JANUARY 2017TEVET 5777

I remember the first time I saw the old film – grainy in black and white – feeling out of time, confused and deeply unsettled. It was a reel-to-reel of my high school’s activities in the early 1930s. Maine Township High School, as it was called in those days, sports a beautiful red-brick art deco façade dedicated and opened in Park Ridge, IL, in 1929 as the school’s second home. Notable alumni include folksinger and Cubs fan Steve Goodman and Harrison (Harry) Ford who broadcasted basketball games from the booth of WMTH-FM in 1959.

Watching that old film during school one day, I was struck by the expanse of farm fields outside (where a hospital now stands) and images of regular students looking and acting very much like myself and my friends (walking through the halls, playing basketball, swimming in the indoor pool) and sometimes engaged in very different activities (there used to be a shooting range in the building). In my day, Maine East was known for its ethnic diversity. There must have been over a dozen ethnic and national clubs: Polish Club, Korean Club, Indian Club, Greek Club, etc. The 1930’s student population, though, was racially homogenous, and the old film showed a group of students in a classroom surrounded by signs of swastikas and other symbols of the Third Reich. Shocked, I asked my teacher about this only to be told, “That was the German Club in those days. It was before the Holocaust.” The Anti-Defamation League reported recently incidents of anti-Semitism in America are higher now than they were then.

January each year marks Martin Luther King’s birthday, which also means every four years it shares the month (and week) with a presidential inauguration. As a Chicagoan and Illinoisan, I was proud to

An Anxious JanuaryRabbi Daniel Cotzin Burg

continues on page 3

CONTENTS

MESSAGE FROM THE RABBI

CANTOR’S CORNER

CONGREGATIONAL LEARNING

PRESIDENT’S PERSPECTIVE

UPCOMING EVENTS

COMMUNITY NEWS

CONTRIBUTIONS

FUND DESIGNATION

*throughout bulletin

1

5

8

10 11*

20

21

27

facebook.com/ BethAmBaltimore

US ON

2

Rabbi Daniel Cotzin Burg

OfficersPresident Julie Gottlieb1st Vice President Lisa Akchin2nd Vice President Lynn SassinTreasurer Alan KopolowSecretary David Lunken

Trustees through 2017David Demsky Risa JampelAshley Pressman Naomi Rosner

Trustees through 2018Debbie Agus Dina BillianCarol Berkower Matt Herman Trustees through 2019 Ilene Cohen Marjorie ManneBrenda Serpick Bob Wittenstein

Past Presidents and Life MembersPast President Scott ZegerPast President Cy SmithHonorary Life Member Lainy LeBow-SachsHonorary Life Member Efrem Potts

Standing CommitteesContinuing Ed Chair Roberta GreensteinContinuing Ed Co-Chair Rachel RosenheckFinance Chair Alan KopolowFinance Co-Chair Joe WolfsonKiddush Chair Desireé RobinsonMembership Chair Patricia BermanMembership Co-Chair Meg BermanReligious Services Chair Joe WolfsonSocial Action Chair Arthur ShulmanSocial Action Co-Chair Jackie DonowitzYouth Education Chair Dina Billian

Ad Hoc CommitteesAnnual Fund Co-Chair Ricky FineAnnual Fund Co-Chair Jim JacobsAnnual Fund Co-Chair Ilene Busch-VishniacBalt. Jewish Council Rep. Ben RosenbergBeth Am Connection Joanne Katz Risa JampelBAYITT Chair Abigail Malis Alex SchostakCongregant to Congregant Joyce KeatingDevelopment Chair Lainy LeBow-SachsDevelopment Co-Chair Cy SmithIn, For and Of, Inc. Don Akchin Marketing Chair Ellen SpokesOperations Co-Chair Ashley PressmanOperations Co-Chair David DemskyRes. Hill Improvement Council Don Akchin

Cantor Ira Greenstein Dir. of Cong. Learning Rabbi Kelley Gludt Executive Director Henry Feller

Rabbi Daniel Cotzin Burg (443) 202-0912 (urgent matters only) ravdaniel@bethambaltimore.org Cantor Ira Greenstein (443) 759-7807 (home) • cantor.ira@gmail.com Rabbi Kelley Gludt Director of Congregational Learning (520) 248-9541 (cell) rabbikelley@bethambaltimore.org

Henry Feller Executive Director henry@bethambaltimore.org (443) 742-9654 (cell for emergencies only) Julie Gottlieb Board President (410) 294-7418 • juliegbetham@gmail.com

Office Contact Extensions:

Rabbi Daniel Burg - 14Rabbi Kelley Gludt - 15Henry Feller, Executive Director - 20Josh Weisberg, Program Coordinator - 16Rachel Weitzner, Capital Campaign Coordinator - 21Norm Weinstein, Bookkeeper - 17Nakia Davis, Front Office Coordinator & Assistant to the Rabbi - 11 Lynora Lawless, Communications & Membership Coordinator - 10Linda Small, Annual Fund Coordinator linda@bethambaltimore.org Sandy Winters, Ritual Coordinator - (410) 598-6397 Transportation assistance? Contact Joyce Keating at joyceskeating@yahoo.com or (410) 358-5477

Office Hours: Phone Numbers:Email/Website:

Tuesday — Thursday: 9am - 4pm Telephone: (410) 523-2446Email: nakia@bethambaltimore.org

Friday: 9am - 3pm Fax: (410) 523-1729 Site: www.bethambaltimore.org

BETH AM BOARD OF TRUSTEES

BETH AM OFFICE AND STAFF

3

see my hometown Senator become president of the United States and especially proud that he would be America’s first black president. President Obama never formally invoked Dr. King in his inaugural speeches, but King’s legacy was woven into his words, and the symbolism of Obama speaking that auspicious week was lost on no one.

An excerpt from his Second Inaugural:

We, the people, declare today that the most evident of truths – that all of us are created equal – is the star that guides us still; just as it guided our forebears through Seneca Falls, and Selma, and Stonewall; just as it guided all those men and women, sung and unsung, who left footprints along this great Mall, to hear a preacher say that we cannot walk alone; to hear a King proclaim that our individual freedom is inextricably bound to the freedom of every soul on Earth.

This January will see the inauguration of a very different

president at a very different moment in history. As we enter the new secular year, there is elation among some, resignation among others and anxiety for many – particularly marginal and minority communities. Thinking back to my high school years, I remember how formative it was to come from a diverse community, a school which transcended in many ways its legacy of that 1930s German Club and became a bastion of racial and ethnic integration.

And I think about another former Maine East student who attended my alma mater from 1961-1964 when it was still all white. She served in the student council, wrote for the school newspaper and went on to great success. Her name was Hillary Rodham. She was class vice-president her junior year, but lost the following year for class president. In a letter she wrote: “…one of my opponents told me I was really stupid if I thought a girl could be elected president.”

This January, I’ll think of that. And I’ll think of what might have been.

Message from the Rabbi continued

Follow the Rabbi on his blog: theurbanrabbi.org

4

From every person whose heart is willing take my offering... and make me a holy space that I may dwell among them.

- Exodus 25

Your gift is critical to Beth Am’s day-to-day operations, its programs, and its clergy and staff.

Make your gift online:

bethambaltimore.org/annual-fund/

SATURDAY MORNING SERVICES AT BETH AM

Welcome to

The Annual Fund for Beth Am

5

This month, I am going to explore a sticky topic that often arises in Beth Am conversation: spirituality. This term possesses a very ethereal aura, which is advantageous to a point. But … what is it?

Looking at several sources, the definition is all over the map. Is it associated with religion or a deity, or not? Is it inward-facing or outward-facing? Is it entirely mental or physical or both? Is it like that other well-known definition: “I’ll know it when I see it” or, alternatively, “I’ll know it when I experience it”? If we are going to ascribe “spirituality” to so many things, it seems to me that we should have some clue as to a common meaning.

I pulled The Jewish Lights Spirituality Handbook off the shelf. Jewish Lights Publishing is a prominent resource for this topic, as it sells many books on the topic, so one would think that its own handbook could be definitive.

The opening essay is by Arthur Green, my teacher of years ago and respected in the spiritual realm, and it is titled Ruhaniyyut, the Hebrew work for spirituality. He traces the word’s first use to the Middle Ages, an abstraction of the Hebrew for “wind” or “spirit” (of God, hovering over the waters which covered the Earth) that we find in the second sentence of the Torah. Hebrew

itself, based in the Torah, is a very concrete language in its ancient form, absent intangible concept terms like ruhaniyyut. Hassidism adopted the term, mostly alluding to a life of study, prayer, and mitzvot – simplicity relating to a life with God – and avoiding materialism and worldly pleasures.

The chapter, “Jewish Definitions of Spirituality”, written by Rifat Sonsino, begins: “Though spirituality is popularly discussed in many sources, there is no clear definition of this term.” It goes on to provide nine samples. One I like is from Kerry Olitzky, from the group Big Tent Judaism (full disclosure: my daughter worked for them before becoming a Rabbi): “Spirituality is the process through which the individual strives to meet God.” I like that Kerry calls it a “process” rather than calling it an expression of values, a state of being, or a response as other definitions do.

A process has a start, its substance, and a conclusion. As far as I know, no one of us is cloistered away from distraction to spend all waking hours in prayer and meditation. All of us have lives outside the spiritual and block off more or less time to communicate with God. That means that our striving has beginnings and endings. It is what we do to transform ourselves that defines our Jewish spirituality, even if for the briefest moment, to bring ourselves to a different state during those blocks

CANTOR’S CORNERSpirituality Cantor Ira Greenstein

6

of time. In this approach, spirituality is the process that moves us from one state to another, the benefits of which may or may not survive beyond the ending of each time block, and may or may not offer cumulative benefit over time.

Perhaps it is indeed something that has no definition, but we’ll know it when we experience it. Perhaps the “it” we experience is unique to each of us and eludes us more than it envelops us. We enter another season with Kesher L’Neshamah services

which are intended to help you along your own respective processes by creating a different mood and breaking the pattern … to help you invest more of yourselves in the process.

I hope that those seeking to attain or enter a state of “spirituality” will succeed. And I hope that you will let the Rabbi and me know what worked and why, so that we can refine our own approaches to facilitate an experience that is meaningful for you.

Cantor’s Corner continued

LUNCHlearn&

THE THRILLAS IN THE MEGILLAS: EXPLORING PROVOCATIVE AND PERTINENT THEMES IN OUR FIVE LITURGICAL SCROLLS

January 17 with Rabbi Gludt: Shir HaShirim & Sexual Ethics, Part II February 21 with Rabbi Burg: Kohelet and Mental Illness March 21 with Rabbi Gludt: Esther and Gender Issues April 25 with Rabbi Burg: Ruth, Conversion & Poverty, Pt. I May 16 with Rabbi Burg: Ruth, Conversion & Poverty, Pt. II

Please bring a fish/dairy lunch.

Location: Karin Batterton’s Office • Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage Village of Cross Keys 38 Village Square, Baltimore, MD 21210

Join Beth Am congregants and friends for Lunch and Learn with Rabbi Daniel Burg and Rabbi Kelley Gludt. All are welcome.

MONTHLY AT NOON

7

While there are many ways to give to Beth Am, we hope you

will consider supporting the Synagogue’s work by making a bequest to Beth Am in your will or living trust.

Making a bequest allows you to combine your financial planning with philanthropy to make a lasting investment in the future of our congregation.

Contact your attorney to learn how you can make a bequest to Beth Am.

8

CONGREGATIONAL LEARNINGRabbi Kelley Gludt

There are so many things to admire about the Beth Am community: our warm and welcoming nature, a strong commitment to lifelong learning, the loving and unwavering commitment to being a good partner with the Reservoir Hill and Baltimore communities.

And, of course, there is Beth Am’s staunch adherence to Klal Yisrael, the mitzvah of not merely caring about but truly looking after one another. I see it on Shabbat morning when congregants check in with one another, making certain everyone has a way to shul if they need it. I see it when I attend a shiva minyan, filled with congregants showing up to be counted during someone’s darkest hour. I see it in the joy expressed at one another’s smichot when a new baby arrives, a special anniversary is celebrated or a child becomes bar or bat mitzvah.

And I see it with the growth of Beth Am’s newest Congregant-to-Congregant initiative, Reshet.The brainchild of Beth Am members Rachel Weitzner and Adam Kutcher, Reshet, meaning net or network, provides yet another loving, helpful and meaningful way for Beth Am’ers

to be present for one another. In August and then again in December, Beth Am’ers descended on the Terry-Weitzner home and in two hours made over a dozen meals to be stored in the freezer. When a member has a new arrival or is recovering from hospitalization, a member of the staff or a lay leader grabs a frozen lasagna, a pan of brownies, and with the addition of a prepared salad (and if it’s Shabbat, grape juice and challah), a ready-to-eat meal, complete with instructions on how to heat it up, is on he or his table, all by our own loving hands. Beth Am provides a little help, a healthy does of nutrition, and loads of love, all in one mitzvah.

Everyone is invited to participate in preparing Reshet meals on February 12 and May 17. The work is easy, the companionship warm, and the result rewarding. If you know of a congregant or if you yourself would benefit from a meal following the birth or adoption of a baby or while recovering from a hospitalization, please contact Josh in the office.

Thank you to everyone for pitching in and providing yet another way for Beth Am to come together and truly exemplify the mitzvah of Klal Yisrael!

Enrollment for The Jewish Discovery Lab 5777/2016-2017 is now open for kindergarten through eleventh grade.

Enroll Online! www.bethambaltimore.org

9

The Talmud teaches us Kol yisrael arevim zeh bazeh (All of Israel is responsible for one another).

To that end, we invite Beth Am’ers to gather, prepare & freeze Shabbat dinners which will be distributed to fellow congregants following a birth, adpotion or hospitalization.

Sessions will be Sundays from 2 - 4pm on: 2/12 & 5/7

Please RSVP to Josh@bethambaltimore.org

RESHET

Beth Am’s Journey to Germany & Poland

Exploring Jewish History, the Holocaust & Jewish Life Today

Led by Dr. Michael Sanow & Rabbi Kelley Gludt

June 13 – 27, 2017

For more information, contact Michael Sanow:

msanow@ccbcmd.edu 410-274-1499

10

People join synagogues for many different reasons – to learn, to pray, and to work for social justice as part of a Jewish community. We also become members so we can be part of a community that offers support in times of grief and shares in our joy when we have reason for nachas. We look to clergy and our fellow congregants to help us make sense of tragedy, to inspire us, and to deepen the fabric of our daily lives.

With the deep divisions and rise of hate-filled rhetoric in our national politics, Beth Am has provided me a special place to process these changes. I come to Shabbat services seeking something different in the weeks since the election. Rabbi Burg’s sermons have offered different frameworks, informed by the weekly parshas, for thinking about our political transition and the enormous challenges our nation faces. While

examining the Jacob and Esau narrative, for example, he described how Talmudic scholars grapple with expedient lying in the Torah story. Listening to Cantor Greenstein’s rich melodies and letting them envelop me on Shabbat morning is especially anchoring in a time of change and uncertainty.

And when I attend other Beth Am events – even committee meetings -- there is a sense of connection that seems more important than ever. Engaging with our community of thoughtful people who, while not uniform in their political views, cherish the values of our tradition makes me believe that coming together around a strong and vibrant Beth Am will serve us and our neighbors well no matter what challenges the larger world presents us.

PRESIDENT’S PERSPECTIVE Julie Gottlieb, President

NEXT MEETING: Jan. 11 at 7:30 pm 4308 Greenway

ALL ARE WELCOME! We address many issues relating to poverty, homelessness, domestic violence, environmental sustainability, literacy and more in the Reservoir Hill community & beyond!

Contact Arthur Shulman if you need a ride: arthur.shulman@gmail.com.

11

UPCOMING EVENTSJoin fellow congregants to celebrate

the birthday of the trees!

Tu B’Shevat SederSaturday, February 11, 2017 During Kiddush Lunch led by ritual coordinator, Sandy Winters

All ages welcome!

RSVP: josh@bethambaltimore.org

Welcome Abigail and Alex!

Beth Am welcomes new BAYITT Chairs, Abigail Malis and Alex Schostak. Alex is a Jewish Educator working at the Jewish Museum of Maryland, teaching religious school at Beth Israel, and doing additional tutoring and storytelling around town. Abigail is the Senior Associate for Community Partnerships at Jewish Volunteer Connection. The chairs became active BAYITT members shortly after moving to town and found it to be a great community with nice, smart, Jewishly engaged people. The couple is very excited to be taking on this leadership role and continuing to make BAYITT and Beth Am a welcoming place for Young Adults in Baltimore!

12

Second Fridays Kabbalat Shabbat services with dinner to follow. Check our social media for updates closer to the actual date.

Some events are catered; some are potluck. January 13, 2017 at 6:30pm February 10, 2017 at 6:30pm March 10, 2017 at 6:30pm April 14, 2017 at 6:30pm During Pesach May 12, 2017 at 6:30pm

Find us online:

www.facebook.com/bayitt www.bayitt.com

SANCTUARY SERVICESOur next Sanctuary Service will be January 7Join the “Kiddush Krew” and help make our kiddush buffet extra enticing and delicious!

In preparation for our Sanctuary Shabbatot, we ask you to put your culinary skills to work by sharing with the congregation a recipe which no one will be able to resist. Your delectable donation will help Beth Am live up to its motto “Feels like Home.”

Sign up: http://tinyurl.com/BASKiddush5777 or Desiree at desireemckenneyrobinson@gmail.com

13

TASTE OF LABApril 9, 2017

Monthly on TuesdaysJan. 17 Feb. 21 March 21 April 25 May 16

KLEI KODESH Musical Kabbalat Shabbat March 17 April 21 June 9

4th Annual Shabbaton March 24 - 26 Hebrew MarathonMarch 2, 9 & 23 Megillah Reading & Purim Shpiel March 11 Purim CarnivalMarch 12

Scholar-in-ResidenceMarch 31 - April 2 GOT ShabbatMay 19

Second Fridays Jan. 13 Feb. 10 March 10 April 14* *Pesach May 12 bayitt.org

People’s Talmud

Contact Michael Sanow at msanow@ccbcmd.edu

May 13

Program RSVPs to: josh@bethambaltimore.org •(410) 523-2446, ext.16

SHABBAT SERVICES ARE SATURDAYS AT 9:30 AM FOLLOWED BY KIDDUSH LUNCH

LUNCHlearn&

Jan. 21 Feb. 18 March 18 April 8 May 13 June 17

Services in the Park

June 30 & August 4

APRIL 30, 2017

PR

OG

AMS

BETH AM 5777 AT A GLANCE

SANCTUARY SERVICES ARE HELD THE FIRST

SATURDAY OF THE MONTH FOLLOWED BY

KIDDUSH LUNCH

SUNDAY MONDAY TUESDAY WEDNESDAY THURSDAY FRIDAY SATURDAYJanuary 1

3 Tevet

Chanukah: Eighth Day

2 3 4

Lab

5

6

4:41pm Candle Lighting

7

8:45am Torah Study 9:30am Sanctuary Shabbat 11:15am Shabbat Yachad

8

Lab 12:30pm Purim Rehearsal

9 10 11

Lab 7:30pm Social Action Commitee Meeting

12 13

4:48pm Candle Lighting 6:30pm BAYITT

14

8:45am Torah Study 9:30am Sanctuary Services w/ Blanca Berger- Sollod’s Bat Mitzvah 11:15am Shabbat Yachad

15

No Lab K/USY (OS)

16 17

Noon Lunch & Learn (pg. 6)

18

Lab

19 20

4:56pm Candle Lighting

21

8:45am Torah Study 9:30am Kesher L’Neshama 10:15am Junior Congregation 11:15am Shabbat Yachad

22

Lab 12:30pm Purim Rehearsal 2:00pm The Play’s the Thing (OS/pg. 16)

23 24

25

Lab

26

7:00pm Unwrapping the Holidays (pg 16)

27

5:04pm Candle Lighting

28 1 Sh’vat

8:45am Torah Study 9:30am Kesher Services 11:15am Shabbat Yachad

29 Lab 12:30pm Purim Rehearsal

30

31 February 1

Lab

2 3

5:12pm Candle Lighting

4

8:45am Torah Study 9:30am Teen Takeover Sanctuary Shabbat 10:15am Shabbat LAB 11:15am Shabbat Yachad

5No Lab

6 7 8

Lab

9 10

4:59pm Candle Lighting 6:30pm BAYITT

11

8:45am Torah Study 9:30am Kesher Services 11:15am Shabbat Yachad 12:45pm Tu B’Shevat Seder

12

Lab 12:30pm Purim Rehearsal 2:00pm Reshet (OS)

13 14 15

Lab

16 17 5:06pm Candle Lighting 6:30pm BAYITT

18

8:45am Torah Study 9:30am Kesher L’Neshama 10:15am Junior Congregation 11:15am Shabbat Yachad

OS: offsite

SUNDAY MONDAY TUESDAY WEDNESDAY THURSDAY FRIDAY SATURDAYJanuary 1

3 Tevet

Chanukah: Eighth Day

2 3 4

Lab

5

6

4:41pm Candle Lighting

7

8:45am Torah Study 9:30am Sanctuary Shabbat 11:15am Shabbat Yachad

8

Lab 12:30pm Purim Rehearsal

9 10 11

Lab 7:30pm Social Action Commitee Meeting

12 13

4:48pm Candle Lighting 6:30pm BAYITT

14

8:45am Torah Study 9:30am Sanctuary Services w/ Blanca Berger- Sollod’s Bat Mitzvah 11:15am Shabbat Yachad

15

No Lab K/USY (OS)

16 17

Noon Lunch & Learn (pg. 6)

18

Lab

19 20

4:56pm Candle Lighting

21

8:45am Torah Study 9:30am Kesher L’Neshama 10:15am Junior Congregation 11:15am Shabbat Yachad

22

Lab 12:30pm Purim Rehearsal 2:00pm The Play’s the Thing (OS/pg. 16)

23 24

25

Lab

26

7:00pm Unwrapping the Holidays (pg 16)

27

5:04pm Candle Lighting

28 1 Sh’vat

8:45am Torah Study 9:30am Kesher Services 11:15am Shabbat Yachad

29 Lab 12:30pm Purim Rehearsal

30

31 February 1

Lab

2 3

5:12pm Candle Lighting

4

8:45am Torah Study 9:30am Teen Takeover Sanctuary Shabbat 10:15am Shabbat LAB 11:15am Shabbat Yachad

5No Lab

6 7 8

Lab

9 10

4:59pm Candle Lighting 6:30pm BAYITT

11

8:45am Torah Study 9:30am Kesher Services 11:15am Shabbat Yachad 12:45pm Tu B’Shevat Seder

12

Lab 12:30pm Purim Rehearsal 2:00pm Reshet (OS)

13 14 15

Lab

16 17 5:06pm Candle Lighting 6:30pm BAYITT

18

8:45am Torah Study 9:30am Kesher L’Neshama 10:15am Junior Congregation 11:15am Shabbat Yachad

5777

JANUAR

YTEVET SH

’VAT

2017

16

March 24th through 26th4th Annual Shabbaton

March 31st through April 1stScholar in Residence: Stay Tuned!

Sunday, April 30Sages for the AgesThis year Ron Shapiro welcomes Drs. Freeman Hrabowski, President of UMBC, and Sonja Santelises, CEO of Baltimore Public Schools for a discussion on leadership.

Wednesday, May 10Israel’s Challenges from Within and WithoutDr. Robert Freedman provides perspective on today’s issues.

CONTINUING

education

The Play’s the Thing: COPENHAGEN January 22, 2:00 p.m.the DCJCC Theatre J 1529 16th St NW, Washington DC 20036

This Tony Award-winning play, written by Michael Frayn, is about the historic meeting in 1941 between the German physicist Werner Heisenberg and his Danish counterpart, Niels Bohr has intrigued and divided historians and scientists ever since. Old friends and colleagues, they find themselves on opposite sides in a world war and embroiled in a race to create the atom bomb. This play is a classic of modern drama—a meditation on friendship and moral responsibility, intellectually dazzling, and deeply moving that journeys through the realm of science and beyond.

BETH AM GROUP PRICE: $47.25 per ticket Enter COUPON CODE: BETHAMReserve your tickets before Jan. 8 or they will be released to the general public. Upon purchasing your tickets, YOU MUST email Josh@bethambaltimore.org to let us know that you are attending.

• We are looking into meeting for lunch before the show.• Discounted parking available through www.parkingpanda.com • If there is interest, we can look into carpooling or taking the MARC train together.

theaterj@theaterj.orgBox office: 202-777-3210

5777Beth Am Inter faith Unwrapping the Holidays with Rabbi Burg.January 26, 7:00 p.m. @ Beth Am synagogue

As a follow up to the December Dilemma program last year, join Rabbi Burg for an interactive conversation to “unwrap” and discuss how the holidays were for your interfaith family, whether you are parents, grandparents or other family members. For interfaith families in particular, December can be a stressful time, demanding decisions about whether to celebrate one or both holidays and how to deal with hurt feelings or disapproval from extended family. Rather than providing stock answers to questions and concerns, Rabbi Burg will address topics that will encourage understanding and stimulate discussion in a safe space.

Please RSVP by January 22, to josh@bethamgaltimore.org

17

find your inner hero.

Beth Am’s Fourth Annual Shabbaton Spend a relaxing weekend at Capital Camps -- just 90 minutes away -- with Beth Am heroes from all generations. Learn about the lives of famous Jews from biblical times through today while discovering your own inner superpower. Registration is now open!

SacredPACE

18

19

Items are ready to find a new home - yours! Come browse! After hours and special appointment times contact:

Marcia: 410-433-5582 Bonnie: 410-653-2380

SHUKAN STORE

“In the Kitchen with Harriet, Vol.2” is available.

Hardcover: $25 Paperback: $18

The net proceeds benefit Beth Am.

Order/Reserve your copy today! 410-523-2446 or nakia@bethambaltimore.org

In the spirit of volunteerism, we would like to invite you to help clean up after Kiddush Lunch.

Join our unofficial cleanup crew to make the transition quicker and

cleaner than ever before. Make it a mitzvah!

From time to time Beth Am members ask for help in the following ways:

• Rides to shul and events • Rides to doctor appointments • One-Dish Meals for those who are ill • Occasional errands

Beth Am’s Congregant to Congregant (C2C) committee wants to provide these services for our members. Please indicate your interest to Joyce Keating: joyceskeating@yahoo.com

20

PRAYERS FOR HEALINGJamie Hecker Becky Pepkowitz-Gilstrop Quinn PhamSherwood Ross Judith LevyRon ShapiroNelson WrubleIra Wruble Barbara Hakim Michael FeldmanMary JonasBertha SchwarzAlexa Moinkoff Gloria AskinStephanie WhippoClaire Tesh Stoltze Robert YoungCarolann CoryRalph DinsdaleGavriel Haskins Rebecca Feldberg Jacqueline Martins Bert RosenheckMurray RoseCole DeLormeJoshua SimonKoby GruenwaldChristine FletcherLenore and Marvin BermanNed PollardBurton GoldMerle and Murray SachsDonald AllenRobin LeidnerHilda CoyneVickie DorfFran Kanterman

COM

MU

NIT

Y N

EWS

70+ BIRTHDAYSStephen Busky 3-JanFrancine Krumholz 3-JanSarah Miller 5-JanHarvey Galinn 8-JanEdward Sills 8-JanMary Semel 9-JanEdward Hord 10-JanDiane Levine 11-JanLinda Lapides 12-JanStanley Fine 13-JanLynne Lamberg 13-JanKen Williams 16-JanPhyllis Gerber 17-JanMarsha Grayson 17-JanNancy Bloom 18-JanHoward Cohen 23-JanElizabeth Moser 23-JanLoretta Robinson 24-JanBarbara Kornblatt 25-JanPenelope Cordish 29-JanDavid Cordish 30-Jan

50+ ANNIVERSARIESSidney & Cynthia Brower 22-JanSiggy & Barbara Shapiro 24-Jan

RECENT DEATHSGoldie Greenstein, mother of Cantor Ira Greenstein (Roberta) Ann H. Sarrin Hilda Perl Goodwin, mother of Mary Azrael, grandmother of Matthew (Beth) Azrael, and Anna (Deric) Azrael Hetzel, and great-grandmother of Zachary and Molly Azrael and Elizabeth Hetzel David Kornblatt, husband of Barbara Kornblatt Nelson Fishman, husband of Sara W. Fishman, father of Jonathan (Gail) Fishman, brother of David (Merle) Fishman and grandfather of Sasha and Leah Fishman Edward Gulin, husband of Ida Gulin, father of Joan (Stuart) Schoenfeld Miriam Shulman, mother of David (Carol) Shulman and grandmother of Gabriel Nathan Shulman and Michael Jacob Shulman Doris Fader, mother of Eileen Fader (Steve Himmelrich) and grandmother of Jessie and Andie Himmelrich Shirley Leaderman, mother of Pamela (Mark) Berman Gary Stern, cousin of Michael Sanow Bertha Grodstein, mother of Deena Cooper

21

CONTRIBUTIONSThank you!

NO

VEM

BER

Building Preservation & Ritual Enhancement Fund

Karen Egorin, Marty Yaker & Family in memory of Debbie Potts, wife of Efrem PottsMyra & Buzzy Hettleman in memory of Debbie Potts, wife of Efrem PottsNadja & Albert Pats in memory of his brother, Sidney Pats, on his yahrzeitJill & David Paulson in memory of Shirley Leaderman, mother of Pamela Berman in memory of Doris Fader, mother of Eileen FaderGwen & Jerry Paulson in honor of David Paulson, on his birthdayCarol & David Shulman in memory of Debbie Potts, wife of Efrem Potts in memory of her mother, Edith Cohen, on her yahrzeitMark Weinstein in memory of Edward Gulin, husband of Ida Gulin

Cantor's Discretionary Fund

Choir in appreciation Naomi Goldstick Rosner & Gary Rosner in memory of his father Norman Rosner, on his yahrzeit

Educator’s Discretionary Fund

Nancy & Richard Bloom in honor of Leah Jacobs & Jonathan Gress-Wright and Erica & Lou Jacobs, on the birth of their daughter and granddaughter Flora Jacobs Gress in honor of Anna Rammelkamp & Francisco Gomez-Martos and Abby & Charles Rammelkamp, on the birth of their daughter and granddaughter Paloma Clio Gomez-Martos in honor of Cheri & Ed Levin

Etta & Louis L. Kaplan Education Fund

Ricky & Eric Fine in memory of Debbie Potts, wife of Efrem Potts in memory of her father, Eugene Scherl, on his yahrzeitLinda & Jack Lapides in memory of Debbie Potts, wife of Efrem Potts in memory of Shirley Leaderman, mother of Pamela BermanElaine Weiss & Julian Krolik in memory of Debbie Potts, wife of Efrem PottsMarcia & Robert Kargon in memory of Debbie Potts, wife of Efrem Potts

Lorraine & Mark Schapiro in memory of her father, Joseph Goldenberg, on his yahrzeit

Garden Fund

22

Kiddush Fund

Shirley Braverman in memory of her brother, Oscar Goldman, on his yahrzeitKaren Egorin, Marty Yaker & Family in gratitude for the recovery of his parents, Ida & Abe YakerAbby & Charles Rammelkamp in memory of Debbie Potts, wife of Efrem Potts in memory of Miriam Shulman, mother of David ShulmanSusan, Richard & Dani Rubin and Jim Schwartz in memory of Debbie Potts, wife of Efrem Potts

Sarajane Greenfeld in memory of her husband, Martin Greenfeld in honor of her grandchildren, Lee Brill, Debbie Brill, Maya Greenfeld, Justin Greenfeld and Julianna SchweitzerSarajane Greenfeld and Trina Jacobs in memory of their parents, Doris & Norman Gold, on their yahrzeitsTrina Jacobs in memory of her husband, Bobby JacobsJudy Rousuck in memory of her mother, Irene Rousuck, on her yahrzeitJim Schwartz in memory of Mimi Davidoff, mother of Judy Drager- Davidoff & Amy Davidoff in memory of Debbie Potts, wife of Efrem PottsJanis, Jay and Melissa Silverman in memory of his parents Morris & Sylvia Silverman, on their yahrzeitsLiz & Brian Weese in memory of her father Alexander Grass and their grandson Luca Scalia

Prayer Book Fund for Siddur

General Fund

Hillary & Jim Jacobs in memory of Shirley Leaderman, mother of Pamela Berman in honor of Michael Weinberg, on his 70th birthday Julie Kleinman in appreciation of Henry Feller, Julian Lapides & Julie Gottlieb

Temple Oheb Shalom in memory of Debbie Potts, wife of Efrem Potts

I. William Schimmel Student Scholarship Fund

Lisa & Don Akchin in memory of Miriam Shulman, mother of David Shulman in memory of Edward Gulin, father of Joan SchoenfeldDavidoff Family in appreciation of Rabbi Burg

Rabbi's Discretionary Fund

Prayer Book Fund

Helene Goldberg in memory of Debbie Potts, wife of Efrem Potts in memory of her sister Maxine, on her yahrzeit

23

Rabbi's Discretionary Fund cont.

Social Action Fund

Jackie & Mark Donowitz in memory of her parents, Ruth & Walter Marx, on their yahrzeitsBetsy & George Hess in memory of Debbie Potts, wife of Efrem PottsHillary & Jim Jacobs in memory of Doris Fader, mother of Eileen Fader in honor of Don Akchin’s Recognition by the RHICCheri &Ed Levin in memory of Mimi Davidoff, mother of Judy Drager- Davidoff & Amy Davidoff in honor of Jacob Sherber, on his Bar MitzvahSusan & Neal Serotte in memory of her mother, Blossom Kahn, on her yahrzeitJulian Krolik & Elaine Weiss in memory of Mimi Davidoff, mother of Judy Drager- Davidoff & Amy Davidoff

Youth & Teen Education Support Fund

Rebecca & Perry Bridger in memory of Debbie Potts, wife of Efrem Potts

Eleanor & David Goldstein in memory of her brother, Allan Shenker, on his yahrzeitJan Kaufman in memory of Debbie Potts, wife of Efrem PottsJoyce Keating in memory of Debbie Potts, wife of Efrem Potts in memory of Miriam Shulman, mother of David ShulmanJodi Segal in appreciation Susan & Neal Serotte in memory of her mother, Blossom Kahn, on her yahrzeitAnn Starer & Ken Gross in memory of his father, Jerome Gross, on his yahrzeitGail & Lou Wohlmuth in memory of Miriam Shulman, mother of David Shulman

Donate to Beth Am

Make donations online to acknowledge life cycle

events and special occasions.

24

Option 2: Reserve plaque(s)

_______ I would like to pre-order a “Reserved” plaque(s). _______ Quantity

______________________________________Your Name

______________________________________Phone

Memorial Plaques are added to the Beth Am Memorial Tablets in the Sanctuary lobby. Please complete this form to place your order.

*Plaques ordered by January 15 are expected to be dedicated on Passover

Option 1: Order plaque(s)

_________________________________________________________________________________Your Name

_________________________________________________________________________________Address (line 1)

_________________________________________________________________________________Address (line 2)

_________________________________________________________________________________Phone

_________________________________________________________________________________English Name of the Deceased

_________________________________________________________________________________His/Her relationship to you

_______________________________________ _________________________________________ English Date of Death (month, date, year) Hebrew Date of Death (month, date, year)

Please indicate the time of death: ______AM ______PM

COST PER PLAQUE: $595

I would like to order ________ plaques. At $595 each (total): _________

MEM

OR

IAL

PLA

QU

E FO

RM

25

PR

AYER

BO

OK

/SID

DU

RIM

FO

RM

Which book(s) you wish to dedicate: _________________________________ How many:_____ Contact phone number: ______________________ Email:____________________________________________________________

You may dedicate/rededicate a siddur in honor or memory of a loved one, including placement of a bookplate in the siddur.

From now until 12/31/16, as long as we have undedicated siddurim, they will be available at a reduced price:

Standard Lev Shalem $48 Large print Lev Shalem $85

Siddur Eit Ratzon $65

Sim Shalom (weekday) $48

____________________________in H/M/A ____________________________ ____________________________in H/M/A ____________________________ ____________________________in H/M/A ____________________________ ____________________________in H/M/A ____________________________ Send Acknowledgement to:

Name: ___________________________________________________________ Address: ________________________________________________________

City/State/Zip: ____________________________________________________ Note: ____________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________

The name(s) of those people you wish to honor/memorialize/appreciate:

26

Return form(s) to: Beth Am Synagogue 2501 Eutaw Place

Baltimore, Maryland 21217

or

Fax (410) 523-1729

Please make checks payable to:Beth Am Synagogue

Questions? Call Nakia at 410-523-2446 or email her at nakia@bethambaltimore.org

As a kindness to neighbors without parking pads or garages, please park in the Beth Am parking lot behind the Esplanade Apartments - unless you have mobility or accessibility concerns. The lot is accessible from Brooks Lane and Beth Am’s spaces are designated by blue stripes. Take care to park only in the Beth Am spaces to avoid being towed (at your expense).

PhotographersJim Burger Aaron Levin Michael Temchine Siobhan O’Brian

ProofreadersSarajane GreenfeldBetty Seidel

Beth Am’s publications wouldn’t be possible without the help and generosity of our proofreaders & photographers:

27

Accessibility Fund - Used to make the facility accessible to those with impaired physical abilities

Adult Education Fund - Supports educational programs for all adults

BAYITT Fund - Beth Am’s Young Adult Initiative for 20’s and 30’s

Building Preservation and Ritual Enhancement Fund - Supports the preservation and renovation of the building and the ritual items

Cantor’s Discretionary Fund - Allows the Cantor to support special programs and individuals in need

Educator’s Discretionary Fund - Allows the Educator to support special programs and individuals in need

Etta & Louis L. Kaplan Education Fund Supports the purchase of furniture, equipment and capital improvements for the Jewish Discovery Lab

Floral Fund - Beautifies the Bimah

Garden Fund - Beautifies grounds

General Fund - Applied to the operating budget of the congregation

I. William Schimmel Student Scholarship Fund - Assists students in their educational pursuits

Kiddush Fund - Used for luncheons following Sabbath and holiday services

Prayer Book Fund - Supports the purchase of prayer books and dedication prayer books

Rabbi’s Discretionary Fund - Allows the Rabbi to support special programs and individuals in need

Social Action Fund - Supports social action activities in the Reservoir Hill area and the general community

Tiny Tots Shabbat Fund - Supports Shabbat programs for our preschoolers

Youth & Teen Education Support Fund - Supports educational programs for all of Beth Am’s youth

ACKNOWLEDGE THE OCCASION THROUGH BETH AMWe encourage all congregants to send their contribution requests directly to Nakia Davis, nakia@bethambaltimore.org so they can be processed in a timely manner. Online donations available at our website bethambaltimore.org/donate/

First & Last Name(s): __________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________If your contribution is from a couple or family, please list all names (use additional paper if necessary)

Telephone: (________) __________ - ___________________

Address: ___________________________________________________________________________

City/State/Zip: _____________________________________________________________________

Date: _______________________________ Amount of Donation: ____________________________($18 minimum requested; please make checks payable to Beth Am)

Fund Designation____________________________________________________________________

In honor/memory/appreciation of ______________________________________________________Send Acknowledgement Card To:

Name: _____________________________________________________________________________

Address: ___________________________________________________________________________

City/State/Zip: _____________________________________________________________________

FUND DESIGNATION

25

01

Eu

taw

Pla

ce

Ba

ltim

or

e, M

D 2

12

17

Beth

Am

Syn

agog

ue is

a m

embe

r of

the

Unite

d Sy

nago

gue

of

Cons

erva

tive

Juda

ism

. Lo

ok fo

r the

USC

J on-

line

at:

ww

w.u

scj.o

rg.

© 2

017

Beth

Am

Syn

agog

ue