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A MESSAGE FROM THE RABBI
A last reflection as we go into our Gala weekend:
75 years is a long time. For a tradition that is about 3,000 years old, 75 years may seem like nothing. But I am here to tell you that it is most definitely is something.
I wish I could go back to the folks who founded the JCC and ask them where they thought the JCC would be in 75 years.
I Wish I could ask them whether they thought we might be in a big gray building adorned by a big Jewish star, with its entrance on the boulevard.
I wish I could ask them how many families they thought the JCC would have in 75 years. I doubt they would have believed that it would be 325+.
I wish that I could ask them if they thought we would have services twice a day, all year.
I wish I could ask them if they thought we would have classes in Hebrew, and classes on Jewish history, and classes about Israel, and a book club.
I wish I could ask them if they thought we would lean Torah and Prophets every week.
I wish I could ask them if they thought we would celebrate Rosh Chodesh.
I wish I could ask them if they thought we would become a tennis center, and whether they thought we would later become a pickleball center. (I am certain they would ask what pickleball is).
I wish I could ask them if they thought that we would have an incredibly active Women’s Auxiliary. (Actually, I am pretty certain that this is the only question that they would respond by unhesitatingly saying “Yes”.)
I wish I could ask them if they thought that we would have amazing programming, like talks on Israel, and talks on the Holocaust, and comedians, and musicians, Israeli dancing, and Challah baking.
I wish I could ask them if they thought that the JCC would have 10 beach services in the summer season.
I wish I could ask them if they thought that the JCC would have a Shabbat Reminder published every week with articles and information about the week that passed and the week to come.
I wish I could ask them if they thought that the big gray building would be filled-to-capacity on the High Holy days.
I wish I could ask them if they thought we would have baby-namings, and B’nai Mitzvahs, and Weddings, and dinners in the Sukkah.
I wish I could ask them if they thought the JCC would have a 75th anniversary gala with 160+ attendees and a museum dedicated to what they started.
I wish I could ask them how they knew that the island could/would support a Jewish community.
I wish I could ask them how long they thought the JCC would last.
I wish I could ask them how they knew that, over the years, individuals and families would keep stepping up to devote themselves selflessly to caring for the JCC and making sure that it thrives.
In this week’s Torah portion, Ve’etchanan, Moses tells the Israelites to never let their history or the Torah fade from their minds as long as they live. Perhaps more importantly, he tells them to make that history and Torah known to their children and to their children’s children. This week we are the children and the children’s children of the founders of the JCC. May the history of our beloved Jewish home never fade from our minds.
So much time. So many people who have impacted lives, and so many people whose lives have been impacted. So many prayers, so many songs, so much joy, and so much food. 75 years of Torah. 75 years of Yiddishkeit. 75 years of being present to the needs of the community. 75 years of holiness. 75 years of Faith, Family, and Friends.
Shabbat Shalom in the name of Rabbis past, present, and future – Rabbi Michael S. Jay
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