WEEKLY NEWS

Family Simchat Torah Dinner and Program: 6pm in Hirsch Hall

Yigdal Service (Ages 5-7, with Parents): Saturday, 11am in 2 South

Big Kids Service (Ages 8-12, Kids Only): 11am in the Mayer Cavalier Chapel

Ansche Chesed is now on Instagram! Follow us (and like us on Facebook) for photos, events and more. 

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Kabbalat Shabbat Start Time Changes THIS FRIDAY (10/25)

Please note that Kabbalat Shabbat services will begin at 5:30pm this Friday, October 25, through the spring.

Sanctuary Dvar Torah

Eran Baruch, Director of Elifelet, the Israeli Citizens Association for Refugee Children, will join us to explain how this amazing organization supports more than 1,000 children of refugees and asylum seekers in Tel Aviv. 

Elifelet creates a holistic and supportive “blanket” of services, which addresses the needs of kids from early childhood to the end of elementary school, morning and night, in educational frameworks and at home, in order to narrow physical, emotional, and developmental gaps they face. 

Community-Wide Kiddush this Shabbat (October 26) in Honor of Carolyn Greene and Rabbi Jeremy Kalmanofsky

Join us as the participants in the AC Israel Trip honor Carolyn Greene and Rabbi Jeremy Kalmanofsky, in a shulwide kiddush, for their hard work in creating an incredibly wonderful trip filled with experiences that will never be forgotten. On our trip, we felt the resilience of the country firsthand while also seeing the physical and emotional damage of the war. We met with people who gave us insights into aspects of the war that we are seeing take place right now. And we explored Israeli culture, studying poetry and visiting the New National Library. We can’t thank Carolyn and Rabbi Kalmanofsky enough.

Photos of AC's Sukkot Programming

Check out the photos below for a taste of Sukkot with AC! We went on a beautiful nature hike upstate, invited AC teens for sushi making, ate lunch and learned Torah with Rabbi Kalmanofsky, and hosted 20s and 30s for a Game Night. And of course, we all got to enjoy the colorful decorations that AC families put up in the Sukkah before the holiday! Make sure to follow Ansche Chesed on Facebook and Instagram for more photos.

A special thank you to Stewart Pravda for planning the hike, Helene Adlerstein for organizing the Young People's Game Night in the Sukkah, and Jeff French Segall for his Lunch and Learn photos.

Annual Kol Nidre Appeal

This year has been immeasurably difficult for us, individually and collectively as a Jewish community. It has never been more important to support the institutions that we hold dear. 

Ansche Chesed’s programs and operations during the High Holidays - and all year long - rely on the generosity of our community. Your Kol Nidre contributions help pay our dedicated clergy, educators, and office staff, as well as our hard working maintenance and security teams. They also ensure that our facilities are as safe, warm, and welcoming as the people and activities they host.

I hope you will consider investing in Ansche Chesed and making a meaningful contribution to our annual Kol Nidre Appeal. If you have not participated in the past, please make a fresh start this year. If you have, thank you, and please give thought to increasing your pledge.

We continue to thrive with your support and genuinely appreciate your generosity.

AC Seeking New Facility Manager

We are looking for a new Facility Manager to oversee overall operation and maintenance of our building, including oversight of building systems and supervision of maintenance and security staff. Know someone who might be a good fit? More info and job application here. Feel free to share with your networks!

THIS WEEK AT AC

Sukkah is Open Through Dinner Time Tonight

All are welcome to come eat in our Sukkah – no registration required! See our Sukkah Schedule for details -- meals must conform to AC’s kashrut policy.

Family Simchat Torah Dinner and Program

Thursday, October 24 at 6pm in Hirsch Hall

Join us for a FREE light dairy dinner followed by our annual Torah Unroll, dancing and Hakafot with the rest of the AC Community. Stick around for ice cream and popsicles after the second Hakafa! No RSVP necessary, walk-ins welcome.

Simchat Torah Celebrations

Thursday, October 24 at 7pm in Hirsch Hall

Friday, October 25 at 9:45am on the Roof

Ma'ariv will take place at 6:45pm in the chapel, leading into 7pm dancing in Hirsch Hall. Some portions of the evening will be more subdued, but we hope to combine proper reflection with the celebration the Holy Torah deserves.

We will continue the next morning as Minyan M’at joins the Sanctuary for Shaharit prayers on the roof (weather permitting). We’ve planned a soulful davvening to draw joy out of pain. As the night before, we will honor the Torah with the celebration it deserves. The minyanim will sing and dance together through six hakafot, then M’at will return to the 5th floor for the last circuit and Torah reading, and the Sanctuary will remain on the roof to honor Joel Feuer as our Hatan Torah and Sheldon and Sheila Lewis as the Hatan and Kallat Bereshit.  

Good for the Jews, Good for America?

Wednesday, October 30 at 7:30pm at AC -- RSVP Here

Enlightened self-interest is the ethical concept that serving oneself can serve others and vice versa. Given the challenges confronting both Israel and American democracy today, and the very real emerging partisanship around Israel in U.S. politics, what might an American-Jewish version of enlightened self-interest look like? How do solidarity with and advocacy on behalf of Israel align with our deeply held American civic commitments? 

Join Elana Stein Hain, Shalom Hartman Institute Rosh Beit Midrash and senior research fellow, to think through the implications of our manifold commitments as Americans and as Jews.  

Learn More and RSVP



This program is the second in a three-part series, Heading to the Polls: American Jewish Civics in a Post-October 7 World. Across the political and religious spectrum, American Jews have felt deeply unsettled by events in Israel and America. Like all Americans, we are affected by the all-time high levels of polarization pervading this contentious presidential election. Simultaneously, since the Hamas attack on October 7 and throughout the ensuing months of war, we have been concerned about Israel and rising anti-Zionism and antisemitism in America.

This series is co-sponsored by Ansche Chesed and neighboring synagogues, with the Shalom Hartman Institute, to explore the implications of this defining moment on American Jewish civic identity.

Save the Date: First Wednesday Night Talmud Class on November 6

Rabbi Jeremy Kalmanofsky's weekly Talmud Class will return on Wednesday evenings beginning on November 6. Stay tuned for details!

Rabbi Jules Harlow Parshat HaShavuah Class

Saturdays, 9am in the Mayer Cavalier Chapel or on Zoom

Come before class at 8:45am for hot coffee and schmoozing! This class is dedicated to Rabbi Jules Harlow, a great teacher of Torah and Jewish liturgy. Click for this week's Source Sheet (updated Friday afternoons). 

Shirei Chesed Community Chorus

Tuesdays from 7:30 - 9pm in 5 North (Starting 7pm on December 5 and 12)

Shirei Chesed Community Chorus continues to build community through learning a rich and diverse repertoire of Jewish music, and bring harmony into the world that needs it more than ever. Our 4-part chorus brings together lovers of choral singing from both AC and the wider Jewish community. For more information or to schedule an audition, email Cantor Natasha Hirschhorn.

Parsha Talk

Join Rabbi Kalmanofsky and his buddies Rabbis Barry Chesler and Eliot Malomet for their weekly Parsha Talk. Watch the latest episode

Misheberakh List

We invite you to add the names of your dear ones. Please re-submit them each English calendar month if you'd like us to keep davvening for them.

After: Poetry Destroys Silence Film Opening

November 1 - 7 at the Cinema Village Theatre (22 E. 12th St.)  

AC member Irwin Kula was a co-producer on the film After: Poetry Destroys Silence, opening in NYC next week. Watch the trailer and purchase tickets

Read Irwin's description of the film:

The film is a dramatic hybrid documentary with performances by important contemporary poets confronting the Holocaust and the responsibility and necessity for art. Every poem has its own story, main character, and point of view evoking a range of emotions. The film is based on the idea that art has a responsibility to look into and address the abyss so that catastrophe and shared human vulnerability become a kind of starting point. As many of you know it is not easy to make a film these days, let alone one that is both a lyrical exploration of creating in the aftermath of the Shoah and a model and warning for an increasingly divided and violent planet. I am quite proud of this film. I hope you will consider going to see it. 

Election 2024: Important Dates and Information

• Early voting starts Tuesday, October 26
• Last day to register to vote is Tuesday, Oct 26
• Election Day is Tuesday, November 5

Go to vote.NYC for all New York City election information including:

• Find your poll sites (early and Election Day voting)
• Request mail in/absentee ballots
• Check that you are registered to vote
• What’s on the ballot? Find out who’s running and what ballot proposals will be on the ballot

*** Remember to FLIP YOUR BALLOT ***

Ballot proposals are on the back of the ballot including Prop 1 the New York State Equal Right Amendment

Prop1 adds anti-discrimination provisions to State Constitution. Covers ethnicity, national origin, age, disability, and sex, including sexual orientation, gender identity and pregnancy. Also covers reproductive healthcare and autonomy.

Learn more about Prop1 NYS Equal rights amendment

See you at the polls!

Meditation Offerings, from Sheila and Sheldon Lewis

Need time to clear your head and recharge from hectic times? We offer live and Zoom contemplative meditation classes through the JCC, privately, and TBA. As people asked at Yom Kippur meditation, the best way to reach us is by email or text: sheilaklewis@gmail.com & sheldonlewisny@gmail.com. 917 602-2490. 917 539-2041.

Join us for a pre-elections energizer & de-stress

Monday, Oct. 28, 7-7:30 pm. Email Sheila for Zoom link/info. 

For autumnal “Forest Bathing/Meditative Walking: Come to Your Senses” (Live) enjoy the beauty of Central Park on Oct. 31, 11 am-1 pm, offered through JCC registration, 646 505-5708 or online. Email Sheila with any questions. Your senses will love you. Thanks for your interest! 

Home Health Aide -- From Cecile Kuznitz

Skilled, responsible, and caring home health aide looking for live in position. Stephanie took exceptional care of my mother and I offer her my highest recommendation. You can contact Stephanie directly at 347-418-7417. I (Cecile Kuznitz) am also happy to answer any questions at 845-616-4962.