In this Newsletter:
. Condolences to the family & friends of Richard (Rick) Salter
. Shabbat service and meditation October 2
. CSL's President asks how you value this community
. Cantor Wunch gives us permission to slow down, take a breath
. UJA's LGBTQ+ Division invites you to welcome event October 6 & ADRABA online high school
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Richard (Rick) Salter
With sadness, we announce the death of Richard (Rick) Salter, who passed away on September 20, 2021, in Toronto. A dear friend to many of us, for more than a decade he was also a wise and stalwart presence at shul, with his wife, Liora Salter. Together they advised us on many matters including succession, our Chevra Kadisha and our migration to the new High Holy Day venue. Rick supported us with serious legal counsel, and was also a “judge” at one of our Purim cabaret contests! “This “little Jewish boy from College Street” (his words) took part in services joyfully and with deep commitment.
Rick was a life-long activist starting in the 1960s. At the law firm with offices in Toronto and Vancouver that he co-founded, he worked for many years to bring about changes in the relationships between First Nations & Metis and governments. As his obituary relates: “Rick always sought truth and provided warmth, clear-thinking and support. His commitment to social justice, nuclear disarmament and environmental justice never faltered; his love for his family, his friends and co-workers never waivered.”
We send our sincere condolences to Liora, his three children April (Cliff), Colin (Samantha) and Ammon (Orietta), six grandchildren: Elijah, Kolya, Eva, Suki, Giacomo and Scarlett and his sister, Bonnie. May the memory of Richard Salter, a remarkable mensch, be for a blessing.
Condolences may be sent through the Benjamin’s site:
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Dear Members:
At our Yom Kippur service, our President, Karen Charnow Lior gave "heartfelt thanks to all the volunteers who organized, communicated, connected, read, sang, played, sermonized, told stories, chanted and translated Torah, and contributed in so many other ways." She said that many of our shul's accomplishments over the past year "happened because a small group of people made them happen." Below is an excerpt from her remarks:
We need your ideas and energy to keep Shir Libeynu vibrant, relevant and strong. Each of you has unique gifts and or skills to contribute. We need members to serve on the board, to help with our anti-racism and social justice work, to help us with communications, including editing our newsletter and taking photos. Many of you have said you long to return to meeting in person, so we need a venue committee. We are close to outgrowing the chapel at the JCC and we need a place for High Holy Day services and other special events.
We desperately need resources. The pandemic has taken a toll on us as it has on many other congregations. We want to bring back the members we lost, and we want to grow… Our Torah is falling apart and we desperately need a one. Perhaps one of you, or a number of you, will step forward to lead a fundraising campaign to replace our aged scroll…
On this Yom Kippur day, when we reflect and review and think about what we will try to do differently in the coming days, months and years, I am asking you to think about how you value this community of Shir Libeynu and what contribution you can make. We want to hear from you. In the next few months we want to plan small group conversations to understand how you envision the future of Shir Libeynu…
This year is our 25th anniversary. We are Toronto’s longest-running, intentionally LGBTQ+-inclusive synagogue... Wouldn’t it be great to celebrate with a new Torah and an expanded and revitalized circle of volunteers? We would also like to start gathering in person, outdoors. If you have a large backyard or deck and would be willing to host a Shabbat pot luck or Havdalah, please let us know. Reach out to Cantor Wunch, to me, or to any other board member or volunteer to talk to us about what you would like to do to support our community…
We have a terrific community. Together we have gotten through the pandemic and looked after each other. One of the amazing things we have witnessed since the beginning of the pandemic is the incredible ability of people, organizations and institutions to adapt. We are remarkably resilient. We ebb and flow as needed to fit time and purpose. Shir Libeynu is proud of our small but significant part in the tide of originality and resourcefulness. We want to continue to be able to do all that we’ve done in the past year, and more, to build back with renewed purpose.
Board of Directors
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Join Cantor Wunch for our monthly Shabbat service on Saturday, October 2 at 10:30 am. The service booklet will be available closer to the date.
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Catch Your Breath Before the Service with Lorne Blumer
Before the service on October 2, from 9:30 to 10:15 am, Lorne Blumer will once again offer “Meditation on Shabbat.” You need to register for this session separately. Please click here.
Abraham Joshua Heschel once described Shabbat as a “sanctuary in time.” Let’s see if we can cultivate a sense of exactly that as we near Shabbat services, catching our breath, finding some stillness, and working with meditation (guided and silent), shaped by the mood of the moment and ancient Jewish texts.
Lorne Blumer is a graduate of the Institute for Jewish Spirituality’s program in Jewish Mindfulness Meditation Teacher Training, who's often led meditation for the Shir Libeynu community.
To participate in virtual offerings, you need to have a Zoom account and register. See our website for more details.
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The Opportunity to Slow Down, Take a Breath
October has begun. The weather has cooled, the autumn rains have started to fall, kids are in school (hopefully for a good, long while) and many of us have begun to settle into the regular routines and patterns of our “normal” lives. Shortly after the start of October this year, we will also begin the Hebrew month of Cheshvan. This month is also known as Mar Cheshvan, or “bitter” Cheshvan, as it is the only month in the Jewish calendar that does not contain any special observances (other than Shabbat, of course). It is understandable why a month with neither feast nor fast would be thought of as bitter, especially considering how much joy and spirit we commit to the Jewish festivals, but I would like to propose that there is something very sweet about this month.
During the High Holy Days, we are encouraged to take time to reflect on our year and take account of our souls, and then we immediately move into “Z’man Simchateinu”—the joyous celebrations of Sukkot and Simchat Torah. We barely have a moment to recover from the difficult spiritual work of repentance before we are swept up into the elation of the next festivals. The month of Cheshvan offers us the opportunity to slow down, to take a breath, and to focus on the smaller day-to-day details of our lives. Cheshvan is good practice for the Shmita year that we spoke about on Rosh Hashanah—time of rest and renewal, a year to make space for (re)growth. Calmer times like these can help us to quiet our thoughts, be present, and be mindful of the blessings that constantly surround us. This type of awareness tends, for me at least, to bring about genuine feelings of gratitude.
Right now, I wish to extend my gratitude to our Chazzan Daniela Gesundheit for being such a calm, generous, and supportive partner to me over my first High Holy Days at Shir Libeynu. There was a lot of work to do, and lot of questions to answer, and Daniela made everything smooth and comfortable for me. I feel very blessed to have a bima partner so soulful and capable.
There are, of course, so many people who played crucial roles in preparing for and leading our Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur services. Please take a moment to read through the complete list at the end of this article—everyone on there deserves huge thanks. I am in awe of this community, and how everyone comes together, says “hineni” (“here I am”), and puts their best effort forward. From the Board of Directors to the committees, to the readers, writers, presenters and musicians, our entire High Holy Day experience was truly a community effort. Thank you all.
If you were also inspired by how wonderfully our community pitched in and participated in services, please know that there will be many more opportunities to participate throughout the year. Currently, we are looking for people to read or chant Torah and support our Zoom tech on Shabbat. If you are interested in learning more, please be in touch with me at cantorwunch@gmail.com.
I loved spending the chagim with all of you, and I am really looking forward to being with you for all our future feasts and fasts. I hope you all get to take some time during the month of Cheshvan to appreciate the sweetness of the everyday and express gratitude for all of your blessings.
B’ahavah,
Cantor C. Wunch
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Ensembles and Soloists:
Ellie Goldenberg
Maria Meindl
Elizabeth Abraham
Liz Acker
Penny Winestock
Lorne Gould
Helen Bauer
Barry Birnberg
Paula Wolfson
Marc Green
Arturo Mondigo
Alex Samaras
Mary-Katherine Finch
Johnny Spence
Joan Atlin
Jamie Flagal
Harvey Weisfeld
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HHD Committee:
Karen Lior
Rebecca Sugarman
Mark Fine
Abbe Edelson
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Video editing and Tech Support:
Guillermo Subauste
Dan Aviv
Eric Cheng
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Rabbi Emerita Aviva Goldberg - support and guidance |
Daniela Gesundheit - Chazzan and Music Director |
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Avinu Malkeinu participants:
Johnny Spence
Shoshana Fainsilber
Helen Bauer
Ellie Goldenberg
Elizabeth Abraham
Harriet Eisenkraft
Elise Eisenkraft-Klein
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Sermons:
Deborah Britzman
Shelley Glazer
Ruth Dworin
Noam Lior
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Shofar Sounder:
Mika Lior
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Shofar Caller:
Charlie Lior
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Torah Readers:
Alice Newman
Charlie Lior
Jamie Flagal
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Torah Witness:
Lorne Gould
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Lillian Radosevic - administrative support and communications |
All of our readers and presenters |
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Choir Director:
Vered Philip
Choir:
Abby Pope
Alice Newman
Ariela Weisfeld
Barry Birnberg
Harvey Weisfeld
Maria Meindl
Shelley Glazer
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Poets:
Jacquie Buncel
Ronna Bloom
Jennifer Hoffman
Penny Winestock
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Workshop Leaders:
Eden Nameri
Lorne Blumer
Shoshana Fainsilber
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Jonah Storyteller:
Eden Nameri
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Board of Directors: Karen Lior, Mark Fine, Abbe Edelson, Ellie Goldenberg, Jamie Flagal, Dorothy Rusoff, Rebecca Sugarman
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Dahlia Klinger - communications |
Susan Gesundheit - art to beautify zoom |
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UJA’S LGBTQ+ DIVISION WELCOME EVENT
Wednesday, October 6 at 7 pm
Join UJA's newly established LGBTQ+ Division for their inaugural event!
Event details and registration can be found here.
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Our friends at ADRABA have opened registration for their online high school program.
They offer for-credit courses in Canadian history, World Religions, Jewish Food Culture and/or Philosophy with options for Grade 8 students.
Subsidies are also available.
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Congregation Shir Libeynu
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