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Changes are coming to PCS!
Details on our strategic-planning process:
Strategic planning focused on the future trajectory of PCS has taken place during a number of Board work-sessions in February and March followed by break-out sub-committee activities. We have envisioned how the future PCS community could evolve and what we may look like one and five years from now. Much work has been done evaluating our community strengths and the foundations to build upon. We have also been cognizant of challenges both specific to PCS as well as those that are impacting the U.S. Jewish community as a whole. From all of this work, the four work-streams that are underway now were identified.
Priorities identified during the strategic planning process
The Board has identified four areas of focus. Each area has Board champions who are accountable for progress forward. These four priorities will be reviewed in more depth during the community get-togethers. By June, we are committed to having clarity on how these four priority areas will be activated starting in September 2018. Planning to move these areas forward will continue through the summer.
- Infuse Music and Build Shabbat - Enhancing our Shabbat services to increase engagement and appeal, recognizing that music is a core PCS value and identifying ways to build Shabbat with and through music
- Enhance our Hebrew School - Evaluating our current Hebrew School structure to be sure it is meeting the needs of our current students and expanding its appeal for potential students
- Build Connections and Partnerships - Identify and prioritize opportunities to build PCS by leveraging partnerships with other community organizations
- Increase community engagement via social/cultural activities - Gain better understanding of programming needs and preferences to build engagement both within and outside of synagogue walls
UJA Federation Synergy Activities
Last year, PCS applied for and successfully secured a grant to receive support from the UJA Federation's Synergy project to provide professional consulting services at no cost to PCS. This work with Synergy began in the Fall of 2017. Synergy findings and recommendations fed into the strategic planning work the Board has undertaken. Synergy has also been working with the PCS officers, Rabbi Julie and our other professional staff to optimize the effectiveness of our operational structure as well as our overall approach to communications both internally and externally. While the outcome of this work is still in process, a number of opportunities have been identified and will be built out and integrated over the next 12 months. Stay tuned!!
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HEBREW SCHOOL HAPPENINGS
by Galit Sperling, Principal
In April, we had the amazing opportunity to celebrate Israel's 70th birthday! It was moving to be able to commemorate the 70th anniversary of the founding of the modern state of Israel, and we loved being able to share it with our Hebrew School students. For Israel's Independence Day, our students enjoyed falafel, made wind socks of the Israeli flag (see pictures below), played the game Wheel of Israel (for which some of our students wrote the trivia questions!), and wrote personal notes to put in our model Kotel (Western Wall). We made wishes for Israel, sang "HaTikva" ("The Hope," Israel's national anthem), and blew out the candles on her birthday cake!
Although there are only a few weeks left of classes at PCS, there are LOTS of activities packed in. Please spread the word that on May 20 from 9 am - 11 am, ALL are welcome to join us! Our last day of Hebrew School (May 20) will be celebrated in a very special way, as it falls on the holiday of Shavuot. On Shavuot, we celebrate how the Torah was given to the Jewish people on Mount Sinai. On May 20, our seventh graders will read the Ten Commandments from the Torah and will be promoted to Jewish teens in our community! All students will take part in this Shavuot service, and families and visiting friends are welcome to join. Finally, we will finish our morning off with the traditional ice cream treats! Hope to see you all there!
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Upcoming Dates
Thursday, May 3: Lag B'Omer celebration during Hebrew School
Friday, May 4: Kindergarten/first/second grade (Kitah Gan/Aleph/Bet)
Shabbaton - 5:30 pm service, 6 pm Shabbat dinner
Saturday, May 5 at 10 am: Fifth grade (Kitah Hey) Shabbaton
Sunday, May 6 at 10:30 am: Third/fourth grade (Kitah Gimel/Dalet)
Heritage Day
Sunday, May 20:
Shavuot celebration/B'nei Mitzvah promotion ceremony/last day of Hebrew School!
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Maren Kenna's Mitzvah Project
For my Mitzvah Project, I am volunteering at Kids' Kloset. Kids' Kloset collects donations
of clothing and distributes them to those in need. When I go, I spend my
time sorting donated
piles of clothes into different categories (size, age, gender, type) and pack bags of clothes for
specific children, most of whom are displaced from their home and live in shelters. I take care to
pack outfits I hope make the children feel confident. I love spending my time doing something
for those who are not as
fortunate as we. My time volunteering for Kids' Kloset has inspired me
to continue
my volunteering in the future.
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Postcards from Eretz Yisrael*
Shalom Everyone,
I had my first birthday celebration
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Erin, Barbara and her daughter Megan, and Sheila helping me to celebrate
my birthday at Kapara
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in Israel.
I turned 69!
How did I celebrate it?
Well, first I sponsored a Kiddush at
Eshel Avraham, which is where I
worship on a regular basis. Then,
when Shabbat was over, I had a "ladies'
night out" at a local bar in the Old City of Beersheva.
And with birthdays come presents:
The necklace I'm wearing in the photo at the left
was a present from Yosef, my
chaver (
male friend). Of course, I consider
him
to be my first present.
Gifts from
the "ladies"
My good friend from Aleh Negev, S'rah, treated me to a belated birthday lunch at Japanika, a restaurant near my apartment.
And then, to top it off, I was thrilled to meet up with Ed Sperling at Bat Yam. I consider this to be a belated birthday present as well. We enjoyed shawarma together and then took a walk to the beach near his apartment.
But, of course, it's always nice to come home to Beersheva.
��
It's my kind of town, Beersheva is.
��
Come and visit me in Beersheva, "The Queen of the South.
L'hitraot,
Rachel
*Our correspondent is Rhea (Rachel) Wolfthal, long-time PCS congregant,
who made aliyah to Israel in August 2017.
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Exciting Shabbaton at PCS!
May 3-5, 2018
Join us at PCS Thursday to Saturday
with Rabbi David and Debra Zaslow
The Zaslows, of Ashland, Oregon, bring lively and spirited music, storytelling, teachings, poetry and a wealth of interfaith work to share with our community.
Thursday night, May 3
7:30 - 8:45 pm
Sisters, Saints, Sinners, Shamans and Samurais: Interfaith Stories, Poetry and Music, with Rabbi David and Debra
Friday night, May 4
5:30 pm:
Family-friendly service with Hebrew school students K-2 helping to lead.
Rabbi David and Debra will join Rabbi Julie in leading, sharing songs and stories.
6 pm:
Shabbat dinner for all ages!
Saturday morning, May 5
9:15 am
:
Rabbi David will lead a guided meditation.
10 am
:
Family Education Shabbat Service with Kita Hey (fifth grade) helping to lead. Rabbi David and Debra will join Rabbi Julie in leading the service with music and story. After the Torah service there will be a participatory, multi-generational discussion, followed by a special Kiddush lunch and discussion with the Zaslows.
For more information or to RSVP for any of the programs, please contact the PCS office.
~~~
Pleasantville Community Synagogue
219 Bedford Road, Pleasantville, NY
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Please join us for another joyful
Mishpacha
(Family) Dinner and Shabbat Service
with special guests!
Friday night, May 4
5:30 pm: Family-friendly service
with K-Second Grade students
6 pm: Shabbat dinner for all*
*To help offset the cost of the dinner, there is a suggested donation of $18/adult, $9/child, free/5 and under.
or call 914-769-2672.
Pleasantville Community Synagogue
is a welcoming Jewish community with people of diverse traditions and backgrounds who want to share a joyous spiritual and cultural home.
Joyful Judaism!
219 Bedford Road, Pleasantville, NY
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Please volunteer: Sunday, Nov. 20, 3-4:30 pm
NEXT DATE: WEDNESDAY, May 9!
Tikkun Olam Through the Ages
An Adult Education Mini-Course at PCS
with Rabbi Julie Hilton Danan, Ph.D.
Rather than a perfect creation corrupted by humanity, Jewish tradition proposes that God created
an imperfect world requiring human repair. This Tikkun Olam mini-course examines the historical development of "Tikkun Olam," the Jewish concept of repairing the world: in early Rabbinic
literature, in Kabbalah, and in modern social activism.
We will learn about Jewish history and theology through the lens of world repair, and consider
the connection between our own spirituality and our commitment to social justice.
This mini-course will combine short lectures, study of primary texts in English translation (Hebrew available for those who wish), and discussion.
Come to all or come as you can!
Three Wednesdays, 7:30-9 pm at PCS
April 4: Introduction and Tikkun Olam in the Mishnah
May 9: Tikkun Olam in Kabbalah and Chassidism
June 6: Tikkun Olam in Modern Thought and Action
~~~
Pleasantville Community Synagogue
is a welcoming Jewish community with people of diverse traditions and backgrounds who want to share a joyous spiritual and cultural home.
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Don't miss out on this wonderful event!
Enjoy an Evening of
Dining, Music, and Entertainment
to Benefit PCS!
Pleasantville Community Synagogue
invites you to celebrate on
Saturday night, May 12, 7 pm
at
Crabtree's Kittle House
in Chappaqua, NY
Please tell us you're coming by clicking
here
or copying and pasting:
or by contacting the PCS office.
SPONSORSHIP LEVELS
The Whole Megillah (includes 10 tickets) - $5,400
You're Making Me Kvell (includes 8 tickets) - $3,600
Big Macher (includes 6 tickets) - $1,800
Shayne Punim (includes 4 tickets) - $1,200
It's a Mitzvah (includes 4 tickets) - $800
Such a Mensch (includes 2 tickets) - $400
INDIVIDUAL TICKETS
It's a Simcha! (includes 1 ticket) - $118
~~~
If you cannot make it to the event but would still like to support PCS during our annual fundraiser, please contact the PCS office or click
here
.
~~~
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Pleasantville Community Synagogue
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Celebrate Wednesday, Nov. 15, 7:30 pm
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Come join us at PCS to celebrate
ROSH CHODESH!
Wednesday, May 16, 7:30 pm
Counting the Omer and preparing for Shavuot.
"How do we make every day count?"
All are welcome!
To RSVP call Marcy Gray at PCS at 769-2672 or
e-mail Robin Berman at
[email protected]
.
*
Why do we celebrate the new moon every month?
The Jewish nation is often compared to the moon. Throughout history our
light has waxed and waned but even in the darkest times it has never
been extinguished. This is one reason why, when the head of the new
moon - the Rosh Chodesh - appears for the first time in the night sky,
we celebrate.
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Please volunteer: Sunday, Nov. 20, 3-4:30 pm
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MAY YAHRZEITS
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Harriet
Sigal,
mother of
Melanie
Gordin
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May 6
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Beatrice
Singer,
mother of
Sheila
Major
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May 8
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Joseph
Gaines,
father of
Jonathan
Church
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May 9
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Leslie
Schmidt,
daughter of
Judith
Schmidt
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May 9
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Fannie
Korus,
grandmother of
Roberta
Korus
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May 10
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Paul
Gottfried,
father of
Ali
Serebin
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May 13
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Geraldine
Schaffer,
mother of
Peter
Schaffer
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May 13
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Joel
Goldwin,
father of
Harriet
Goldwin-Cohen
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May 14
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Irving
Stiker,
father of
Judith
Schmidt
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May 17
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Henry
Herman,
father of
Diana
Benattar
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May 19
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Chaim
Benattar,
father of
David
Benattar
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May 21
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Julius
Berzin,
father of
Jodie
Rossi
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May 23
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Martin
Klein,
father of
Eric
Klein
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May 29
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To all PCS members:
If you or another member suffer personal tragedy or loss or are otherwise in need of help, please immediately contact Rabbi Julie at (914) 769-2672 or [email protected], or to our Caring (Chesed) Committee Chair, Susan Friedman at (917) 846-3038, or [email protected].
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The PCS Yahrzeit Memorial Board is a beautiful and symbolic place to honor your loved ones while helping to support your synagogue. The anniversary of their passing will be commemorated with a light by their name plate. You will find the appropriate form for purchasing a memorial name plate by clicking
here.
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Pleasantville Community Synagogue Mission Statement
Pleasantville Community Synagogue is a welcoming Jewish community connecting people of diverse traditions and backgrounds who want to share a joyous spiritual and cultural home.
PCS officers and trustees:
Officers
President: Leyla Nakisbendi
Secretary: Laurie Hirsch Schulz
Treasurer: Oren Cohen
Vice President: Roberta Korus
Vice President: Richard Solomon
Board of Trustees
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Robert Marshak
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Leyla Nakisbendi
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Gregory Cohen
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Jonathan Goodman
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Amy Gutenplan
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Richard Solomon
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Sheila Major
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Rabbi Julie Danan
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Please click for the full PCS calendar for May 2018.
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Pleasantville Community Synagogue Newsletter
May 2018 16 Iyyar - 17 Sivan 5778
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