Rodef Sholom: A Reform Jewish Congregation in Marin County, California

This report from congregant David Horton:

[Congregant] Shelley Brown called me to let me know about the MLK Garden needing to put up a greenhouse. So I got in touch with some of my New Orleans friends and we spent the day there helping them put it together. It was a fun day and the project went smooth. What I’ve learned most about being a part of the Jewish community is it’s our job to make the world a better place and to give back and this was another way to do that. As I get older I think this is actually what makes this world spin.

And here’s what the community garden’s director had to say:

Dear Amazing Greenhouse Team, 

I cannot thank you enough for the great work you did yesterday to make our greenhouse a reality. David and I had been shaking our heads since I first presented this project to him about how it was definitely NOT a DIY project for the unskilled, regardless of what their website said.

Your 8-hour marathon (on the hottest day of the year!) showed that we were correct. We will be eternally grateful for your investment of time, skill and energy. This greenhouse will be used by students and the community to grow food that will make a difference in their lifelong health. You definitely planted a seed yesterday that will bear many fruits. 

Bless you and your families this Earth Day weekend. I hope to meet each and every one of you in the near future to thank you in person.

Best,
Marika Bergsund, Director
GrowingGreat Marin City/Sausalito 

Finally, congregant Richard Waxman, founder and president of Lift-Levantate, donated the greenhouses that our team installed! What a great collaboration all the way around! To learn more about Richard’s work with Lift-Levantate, a non-profit organization dedicated to promoting youth and family wellness in low-income communities, visit their website at http://www.liftforteens.org/.

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Study & Torah

Torah with Soul
Shabbat mornings, 9:15 am*, Inner Conference Room
Join us for soul-lifting Torah for learners of all levels and ages. *Note: on the 3rd Saturday of the month, May 19, weather permitting, Torah with Soul will become Torah on the Trails with a member of our clergy, leaving the parking lot promptly at 8:30 am for a good hike and some good learning. If it’s raining, we’ll meet in the ICR at our normal time. 

Tot Shabbat
Saturday, May 5, 9:30 to 10:15 am
Jonathan Bayer, the rock star for the pre-school crowd, will be using movement and song to introduce young children to Shabbat morning services. Come with your child or grandchild and learn developmentally appropriate Jewish rituals and prayers that you can take home. Hear an interactive story and experience Shabbat in a new way, whether you are new to Jewish prayer or ready to help Jonathan lead! No RSVP necessary. Everyone welcome! 

Shabbat Yeladim
Saturday, May 19, 9:30 to 10:15 am
Come to our Saturday morning Shabbat service designed for a wider age range than our usual Tot Shabbat (more like birth to 7 or 8 rather than just pre-schoolers), with the fabulous Jonathan Bayer! Parents and grandparents and (even really little) kids welcome. 

Social Action

In the bin for May – Children’s books
This month, we are collecting new and used children’s books for Marin Book Exchange and Parent Services Project.   Please bring some by for our bins in the lobby the next time you visit the synagogue.  Volunteers needed for Meals for the Homeless program Rodef Sholom has been a part of this program for over twenty years, providing dinners to various shelters in Marin County.   Sign up to receive e-mails about the needs each month and provide a part of a dinner to residents of Mill Street Shelter or Carmel Voyager house in San Rafael. It’s a great way to fill high school volunteer hours, too! To help out, please contact our volunteer coordinators Rachel Mercer at Rachel.Mercer@alc.com or 479.8554, or Debbie Thal at debrat26@gmail.com or 389.1125. 

Jewish Family and Children’s Services Food Pantry
Hard as it is to believe, even in Marin County, there are people who can't put food on the table. The JFCS barrel in the lobby collects food for Jewish Family and Children’s Services food pantry program. We stock our pantry through the goodness of individuals in the Jewish community. Every time you go shopping, especially with your children, pick up some non-perishable items such as peanut butter, dried lentils or tuna and drop them off at the lobby. It is a wonderful opportunity to incorporate a mitzvah into your weekly routine. 

Creating Community

Shulchan Shabbat - First Friday Congregational Dinner
Friday, May 4, following 6:15 pm Shabbat Services with artist-in-residence Dan Nichols Come for Shabbat Services with Dan Nichols, and stay for our First Friday Congregational Dinner in the social hall. Please RSVP to Pete at 479.3441 or pete@rodefsholom.org, and let us know how many to expect. Thank you to the Green and Werby family for underwriting this month’s Shulchan Shabbat. 

Shulchan Shabbat--our no-barriers, congregational dinner program-- is funded in part by Fred Levin and Nancy Livingston; we are grateful for these families’ support of this sacred community program. To learn about underwriting or sponsoring our weekly pre-service oneg or a First Friday Shulchan Shabbat, please contact Michael Kamler at michaelk@rodefsholom.org or 479.3441. 

If you are attending services with children, please take note:
At Rodef Sholom, our intention is to create a worship experience that offers meaning to a wide range of ages and experience. We understand that sitting through a service can be hard for our youngest congregants, so we offer drop-in childcare for children ages 3 through 7. However, we expect that children ages 8 and up will remain in the sanctuary with their families. 

Shabbat Unplugged with artist-in-residence Dan Nichols Friday, May 4, 9:15 pm
Following Shabbat Services and our congregational dinner, join Dan Nichols along with fellow adult congregants for an informal Shabbat song and study in a private home. Bring your musical instrument and a willingness to sing. RSVP to Pete for location and directions, at 479.3441 or pete@rodefsholom.org.

Men’s Spiritual Journey Group 2nd Monday of each month (May 14) 7:30 pm, Sanctuary
Come join this group, which has discussed such things in the past as life journeys, religious backgrounds, differing relationships to God, Torah portions, roles as Jewish fathers, husbands or men, tzedakah, and our roles in Jewish or secular organizations. This group meets monthly. For more information, contact Rabbi Michael Lezak at 479.3441 or mlezak@rodefsholom.org.

The Lunch Bunch
Last Tuesday of each month (May 29), 12 noon Join senior congregants for a wonderful monthly lunch to try a new restaurant, eat some exotic food and make new friends. In the past, the Lunch Bunch has been to restaurants such as Lanna Thai, Four Points Sheraton, La Toscana, San Rafael Joe's, and many others. Members of the group help to choose the restaurant and look for new places to discover. To join this fun event, call Pete at 479.3441.

The Mitzvah Kitchen
Chef Jeff Kirshbaum and his volunteer crew bake challah and cook “Mitzvah” meals every Thursday for congregants facing times of need or celebrating a simcha. Volunteers are needed to help deliver these challot and meals. If you can deliver a meal, please contact Pete in advance, at 479.3441 or pete@rodefsholom.org; if you can deliver challah before the end of Shabbat, just come by the lobby on Thursday afternoon after 2 pm or any time on Friday to pick them up.

Challah Subscriptions
How would you like to take home a mouth-watering loaf of challah, straight from our Mitzvah Kitchen ovens, every Shabbat? Consider a challah subscription! 

Artisan Bread Club
Chef Jeff Kirshbaum and his Mitzvah Kitchen team have been churning out 60+ challot and 18 hot meals for our congregants in deepest need weekly for many years now. You've tasted his challot. Now try his weekly artisan creations, such as French country, whole wheat, rye, semolina, rosemary olive, and more, by subscribing to the Mitzvah Kitchen's new Artisan Bread Club. Sign up, and every Thursday afternoon, a fresh hand-baked loaf of artisan bread will be waiting for you at the temple. 

Subscription information
All Mitzvah Kitchen subscription money goes to support youth education at Rodef Sholom. Subscription rates for ten weeks: $40 challah, $50/artisan loaf, or a special price of $70/both artisan and challah. Treat your tummy right. Contact Pete at 479.3441 or pete@rodefsholom.org for more information and to subscribe.

Job Connections Network Our Job Connection Network allows congregants to support each other during these difficult economic times. If you have an employment opportunity available--even a temporary one--please consider a Rodef Sholom congregant and let us know; if you are looking for employment, also let us know, and we will do our best to help you.   Contact Moji at 479.3441 or moji@rodefsholom.org. If you are looking for other employment services, contact Jewish Vocational Services at 391.3600; and Norma Barnes, Coordinator of Marin Professionals, a program of the Employment Development Department, at 507.2114 or norma.barnes@edd.ca.gov. 

Lefferts Jewish Community Library
Stop by the Lefferts Jewish Community Library on Sundays from 10 am – 1 pm to borrow books, magazines, and DVDs on Jewish themes. We have a growing collection of new books and classics, as well as a children’s section. For more information, call 444.8159, or email lefferts.library@gmail.com. 

Women of Rodef Sholom Gift Shop Our gift shop has a lovely selection of Judaica merchandise, including tallitot, kippot, spice boxes, mezzuzot, and a variety of books, cards, jewelry, candles, tzedakah boxes, and other items to enrich a Jewish home. Now, if you can't find exactly what you want, you can still support the Gift Shop by shopping online! Just click here!

Regular hours are:
Monday - Thursday, 10 am - 3 pm;
Friday, 11:30 am - 2:00 pm (please note new Friday hours!); and
Most Sundays, 9:30 am - 12:30 pm.

The Gift Shop is located in the Osher Marin JCC lobby. It is operated by the Women of Rodef Sholom and a large percentage of the profit supports Rodef Sholom camperships - please shop here!  For information, please call 444.8098. 

Candelabra Rental
Illuminate your next simcha with a WRS candelabra! Simply call our gift shop in the JCC to reserve one for a modest rental contribution of $18.  Special candles are available for purchase, as well.

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Tzedek Circle: Food
Sunday, April 29, 1:30 pm, 16th Annual Marin CROP Hunger Walk

The 16th Annual Marin CROP (Communities Responding to Overcome Poverty) Hunger Walk will be held on Sunday, April 29, starting at the First Presbyterian Church in San Rafael. This walk, which is sponsored by the Marin Interfaith Council and Church World Service, raises funds to address the challenges of hunger and poverty globally and locally. As in past years, Marin congregations as well as service groups and organizations are invited to send teams to this fun event. This year, the Marin Hunger Walk will be one of eleven CROP walks occurring the weekend of April 28 and 29th so we're expecting greater publicity and participation. 

You can be part of it!
For any questions please email congregant Abra Berkson at chai.tikvah@gmail.com. Please click here to add yourself as a walker:  http://www.churchworldservice.org/goto/crs. You can either gather donations online or pickup an envelope by the front door of the synagogue.

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Tzedek Circle: Justice
It's a Local Story - sign up for the 2nd annual Walk Against Genocide
Sunday, April 29, 12 noon to 4 pm, Lake Merritt, Oakland 

Marty Malkin is hoping to form a Rodef Sholom Team for this event. To contact Marty, email him at mjmlaw@earthlink.net.   For event details and to register for the Walk, visit www.walkagainstgenocide.org. 

Speakers at the Walk include:

• Carl Wilkens, the only American who stayed in Rwanda during the genocide: and
• Gregory Staunton, President, Genocide Watch; Director, Cambodian Genocide Project; and Chair, International Campaign to End Genocide. 

Walk proceeds will benefit the Center for Justice and Accountability, the Genocide Education Project, and the SF Bay Area Darfur Coalition.

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Tzedek Circle: Earth
3rd Garden Work Party:Saturday, May 5, 9 am to 12 noon

At the new MLK, Jr. Academy School Garden in Sausalito Join congregants from Rodef  Sholom and other faith commuities in working at this school garden and bringing fresh food to the community. This is open to all ages; space is limited.  RSVP to Moji at moji@rodefsholom.org or 479.3441.

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