Weekly Blast
 

Happy Tu B'Shevat--Birthday of the Trees!

Flint Jewish Federation--The Smart, Meaningful Way to Give!
In This Issue
Critical Issues
JDC in Mumbai
 
UM CRITICAL ISSUES SERIES COMING!
Steve and Susan Low invite you to join them at UM's Critical Issues luncheons which have just been announced.  Cost is $140 per person for the series.  The presentations are always fascinating and the luncheons delicious.  This year the series will feature the following:
 

March 13

Tom Root

 

March 19

Michael Sandel, Ph.D.

 

March 27

Mickey Edwards

 

April 2

Susan Cain

 

April 10

Victor Strecher, M.D.

  
Our table can accomodate 10 people.  Please call the office to sign up (810) 767-5922 or email to amusser@tm.net More information will be forthcoming in the Blast.  If you can't wait then go to UM Flint's website for more information about the speakers and other details.
  

Matzo Fund Breakfast  

Sunday January 27th

8 am following minayan

Funds raised are distributed to needy Jewish families for the purchase of matzo and other Passover foods. If you can't attend please still consider a donation

  

SAVE THE DATES

Sunday April 14th

Annual Holocaust Remembrance

featuring Jeannie Opdyke Smith, daughter of Righteous Gentile Irene Opdyke.

 

April 11, May 5--9, 7 pm nightly

2013 Karen Schneider Jewish Film Festival,

Flint Institute of Arts. 

 

Contributions

General Endowment Fund

In Memory of Ann and Fred Roberts

    Linda Midler

    Steve & Susan Low

    Richard & Ilene Harris

    Frank & Judy Kasle

 

In Honor of Frank and Linda Roberts new granddaughter

   Linda Midler

 

In memory of Michael Stanley

   Linda Midler

 

Speedy Recovery to Rae Friedman

  Prof. Frank Friedman

 

Mazal Tov to Mitch Weiss and Mary Putnam on their upcoming wedding

   Morley Biesman

 

PURIM AT TEMPLE BETH EL

Friday February 22 - 7pm - Hilarious Purim service, fabulous FLRTY and young people-lead Purim shpiel, and always delicious Hamentashen Bake-Off, chaired by Kim Himelhoch.   Wear a funny custome, or at the very least, an amusing hat.  Miss our silliness-filled Purim celebration at your own risk!

 

To donate now call 810 767-5922 or mail your donation to 619 Wallenberg St., Flint Michigan, 48502
Have you included the Federation in your will?

Tu B'Shvat in Mumbai: JDC Leads a Jewish Arbor Day Celebration with an Indian Twist

 

Mumbai Tu B'Shevat 
 

With Tu B'Shvat, the fifteenth day of the Hebrew month of Shvat, falling on Shabbat this year (this coming Saturday, January 26), the Jewish community in Mumbai, India chose to get ahead of the curve. It held its own special celebration of this Jewish Arbor Day last Sunday, organized and led by JDC professionals at the Evelyn Peters Jewish Community Center (EPJCC), the JDC-developed and supported venue that is a hub for classes and programs for all ages.

 

In Mumbai's largest such gathering in recent history, some 80 community members-including 18 children-took part in a Tu B'Shvat seder "sweetened" with their traditional Malida ceremony, featuring a festive dish and thanksgiving prayers dedicated to the Prophet Elijah. The Malida dish itself was a preparation of parched rice, sugar, freshly grated coconut, and dry fruits, with five to seven varieties of fresh fruit added to the plate along with flowers for fragrance.

 

Dubbed the New Year for the Trees (Rosh Hashanah L'Ilanot), Tu B'Shvat is not mentioned in the Bible, but various rituals have grown up around this holiday, which is often seen as a welcome harbinger of spring. One custom is to eat a new fruit on this day, or to eat from the seven species (shivat haminim)-wheat, barley, grapes, figs, pomegranates, olives, and dates-that grew in the Biblical land of Israel.

A seder ritual was developed for Tu B'Shvat by 16th century Jewish mystics, focused on God's relationship to both the spiritual and physical worlds. Initially adopted primarily in Sephardic Jewish communities, the Tu B'Shvat seder has become widely popular in recent years, with new emphasis put on the concept of sustainability and the need to safeguard our planet.

 

Some years ago, JDC staff and volunteers at the EPJCC began incorporating this ritual into the community's traditional Tu B'Shvat celebration, which continues today.

 

This year's seder was divided into four parts for the four seasons, each represented by a different type of wine. And Vivaldi's Four Seasons served as background music for periodic meditations on the meaning of the change of seasons and its impact on natural life.

 

Children who attend the JDC-supported Jewish Sunday School added a lighter note, sharing their own Tu B'Shvat activities and eagerly reading aloud from the seder text. All of the kids received coloring sheets about the holiday-and the adults were encouraged to take home their seder booklets so they could replicate the celebration in their own homes this coming Shabbat.

 

JFNA FACT OF THE WEEK

Jewish Federations Connect Israel's Youth to the High-Tech Industry

 

Jewish Federation-supported initiatives empower Israeli students with high-tech and social-leadership skills. The Jewish Agency for Israel's Net@ project, which operates in 15 locations throughout Israel, connects more than 1,000 students from disadvantaged populations to Israel's internationally recognized high-tech industry. Through computer and new media training, as well as social interaction tracks, the program enhances personal development, time-management and teamwork skills.

 

More Contributions

Salimi Fund

     In Memory of Norstat Salimi

             Nancy Jankowski

             Frank & Judy Kasle

 

Stanley Education Fund

      In memory or Michael

             Stanley & Arlene Kaller

 

 Ivriah Purim

 

MEETINGS:

JCS Board 5:30 pm Jan 28 Fed office

Federation Budget 5:30 pm Jan 29 Fed office

Federation Board 5:30 pm Jan 30 Fed office