Join Us For Shabbat Tomorrow Night; Register for Chanukah Live!

November 21, 2024 / 20 Heshvan 5785

Included in This Newsletter

Shabbat Services

Shir Ami Election Results

Weekly D'var Torah

Community Event

Spotlight Calendar

Members and guests are always welcome to attend our Shir Ami services, classes and special events (fees may apply)

November

Soul Spa - Meet the Midrash (virtual)

Saturdays, November 23 and 30 (continues weekly)

10:00 AM

Unlocking the Jewish Prayer Book Class (virtual)

Sunday, November 24

5:00 PM

From Age-ing to Sage-ing - A Revolutionary Approach to Getting Older (virtual)

2nd and 4th Tuesdays, November 26 through January 2025

7:00 PM

Shabbat Service (in person)

Friday, November 22

7:00 PM

December

Shabbat Service (in person)

Friday, December 6

7:00 PM

Soul Spa - Meet the Midrash (virtual)

Saturdays, December 7, 14, 21 and 28 (continues weekly through June 2025)

10:00 AM

Unlocking the Jewish Prayer Book Class (virtual)

Sundays, December 1, 8, 15, 22 and 29

5:00 PM

From Age-ing to Sage-ing - A Revolutionary Approach to Getting Older (virtual)

2nd and 4th Tuesdays, December 10

and 24

7:00 PM

Shabbat Service (virtual)

Friday, December 20

7:00 PM - Details to follow

Chanukah Live! (in person)

Friday, December 27

Round Hill Community Church Community Room

6:00 PM

2024-2025 Calendar is now available on our website

Click here

Email Address

shirami.info@gmail.com

Website

www.congregationshirami.org

Donations and Payments

congregationshirami.org/donate.html

Mailing Address

1273 E. Putnam Ave

PO Box 312

Riverside, CT 06878

To Make Donations or Payments:

To make donations or register for classes or events, please go to our website's donation page.

congregationshirami.org/donate.html

Shabbat Service

Friday, November 22

7:00 PM

First Presbyterian Church

Please join us for Shabbat before Thanksgiving. It is time to contemplate our blessings and the life essentials others may need.

Thank you to Jenny, Rick and Zaac Lake for sponsoring the Oneg.

Shabbat Service

Friday, December 6

7:00 PM

First Presbyterian Church

Join Rabbi David and the Shir Ami community for a spirited musical Shabbat themed to the ascent of Jacob's Ladder.

Thank you to Barbara and Evan Salop for sponsoring the Oneg.

Chanukah Live!

Friday, December 27

6:00PM

Round Hill Community Church Community Room, Greenwich

Once again we will have our amazing potluck dinner and we hope you can join us!

Come enjoy candle lighting, music, singing, dancing, learning, fun activities and lots of delicious food!

Shir Ami Election Results

Congratulations and deep appreciation to our new Shir Ami officers, whose terms begin January 1^st:

Co-Presidents: Jackie Marschall, Abby Ross, and Fran Pribish

Secretary: Julie Preng

Treasurer: David Green

And special thanks to the officers who have completed their terms and served us so very well!

Marie Orsini Rosen - served as our Co-President for 3.5 years (through transitions!). Prior to that she had served as Secretary for 2 years!

Thank you Marie!!!

Abby Ross - served as Secretary for the past 3.5 years and was willing to step up and take on more responsibility this coming year.

Thank you Abby!!!

Dahni Nisinzweig - stepped down in July as Treasurer after serving 3 years in that role. Prior to that he served several years as deputy Treasurer and had been a co-president for 3 years as well.

Thank you Dahni!!!

Shir Ami Classes

Please be sure to register beforehand

so we know who is attending and so we can contact you if needed!

Soul Spa is open to all.

Our Torah study each Shabbat morning has become a mainstay of our programming. As we examine the parashat each week under Rabbi David's guidance and questioning, our sacred writings become more familiar, the stories clearer, and the teachings more meaningful.

Soul Spa is free for members and non-members alike. You may drop in frequently or infrequently, as you like. Please click here to find the weekly Zoom link and for recordings of previous discussions.

The first class will now be on Tuesday, November 26th.

Please purchase the book, From Age-ing to Sage-ing. The edition we're using is this one.

Weekly D'var Torah

D'var Torah by Rabbi David

Parashat Hayyei Sarah 5785 (2024)

When Places Double

What we call spiritual places, holy sites, are more than our consecrated houses of worship or historical touch points. Understood as they truly are, "holy" places can be the most ordinary ... until life, love, experience and memory change them into something more. Those places can transport us in memory and meaning, mind and heart – if we let them.

Our story of "double" places that become holy sites begins with this week's Torah portion, and continues today.

Blessings and Simchas

Blessings for a Happy Birthday to our members with November birthdays:

Eytan Nisinzweig - 11/1

Ed Schechter - 11/1

Peggy Sturman - 11/2

Ronnie Polansky - 11/10

Brett Gerson Chinn - 11/15

Ronny Kaplan - 11/27

Jackie Marschall - 11/29

In our weekly Blessing and Simchas, we invite members to offer congratulations on a special event in someone’s life, blessings for healing, or to remember a loved one.

If you make a special donation and would like to share it in the newsletter’s “Blessings and Simchas," let us know by emailing shirami.info@gmail.com with the subject line, "Blessings and Simchas" no later than 9:00 AM on Monday. Be sure to include the wording for how you want the donation and the donor to be recognized, including your name, the occasion and the recipient's name(s).

If you choose to make a donation, you may do so by visiting our website's donation page or by mailing a check to Congregation Shir Ami, 1273 East Putnam Avenue, P.O. Box 312, Riverside, CT 06870-9998.

Community News

November Issue of

Greenwich Jewish News

Please click here to read the digital version. See page 8 for an article about Shir Ami classes and page 10 for an article about Rabbi David's selection to a Premier Jewish Spirituality Program.

November Issue of

New Jewish Voice

Please click here to read the latest digital version.

Membership

We warmly welcome you to join our community at Congregation Shir Ami.

Please visit our Membership Page where you can find:

Membership Letter - from our Shir Ami Officers
Membership Form - easy-to-fill out online or print
Membership Policy - details on dues, benefits and more

Membership allows you special access to:

practice our faith together and learn from the Torah and each other
help shape our community
support Shir Ami's mission
find inspiration in our diverse offerings of services, classes and events.
participate in rituals, group trips and member events
have access to our wonderful clergy for pastoral care and life cycle events
recognize our loved ones who have passed during our Yizkor service each year

As with most faith-based organizations, membership dues fuel everything we do and account for only 65% of our annual budget. Full dues payments and additional contributions are always appreciated. If an alternate arrangement is needed, please contact Co-Presidents Jackie Marschall at jackiea.broadcast@gmail.com or Marie Orsini Rosen at morsinirosen@gmail.com.

If you are interested and would like to know more, please find membership information on our website’s membership page. The easy-to-fill-out form may be completed online and submitted with a button, or can be printed out and sent to our mailing address: Congregation Shir Ami, 1273 E Putnam Ave, PO Box 312, Riverside, CT 06878.

All are welcome to join our community!

Other Community Websites

For a full listing of all local events of Jewish interest visit the websites for:

UJA/JCC of Greenwich

UJF Greater Stamford, New Canaan, Darien

JCC Stamford

Jewish Family Services Greenwich

Jewish Family Service Stamford

Interfaith Council of Southwestern CT

Learning in Retirement Stamford

If you're only receiving the newsletter monthly and would like to receive it weekly, please click the link above to edit your email preference.

CongregationShirAmi.org

203-900-7976

shirami.info@gmail.com