli food and cinema,  6:30 PM

Feb 10: Shabbat Family Services - Shabbat Shira/Sabbath of Song, 7 PM

Feb 17:   Celebrate Shabbat at home with friends and family

Feb 24:  Shabbat Services, 7:30 PM

In Our Community

Mazal Tov to ...
The Sarinick family on the occasion of Emma becoming a Bat Mitzvah

The Tiber family on the occasion of Eric becoming a Bar Mitzvah


Thank You to ...
Larry Abrams, Gerry Jones, and Karen Tovi-Jones for chaperoning the RAC trip to Washington, DC

Harvey Gold for organizing the Legacy Shabbat Dinner

To all of those who brought food for our Legacy Shabbat Dinner

Cindy Stoter for coordinating the details of our Hanukkah celebration

The Orlans family for making sufganiyot (donuts)

The Moscowitz family for delivering donations to the Family Success Center


Refuah Sh'leima (Get Well) to...
Susan Blaicher
Barbara Sansevere
Dorothy Saks
Kimberly Beman
Estelle Breines
Gary Weiss
Victor Sloan
Melvin Hecht


Condolences to  ...
Jane Engel, George Eckelmann, and their children David and Katie Eckelmann on the loss of Jane's father, Jerome Engel, on November 26th

 
In order to help us be a more caring community, please share your lifecycle events with  Rabbi Forman
  
Feel free to click on a hyperlink to send a note and let someone know you are thinking about them.
yahrzeit photo
Upcoming Yahrzeits 
May the memories of the following individuals be for a blessing:   

Ja nuary 13:
(to be read Jan 20)
Harry Hackel
Father of Audrey Hackel
Morris Fetner
Uncle of Bruce Zalaznick
Seymour Tuschak
Father of Vicki Tuschak

January 20:
Betty Levison
Grandmother of Adam Levison
Frieda Eisler
Mother of Connie Smith
Suzanne Bacal
Sister of Jane Stein
Max Eisenberg
Grandfather of Gary Brodsky
Harry Mayer Hirsch
Great Grandfather of Betsy Zalaznick

January 27:
Pearl Marder
Mother of Susan Blaicher
Gisela Lynch
Mother of Christine Berg
Carolyn McAllister
Mother of Rachel and Jordyn Strauss
Noemi Tuschak
Mother of Vicki Tuschak
Leonard Weiss
Father of Gary Weiss
Beth Gold Soodik
Mother of Harvey Gold
Albert Leon
Great Grandfather of Betsy Zalaznick
Rae Weil
Grandmother of Paul Weil

February 3:
Hannah Blumenfeld
Mother of Ray Blumenfeld
Albert Goldstein
Father of Robert Goldstein
Isaac Sacks
Cousin of Carolyn Sansevere
Ralph Sacks
Father of Carolyn Sansevere
Ralph Moutner
Father of Dave Moutner
Saul Marder
Father of Susan Blaicher
Myra Rascover
Great Grandmother of Susan Albert

February 10:
Anthony Mazzocchi
Brother of Nick Mazzocchi
Sidonia Wolf
Grandmother of Steve Albert
Robert Tuschak
Brother of Vicki Tuschak
Margaret Mazzocchi
Mother of Nick Mazzocchi
Julie Speizer
Sister of Louis Speizer

February 17:
Beatrice Abrams
Mother of Larry Abrams
Estelle Zaner
Grandmother of Adam Levison
Florence Solomon
Mother of Wendy Solomon

February 24:
Michael Hann
Brother of Chris Hann
Charles Hack
Father of Ed Hack
Frederick Wolf
Grandfather of Steve Albert
Judy Lewis
Sister of Alice Schwade


Contributions
Yahrzeit
Steve & Susan Albert
Judith Levine: In 
memory  of Gerry Levine

General Contribution
Jeff & Christine Berg
Vincent & Lori Egan
Ken Hillman
Susan Ingram
Estelle Katcher
Paul & Marlene 
Leibowitz
Matthew Rainey 
Michelle  Segall-Rainey
Elliot Rosen
David & Emily Schipper
David & Kimberly 
Turner

Defibrillator Fundraiser
Steve & Susan Albert
Jeff & Christine Berg
Harvey Gold
Richard & Evelyn 
Kurtzberg
Elliot Rosen
Robert & Alice Schwade
David & Kimberly
Turner
Gary & Debbie Weiss

Educational Enrichment Fund
Vivian Forman: In memory of Raoul Rabiner

Rabbi's Discretionary Fund
Ben Atkinson & 
Faith  Fuhrman
Ross & Susan Weinick

Oneg Fund
John & Toby Sarinick: In honor of Emma's Bat Mitzvah

Ner Shel Tzeddakah
Steve & Susan Albert
Steven & Susan
Albrecht
Jeff & Christine Berg
Ray Blumenfeld & 
Audrey  Hackel
Harvey & Kathryn Gold
John Graybeal & 
Laura  Senator
Ed & Fran Hack
Richard & Evelyn 
  Kurtzberg
Cindy Lehrer
Elliot Rosen
John & Toby Sarinick
Don & Sara Schenker
David & Emily Schipper
Gary & Debbie Weiss
Bruce & Betsy Zalaznick

Family Success Center
Steven & Susan
Albrecht
Carmine & Eileen Freda
Rabbi Joseph Forman
Harvey & Kathryn Gold
Stephen Sinoway & 
Beth Golden
Ed & Fran Hack
David & Courtney 
Moscowitz
John & Toby Sarinick
David & Emily Schipper
Gary & Debbie Weiss
Bruce & Betsy Zalaznick

Jewish Family Services

Jewish Family Services 

JFS is a non-profit, non-sectarian social service agency whose mission is to preserve and strengthen the quality of individual, family and community life based on Jewish values. We provide our services to a diverse socio-economic client population that includes individuals, children, young adults, families and the elderly.


 Click here for information on additional services.  

 

JFS National Mentor Month
January is National Mentor Month

Did you know Jewish Family Service has a mentoring program? 

JFS offers a variety of volunteer/mentor opportunities to provide companionship and support to vulnerable families with young children, homebound seniors, and persons with disabilities of all ages.  Training for Mentors is offered two-three times annually. In 2016, 40 individuals volunteered and provided 2000 hours of mentoring assistance to isolated and vulnerable members of the community. 

"Take hold of him that he fall not and come to need"   ~Maimonides

In Recognition of National Mentor Month JFS Thanks its Mentors for putting these words into action.

In addition to mentoring JFS now offers a "Good Deeds Volunteer Corps" that is seeking youth and adults to match with those needing short term help, such as transportation to medical appointments, light home maintenance,
mealtime companionship, grocery shopping after a rehab or hospital stay, or a regularly scheduled phone call to offer reassurance.

If you are interested in mentoring or becoming a Good Deeds Corps member contact Jewish Family Service at 908 725-7799. 

To support this program: www.JewishFamilySvc.org or contact the office 908 725-7799. 

Meals On Wheels 
Meals on Wheels needs volunteer drivers in our area. Serve your homebound senior neighbors a hot noontime meal. The commitment to drive is only once a month. It will take only an hour or two once a month to get that good feeling of giving. Call our office at (908)284-0735 to offer your time or for more information (and/or check out our website at mowih.org ). Help us, help others. Many thanks.  

Jewish LIFE
Jewish LIFE (Learning Is For Everyone),  our community wide adult education program, has an exciting new season of programs and special events planned for the coming year.  A great lineup of special events are scheduled in addition to a wide variety of classes  and films offered at our participating synagogues.
 
Below is a rundown of special events coming up in January/February:
 
The Flemington JCC (FJCC) Film Series presents  Zero Motivation on Saturday, January 21 at 7:30pm at the Flemington JCC. This film about female Israeli soldiers is described as "Private Benjamin meets M*A*S*H, speaks Hebrew and keeps kosher." Suggested donation of $5/person.
 
Looking ahead to February...
 
L'Chaim! with author, Eliezer Sobel: Thursday, February 9, 7pm at the Birnbaum JCC, Bridgewater. L'Chaim! is a book of photos designed to stimulate memories in patients suffering from Alzheimer's disease. Fee $5/person.


Please refer to the Jewish LIFE brochure for program fees and additional information.  To register for programs hosted at the JCC, please call 908-725-6994 x201.  To register for programs at other locations, please contact the hosting synagogue or agency.

Rabbi's Message
RabbiForman
As we welcome January, I want to wish all of you a happy and healthy New Year.  While Rosh Hashana  -- the Jewish New Year - is a time to look back at the year that has passed, the secular New Year is steeped in the tradition of looking ahead.  These are the days that we consider our intentions for the months that lie before us.  To what will we commit ourselves in this New Year?
 
One intention I have is to read more poetry. In recent months I have been engaged in this daily endeavor that has enriched my life: I am reading a poem - a sonnet, actually - each morning.  These are not composed by the Bard of Stratford, but rather by a member of our congregation, Ed Hack.  Ed is an accomplished poet who shares his compositions with me (and others) each morning.  They range in subjects from the beauty of nature to the darkness of humanity's basest instincts to the sorrows of loss.
 
Jewish tradition has embraced poetry since its inception - in all its forms.  The Biblical book Song of Songs is a collection of erotic love poetry.  And our Siddur, our Shabbat prayerbook, is filled with odes to the Divine. Next month, at Shabbat services on February 10th, we will be reading a poem from the Book of Exodus - the Song of the Sea.  The Mi Chamocha prayer takes its words from that Biblical poem.  Familiar songs like Lecha Dodi and Adon Olam and more obscure prayers and poems like the Keter Malchut (Royal Crown) written by Solomon ibn Gabirol and which, in 900 lines, describes the 11th century view of the cosmos, are all examples of Jewish poetry both popular and not.
 
In the 20th century, Jewish poetry exploded in a burst of creativity with the creation of the Modern State of Israel and the revitalization of Hebrew.  And ruminations on the Holocaust added to the great collections of poems that speak in the voices of survivors and witnesses to that horror.
 
In this New Year, during the months of January and February, I will be sharing favorite poems with you.  Some will from come from centuries past.  Others will be brand new.  I encourage you to send me yours.  Take a look in the Newsletter for the first in this series - one that was composed by Ed Hack for his family and appeared in our Yizkor Booklet on Yom Kippur.  I also want to invite you to submit your own compositions to me.   We can all benefit from more poetry in the New Year!
 
Shalom,
Rabbi Joseph M. Forman
 
Stan, Unveiled
 
Eleven months, the rabbi said, and on
the twelfth, the soul, neshuma, is with God.
Last year was grief, he said, but now be calm,
content.  Your loved one's home but also lodged
within your hearts.  Remember him and he's
with you.  His son wept when he read the prayer.
His wife and sister, daughter too, were seized
by grief when they spoke prayers into blue air
that towered to the end of sight.  The day
began in gray, turned blue and white and warm.
And then each left a stone and walked away
with fact and mystery - a man is gone
but close as whispering.  He is not here
but is.  It's into us he's disappeared.
 
---Ed Hack, 2016
 
 

President's Message
Happy New Year!

As 2017 begins it feels really nice to think of the New Year as a time of renewal, a blank slate and a time to be optimistic. While we at Or Chadash celebrate our official Jewish New Year in the fall, and our fiscal new year in July, we are not immune to the secular calendar's winter refresh. We have already spent time brainstorming on ways to refresh our temple and our community. With that I would offer you an invitation. I invite you to strengthen your ties to Or Chadash in 2017.

When I was a new member over a decade ago I had the rabbi to our house for dinner. At the end of the evening, as we were saying goodbye, I said to him, "Please, let me know if there is ever anything I can do to be helpful to the temple." I was looking for an invitation. Not knowing anyone and not knowing how I could "be helpful" I think I was hoping for a very specific invitation. "Kim, could you please help us with the Purim Committee (or the religious school, or baking something, or donating something, etc.)". I didn't know how to become involved, and I was hoping that someone would invite me.

I would like to use this newsletter to invite you. I invite you to become more closely connected to Or Chadash in whatever way feels right for you. Volunteer to help with a committee or an event, donate something, bake something, garden, clean, or just participate in activities. We invite you to do any or all of these things. If you don't know where to start, give us a call. Call me or Rabbi Joe, or anyone on the Board. I promise you will be met with a warm welcome, and we will help you find the best way to connect with Or Chadash.

I wish all of you a wonderful, peaceful and connected 2017!

~Kim

Religious School Director's Message
Betsy NYC.jpg
Nu? *
 
Did you ask a good question today?
 
Physicist and Nobel Prize winner Isidor Isaac Rabi was recognized for discovering nuclear magnetic resonance used widely in magnetic resonance imaging or MRI. He told the story that while other children's mothers asked what they learned in school, his mother asked, "Did you ask a good question today?"
 
This quote can be found on the poster (see below) containing twenty questions.  Using these questions as our discussion guide during our first 8th/9th/10th grade class of 2017, we encouraged our students to ask good questions, too.  
 
We divided the class into groups, and each group  was assigned a question.  The teams were responsible for answering the following:
  • Where does this question come from?  Provide a little background.
  • Why is this a good Jewish question?
  • What are we supposed to learn from the Question (other than the answer)?
  • Where/when/how might this question come up in your life?
 
You may be very familiar with two of the questions which arelyrics from the song "Sunrise, Sunset" and posed by Tevya from Fiddler on the Roof: Is this the little girl I carried? Is this the little boy at play.
 
You might be less familiar with these questions below:
  • If I am not for myself, who will be for me? (Pirke Avot)
  • If I am only for myself, what am I?  (Pirke Avot)
  • Am I my brother's keeper? (Genesis)
  • Will you sweep away the righteous with the wicked? (Genesis)
  • Is this the kind of fast I have chosen, only a day for people to humble themselves? (Isaiah)
  • If you prick us, do we not bleed? (Shakespeare's Merchant of Venice)
These past few weeks, we have been surrounded in the media with resolutions, assertions and promises for others and for ourselves for 2017.  In preparation for our January 5th class, Rabbi Forman shared this quote from Rainer Maria Rilke:
 
The point is, to live everything. Live the questions now. Perhaps you will then gradually, without noticing it, live along some distant day into the answer.
 
May your 2017 season be filled with new opportunities and new experiences.  May you  surround yourselves with good questions and new perspectives.
 
Happy New Year!
 
Betsy Zalaznick
 
*Nu is a Yiddish expression of agreement, or is used to ask a simple question instead of using words such as "well" or "so."  

Cantor's Message
Kathy Gohr
A Hanukkah Tale

At this writing, Hanukkah 5777 is but a memory. The hanukkiah is dark, it's glow faded, waiting for yet another year to take its place in our home.  Its memories are fading, yet there are some which will remain shining bright for some time to come. Memories such as this.
  
Many of you know that when I am not at Temple I serve as chaplain in a large acute care facility in Allentown, PA, where I live. I received a call regarding a patient seeking a hanukkiah (menorah) to use for the length of the festival. He had been admitted for quite some time, and it was doubtful that he would ever return home. We did not have any hanukkiot to loan to patients, and there were none for sale in the gift shop. But there was one sitting in our office amidst the overabundance of Christmas décor, barely visible among all the other clutter of the season. With my manager's blessing I unplugged it, wrapped it up and carried it to the patient's room, and his visitors were most appreciative of my promptness in fulfilling his request. They had taken advantage of what was available in his room to make a place of honor for the hanukkiah, expressing their concern that it would be okay. I had to smile at their efforts, replying that it was entirely appropriate. They had lovingly draped a clean white sheet across a spare commode, and as I placed the menorah on the seat it looked totally at home. We said the blessings, lit the lights and as I sang shehechianu I saw a single tear trickle down the patient's face. Throughout the rest of the day all the staff on the unit stopped by to see the hanukkiah "on the throne," and both the hanukkiah, and the patient received more attention than they had in a long time.

I'm sure that there are some who might feel that displaying a hanukkiah on a commode may seem inappropriate, however there is a certain joy to be found in juxtaposition of ritual and real life. It is in the uplifting of the ordinary to a higher purpose that can truly bring more light into the world. May this New Year be one of peace, health and blessing for us all.

~Cantor Kathy

Bat Mitzvah - Emma Saranick
Emma Sarinick became a Bat Mitzvah on November 12th. She is the daughter of John and Toby Sarinick and younger sister to Michael Sarinick.  Emma is an 8th grader at J.P. Case Middle School in Raritan Township.  She enjoys singing, roller blading, researching scientific topics, listening to the band Pentatonix, watching the show Once Upon a Time, and hanging out with friends.  Emma will be going to a Pentatonix concert in November and will get to meet her idols, for which she is super excited.  Emma's Torah portion, Lech L'cha, tells the story of Abraham and Sarah.  Emma's mitzvah project was volunteering at Grow-A-Row. She likes being able to help pick vegetables and fruits that are sent to people who really need it.  Emma enjoyed celebrating her Bat Mitzvah with all her friends and family. 

Thank You For Sukkot Hats and Mittens


Before too much more time passes, I wanted to thank you and the Or Chadash family for the wonderful donations of beautiful hats, gloves and scarves.  I have divided them up among our schools.  Some we will keep for our friends who forget or lose theirs and might need them while in school.  Some are being sent home with the holiday gifts that were collected for our families in need.  As always, thank you for considering our schools for the lucky recipients for the donation drive.  As you know, Clinton Township has seen an increase in the number of students and families who can use our assistance at this time and throughout the year.  These gifts will bring much needed warmth to them.

Faith Fuhrman, MSN, RN, CSN
Spruce Run School Health Nurse


The other half of the mittens was given to Lehigh Valley Health Network in Allentown, PA. They will be used by the Street medicine program to provided warmth and protection for the homeless in the area. Find out more at  click here.

Cantor Kathy Gohr 

A Note from the Legacy Shabbat Dinner
Dear Harvey,
 
Thank you again for inviting me to take part in your Legacy Shabbat.
 
As I mentioned when I was with you, I was deeply moved by the celebration, the planning that was involved and the beautiful and flawless outcome.
 
Those in attendance (including me) were able to share stories far deep inside our brains!  Your Legacy Shabbat was a joyous event filled with love that overflowed... that was evident.
 
As I mentioned in my comments, Or Chadash's entry into LIFE & LEGACY brought a new vitality to the program.   I mentioned that your introduction - in year two of the program -  was like having a new baby - because you were curious, enthusiastic, joyous and your enthusiasm was infectious!
 
While you have expressed gratitude in allowing us to have you join the program... please know... the grateful feelings are very mutual.  You have brought a new energy to the program - and for that - we are deeply in your gratitude.
 
Our Foundation can only survive if we support our community and if our community supports us in return.  Thank you for your ongoing support, and thank you for your originality and enthusiasm.  We are all better because of our continued partnership.

Best,
Julie Meyers
Jewish Community Foundation of Greater Mercer

In Response to Requests for the Delicious Latkes . . . 
Curried Sweet Potato Latke Recipe
YIELD Yield: 16 three-inch pancakes (D)

INGREDIENTS
1 pound sweet potatoes, peeled
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons sugar
1 teaspoon brown sugar
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon cayenne powder
2 teaspoons curry powder
1 teaspoon cumin
Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
2 large eggs, beaten
1/2 cup milk (approximately)
Peanut oil for frying

PREPARATION
  1. Grate the sweet potatoes coarsely. In a separate bowl mix the flour, sugar, brown sugar, baking powder, cayenne pepper, curry powder, cumin, and salt and pepper.
  2. Add the eggs and just enough milk to the dry ingredients to make a stiff batter. Add the potatoes and mix. The batter should be moist but not runny; if too stiff, add more milk.
  3. Heat 1/4 inch of peanut oil in a frying pan until it is barely smoking. Drop in the batter by tablespoons and flatten. Fry over medium-high heat several minutes on each side until golden. Drain on paper towels and serve.
Reprinted at www.epicurious.com with permission from Jewish Cooking in America by Joan Nathan. © 1998 Knopf

NOTES FROM CRAIG AND SUDHA KANTOR:
Yams can be substituted for sweet potatoes. 
A food processor shredding disk is easier than grating by hand.
Curry powder can be made from other spices but store-bought is fine. Play around with the cayenne spice to taste.

What You Might Have Missed
Religious Action Center (RAC) Trip






Legacy Shabbat




Grades 7/8/9/10 Soup Project





First Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of Hunterdon County Youth Group



Rabbi Forman on WDVR




Hanukkah at Or Chadash