Dear Friends,

This Labor Day weekend, in solidarity with congregations all over the DC area, we’re celebrating the Jewish values behind this holiday: Upholding the rights of all people, including the “working class.” Our Torah teaches, again and again, that taking care of one another is a mitzvah, a commandment. It’s not just about a laudable generosity of spirit -- it’s about justice; it’s about basic fairness. 

While giving out of the kindness of our hearts is certainly a Jewish value, far more mitzvot (commandments) are about creating a system in which you don’t have to feel generous to participate. No matter how you feel, you’re part of a system that works to take care of everyone through all the ups and downs of our lives. This week’s parsha focuses largely on one of those systems, the mitzvah of shmita -- a sabbatical year in which the land, the laborers, and those in debt are able to finally rest for a full year, every seven years.  

In this week’s parsha, Re’eh, we find a contradiction: Deuteronomy 15:4 say, “There shall be no needy among you… if only you heed your God and take care to keep all this Instruction that I enjoin upon you this day.” Then later, in verse 11, it says, “There will never cease to be needy ones in your land, which is why I command you: open your hand to the poor and needy kin in your land.” 

Throughout the Torah, it’s clear that we’re supposed to create a society in which nobody is poor -- and in which, between the way our taxes and our labor laws are structured, everyone has enough to live comfortably. At the same time, there’s an understanding that we will inevitably fail at that, at least to some degree; so, we still have to be ready to act with generosity and responsibility for one another.

It feels clear to me that the latter mitzvah -- to open our hands to the poor and needy -- isn’t just about subsistence charity, or all about individual tzedakah. It’s also about opening our hands to the poor and needy when we vote -- and actively supporting initiatives that will get our city on track to be the kind of community we’re commanded to create in the Torah -- one in which no one is left behind. 

I know many folks in our community use their vocations and avocations to work for economic and labor justice as well -- and this Labor Day weekend, I am inspired to think more about what I, personally, can do to fulfill these mitzvot (I’m especially excited about opportunities that Jews United for Justice (JUFJ) are organizing locally!). Let me know your ideas -- and happy Labor Day to you and to our whole community!

Shabbat shalom,

Rabbi Hannah

To learn more about these events (including how to register, which we require for almost all events), please visit our website calendar HERE.

All events are in person and indoors, unless otherwise noted. 

Saturday, August 31st

Joey Hiller's Bar Mitzvah

at 10:00 am

at Reformation (212 E. Capitol St., NE)

Friday, September 6th

High Holiday Preparation Circle

at 3:00 pm

at Reformation (212 E. Capitol St., NE)

Saturday, September 7th

Tot Shabbat

at 9:00 am

Shabbat Morning Service & Ella Bataillon's Bat Mitzvah

at 10:00 am

at Reformation (212 E. Capitol St., NE)

Friday, September 13th

High Holiday Preparation Circle

at 3:00 pm

at Reformation (212 E. Capitol St., NE)

Saturday, September 14th

Tot Shabbat

at 10:00 am

Lily Snyder's Bat Mitzvah

at 10:00 am

at Reformation (212 E. Capitol St., NE)

Sunday, September 15th

Yavneh First Day of School

at 9:30 am

at Digital Pioneers Academy (709 12th St., SE)

Friday, September 20th

High Holiday Preparation Circle

at 3:00 pm

Kabbalat Shabbat Service & Potluck Dinner

at 6:30 pm

at Reformation (212 E. Capitol St., NE)

Saturday, September 21st

Eli Weaver's Bar Mitzvah

at 10:00 am

at Reformation (212 E. Capitol St., NE)

Friday, September 27th

High Holiday Preparation Circle

at 3:00 pm

at Reformation (212 E. Capitol St., NE)

Saturday, September 28th

Pre-Rosh Hashanah Pop-up in the Park

(an outdoor event for families with young children)

at 10:00 am

Havdalah & Selichot Service

at 7:30 pm

at Reformation (212 E. Capitol St., NE)

Wednesday, October 2nd

Erev Rosh Hashanah

at 6:00 pm

at Reformation (212 E. Capitol St., NE)

.

For information about upcoming events not run by Hill Havurah that might be of interest to our community, click HERE.

Yavneh ISO Sunday Morning Religious School Teachers!

Yavneh (our September-May Sunday morning religious school) is looking for a few more teachers to complete our largest ever staff. Lesson plans are provided to teachers in a supportive teaching environment. Salary range is $110-200 per session (depending on experience). An opportunity to greatly impact the next generation of Hill Havurah members!

Anyone interested can reach out to Melissa Werbow, our Education Director, at melissa.werbow@hillhavurah.org.

Registration for High Holiday Services --

Opens for Non-members on Sunday!

Registration for all of our High Holiday services, which is required for in-person attendance, remains open for Hill Havurah members for all services. If there is still room on Sunday, registration will open to non-members too.



For all information about the High Holidays at Hill Havurah, visit our High Holidays 2024/5785 webpage where, among other things, you'll find a complete schedule of services as well as information about livestreaming and our new Family Services and other options for kids.

If you'd like to register for any of our Rosh Hashanah or Yom Kippur services, click here.

Once any service reaches capacity, we will create a waitlist.

We encourage all members who plan to attend services to register as soon as possible.

Security Awareness

Hill Havurah's Security Committee would like to share with the community several highly valuable resources to raise all of our security literacy.

A short, five-minute video clip called, "Run, Hide, Fight," discusses the steps you need to take when confronted with a dangerous threat actor in a public setting.

The Security Committee has also provided a flyer called, "The Power of Hello," to assist in identifying and effectively responding to suspicious behavior in houses of worship. It is published by the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency within the U.S. Department of Homeland Security. There is also a condensed, general version of "The Power of Hello."

Join Hill Havurah in Supporting Everyone Home's

Back to School Initiative!

Everyone Home DC is an organization dedicated to supporting the needs of families in our community at risk of or transitioning out of homelessness. 

For the last four years, Hill Havurah has supported Everyone Home DC's Back-to-School initiative, which gives families in our community flexible monetary support to go back-to-school shopping together. 

Everyone Home DC’s goal is to distribute 200 $50 gift cards to scholars in families they work with. Hill Havurah would like to collect at least $2,500, providing 50 of the 200 gift cards! In addition, a generous donation has agreed to match up to $2,000 in donations. The time to give is now!

Monetary donations raised through this page will be used to purchase gift cards for either Visa, Mastercard, Target, Walmart, or Amazon. Everyone Home DC programs will distribute the gift cards to families throughout the month of August. 

If you have any questions, do not hesitate to reach out to Kate Akalonu at akalonu@everyonehomedc.org or Nate Allen at nate.df.allen@gmail.com.

Calling All Volunteers!

Hill Havurah was built by the community for our community.

Our generous volunteers are a key pillar in our organization and help bolster everything we do.

We are always looking for volunteers to help make our events and other activities a success!

Volunteer positions include help with set up, clean up, and door greeters.

If you are interested in volunteering, please click the below "Sign Up!" link to see available opportunities!

Help with the Empty Shabbat Table Initiative

A group of volunteers has been setting up an Empty Shabbat Table on the National Mall every Friday since mid-October to maintain attention to the hostages being held in Gaza. We are always seeking volunteers to help both in person and/or financially to keep this initiative going. Here are some ways you can help:

1. Sign up here to volunteer in person.

2. Join us on WhatsApp.

3. Make a donation: Go Fund Me site Empty Shabbat Table - DC, organized by Yosh Halberstam.

Celebrate Your Special Day with the Havurah

Do you or a loved one have a special occasion like a birthday, anniversary, or other milestone coming up? A great way to celebrate is to sponsor a Hill Havurah monthly Friday night Kabbalat Shabbat ($150)! We're still looking for sponsors for November and beyond.

Email Executive Director Alan Shusterman at alan.shusterman@hillhavurah.org to sign up now and reserve your sponsorship month.

Migrant Solidarity Support Needs

We are continuing our migrant solidarity work, and continue to need all hands on deck. There are so many ways to contribute to the effort -- sign up to volunteer here or click here to make a donation.

Happy 7th birthday,

Henry Goldgeier!

Happy 13th birthday,

Eli Weaver!

Happy anniversary,

Rachel & Evan Mendelson!

Happy anniversary,

Marc & Anne Mayerson!

The following yahrzeits are coming up this week:

• Dina Broun, z"l, mother of Laurence Broun

• Philip Opper, z"l, father of Ellen Opper-Weiner



If you've not entered yahrzeit information about your deceased loved ones in your hillhavurah.org account, you can at any time. If you need any help, you can email Alan Shusterman for assistance.

Mi Shebeirach L'Cholim -- Prayers for Healing

May the One who blessed our ancestors -- Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, Sarah, Rebecca, Rachel, and Leah -- bless and heal:

Martha Fisher, Karen Anderson, Yaakov ben Moshe, Emma Schulman, Ron Levin, & Udi (Mowgly) Becker.



May the Holy Blessed One overflow with compassion upon them, to restore them, to heal them, to strengthen them, to enliven them, along with all the ill among the people of Israel and all humankind, soon, speedily, without delay, and let us all say: Amen.

If you or a loved one are in need of healing, and you'd appreciate the community keeping you in mind, please reach out to Alan Shusterman so he can add you or your loved one to our Shmoozy Nuz Mi Shebeirach list. If it's time to take a name off the list for any reason, let Alan know that as well. Feel free to include their English and/or Hebrew name. 

Please make sure to get your loved one's consent before having their name added to the list -- or, if they prefer privacy, we can instead add, "Loved One of [Insert Your Name]."