It has now been 7 weeks since we made the decision to adjust our programming due to the coronavirus. A lot has transpired since that decision was made, but please know the safety and wellbeing of our members and community continues to be top of mind.
As our congregation has done so many other times, it has come together again to support one another and the congregation itself. Thanks to Rob Goldstein, Rabbi Prass, and their families for quickly getting our Friday night services live streaming. It has been wonderful to be able to tune in for services each Friday.
It has also been great to "chat" with all those able to attend. Our plan is to continue to livestream our services into May. Please check our website and weekly
Chai Lights edition for the latest information on services.
Additionally, we have begun to have a weekly "Zoom" session for members to catch up with each other. We have now had 4 virtual events including a Passover Seder, a Friday night Oneg,
a Saturday afternoon Happy Hour, a Havdalah service and Scavenger Hunt. Look for more information on this weekend's event in today's
Chai Lights. Additionally, please stay tuned for more information on other upcoming sessions.
Thanks to the Membership committee, Ritual committee, and Rabbi Prass for assisting on getting these going.
Finally, we have gotten our Religious School and Hebrew School up and running online. The past two Sundays, the religious
school students have gotten together with their classes via Zoom sessions and will continue to do so for the rest of the school year. Additionally, mid-week Hebrew sessions have been moved online with individual Zoom sessions with Reuven Milikovsky. Thanks to the Education committee, Rabbi Prass, Reuven Milikovsky, the Religious School administration, and all of the Religious School teachers for coming together to make this happen!
As we look to the future, there are still many unknowns in regards to the coronavirus. As such, the CNT Board of Directors has moved to weekly zoom sessions. This allows us to meet on a regular basis to discuss the latest news around the virus and what steps we need to take next. To say these are challenging times would be an understatement, yet the members of the board have taken the challenges in stride and are dedicated to doing the right thing for our members and community. Thank you all for your time, energy, and ideas. We currently have not planned a "re-opening" of the synagogue, but we will be discussing what this would like as things progress. We will publish more information once known.
In closing, please know the safety and wellbeing of our congregation members and community will be paramount in any decision we make in the future. We know this is unchartered territory and likewise we will need to be flexible in order to adapt to things as they progress. On May 17th, we do plan on having our annual meeting for members. More information on this will be coming out soon. I hope all of our members will be able participate in the meeting. Thanks again for all of the support. We are all in this together and we will all get through this together.
Have a great rest of the week and hope to see you all soon.
Brad Seitel, President
