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WHAT’S HAPPENING AT A GLANCE
Creative Worship and Ritual
- Shabbat Evening Service, December 20, 7:30 p.m.
- Sponsor an Oneg
- Religious School on Break
- Lunch & Learn with the Rabbi Resumes January 9
- Synagogue Hours Over Winter Break
- Tonight! Book Club, December 19
- New Member Dinner, January 25
- Save the Date! Trivia Night, February 29
Social Action
- Relief Efforts for Ugandan Flood Victims
- Shir Hadash Brings Holiday Cheer to Children in Three Ways!
Community Initiatives
- Help Immigrant Teens
- Sponsor a Bimah Ark Panel -- Only Three Left!
- SHOP Shir Hadash
- Simcha Tree Leaves
- Don’t Forget Our Permanent Restaurant Fundraisers!
- Shir Hadash Memorial Wall
- Links to Fundraisers: Amazon, iGive, and More
Shabbat Evening Service, December 20, 7:30 pm -- Shabbat Vayeshev
“The Real Story of Hanukkah” -- Our Shabbat service comes as we prepare to celebrate Hanukkah, the Festival of Lights. Come learn about the real story of Hanukkah, which goes way beyond the tale of the oil lasting for eight days. Hear the virtually unknown story of political intrigue and military strategy, complete with a surprise ending. Don’t miss it! Please bring a small treat to add to our oneg refreshments following the service.
Sponsor an Oneg! Having a birthday, anniversary or remembrance? You can sponsor an oneg to celebrate. A dessert oneg is $136 and everybody appreciates and enjoys your hospitality. The donation covers all food, including a special celebration cake. Please contact Nancy Kekst, execdir@shir-hadash.org to make arrangements.
December 20-21, 2019 / 23 Kislev 5780 / Shabbat Vayeshev
Torah Reading: Genesis 37:1-40:23 / Haftarah Reading: Amos 2:6-3:8
“Favoritism”
Dear Friends,
Is it right to show favoritism between our children? This week’s Torah portion tells of how Jacob favored Joseph above all his brothers. The explanation given is that Joseph was born in Jacob’s old age. We also know that Joseph was the first-born son of Jacob’s beloved wife, Rachel. As a symbol of his love, Jacob made Joseph a striped coat, the “Coat of Many Colors,” which only raised his brothers’ jealousy. Joseph came to believe that he was favored as we see in the dreams he recounted to his brothers. Their envy would eventually lead to the brothers selling Joseph to become a slave in Egypt.
Certainly Jacob had a lot to do with Joseph’s difficulties. His favoritism created a fracture in the family that would take many, many years to heal. Rather than showing favoritism to our children, we should see each child for his or her many unique and distinctive talents. Every child is special.
Shabbat Shalom,
Rabbi Eitan Weiner-Kaplow
Lunch & Learn, Thursdays -- Join the Rabbi and Shir Hadash members and friends at 1:00 p.m. for a refreshing and contemporary exploration of the weekly Torah portion, a selected book of the Bible, or a contemporary work of Jewish wisdom.
Tonight! Book Club, December 19 -- At our next meeting we will be talking about The Lake on Fire, a novel by Rosellen Brown. The epic narrative follows 19th-century Jewish immigrants as they move from rural Wisconsin to industrialized Chicago at the time of the Columbian Exposition. Join us for a lively discussion at a member's home and bring a nosh to share! To RSVP and for location details, contact the office at admin@shir-hadash.org or (847) 498-8218.
New Member Dinner, January 25, 6:00 p.m. -- We have more new members this year than at any time in the recent past. Help welcome them at a special evening including Havdalah, wine, dinner and entertainment. Register here for Saturday, January 25 at 6:00 p.m. Free admission for members who joined since February 2019 and their immediate families; for others, $18/per adult, $7 for children 4-12 and free for children under 4. Please RSVP by January 17 so we know how much food will be needed.
New! Trivia Night, February 29 -- Save the date for the 4th Annual Shir Hadash Family Trivia Night on Saturday, February 29 at 6:00 p.m. The event benefits the Samuel I. Andes Scholarship Fund, which is a need-based fund to assist children who otherwise would not be able to attend the Shir Hadash Religious School due to economic reasons. Trivia buffs - high school-aged and older - will enjoy this fast-paced, high energy, friendly competition! There will be six rounds of trivia with cash prizes for the top teams, plus a live auction and a 50/50 raffle! Pizza, soft drinks and bake sale items will be available for purchase. Free babysitting is available for children up to age 12 (tots must be potty-trained). Online registration will be available soon.
Special Auction Item! Check your calendars and come ready to bid on four choice aisle seat Cubs tickets! The game is against the Phillies on April 25 (2:20 start) in row 3 of section 226.
SOCIAL ACTION
Relief Efforts for Jewish Ugandan Flood Victims -- The Ugandan Jewish community of Abayudaya recently experienced devastating flooding. Many families are homeless and starving due to this flood. There is no insurance to help them. They are worried how they will survive. The above words are a plea for help from a resident for the Abayudaya Ugandan Jewish community and longtime friend of one of our congregants.
If you would like to assist with this crisis, donations can be placed in the tzedakah box near the prayer books or made online here. For online donations, select Social Action for Type and indicate Uganda Flood Recovery in the Notes field. Contact our Social Action Chair, Lisa Burton Radzely, at SocialActionSH@gmail.com or Lynne Arons at lynnearons1@gmail.com if you have questions.
Shir Hadash Brings Holiday Cheer to Children in 3 Ways! Thank you to our congregation for helping children have a wonderful holiday celebration.
Generous Shir Hadash members:
- Sponsored 33 children's holiday gifts.
- Donated two buckets of presents in our toy drive. They were given to unsponsored children.
- Volunteered at Jewish Child and Family Services to sort and package presents, as well as double check that each of the 700+ children has a gift package that fulfills the child's wish list.
COMMUNITY INITIATIVES
Help Immigrant Teens -- We have heard so much about the issues at our southern border. Now we have a real opportunity to make a difference in the lives of children directly affected by it. Legal teens have been brought to local suburbs while they await joining their U.S. relatives with whom they will live, heal and recover from the horrors of their experiences. Needless to say, it is a stressful and confusing time.
While these children await transfer to the U.S. family members with whom they will live, they need some essential items for the cold months ahead. They also would benefit greatly from enrichment and entertainment. We will be donating to 12-17 year old males. Most of them do not speak English, so it's best to donate activities that do not involve reading English.
For your convenience, you can order online and mail items directly to the Illinois location.
- Send items to Mary Kieger, Project San Francisco, 1150 N. River Road, Des Plaines, IL 60016 (the facility's name is not provided for the children's safety and privacy. All donations will be used locally. The national name for the program is San Francisco).
- If possible, include a Gift Message and say that you are a member of Shir Hadash Synagogue.
- A donation receipt can be requested when you mail items to the facility. Shir Hadash cannot provide donation receipts.
If you wish to drop off donations, please contact Susan Grossman to arrange it. She can be emailed at susangman@sbcglobal.net.
Thank you for improving the American experience for these local immigrant children.
ONGOING FUNDRAISERS
Twelve Tribes Bimah Panels: Only Three Panels Left to Dedicate! -- Celebrating our fifth anniversary in our building, our Twelve Tribes bimah ark panels are a combined creation of artists Maureen Fisher Schweit and Abe Schor, who worked together on concept, design, and colors.
You are invited to participate in this fundraising historic project by dedicating all or part of a panel. Each panel dedication is $1,800; panels may be dedicated by more than one person and families may pool resources to dedicate one panel (e.g, $180 each by 10 people). Donors will be acknowledged on our new donor wall next to the Simcha Tree. The panel dedications will remain in perpetuity, or as long as the art remains in our sanctuary. (They will not expire in 18 years as originally stated.) To learn more about the Bimah Panels, click here. For questions, panel reservation, choice and payment options, contact Executive Director Nancy Kleine Kekst at (216) 789-2452 (mobile) or email execdir@shir-hadash.org.
Simcha Tree Leaves Available for Purchase - Our Tree of Joy—a Simcha Tree—is situated in our Community Room to remind us of all the joys of our lives. The leaves come in copper, silver, and gold. Each leaf marks a lasting memory of a joyous Simcha in the lives of members of Shir Hadash. We invite you to add your loved ones’ simchas to our Tree and share your nachas with our congregation or just add your loved ones’ names out of love. Leaves can be purchased to mark your special family or individual accomplishments. Click here to see additional information and make your purchase.
Don’t Forget Our Permanent Restaurant Fundraisers --The Continental Restaurant in Buffalo Grove, Butterfield’s Restaurant in Northbrook, and three locations of Flappy’s will donate 5% of your total bill to Shir Hadash! No flyer needed – just mention Shir Hadash when you are paying or fill out the Shir Hadash book behind the desk.
Shir Hadash Memorial Wall--Having a Memorial Plaque for a loved one in Shir Hadash’s Memorial Wall ensures that Yahrzeit will be observed for them in perpetuity by our congregation. The cost for a plaque is $360. Many congregants prepay and reserve plaques. You may register for the plaque(s) through our website, or request a paper order form by calling the office (847-498-8218).
Fundraiser Information Available on Shul Cloud--You can help Shir Hadash at no extra cost to you by taking advantage of a variety of ongoing fundraisers, including iGive, Amazon Smile, and more. For complete details, click here.
SHOP SHOP SHOP!--SHOP is the easiest way to support the shul without spending an extra dime! Purchase gift cards through SHOP and the vendors pay a percentage back to Shir Hadash. Orders can be picked up in the Shir Hadash office. For more information, email Michelle at SHOP@shir-hadash.org.
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