Sinai Successes

It’s hard to believe that we’ve been at home for almost a year now. Last year around this time, we were gearing up for Sinai’s Wonderland, a Tu BiShvat spectacular garden tea party. Now, we attend school and work from our homes, only go outside houses for grocery trips, and have virtual playdates. Our programming and engagement may have looked different since last January, but we’re continuing to keep Dor Chadash thriving as a community for families with young children.

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By Rachel Polansky, Programming Manager For many, it has been over two months of sheltering in place and remaining socially distant. During this time, it can be a challenge to remain connected to one another and to Judaism. Sinai Temple Men’s Club, led by president Farshad Rafii, has risen to the occasion during these challenging times, providing a plethora of resources and engagement for their community.   Cary Lerman muses, “There is no substitute for one-on-one contacts and conversations, even if done remotely.  At the Men’s Club, we pick up the phone to talk with one another, email and send messages…

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By Farshad Rafii, Men’s Club President For me, “the community” has always been one of the most valuable dimensions of life at Sinai Temple. With the quarantine keeping us away from each other, my immediate concern was how we preserve the sense of camaraderie that we all value so much and how we prevent irreversible damage to this beautiful community that has taken decades of time and immeasurable effort to build. We at the Men’s Club were inspired by how the temple clergy, staff, and school rose to meet the challenge. From the very beginning of the emergency, they started…

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By Danielle Kassin, Religious School Director We miss our students and families. We are lucky to see them in Zoom classes or on Facetime, to read their notes and comments through Facebook Live and e-mails, and to hear their voices via phone, but there is just nothing that replaces seeing our students in-person and being with our Religious School community. So this is how it began… Our vision to actually see and be with our families! At Sinai Temple Religious School, our mission is always for students to bring Judaism “home.” We ask students to go beyond the classroom and…

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By Rachel Polansky, Programming Manager Right before Pesach, Rabbi Guzik hosted an interactive online Women’s Learning class, Taking Back Passover. Participants including Jennifer Malkin were nervous about how their Seders would work this year, “But Rabbi Guzik let me off the hook to do it any way we can, even if it’s in PJs! A “shlecht” Seder this year is OKAY. So relieved!”   Others like Marilyn Stern commended the efforts of Sinai Temple. She has enjoyed all of the virtual learning and community opportunities. She reiterated Rabbi Guzik’s advice, “However we choose to celebrate Passover is okay – there’s…

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