Join Us for Refugee Shabbat Tomorrow Night

April 9, 2026 / 22 Nisan 5786

Included in This Newsletter

April Shabbat Services

Nancy Heller's Bat Mitzvah - 5/2

D'var Torah from Rabbi David

Spring Classes

Community Yom Hashoah Event - 4/14

New Greenwich Jewish News

Spotlight Calendar

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

April

Soul Spa: The Five Books of Miriam (virtual)

Saturdays, April 11, 18 and 25

10:00 AM

HIAS Refugee Shabbat

Friday, April 10

7:00 PM

The Jewish Prophets: Social Justice & the Sacred (virtual)

Tuesday, April 21

7:00 PM

Kedoshim Shabbat

Friday, April 24

7:00 PM

May

Nancy Heller Bat Mitzvah

Saturday, May 2

10:30 AM

Board Meeting (virtual)

Monday, May 4

7:00 PM

Soul Spa: The Five Books of Miriam (virtual)

Saturdays, May 2, 9, 16, 23 and 30

10:00 AM

2025-2026 Calendar is available on our website

Click here

To Make Donations or Payments:

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

congregationshirami.org/donate.html

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

HIAS Refugee Shabbat Service

April 10, 2026

7:00 PM

Join our musical HIAS Refugee Shabbat with Torah themed to Mamouna (the end of Passover).

Celebratory oneg sponsored by Ronnie and Larry Polansky.

Kedoshim Shabbat

Friday, April 24

7:00 PM

Please join us for a contemplative "Holiness Shabbat" at Shir Ami, themed to the Holiness pareshah of Kedoshim (which we also read on Yom Kippur).

Celebratory oneg sponsored by Sherrill Cropper.

Nancy Heller Bat Mitzvah

Saturday, May 2

10:30 AM

Nancy and Roger look forward to celebrating Nancy’s Bat Mitzvah with our Shir Ami family on Saturday, May 2 at Round Hill Community Church.

There will be a catered luncheon afterwards for all attendees. Therefore, please RSVP to Nancy by April 17 at nancy.j.heller@gmail.com, so we can have an accurate count for the caterer. Thank you for your support on this meaningful journey.

D'var Torah by Rabbi David

Weekly D'var Torah

Parashat Shemini (5786)

Did God Do That?

Why do we believe or not believe? Why do our beliefs change? There are countless reasons. You have yours.

One reason, I've come to sense, is how religious and spiritual concepts are conveyed – which, for most of us, requires translation from Hebrew.

The thing is, translations aren't value-neutral, which can tilt much of what we learn and come to understand. Over the centuries, it can make a huge difference spiritually.

Come see how it can impact what we hold most dear or keep furthest at bay. Read more...

Community News and Events

Rabbi David will be speaking at this event. Please click the link below to register.

https://www.ujajcc.org/index.php?src=events&srctype=detail&category=Community&refno=4601

April Issue of

Greenwich Jewish News

Please click here to read the digital version. See page 7 for a Passover article by Rabbi David.

March Issue of

New Jewish Voice

Please click here to read the latest digital version.

Shir Ami Classes

The Jewish Prophets: Social Justice & the Sacred

Join Rabbi David for a six-session series about the prophetic voice of social justice and rectification in Jewish life. After exploring prophetic pathos, we'll take up particular prophets of the Jewish Bible and the societal conditions in which they taught, fought, preached, suffered and healed. Always our question will be what those voices might say today.

The class will be on alternating Tuesdays 7:00pm April 21 - June 30. Free for members; $140 for non-members.

Please register below.

Social Action

Blessings and Simchas

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

David Pribish - 4/3

Tenzin Pelyang - 4/4

Eric Birnbaum - 4/29

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 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.