June 2014 Volume 41 - Number 6 Iyyar - Sivan 5774 Town Hall Meeting! Page 4 Tikkun Leil Shavuot A Night of Study & Embracing Torah Page 5 Kosher Italian Shabbat Dinner! Hear From: Page 6 Rabbi Joshua Neely, Sisterhood Installation Luncheon as he touches on the recently failed peace talks Page 7 between Israel & Palestine. Page 2 Why Do We Eat Dairy Foods on Shavuot? President Eric Hoffman, Tasty Recipes for the Holiday Page 8 as he reminds us that, though the summer brings a certain quietude, there’s still plenty of community activities going on at our temple. Page 2 Cong. Life Coord. Cathy Swerdlow, as she bids farewell to her job as Congregational Life Coordinator, but not to her involvement in our community. Page 3 The Goold Torah: A Tale of Two Synagogues Page 10 A Message from Our Cemetery Chairman Page 18 Adorable Pictures From: Feeding Children Everywhere, Israel’s Independence Day Festival, Mother’s Day Brunch & Lag B’Omer! Pages 12, 13 & 14 Building Community Since 1954 Staff From Our Rabbi: From Our President: Rabbi ................................ Joshua Neely By Rabbi Joshua Neely Cong. Life Coord. .... .Cathy Swerdlow By Eric Hoffman Off. Admin. .. John-Patrick Alexander Bookkeeper ................... Patricia Young The peace talks have Dear Temple Israelites, failed again. There was little I want to make sure that you know that Executive surprise; the bookies only made money on even though we may be moving into summer mode Committee betting how it would be derailed instead with our internal calendars, Temple Israel doesn’t President .........................Eric Hoffman of IF it would go off the tracks. We take any time off. People have been working very 1st Vice Pres.. ........... Michael Fineberg should be sad even if it looked inevitable. hard to bring a number of activities to our members VP Membership ..................... Joe Ihns Shalom, peace, remains the goal for our and I would like to use this space to remind you to VP Education ................. Sharon Sachs people and the world. browse our webpage, www.tiflorida.org, to look up Comptroller .................... Ira Daitzman What we currently have is very far the various activities in which you would like to par- Secretary ............................. Robin Reilly ticipate. Sisterhood Pres. ......... Cathy Swerdlow from Shalom. The military threats against Israel remain real and disturbing. The sol- Specifically, we have re-instituted Men’s Club Co-Pres.. ......... Steve Berg monthly Shabbat dinners with the next two & Joe Ihns diers who risk their lives must face death scheduled for June 6th and July 4th. The June 6th Past Pres.................. Arlene van de Rijn day after day. The Iron Dome protects many homes from missiles but no system dinner will have a Kosher Italian theme while the July 4th Friday night dinner is going to be a good Trustees is perfect and the anxiety remains. Harvey Arnowitz ole’ fashioned Sha-Ba-B-Q. I encourage all of you God has promised that we will live in Nicki D'Amato to make reservations to one or both of these meals Michelle Bilsky our land in peace. God has promised that and to attend the Friday night service that will fol- Lauren Brown all of the world will know peace. If we low the meal. Judi Chisdes allow ourselves the luxury of thinking David Danziger On a social theme, Men’s Club is having Sandra Eisenberg peace is a foolish dream, we are betraying Game Night throughout the summer, on the first Jo Ann Farb those promises. If we quietly nod our Monday of each month at 7:00 pm in the Youth Andrew Feinberg heads when others talk of intractable dif- Fabienne Kaplan Lounge. Whether your game is poker, chess or Michael Langman ferences and unwilling partners for peace, Mah Jongg, you can get into a game and have some Sandy Masin we are denying God’s ability to shape this refreshments while relaxing with friends. Harry Rein (Trustee Emeritus) world towards redemption. With regard to more religious activities, we Mollie Savage Roberta Schreiber I do not know if there is more Israel have the all night traditional Shavuot study ses- Geanne Share can do to achieve peace at this time; that sion beginning at 8:30 pm on Tuesday, June 3rd, Scott Sheffler information is not common knowledge. followed by festival morning services on th th Standing But neither is there any information that Wednesday and Thursday, June 4 and 5 . Ser- would make the hope for peace offensive vices on June 5th include Yizkor. Our regular Committee Chairs or open to scorn. schedule of Shabbat services continues throughout Adult Education......... Richard Knapp I do not know what tomorrow will the summer as well as the Sunday minyan at 9:00 Budget & Finance .......... Ira Daitzman bring, but I do know the future because am. Keep in mind that our next monthly Tot Bldg. & Grounds .... Harvey Arnowitz Shabbat service is Saturday, June 21st at 11:30 am. Education - School ........ Sharon Sachs our people have lived and rebuilt on its Endowment ............ Andrew Feinberg promise. There could be peace tomorrow, Finally, I would like to invite you to attend Marketing ....................... Geanne Share or next month or next year. Our strength the next quarterly Town Hall meeting, on Sunday Membership ............................. Joe Ihns st to defend that promise must be as reso- June 1 . Arrive in time for coffee and bagels at 9:30 Past Pres. Coun. .... Arlene van de Rijn for the 10:00 am meeting start time. This is an op- Ritual................................. Natan Brener lute as our strength to defend Israel itself. Ways & Means ............ Michelle Bilsky portunity for you to hear what the various arms of Youth ................................. Nancy Stern Temple Israel are doing. Enjoy your summer and I look forward to seeing you at these Temple Israel events. L’Shalom, [email protected] Eric Hoffman Office Hours: Tuesday-Friday, Sunday [email protected] Please call or e-mail for an appointment. 407.517.8733 2 From Our Congrega- SAVE THE DATE! tional Life Coordinator: By Cathy Swerdlow Friday By now, many of you may have heard that as of the end of June I will be stepping July 4th! down from this position although I will continue to be an active member of our synagogue. It has been an amazing and rewarding year for me and I am leav- It's the Fourth of July and you know what that means! ing only because David and I wish to spend more American flags, fireworks & Bar-B-Q! In this case, it's time traveling. As I have said to many who have a Sha-Ba-B-Q! Join us for kosher barbecue delicious- asked … if I were 20 years younger it would be a dif- ferent story! ness on Independence Day; try to stay awake for the service afterwards! So, what have I learned during my year? 1. We do a lot! I have been very impressed by the vitality and variety of the programs that Menu: our synagogue provides. There is so much Beef (shredded) going on at Temple Israel that each of our Corn on the Cob congregants should be able to find something Cole Slaw of interest. BBQ Beans 2. There is a deep sense of community that per- Chips meates much of what we do. & Soda 3. There are individuals who give of themselves and their talents – far beyond what one might expect someone to do. Many of them do so RSVP by June 30th quietly and without fanfare. Using the online form or you can contact the office at As is true in any community, there are things we [email protected] - 407.647.3055 could do better. Communication is fundamental to the health and well-being of this kehillah. We can and must do a better of job of getting the word out to our members and the greater community as well. And communication, to be effective, must be a two-way street. We must strive to be clear, consistent and timely with our message, both from the leadership and from congregants. If you have an idea – share it! If you see a program you want to attend, invite others who may share your interests. I look forward to continuing to be a part of our synagogue and thank you for the opportunity to be a part of the staff this past year. L’Shalom, Cathy Swerdlow [email protected] 3 Sunday, June 1, 2014 At 10:00 am In the Roth Social Hall Please make every effort to attend Bagels & coffee will be served between 9:30 & 10:00. Game Night At Temple Israel! Monday, June 2 at 7:00 pm in the Youth Lounge Whatever your game is … the first Monday of the month is your night! Come and enjoy a great game of Texas Hold‘em, Mah Jongg & Chess (or learn how!). Refreshments will be available and it all goes down in the Youth Lounge. When you ar- rive, enter through the front of the temple. All are welcome! Sponsored by Temple Israel’s Men’s Club. Questions? Please call Joe Ihns at 407.267.2000. For the rules of Texas Hold’em check out the video link below: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GAoR9ji8D6A For the rules of Mah Jongg & Chess … ask a player and get in on a game, they’re way too complicated to learn from a video. 4 Tikkun Leil Shavuot A Night of Study & Embracing Torah Tuesday, June 3, at 8:30 pm in the Rein Sanctuary The deeper we hold to Torah, the more we study it so we can live it, the fuller we become as human beings.