Monday, March 16
20 Adar 5780
Dear Friends,
The Tikvat Israel Ad-Hoc COVID-19 Task Force has decided to suspend all in-person activities in the synagogue building, including evening minyan, morning minyan (Sunday, Thursday and Friday), and all Shabbat services. This difficult decision was based on the latest information and recommendations coming from the CDC and the Maryland and Montgomery County departments of health. This will be in effect until further notice. (The most recent directive from the CDC is to avoid any gatherings of 50 people or more for the next eight weeks.)
We all value being together as a community, especially in a time of crisis, and we recognize the role daily minyan plays for many congregants. We will be sending out an email later today with information on how to join our online minyan and with online learning opportunities, both through Tikvat Israel and around the community. We will also have a community “check-in” time immediately following our virtual minyan each night. If you would like to borrow a
Sim Shalom
siddur from the synagogue to use in our online minyan, please contact Sam Freedenberg to make arrangements to pick one up. Email is preferred --
sam@tikvatisrael.org
. If you need to speak with Sam, please call him on his cellphone -- 301-646-4438.
To reach Rabbi Israel, it is best to email him at
rabbi@tikvatisrael.org
. If you need to speak with him, please call him on his cellphone -- 202-669-6854
These are extraordinary times and many things that were unimaginable even a week ago are reality today. We have a responsibility to our members, our staff and our greater community to do our part to help reduce the risks of infection.
L'shalom,
Rabbi Marc Israel, Cantor Rochelle Helzner, Sam Freedenberg, Jim Perlmutter and Warren Berger
