Dear Friends,

Our community's health and well-being continues to be our highest priority. Our leadership met last night to discuss and make some decisions about Marlboro Jewish Center operations during this time of uncertainty, as the COVID-19 situation continues to unfold. The decisions we made are rooted in concern for the health and safety of our community, the recommendations of the CDC and the NJ Department of Health, our obligations to prevent the spread of the virus to the larger community, and of course our Jewish values.

We ask that you please read this email in its entirety. We will be providing updates by email as we receive new information and directives. All of our updates, including this email, will also be posted on the homepage of our website as well: www.mjcnj.com.

1. Starting today, March 12th through the end of the month, we are postponing all programs and events EXCEPT for daily minyan and Shabbat services. We will reassess the situation at the end of March to determine next steps for the month of April and beyond. The postponed programs include:

2. Daily Minyan will continue to be held at 8:15 pm nightly, but will now take place in the Sanctuary. This will allow minyan attendees to practice social distancing by sitting in a spread-out fashion, and will also allow us to streamline the minyan if need be. 

3. Shabbat Services and B'nai Mitzvah will continue as scheduled. All Shabbat services will be held in the sanctuary (even the 6:15 pm early service on Friday) and will be live-streamed- if you are unable or uncertain about attending services, you can view the service from your own devices HERE. This link is the same link to use for any live-streamed service. 

We ask that you not come to services if you are not feeling well, have any symptoms of the coronavirus, or are considered to be in the vulnerable category for the virus.

4. Torah Study on Shabbat morning is cancelled for the month of March. Shabbat services start at 9:45 am.

5. Tallit and Kippot - We recommend that individuals wear their own tallit and kippot to services when available. We ask that people who wear an MJC tallit or kippah put them in a bin that will be provided in the lobby at the end of the service, and we will have it cleaned before the next wearing.

6. Food (Onegs and Kiddushes) - Starting Saturday, March 14, there will be no food served after Shabbat services, including challah, wine, kiddush luncheon and oneg Shabbat on Friday nights.

7. Hebrew School and Preschool are cancelled for Sunday, March 15 and Monday, March 16. This is a precautionary measure, to allow us to thoroughly disinfect the building and prepare for any modifications that need to be made.  

Our Hebrew School and Preschool policy will follow the Marlboro Township policy- if Marlboro schools are closed, so are our schools. We will be touch with everyone on Monday to inform you of any decisions to close the schools beyond this Sunday/Monday. 

When the schools are open, please do not send your child in to school if they are exhibiting symptoms of any illness at home.

8. B'nai Mitzvah Tutoring - Beginning Monday, March 16, all Bnai Mitzvah tutoring will be done via FaceTime, Skype, or phone. Your tutor will contact you before your next lesson with exact details.

9. Youth Programming (Katan, Pre-Kadima, Kadima, USY) - Beginning today, March 12, all youth programming is postponed for the month of March.

10. College Connection - Due to the closures and switching to remote learning of many colleges and universities around the country, the "finals mailing" for our college students will not be sent.

11. Synagogue Office - On Monday, March 16, the Synagogue office will be closed as a precautionary measure and to allow us to thoroughly disinfect the main building. In the event of Preschool and Hebrew School closures, the synagogue office will also be closed. Staff will be working remotely and we will still be checking emails and answering the phone-line, which will be transferred to a remote line. Please be patient with us as we navigate this new reality- it may take longer to receive a response to your inquiry.

12. Committee Meetings - All committee and Board of Trustees meetings for the month of March will be conducted via online/virtual meetings or conference calls. Committee chairs will be in touch with their committees to provide links and instructions for their meetings.

13. Passover Seder - As of now, the Passover communal seder is still on. We will be in touch with you regarding any changes. If for some reason we are required to cancel the seder, you will be notified as soon as possible and all payments will be refunded.

14. Caring Community and Pastoral Care - If you are anyone you know are alone or in need of any assistance, please reach out to us. We are concerned for all of our community members, and especially our most vulnerable members at this time. We are here for you and are ready to deploy our caring network to make sure everyone is safe, has food, and has the resources they need. 

As always, we will continue to provide pastoral care for life cycle events such as illness, birth, and death. Please contact Rabbi Pont at [email protected] or 732-536-2300 (follow directions for the emergency line).

15. Cleaning - Our maintenance team continues to follow our enhanced cleaning protocols. Please help us support their efforts by washing your hands upon entering the building and staying home if you feel even the slightest bit sick.

The Torah teaches, "I have set before you life and death, blessing and curse; therefore choose life, so that you may live." (Deuteronomy 30:19)  By taking the above actions, we are protecting our community's health and, in the Torah's words, we are choosing life.   As a synagogue, we are here to support and comfort each other as we navigate this situation together. 

Please feel free to contact me for any reason by email [email protected] or by phone 732-536-2300 ext. 101 . 

We will continue to monitor the situation as it unfolds and will update you with any additions or changes, both via email and our website.

Dara Winston

Executive Director

Marlboro Jewish Center

103 School Road West

Marlboro, NJ 07746

[email protected]

732-536-2300 ext. 101