President's Articles - Congregation Shalom

Keeping Connected with our President

End of Year and Planning Next Year

Keeping Connected May 2024

This time of year is so busy behind the scenes at Congregation Shalom. There is so much work and focus on the upcoming fiscal year and preparations being made for the upcoming school year. While it feels like the current one isn’t over, we are already planning for the next one!

To that end, a few things:

Our Nominating Committee is going to be reaching out to some congregants in the next 2 weeks to ask if you will be a part of our Board of Trustees. We would love to have a diverse group of congregants that bring a variety of time, treasure and ties to our Board. If our Committee reaches out to you, please consider coming from a place of “YES!” when asked. Being on the Board can be a fulfilling opportunity to foster and strengthen our vibrant community. We NEED people to come from a place of yes, so please deeply consider.
In addition, if you have been looking for a way to become involved and have a talent, treasure, tie or time that you could lend us, please consider reaching out to me personally at president@congregationshalom.org. We have several committees that need members to help spread the work.
Our Annual Meeting will be held on Sunday, June 9th at 6:30PM. Please be sure to watch your email for important information and documents that will come your way in preparation for the meeting. We would love to have as many people involved as possible. We want the budget and the process to be transparent and accessible to all. You may learn something you didn’t know before about the process and how your pledge helps with the security and upkeep of our spaces, supports religious education, provides essential services and fosters a sense of responsibility and tikkun olam.
I appreciate so many of you helping to “Close the Gap” by making a donation before our new fiscal year. We are close but we still have a little bit to go – if you were considering making a donation, it’s not too late. Please reach out and I can send you more information or a link to donate. On behalf of the Board of Trustees, we appreciate your help.

Spring is on the way

Keeping Connected April 2024

Despite the bit of snow and ice that we got over the past weekend as I write this, I can tell Spring is on the way. We’ve changed the clocks, bought some tulips, celebrated Purim… maybe if you’re really brave like at my house, you’ve started to put away the big coats and boots. I can see that there are tiny buds on the first forsythia bush that blooms in my yard. And of course, the start of my son’s baseball schedule is always a clear indication that longer, warmer days are upon us.

But I can also tell it’s spring by how vibrant and active the temple is. There is more on the calendar and many of us are coming out of our winter hibernation. This morning, I watched so many kids and families fill the sanctuary for Purim. I can see the different services, events and programs that different groups have planned for the spring. Our nominating committee is working on next year’s slate of trustees. B’Mitzvahs fill the weekend slots on the calendar if you check out the next few months.

WIth all of the different things that are going on, please consider getting involved in some sort of way. We have multiple committees that are in need of members and chairs. Our nominating committee will be making asks for people to join our temple board – please consider coming from a place of “yes”. Come to a service or an event that you’ve never tried before. Try saying hello to an unfamiliar face and meet someone new, you never know what kind of connection you will have. As I’ve shared with many of you that I’ve talked to about this, after October 7th, I felt like I needed a Jewish community more than ever. If you’re looking for a place to fill that need, we have lots of different ways for you to do so. If you need help finding what works for you, please reach out to me at president@congregationshalom.org. I would be happy to chat with you to see how your needs and wants match with ours.

I hope that as the last of the snow melts, you’re able to consider trying something new with us!

-Becky

Shalomites Creative Service

Keeping Connected January 2024

Despite the cold temperatures that come along with it, the Shalomites Creative Service is always one of my favorite services of the year. In fact, it’s been one of my favorite services to attend since before I was in Shalomites as a teen myself. The service always provided food, fun, singing and a sanctuary packed with families and teens.

This year was no different. While the temperature outside was chilly, the warmth that came from having our Shalomites and temple youth from other synagogues in attendance could keep you warm for the rest of the winter. The Shalomites hosted 25 other teens for dinner and a sleepover – yes, a sleepover with teens – so a huge thank you to the volunteers, chaperones and advisors who helped make that possible. The teens settled right in and participated fully in the Creative Service. They helped lead it, sang songs (complete with hand motions and dance moves) and were fully engaged with each other and the rest of the Congregation. It was truly so wonderful to see so many teens packed into our sanctuary on a Friday night and know that they were choosing to spend their time with other Jewish teens.

An especially moving moment came when the teens participated in a prayer for Israel. It was absolutely beautiful to hear the voices of these young adults, praying for soldiers, for innocent lives, for hostages, for peace. In a time where adults are having trouble parsing out their emotions when it comes to Israel, it was amazing to hear these teens praying together for a place that many may be too young to have a strong connection to. It gave me so much hope in that moment to hear them.

If you have never been to a Shalomites Creative Service, I hope that next year you will join them. To witness our own Jewish teens planning and participating in the service is moving. The sound of the music and singing is electric. The sight of the packed sanctuary is powerful. It shows our younger kids what they have to look forward to as they grow into Jewish teens – and maybe it reminds the rest of us what it used to be like when we were younger versions of ourselves.

Israel: Welcome Home.

Keeping Connected November 2023

Growing up, I never had a strong connection to Israel. In fact, probably the most connected I felt was raising money in 5th grade religious school selling fruit slices at Passover to plant trees there – which spoiler alert: the Jewish National Fund doesn’t keep track of your trees like my 10 year old mind expected. So when I landed at Ben Gurion airport this past spring and there were signs and banners that said “Welcome Home”, I assumed it was a message for Israelis returning from overseas trips.

But the message “Welcome Home” was in fact, for me. For me, the 8 other New Hampshire women I was bringing to Israel – most for the first time – and for the 150 women from across the country that were all there on a trip with Momentum. Momentum is focused on bringing the biggest Jewish influencers – Jewish mothers – to Israel for an empowering and inspiring journey. Working with the Ministry of Diaspora Affairs, Momentum combines traveling throughout Israel with personal and Jewish growth. Think of it as “Birthright for Moms – with Wine”.

To say that the trip was life-changing is an understatement. I was lucky enough to be there on Yom Ha’atzmaut – celebrating 75 years of Israel – complete with dancing in the streets of Tel Aviv, flyovers, fireworks, and a BBQ with IDF soldiers. I climbed Masada, floated in the Dead Sea, rode camels, looked out over Lebanon from Rosh Hanikra, visited Tsfat, Akko, Haifa, Tel Aviv, Jerusalem, ate everywhere from gorgeous restaurants to market sabich stands (and ate and ate and ate…). I experienced Israel with other women from my state and country, but also with a small group of women who were until almost 3 weeks ago, retired IDF officers and commanders. These women have now been called up and instead of trading photos of our kids, we are sending prayers and receiving photos of them in their IDF uniforms. Connecting to Israel during my trip was more than JNF trees and dutifully singing Hatikvah like when I was 10 years old. I felt a true, yet unexpected, connection to the people and the land.

As I crisscrossed Israel, travelling to places I had only seen in pictures, I truly began to understand that the message “Welcome Home”, was actually for all of us. While I was at the Kotel, someone asked me, “how many of your family members, your ancestors, have stood here with their hands in this place?” The truth is, none that I know of. But something deep in my soul understood that this was in fact, a homecoming. Israel is home for all of us, regardless if we have been there once or countless times. Israel is our home, even if we have never stepped foot on the land. I hope for everyone to feel that deep sense of connection that I was able to experience. Israel will be waiting to welcome us home again.

Am Yisrael Chai.

Becky

President’s Rosh Hashanah Speech

Keeping Connected October 2023

I’m wondering… how did I get here? Maybe you’re wondering the same thing? Not in an existential kind of way, though that may be a thought for these days between Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur… but I mean, how did I end up standing in front of you on Rosh Hashanah morning, delivering the President’s speech?

The truth is, this is perhaps a role that has been generations in the making. For those of you who don’t know me, I grew up at Congregation Shalom. I had my Bat Mitzvah here with Rabbi Bard, my Confirmation with Rabbi Perry. I was a religious school teacher as a high schooler, a Shalomites board member and President. I was an advisor when I was in college. I got married here in this sanctuary. As I was growing up, I watched my mother involve herself in temple life. I would see her already very busy calendar fill with temple activities – youth commission meetings, executive committee meetings, board meetings. There would be special projects, events or fundraisers that she would commit herself to. Maybe that commitment wasn’t a surprise for her, because she watched her father, my grandfather, as a founding member and President of the North Shore Synagogue in Syosset, NY. He was involved in the purchasing of the land and the building of the temple, as well as the hiring of the first Rabbi there.More

Security Grant Installation

Keeping Connected September 2023

The next time you come to the temple, or even drive-by, you may notice some additions to the landscape of our space. Over the past year, we have had several members and committees who have been dedicated to strengthening the security of our building while at the same time, maintaining the natural and welcoming aesthetic that we know and love. As you may remember from our Special Meeting in December, 2022, Congregation Shalom applied for a grant from the Commonwealth of Massachusetts and we were awarded around $20,000 to help us strengthen our physical barrier around the building.

The grant allowed us to install a border of large boulders along the driveway and in the landscaping near the kitchen, which would slow down or discourage a vehicle from striking the building. An installation of granite blocks protects the entrance and lobby from the same, while also providing a unique space for sitting. The size, shape and location of all items were done with thought and intention to provide safety and security, while also looking beautiful and blending in naturally with our existing space.

A huge thank you to the Security Committee who worked on the grant, Cory Myers who helps manage the grant, the Beautification Committee who approved the look and feel of the natural resources, Mitch Hyatt who helped coordinate the execution of the grant and the day-to-day management of the installation, and to Josh Degan and his team at Earthscape, Inc. who worked tirelessly to provide us with access to the best resources and smoothest site prep and installation. There are so many people who were involved in this project in a variety of meaningful ways, so thank you to everyone. While I wish we didn’t have to do this type of installation, I am so thankful that there are so many members who are giving of their time and energy to devote to keeping all of us, and our building, safe.

L’Shalom,

Becky

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