Dear Shir Hadash Family,
By now you have received considerable news
regarding about the spread of the Coronavirus (COVID-19). The leadership of
Shir Hadash has formed a panel of our staff and lay leaders and I would like to
share with you our decisions regarding our commitment to the health and safety
of our membership, staff, guests and community.
We have been monitoring the news which changes by the hour. We have made
changes to our activity schedule as part of our effort to keep everyone healthy
and safe. These decisions include the
cancellation of some programs and the implementation of changes in some of our
religious practices. These actions are
taken out of an abundance of caution. I ask for your patience and understanding
as we try to ensure the safety and well-being of our members.
We also want to let you know that we do NOT
know of any member of our community that has been exposed to or been infected
by the Coronavirus. We are taking these and other steps to ensure as best as we
can that remains the case.
Effective immediately:
• We are postponing religious school until
April 19, 2020. A separate communication
is being sent to our school community with the details of this closure.
• We will continue Religious Services, but
with the following adjustments.
·
All services will
be streamed via the Facebook site. Look for “Shir Hadash Reconstructionist
Synagogue - Current Members’ in Facebook Groups. We strongly
recommend this method of attendance for members, especially who are either in
“high risk” categories for this disease or in close contact with these
individuals.
·
There will be no
food or Oneg served in the building until further notice.
·
Please check our
Calendar (Web Site or App) for the latest information.
• Our office remains open and staffed by our employees
and volunteers. We request that only essential visits to the building take
place until further notice. Where possible, please conduct business via
telephone, email or mail.
• Stay home when you are sick, especially if
you are experiencing flu-like symptoms or fever. Contact a healthcare
professional for guidance before resuming participation in our activities.
• We have added antiviral hand sanitizer
dispensers in offices, classrooms and public areas. We will be reviewing our
housekeeping processes to ensure we are following best practice cleaning
protocols.
• Please refrain from hugging, kissing and
even handshaking during this season. Instead, we hope that you will consider
using words to express that you are glad to see each other or try other
gestures such as an elbow tap and we also are encouraging “Social Distancing”
when seated.
• If you are seeking basic information about
Coronavirus, we recommend you visit the CDC’s Coronavirus
Disease main page. Also, CDC's
guidance on preparing your home for the possibility of COVID-19 may be a
good resource for your family.
• Our non-religious activities that can be
converted to “virtual” meetings (teleconference, videoconference or streaming)
will continue at the discretion of the host or presenter. Board and committee
meetings will continue in this manner.
Information on other activities follow in our next communication.
• Non-religious activities that cannot be
converted to “virtual” meetings will be canceled or postponed until further notice. This list currently includes:
- ·
Lahaka rehearsals
have been canceled until further notice.
- ·
The Gala (May 2)
will be postponed until the fall.
- ·
The Shir Hadash
Community Seder (April 9) and Maimoona (April 17 end of Passover celebration)
have been canceled
- ·
The Coffeehouse
(May 18) is postponed
- ·
Israeli Movie
Night (April 25) is postponed
• We will contact the groups or agencies that
make use of our space and work with them to determine any appropriate changes.
Our executive board will meet on a regular
basis, assisted by the Rabbi, Education Director and Executive Director to
monitor the situation. We are receiving
regular updates from governmental, healthcare and Jewish organizations. We will use these and other resources to
review and adjust our response to this evolving challenge.
Please know that our first priority is the
health and safety of our community. We
will be communicating with all of you regularly by email, and we will be
posting important updates on the Shir Hadash web site and app. If you have any
questions, don’t hesitate to contact us through email or the synagogue phone
number, 847-498-8218.
We thank you in advance for your patience and
your understanding.
Marc Fargotstein M.EdT
Shir Hadash Board President
847-612-6579
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