Congregation Shearith Israel
  • About
    • Help Wanted
    • Mission, Vision, Core Values
    • Contact Us
    • Our Congregation and History
    • Blog
    • Places >
      • Shul Locations
      • David A. Segal Family Simcha Play Center
      • Shearith Israel Cemeteries
      • Family Room
    • People >
      • Meet our Klei Kodesh
      • Meet our Staff
      • Meet our Lay Leadership
      • Shearith People
    • Communications >
      • The Shofar
      • Our Video Channel
      • Shearith Social Media
      • Sign up for our emails!
  • Calendar
  • Connect
    • Study Guides >
      • Shabbat Morning Torah Study Guides
      • Thursdays with the Rabbis Study Guides
      • Women's Torah Study Materials
    • Travel to Israel with Shearith
    • Volunteer
    • Get in Touch
    • Groups >
      • 20s and 30s
      • College Connection
      • Shearith Singles 40+
      • Pillars: Hazak Community
      • Shearith Prime
      • Social Action
    • Family Center >
      • Family Center Program and Event Descriptions
      • Tiny Treasures
      • Family Shabbat Retreat
    • The Ladder Project >
      • Donors to The Ladder Project
    • Music at Shearith >
      • Shabbat Musical Experiences
      • Small-Waldman-Cohen Signature Series
      • Hazzan Zhrebker Music
      • Our Shearith Choirs
      • Service From the Heart Album
    • SISterhood >
      • SISterhood Programs and Events
      • Torah Fund
      • SISterhood Gallery Judaica Giftshop
      • SISterhood Board Forms
  • SHEARITH.LIVE
  • GiVE
    • Make Your Donation
    • Annual Campaign
    • Shearith Foundation
  • Pray
    • Shabbat and Minyan Times and Liturgy
    • Alternative Prayer Experiences
    • Holidays >
      • High Holy Days
    • Shabbat Musical Experiences
    • Lifecycle >
      • Birth
      • B'nei Mitzvah >
        • Adult B'nei Mitzvah
      • Conversion
      • Wedding
      • End of Life >
        • End of Life Info
        • Shearith Israel Cemeteries
      • Passings/Yahrzeits
      • Shiva Minyan Liturgy
    • Misheberach (Healing)
    • Torah >
      • Torah and Haftarah Readings
      • Holiday Torah and Haftarah Readings
  • Learn
    • The Weitzman Family Religious School >
      • WFRS Registration
      • WFRS Curriculum
      • WFRS K- 7 Calendar
    • B'nei Mitzvah
    • Adult Learning Calendar >
      • Adult Learning Class Descriptions >
        • ScholarStream Classes
    • Kesher (Special Needs) Program
  • Membership
    • Become a Member >
      • Membership Brochure
    • Membership Portal
    • Update Your Membership Portal
    • Membership Directory
  • Foundation
    • Foundation Mission and Trustees
    • Foundation Gifting
    • Legacy Donors
  • The Gallery

3/5/2019

Shearith Family BRRRRRetreat 2019

0 Comments

Read Now
 
Picture
By Rabbi Shira Wallach
The weather outside may have been frightful, but inside we made the best of it! This weekend, our most adventurous families made their way to Waxahachie to brave the cold, the wind, and the rain, so that we could experience a beautiful Shabbat together.
 
I want to give you a couple of glimpses into the sacred time that we shared.
 
On Friday night, Rabbi Roffman led his annual Bibliodrama session, in which he takes a beloved story from the Torah and allows parents and children to work together in order to retell and understand it from new perspectives. The story that we tackled was that of sending Moses down the Nile: how did his mother feel? What was his sister thinking? Why did Pharaoh’s daughter rescue him? And at each meal after that, if you looked over at the kids’ area where they could play when they were done eating, you could see them continuing to work out the story.
 
On Shabbat morning, after morning tefilla, Sarah Lipinsky led an exploration into the weekly parasha by asking our children: What is your favorite room in your house and why? Do you think God would also enjoy that kind of space? What kind of a home would you build for God on earth? And then, our children led their parents in thinking through beautiful spaces for God. Some of their creations even boasted bounce houses, swimming pools, fully-equipped kitchens, lovely strings of lanterns, and glimmering jewels.
 
On Saturday night, as we watched the sky grow dark, the temperature dropped and rain threatened. We sang a beautiful Havdalah inside, and then, most of us threw caution to the wind and went outside to toast marshmallows and enjoy the delicious nostalgia of s’mores. In the end, the crackling campfire and sheltering trees protected us from the elements. Back inside, we sang everything from “Brown-Eyed Girl” to “Twinkle Twinkle Little Star,” “Let it Go” to “Sweet Caroline.”
 
In the morning, I asked families to talk about what they’d like to bring back to Dallas from the weekend, and then illustrate it on a large puzzle piece. Of course, we all loved the campfire, the music, and the company, but I also saw sketches of God’s house that the kids designed, Sarah’s incredible indoor obstacle course, a deck of UNO cards, and even one of the Shabbat-o-grams that we exchanged at the beginning of the weekend. You can see our assembled puzzle in the group photo; come by our offices soon to see the final laminated image!
 
I want to thank our volunteer team Rachel Alexander, Shari Birnbaum, Amanda Franklin, Melissa Goldberg, and Julie Yochananov, and of course, none of this would be possible without the incredible Sarah Katz! Thank you to everyone who came, who helped create the special bonding and memories that will continue giving us joy. Let’s do it again next year!
 
Much love,
Rabbi Wallach

Share

0 Comments

2/19/2019

8th Grade Derekh social action trip

2 Comments

Read Now
 
Picture
​by  Sarah Lipinsky 
Nonstop laughter as we rode the bus, the constant reminders to lower the intense volume from chatty voices, and the endless question-asking of twelve eighth graders, made for four amazing, 16-hour days—and I would do it all again in an instant.
​
This past weekend the 8th graders from DeReKH visited New Orleans for a social action trip. Our main focuses were on gemilut hasadim (acts of kindness) and successfully integrating our Shearith teens with their new friends from DeReKH. 

On day one, we volunteered at Lower 9th Resilient. That afternoon everything the DeReKH leadership team had hoped for fell in place. Naturally. All the teens bonded, talked, and helped one another as we gardened together in the Lower 9th Ward.

Spending Shabbat together in New Orleans was incredibly memorable. The teens led Shabbat services, and two of the teens, one from Anshai and one from Shearith, led Shabbat shacharit in unison.

We studied tzedakah versus gemilut hasadim and learned why acts of kindness are greater than giving tzedakah money. We learned about diversity, economic disadvantages, and poverty in New Orleans where the division of rich and poor is uncomfortably clear. Then we discussed the realities of Dallas’ financial divide. Most of us spend our time between the tollway and Coit Rd, but on the outskirts of this bubble almost 25% of Dallas residents live below the poverty line.
​
Studying and working together blended and strengthened our DeReKH students. Getting to witness this was the highlight of the trip. I learned how bringing together Shearith, Anshai, and Beth Torah for a joint high school program made DeReKH a truly great program. We not only provide the teens of these three communities with the best religious school education in town, but we create an ideal, holistic experience for all conservative teens across DFW.

Share

2 Comments

12/21/2017

Building Community through Shorashim

1 Comment

Read Now
 
Picture
by Sarah Lipinsky

The Torah teaches us that caring for animals is very important in Judaism. In fact, we are commanded to feed our pets before we feed ourselves. Our youth group, Shorashim, took part in a mitzvah project for Operation Kindness. Operation Kindness cares for homeless cats and dogs in a no-kill environment until 


Read More

Share

1 Comment
Details

    Authors

    Shearith Israel  clergy, staff and congregants share
    ​their stories. 

    Archives

    March 2023
    January 2023
    December 2022
    November 2022
    December 2021
    October 2021
    June 2021
    November 2020
    September 2020
    March 2020
    February 2020
    December 2019
    October 2019
    September 2019
    August 2019
    June 2019
    May 2019
    April 2019
    March 2019
    February 2019
    January 2019
    December 2018
    November 2018
    October 2018
    September 2018
    August 2018
    July 2018
    June 2018
    May 2018
    April 2018
    March 2018
    February 2018
    January 2018
    December 2017

    Categories

    All
    Annual Meeting
    DeReKH
    Family Center
    Guest Bloggers
    Holidays
    Israel
    Let's Go Live
    Marcy Helfand
    Prayer
    Rabbi Adam Roffman
    Rabbi Ari Sunshine
    Rabbi Matt Rutta
    Rabbi Shira Wallach
    Rosh Hashanah
    Rosh Hashanah 5779
    Sarah Lipinsky
    Social Action
    Social Justice
    The Ladder Project
    Traditions
    Worship
    Yom Kippur

    RSS Feed

© COPYRIGHT 2020. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
  • About
    • Help Wanted
    • Mission, Vision, Core Values
    • Contact Us
    • Our Congregation and History
    • Blog
    • Places >
      • Shul Locations
      • David A. Segal Family Simcha Play Center
      • Shearith Israel Cemeteries
      • Family Room
    • People >
      • Meet our Klei Kodesh
      • Meet our Staff
      • Meet our Lay Leadership
      • Shearith People
    • Communications >
      • The Shofar
      • Our Video Channel
      • Shearith Social Media
      • Sign up for our emails!
  • Calendar
  • Connect
    • Study Guides >
      • Shabbat Morning Torah Study Guides
      • Thursdays with the Rabbis Study Guides
      • Women's Torah Study Materials
    • Travel to Israel with Shearith
    • Volunteer
    • Get in Touch
    • Groups >
      • 20s and 30s
      • College Connection
      • Shearith Singles 40+
      • Pillars: Hazak Community
      • Shearith Prime
      • Social Action
    • Family Center >
      • Family Center Program and Event Descriptions
      • Tiny Treasures
      • Family Shabbat Retreat
    • The Ladder Project >
      • Donors to The Ladder Project
    • Music at Shearith >
      • Shabbat Musical Experiences
      • Small-Waldman-Cohen Signature Series
      • Hazzan Zhrebker Music
      • Our Shearith Choirs
      • Service From the Heart Album
    • SISterhood >
      • SISterhood Programs and Events
      • Torah Fund
      • SISterhood Gallery Judaica Giftshop
      • SISterhood Board Forms
  • SHEARITH.LIVE
  • GiVE
    • Make Your Donation
    • Annual Campaign
    • Shearith Foundation
  • Pray
    • Shabbat and Minyan Times and Liturgy
    • Alternative Prayer Experiences
    • Holidays >
      • High Holy Days
    • Shabbat Musical Experiences
    • Lifecycle >
      • Birth
      • B'nei Mitzvah >
        • Adult B'nei Mitzvah
      • Conversion
      • Wedding
      • End of Life >
        • End of Life Info
        • Shearith Israel Cemeteries
      • Passings/Yahrzeits
      • Shiva Minyan Liturgy
    • Misheberach (Healing)
    • Torah >
      • Torah and Haftarah Readings
      • Holiday Torah and Haftarah Readings
  • Learn
    • The Weitzman Family Religious School >
      • WFRS Registration
      • WFRS Curriculum
      • WFRS K- 7 Calendar
    • B'nei Mitzvah
    • Adult Learning Calendar >
      • Adult Learning Class Descriptions >
        • ScholarStream Classes
    • Kesher (Special Needs) Program
  • Membership
    • Become a Member >
      • Membership Brochure
    • Membership Portal
    • Update Your Membership Portal
    • Membership Directory
  • Foundation
    • Foundation Mission and Trustees
    • Foundation Gifting
    • Legacy Donors
  • The Gallery