From The President

Warm greetings,

This past Monday night (November 23) CBS hosted the 14th Annual Interfaith Thanksgiving Service in our sanctuary. It was a High Holy Day crowd! I have attended this event 3 or 4 years as a member of the CBS choir and once again we performed at the service and Rabbi Moldo led the crown in the chanting of Hodu la adonai ki tov. It was nice to open our building to so many people from the community and to experience the prayers, chants, dances and words from members of the B'ahai, Buddhist, Pagan, Moslem, Catholic, Indian and other groups. If you were unable to make it this year, put it on your calendar now for next year. It is always held on the Monday before Thanksgiving.

The message of the each group was the same-- Peace, love, acceptance. Mark Haskett did a wonderful job of arranging the groups who shared their prayers with us. Thank you Mark and also to members of the choir and to everyone who baked or brought refreshments for the fellowship following the service.

This month has been quite busy for CBS and will only get busier as we usher in December and the secular holiday season. On November 15, Rabbi Moldo, Elsa McCoy and I met Rabbi Steven Wernick in Palo Alto along with members of the congregations that make up the Pacific Northwest Region of United Synagogue. Rabbi Wernick is the new Vice President of USCJ. He has been touring the country meeting with members of USCJ congregations. He asked the same question at each "Town Hall Meeting":  How can USCJ serve our needs?

The overwhelming response at shul after shul:  What is the value of USCJ membership?  Why isn't USCJ more accessible to its members?

Rabbi Wernick told us that he had identified 4 areas that congregations wanted from USCJ which he heard from all the synagogues he had visited:

1. Synagogue Strengthening through fundraising, budgeting, and programming;
2. Sharing of Best Practices by identifying local professional and lay people to assist synagogues and to do more outreach to the congregations;
3. Reinvigorating youth beyond USY into College and the 20-30 year olds;
4. Defining what is Conservative Judaism in the 21st Century.

Rabbi Wernick said it not his goal to save the USCJ, but to build and encourage Conservative leaders. To that end, USCJ has hired a professional consultant from outside the organization to look at USCJ and make recommendations within the next 9 months on how to meet these goals. Changes identified along the way will be implemented immediately.

Please look for updates over the next few weeks and months as the consultant begins to work on this "make over. " Go to the USCJ website (http://uscj.org) and see what is available to you. There are tremendous resources available to all members. I will also try to update you over the next 9 months as I receive information about proposed and implemented changes in USCJ's policies and programs.

Finally, I want to remind all of you of the fun in store for you in December at CBS. We will have our 4th annual Latkas and Vodkas fundraiser on December 12--the Best Party in Town! On December 17, we will have a Chanukkah Party after Hebrew School. And we will also host our 2nd annual First Responder's Dinner on Christmas Eve and Christmas day for our local Public servants who must work on those days. If you are interested in donating a Kosher Turkey or other food or your services for this event, please contact me.

Wishing you warmth and happiness throughout this season.

Religious School News

Celebrate A Night of 100 Menorahs

CBS Religious School Presents

A Family Chanukah celebration

Thursday, Dec. 17, directly following Hebrew School (5:30pm).

Enjoy a latka bar, community candle lighting, Hanukkah music, cookie decorating and dreidel competition. Fun guaranteed for everyone! Bring your own menorah to light and receive a prize! Cost is $5/person (3 and under free).

RSVP so we have enough latkes and cookies for all.

Call the CBS Office at 571-6060 or send an email to cbstodd@sbcglobal.net.

Volunteers still needed for all activities and cooking. Please contact Todd Aaronson or call the CBS office and give Sandy your name and contact info. Thank you for your participation and support!

Remember, half of every subscription to J- will go to Congregation Beth Shalom.  See your Bulletin for details.