If we build it...

Rendering of BKA

fifty3 — Tue, 14 Jul 2009 08:28:37 +0000

Just uploaded the rendering video of the shul. Looks cool. Use it to show friends! Don’t forget also to make sure you show up on Saturday night to the meeting at 9:30pm. Place to be announced. Also, please makre to take the tour of the building!

Daniel, Moshe and Mohamed (and the view from the second floor

fifty3 — Mon, 29 Jun 2009 09:45:09 +0000

Smachot

fifty3 — Mon, 29 Jun 2009 09:41:14 +0000

Sorry I haven’t had a chance to write in a while. This week, IY”H we will be celebrating three special smachot. Leah Hellerstein will be celebrating her bat mitzvah; Daniel Zacks will be celebrating his bar mitzvah, and hopefully, Risa and Noah Lasson will be making a brit for their newborn son. Mazal Tov x 3! This is not to mention the families who are moving in this week after making aliyah to Modiin. I know of at least one arriving this week. If anyone hears of other families moving in, please do your best to let us know so that we can give them the special BKA welcome!

On the fundraising side of things, I’d like to thank everyone for all their continued hard work. We will make today’s payment and have begun to make a dent in next month’s. Just yesterday, we got a call from a member of the shul who let us know that he was able to convince the estate of a relative to donate $10,000 to BKA. Yasher Koach! As the summer arrives, and everyone either begins their travels or has more time, please don’t stop working hard to think of ways or people you can contact to offer them the special opportunity to get involved in supporting a beautiful new shul in the Modiin.

One last thing, I joined Daniel Billig today (along with 4 others) on his tour of the building. There is no substitute for walking through what will be our shul. As another member told me this past Shabbat after he too took the tour, as he was walking through the shul, he felt proud that our community is coming together, putting our priorities where they should be and building a real shul. If the times that Daniel has offered don’t work for you, please contact him and he can make a more convenient time to take you.

Settling back in Modiin

fifty3 — Wed, 17 Jun 2009 08:59:57 +0000

We made it home. The week was at times busy and intense, but we made sure to include some time to try to enjoy ourselves as well. My main takeaways are that we are zocheh to be a part of something special here in our little corner of the world. We are really building a community form the ground up based on ideals and torah. While this may sound trivial, to do so in the heart of Israel during these difficult financial times is something to be proud of. Having returned only two days ago, I have been inundated with updates and calls about literally tens of initiatives of ppeople getting involved and active in making our shul building a reality. This is incredibly exciting. At the same time, I am excited by the opportunity that the grant and other activities offer us to get even more people involved in our communal cause of not only helping ourselves, but in helping, learning about and participating in the global Jewish community.

Click here to see more pictures from the trip.

Click here to read a more detailed update of the trip.

Click here for a video of out-loud bentching at the conference.

Send an email to either myself, Daniella Hellerstein or Rabbi David Fine to find out hwo you can be involved in either the implementaiton of the grant, our sister shul project or our growing relationship with the Rochester Jewish community.

Made it to Rochester

fifty3 — Fri, 12 Jun 2009 22:04:18 +0000

We just arrived at the home of the Kilimnicks – the Rabbi and Rebbetzin of the shul we are visiting. In the local bakery there is a sign announcing Rav Sobol’s learning on the lawn tomorrow. Finally a day without rain. We met some good people at the Federation earlier in the day. Said hi to Mike and others. It smells delicious here and I am sure Shabbat will be nice. Rav Sobol had a blast at Sam’s Club (and Costco yesterday). Lots of stories and hopefully some good developments for BKA.

Click here to see Rav Sobol at Sam’s Club

Shabbat Shalom. I promise pictures will follow. Don’t have a card reader on me right now.

Legacy Conference II

fifty3 — Thu, 11 Jun 2009 19:13:00 +0000

Finally today, I have had some time to relax and reflect. The LHIP conference ended yesterday afternoon. On the final day, there were breakout groups and our shul participated with three other Israeli winners of the grant. We presented our proposal to our colleagues and together commented and refined it. It was received with a real sense of excitement by everyone in the room. In general the entire conference was a great way for us to converse and discuss with other leaders of shuls from all denominations across the globe.

I really believe that with this grant, we will be able to carry out some innovative and engaging programming which will enable our shul to reach even greater heights!

Click here to listen and see the entire conferenece joining in unison to sing a carlebach niggun

Now to the more exciting stuff. Our trip happened to coincide with the Shul dinner for Lincoln Square Synagogue — so I went. I ran into Aryeh Bak’s mother, Shefa Weinstein’s parents and many other old friends. The Rabbi began his remarks with recognizing the heroism of the security guard who put his life on the line earlier in the day to prevent anyone else from getting hurt at the Holocaust museum in DC.

Today, I took Rav Sobol to take care of some important things — Target, Old Navy, etc… Tonight, Fred Green is taking him out to dinner.

There have been many scenses that I’d love to share — and will over time — that are reminiscent of Eddie Murphy in Coming to America. When I find the cord, I will upload some interesting videos.

Tomorrow morning, we depart at 7Am to our sister city of Rochester, NY where the Rabbi will be delivering the Shabbat drasha and giving a shiur.

Hope to write more soon.

Legacy Conference

fifty3 — Tue, 09 Jun 2009 18:25:54 +0000

So after flying on Sunday night, we arrived here in beautiful Newark, NJ and the conference began last night. Pretty interesting mix of people attending. Representatives of over 40 congregations — only 8 Orthodox — talking about how to change their congregations and make them more engaged. I think we face a different challenge as we are more of a new shul. It is more how to get people committed enough to contribute more of thier time to spread the burden of building our community a little more equal. Here’s to hoping we can be succesful on ths journey. Pictures and videos to come soon.

Presents to the shul

fifty3 — Thu, 04 Jun 2009 21:39:10 +0000

Just back form a birthday party where we were asked to make a donation to the shul instead of giving the birthday boy a gift. HAppy Birthday David W. What a nice idea. Annie Nadel did something similar a couple of weeks ago for her granddaughter’s simchat bat. I hear a similar idea is in the works for Bar and Bat Mitzvah boys/girls. The creativity and sense of involvement in this project is only spreading. Baruch Hashem!

Beginning the Second Floor

fifty3 — Wed, 03 Jun 2009 18:10:29 +0000

Torah Mitzion Shabbaton

fifty3 — Wed, 03 Jun 2009 18:05:02 +0000

This weekend we are hosting a shabbaton of the shlichim for next year for Torah Mitzion. It’s a great opportunity both for us to offer hachnasat orchim, but also for the shlichim to gelan form us what they should expect when they go to their respective Diaspora communities. We know from last year, that this Shabbat really gives the shlichim a great send off and allows them to hit the gorund running. Moreover, it affords them the opportunity to help spread the word of the incredible community we have built here in Modiin.

Parentheitcally, you never know, but these things could lead to more potential donations. The last shabbaton we hosted — one of the parents of one of the students sent in a donation to the shul…

Oh, also, good luck to Ruchama and Shlomtzi on the used book sale tomorrow and Friday and kol hakavod. Tamar and Ruth had a super succesful bake sale. Keep ‘em coming! Everyhting helps!!!!