The Talmud teaches a fundamental lesson about the Jewish People: Kol Yisrael Areivim Zeh La'Zeh, All Jews are responsible for each other. This dictum underlies our commitment to ensuring the welfare and safe-keeping of our brothers and sisters all over the world. The word "areivim," translated as "responsible," finds its etymology from two possible roots. The first explains the word to mean guarantee, as in a financial transaction. Each and every Jew serves as the guarantor for the other and as such, each individual holds a responsibility for the whole. The second possibility suggests that the word is derived from the root for mixture. All Jews, in our glorious diversity, mix together to form the entire Jewish People; the collection of individuals that comprise our nation blend to share a single destiny. Either way the word is understood, the premise is clear: as Jews, we are intimately connected to and impacted by the fates of other Jews. At Akiba, we hold this principle as one of our pillars of our school community and the lessons we teach.

Israel recently suffered from a spate of fires-some began naturally, others sparked by hatred and terror.  Families have lost their homes and communities have been decimated by the flames. On December 14, our students will do their part to demonstrate their responsibility and compassion for the victims of the fires. Below you will find information about a day in which our students will raise their voices in song to raise funds for Israel. Every student will be participating at a designated time and parents are invited to join us at Café 18 if possible. I look forward to seeing you there and hope that our children's voices will inspire parents, friends, and community members to participate in this important display of solidarity and concern.

Shabbat Shalom,