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OF THE SHABBAT REMINDER

NEW CLASSES WITH RABBI JAY

For the next 5 weeks, we will meet on Wednesday evenings after minyan to study "The Lilac Tree" by Rabbi Ammiel Hirsch. This book was suggested by Dr. Stanley Spitzer, and it is a good read filled with great information and insights. As always, I will be sending pdf’s, however, I request that you purchase the book for your personal library. Authors work hard to create their books, and that work should be recognized.

Now a little bit about the book:

The Lilac Tree – A Rabbi’s Reflections on Love, Courage, and History is a series of essays reflecting Rabbi Amiel Hirsch’s lifetime of learning, thinking, doing, preaching, teaching, and serving the Jewish people. In it, Rabbi Hirsch observes what lies at the heart of Judaism as it evolved over the centuries, the significance of the State of Israel as the embodiment of the Jewish people’s highest spiritual and moral aspirations, and the centrality of the time-tested Jewish ethical impulse that offers the world a means to repair its brokenness, polarization, and immorality.

Rabbi Hirsch is a rabbi and attorney. He is the senior rabbi of Stephen Wise Free Synagogue.

MELTON CLASS BEGINNING ON MARCH 3

Rabbi is starting a Melton class on the History of the Arab-Israeli Conflict on March 3rd. He is teaching the same class twice a week on Monday mornings and Wednesday Evenings. Additional information to follow.

The dates of the classes are below.

Monday mornings 10:00 to 11:30

March 3,10,17, 24, 31

April 7,28, 

May 5, 12, 19

Wednesday Evenings after minyan from 8:00 to 9:30

March 5, 12, 19, 26

April 2, 9, 30

May 7, 14, 21

CELEBRATE GROUND HOG DAY ON LBI

Sunday, February 2:

“Groundhog Day”

Movie and light refreshments

AT THE JCC

2:00 PM

NO CHARGE

JCC WOMEN’S AUXILIARY: BOOK GROUP DISCUSSION

 WEDNESDAYS AT 4:00 PM

NEXT BOOK REVIEW MEETING

Wednesday, February19^th at 4:00 pm

Discussion Leader: TBA

The Matchmaker’s Gift

By Linda Cohen Loigman

Even as a child in 1910, Sara Glikman knows her gift: she is a maker of matches and a seeker of soulmates. But among the pushcart-crowded streets of New York’s Lower East Side, Sara’s vocation is dominated by devout older men—men who see a talented female matchmaker as a dangerous threat to their traditions and livelihood. After making matches in secret for more than a decade, Sara must fight to take her rightful place among her peers, and to demand the recognition she deserves.

Two generations later, Sara’s granddaughter, Abby, is a successful Manhattan divorce attorney, representing the city’s wealthiest clients. When her beloved Grandma Sara dies, Abby inherits her collection of handwritten journals recording the details of Sara’s matches. But among the faded volumes, Abby finds more questions than answers. Why did Abby’s grandmother leave this library to her and what did she hope Abby would discover within its pages? Why does the work Abby once found so compelling suddenly feel inconsequential and flawed? Is Abby willing to sacrifice the career she’s worked so hard for in order to keep her grandmother’s mysterious promise to a stranger? And is there really such a thing as love at first sight?

Click here to order The Matchmaker’s Gift By Linda Cohen Loigman from Amazon. Click here to borrow the book from the Ocean County Library. 

PJP ISRAEL PROGRAM

Thursday, February 20 @ 8:30 PM

Shay Rabineau, Associate Professor of Israel Studies/Associate Director of the Center for Isarel Studies, Binghamton University

“The Disappearing Dead Sea: An Exploration of the Poltical, Economic, and Military Factors that have Given Rise to One of the World’s Major Environmental Crises”

In 1934, a group of teenagers from a Zionist youth and scouting group became the first people in recorded history to circle the Dead Sea on foot. In 2022, Shay Rabineau embarked on an attempt to retrace the route of the 1934 expedition, with an eye on the remarkable regional transformations that had taken place over the intervening 88 years. The research project, which included writing, interviewing, photographing, mapping, and video recording along the way, was the most holistic exploration of the Dead Sea and its surroundings since the rise of modern nation-states in the Middle East. This presentation outlines the details of the 2022 Dead Sea Trek, and in doing so, examines the political, economic, and military factors that have given rise to one of the world's major environmental crises. 

Shay Rabineau is Associate Professor of Israel Studies and chair of the Department of Judaic Studies at Binghamton University. His 2023 book, Walking the Land: A History of Israeli Hiking Trails (Indiana University Press) won the 2024 Yonathan Shapiro Best Book Award from the Association for Israel Studies. His research and teaching focus on the history, geography, and politics of Israel and the modern Middle East. Shay's current book project is a work of environmental history that builds on his 2022 circumnavigation of the Dead Sea through Jordan, Israel, and the West Bank.



The JCC section at Crescent Memorial Park is available for sales. Please contact Bonni Rubin-Sugarman at 609-417-7148.

We are very excited to add to the WAX Gift Shop items from local merchants and artisans. Stop in to look and buy one (or more) of these beautiful pieces for your home, as a gift or just for yourself. Here is a sample of some of our new products. The gift shop is open during office hours M-F 10 - 2.

New item in the Gift Shop COASTAL COLORS COLLECTION OF MEZZUZAHS. Great Chanukah gift for someone moving into a new home.

Eileen Jacobs, Potter

Seacrest Designs

Lavina Haven Soy Candles and

Essential Oil Soaps

Mezzuzahs

Resin Bowls and Candlesticks by Seacrest Designs

CONGREGATION NEWS

YOU CAN NOW FILL OUT A GIVING FORM AND PAY ON LINE IN ONE SIMPLE PROCESS.

Go to jccoflbi.org - Giving/Pay

GIVING OPPORTUNITIES

PAVERS

Inscribe a paver at the front entrance to the building

8" X 4", 8" X 8" and 12" X 12"

SEE UPDATED ORDER FORM:

PAVER FORM

Become a permanent part of the JCC landscape.

Purchase a personalized paving stone

in honor of your family or in memory of a loved one.

Please contact Diane Hoffman

with your order or with any questions:

dihoff1@aol.com

PRAYER BOOKS

There are still High Holiday Prayer Books and Chumashim available to be purchased in memory or honor of someone or something. The cost of a Prayer Book is $72 each and $120 for an Eitz Hayim Chumash. The donation includes an affirmation sticker in the book and an acknowledgement letter or letters.

See Order form here: Prayer Book

TRIBUTES

SEND ONE OF OUR TRIBUTES IN HONOR OR IN MEMORY OF

See order form here: TRIBUTES

TREE OF LIFE

Add a leaf (leaves) to our beautiful Tree of Life located in the Social Hall. See the order form here: TREE OF LIFE

Bronze Leaf $90

Silver Leaf $126

Gold :Leaf $180

ENDOWMENT FUND

Herb and Selma z”l Shapiro established the first individual Endowment Fund in memory of his father, as part of the JCC’s Endowment Fund portfolio.

Since then, three additional individual Endowment Funds have been established. Other members are encouraged to also provide for the future of our JCC by establishing similar funds. Please consider adding to this number.

A donation of at least $50,000 to the endowment fund will allow the donor to name one of the funds as the donor wishes. All such named funds will be joined together to be part of the Endowment Fund portfolio.

Endowment funds are necessary to ensure the continuation and well being of our congregation. All members are encouraged to help this important effort by contributing to this portfolio, whether as a specific named individual fund, or as a general donation. The donation can be spread over one, two, or three years, and can be paid via check, donation of appreciated stock, wills, or from the RMD of your IRA or 401K account. Your gift to the fund can be sent to the JCC Office. Please mark your check accordingly. 

YAHRZEIT PLAQUES

Space is available for memorial plaques on the yahrzeit boards in the Sanctuary. 

Here is the order form: 

YAHRZEIT

KOL HAKAVOD

Please consider being a part of this campaign to supplement the clergy needs of our congregation. This is a separate, voluntary commitment and is additional to our low annual dues obligation. HERE IS THE LINK TO BRING UP THE DONATION FORM KOL HAKAVOD

2025 MEMBERSHIP FORMS

Your support is so important to the continued success of the JCC.

Here is form for renewal:

RENEW NOW

And if you have been reading our Shabbat Reminder and other communications and have not yet joined our congregation, here is the new member form:

JOIN NOW

BE A PART OF THE WOMEN'S AUXILLARY

2025 DUES FORM HERE