For daily event updates, check our calendar. Follow us on Facebook, Instagram or Twitter. Download the Shir Hadash App for Apple or Android
WHAT'S HAPPENING AT A GLANCE
With an abundance of caution and to ensure the health and safety of our staff, the Synagogue building is closed due to the pandemic until further notice.
Our devoted staff will be working from home and messages via phone and email will be responded to within 24 hours. If you need any assistance, you may call Marc Fargotstein at 847-612-6579 or contact Office Administrator Karen Burnham at 847-714-6946. The Rabbi is also available on his cell phone 847-525-7746 at any time.
Creative Worship and Ritual -- Services Online
- Zoom Havdalah Service, Saturday June 27, 7:30 p.m.
The Rabbi’s Corner
Religious Education
- Adult Ed Programs Continue Online -- Open to All Members
- Today! Lunch & Learn with the Rabbi via Zoom, Thursdays
- Worldwide Synagogue Sing, June 28
Membership News and Events
- A Letter from our Board President
- Book Club New Selection; Meeting August 20
- Smile! Special Family Photo Session Opportunity
- Camp Havaya@Home
Social Action
- Children's Books Can be Donated Once Again at Bernie's Book Bank
- Support Weekend Food Boxes for School District 21 Families
- You've Cleaned Your Closets -- Now Donate Your Stuff!
- Helping Chicagoans via the Greater Chicago Food Depository
Support for Members
- State Program Assists with Utility Payments and Household Needs
- Fresh Produce Distribution
- Donations Support Members in Need
- Shir Hadash Member Business Directory
Resources for Today
- Links to Help You Work Safely, Take Care of Each Other, and Have Fun
Ongoing Fundraisers
- iGive
- Amazon Smile
- SHOP Shir Hadash
Zooming Havdalah service and Mini Concert Featuring Suzanne Sabransky and Jeff Justman, Saturday June 27, 7:30 p.m.: Let’s end the Shabbat together with an on-line Havdalah service and concert via ZOOM. Rabbi Eitan will lead the service from his home. Those who have a braided candle, fragrant spices like cinnamon or cloves, and sweet wine or grape juice are encouraged to perform the ceremony simultaneously in their own homes. Suzanne Sabransky will read from her collection of poetry. Jeffrey Justman will perform songs on his guitar. Let’s lower the lights and enjoy this very special evening together.
Biographical Notes for this Event:
Suzie Sabransky: “A Brief Journey in Prayer and Poetry: From Kabbalat Shabbat to Shavua Tov” -- I have always been a writer in one form or another. As I was drawn into deeper learning about Judaism, my writing became prayers and poems based in Judaic thought. Now, I am regularly published on Recon’s ritualwell, and have also been featured there. Various congregations use my writing, which has also been read live on streaming events. I am very blessed to be able to write and have my work shared.
"Jazzman" Jeff Justman regularly performs his accomplished guitar playing at community events on Chicagoland's northshore and believes it is his way of doing Tikkun Olam, to make the world a little better place, when people are hearing his beautiful music. Jeff and his wife, Debbie, have been members of Shir Hadash since 2004.
Our services can also be watched on Facebook on the Shir Hadash Public Facebook page. Please share the Facebook link with friends.
Sunday Morning Adult Ed Programs: Online! All members are welcome to participate. Contact the class facilitator, below, for information.
- 10:00 a.m. -- Torah and Jewish Philosophy Class via ZOOM. Contact Fred Andes for details.
- 11:00 a.m. -- Hebrew Reading Class via WebEx -- contact Steve Lewin.
- 11:15 a.m. -- Modern Israel Class via Zoom with Rabbi Eitan
Contact Rabbi Eitan - 1:00 p.m. -- Family Activity Committee Zoom Meeting
Today! Rabbi's Lunch and Learn via ZOOM, June 25 -- Anyone can participate! Join Rabbi Eitan and Shir Hadash members for an engaging discussion of this week's Torah portion.
Worldwide Synagogue Sing, Sunday mornings -- Kudos to our Education Director Rachel Goldberg for creating and streaming the Worldwide Synagogue Sing. If you want to sing with your friends and family near and far, join in Sundays at 10:00 am Chicago time for the Worldwide Synagogue Sing - a chance for school age kids to connect virtually for meaningful and creative Jewish experience. Perfect for family participation. Click here to sign up and register for this weekly program. We'll be doing it each Sunday while the shutdown continues -- you only need to register once.
Thank You!! To Marc Fargotstein and Rachel Schick Siegel, who underwrote the Bagel Bar for the past year. We appreciate you!
Dear friends, I hope that you and your families are safely enjoying the wonderful summer. I would like to give you an update on our search for our new Executive Director. Stuart Aizenberg and the search committee have done an exemplary job taking us through the first phase of the search. However, we have not succeeded in filling the requisite needs of our congregation yet. Moving forward, Lisa Settler will be taking point on this important project. I personally would like to thank Stuart for all of the time and effort that he has put in to this project! We will be refocusing our effort moving forward and expand our search parameters. If you know of anyone who you think that we should contact, please email Lisa Settler at settlerl@comcast.net .
With Nancy’s departure at the end of June, we will be looking for volunteers to help us out. This volunteering will be on a project basis so that we can be sensitive to the volunteer’s time constraints. If you would like to volunteer, please email Karen Burnham at admin@shir-hadash.org and she will contact you. I can say with certainty that Karen is a joy to work with and any time that you can give would be greatly appreciated!
As always, should you have any questions or thoughts, you are always welcome to email me president@shir-hadash.org or call me.
Marc Fargotstein M.EdT, Shir Hadash Board President
847-612-6579
Book Club: New Selection -- Our next book club Zoom meeting will be on August 20; watch the weekly newsletter for updated information and links. We will discuss The Weight of Ink, a novel by Rachel Kadish. Set in London of the 1660s and of the early twenty-first century, The Weight of Ink is the interwoven tale of two women of remarkable intellect: Ester Velasquez, an emigrant from Amsterdam who is permitted to scribe for a blind rabbi, just before the plague hits the city; and Helen Watt, an ailing historian with a love of Jewish history. As the novel opens, Helen has been summoned by a former student to view a cache of seventeenth-century Jewish documents newly discovered in his home during a renovation. Enlisting the help of Aaron Levy, an American graduate student as impatient as he is charming, and in a race with another fast-moving team of historians, Helen embarks on one last project: to determine the identity of the documents’ scribe, the elusive “Aleph.”
Smile! Special Family Photo Session Opportunity -- There is an upside to being homebound with your family in the summer. It's the perfect time to take a family portrait! Our congregant Annette Leibovitz, who owns Mitzvah Photography, is offering mini sessions to take family portraits outside at your home or in a nearby area in a socially distant manner (and she wears a mask!). Have some fun and update your family photos. The family will receive all the digital images! Schedule with several neighbors the same day and get a discount. The fee is just $75, and she will donate $25 back to Shir Hadash. All we ask is for you to give the synagogue one great family image that we can use on our website, in publicity (no names), and in our membership directory. To book your portrait, contact Annette Leibovitz at 847-913-5588 or write mitzvahphoto@aol.com.
Camp Havaya@Home, Sunday, July 12 – Saturday, July 25 : "Safe at home, hearts at camp." All Havaya@Home programs will be online, primarily via Zoom and Facebook Live. Approximately five programs will be offered daily, geared to appeal to a wide variety of kids. While most sessions will be one-time opportunities, kids can choose to participate in as many (or as few) as they'd like. There will also be week-long art studios for which interested young artists can register in advance. Havaya@Home programs are primarily intended for entering third through ninth graders with additional opportunities for younger kids and older teens. All are free and open to Havaya campers, as well as members of Reconstructionist congregations, and those in the wider community who share our values and want to have fun. More details, including schedules and sign-on information, will be available in late June.
SOCIAL ACTION
Stay Connected to Help! We are frequently adding new opportunities to help our neighbors, our community, and the world, so keep checking the weekly emails, the Shir Hadash newsletter, and the members-only Facebook group.
Bernie's Book Bank is Accepting Donations! Bernie's Book Bank takes English-language children's books (birth-6th grade) in good condition; they cannot accept adult, young adult, religious, or activity books. Bring your donations to the Bernie's facility at 917 North Shore Drive, in Lake Bluff on Tuesdays or Thursdays from 11:00 am to 2:00 pm. The procedures are a bit different due to COVID-19: Pack the children’s books in the trunk or backseat of your car. When you arrive, drive to the side of the building near the loading dock where a team member will take the books directly from your trunk or backseat to ensure a touchless experience and social distancing. For more information, click here.
Get Unwanted Items Out of Your Home, and Donate to Those Who Would Appreciate Them! Many nonprofits have resumed accepting donations. If you've been cleaning out your closets and garage, consider giving to one of these local organizations so someone in need can enjoy the items. Click here for a list of suggested organizations and items they are currently accepting. Please check their websites for updated information.
Helping Chicagoans via the Greater Chicago Food Depository-- Property destruction and looting have led to more small businesses needing to shut their doors, compounding the economic struggles many Chicago business owners and their employees already were facing due to COVID-19. The Greater Chicago Food Depository will be an even-more important resource for those struggling to have enough food. To learn more or to make a donation, click here.
SUPPORT FOR MEMBERS
New Program: Assistance with Utility Bills, Rent, Food, and More -- Governor J.B Pritzker and the Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity (DCEO) have launched a new program to provide home energy aid and other services during COVID-19. People who are eligible may receive assistance to cover costs of utility bills, rent, temporary shelter, food, and other household needs. To submit a pre-application, visit the Help Illinois Families website. Bernie's Book Bank is Accepting Donations! Bernie's Book Bank takes English-language children's books (birth-6th grade) in good condition; they cannot accept adult, young adult, religious, or activity books. Bring your donations to the Bernie's facility at 917 North Shore Drive, in Lake Bluff on Tuesdays or Thursdays from 11:00 am to 2:00 pm. The procedures are a bit different due to COVID-19: Pack the children’s books in the trunk or backseat of your car. When you arrive, drive to the side of the building near the loading dock where a team member will take the books directly from your trunk or backseat to ensure a touchless experience and social distancing. For more information, click here.
Help Local Families Struggling with Food Insecurity -- There are local families hit hard by the economic downturn who are struggling to have enough food. Local school district 21 - serving parts of Wheeling, Buffalo Grove, Arlington Heights, Mount Prospect, Prospect Heights, Northbrook, and unincorporated Cook County - needs financial assistance with providing weekend family food boxes. If you would like to help feed local families, click here.
Helping Chicagoans via the Greater Chicago Food Depository-- Property destruction and looting have led to more small businesses needing to shut their doors, compounding the economic struggles many Chicago business owners and their employees already were facing due to COVID-19. The Greater Chicago Food Depository will be an even-more important resource for those struggling to have enough food. To learn more or to make a donation, click here.
SUPPORT FOR MEMBERS
Fresh Produce for Families! - For those in need, free boxes of fresh produce will be handed out every Thursday starting June 25th and running through August 27th from 12:30pm – 5:30pm (while supplies last) at London Middle School, 1001 W. Dundee Road in Wheeling. Any area resident is eligible to participate in this program. There will be no need to get out of your car as the box of produce will be placed directly in the trunk of the car. No ID is needed. Participants will simply be asked to provide their name, address and family size. The information provided is kept strictly confidential as this information will be used only by the Food Depository to apply for and allocate funding for programs like this. This program is provided by CCSD21 in partnership with the Greater Chicago Food Depository.
Donations for Congregants in Need: Shir Hadash has been receiving some anonymous contributions to help congregants who may be in need of food or meal delivery. Should you want to make a donation, email Karen Burnham. If you are in need of food/services, email Rabbi Eitan.
Shir Hadash Member Business Directory – Click here to reach the Shir Hadash Member Business Directory, and please patronize member businesses if you can. If you would like to add your business to the page, there is a link on the right side you can click, or click here. Note: You must be a synagogue member and must be logged into the member portal to submit your listing.
RESOURCES FOR TODAY
Activities and articles to entertain, educate, and inspire smiles --
Jewish Geography: the Zoom competition -- Host Micah Hart discloses the name of “The Chosen One” at the beginning of the show, then the contestants use their own networks to find that person and get them on the Zoom call live. The addictive game’s motto? “It’s not who you know, it’s who you know knows.”5 rules to live by during a pandemic -- Public health experts and scientists offer up tools to lower your risk while still enjoying your life.
Talking to Jewish kids about race -- Three Jewish moms—a teacher, a marketing director and a social worker —discuss how they’re talking to their Jewish kids about race.
Best Automatic Lawn Sprinklers -- Use water efficiently and save money with these advanced sprinkler controls.
Add these books that can help you build wealth to your summer reading list.
ONGOING FUNDRAISERS
If you are home and shopping online, be sure to consider these resources. You can help support Shir Hadash AT NO EXTRA COST TO YOU through these donation programs. We will need funds to help our congregants in need.
Help Shir Hadash Earn Free Donations with iGive --You can help Shir Hadash every time you shop online – the iGive Button makes it simple! iGive is a free and easy way to support the shul. Average shoppers using iGive raise between $30 and $100 a year for their causes. There are 2500 online retailers helping to make donations happen through iGive. Click here to learn more and join iGive. If you have questions, contact Sandi Schleicher, sschleicher@onebox.com.
Amazon Smile Fundraising Option -- Shir Hadash is registered with the Amazon Smile fundraising program. Just go to smile.amazon.com, search for Shir Hadash (be sure to select the one in Wheeling), and from then on 0.5% of your purchases will automatically be donated to Shir Hadash at no cost to you! To double-dip, just pay for your purchases with a ShopWithScrip Amazon gift card! Happy Shopping!
Shop with Scrip! 50,000 organizations use ShopWithScrip gift cards to turn everyday shopping into earnings. Now, Shir Hadash is using gift cards to offset our costs and create more opportunities for families. Shop at 750+ brands with gift cards to earn on gas, groceries, eating out, clothes—the list goes on. It’s easy, it’s rewarding, and it fits right into your busy schedule. Click here for complete details!
To view past editions of the Newsletter, please visit our website.
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