Submission #28196 by Temple Israel of Sharon Brotherhood - Sharon, MA (738)

Submission information
Submitted by mgetz27
Sun, 2023-04-09 12:04
76.152.206.153
2023
I have read the 2023 Torch Awards Program Guidelines.
Club Name
Temple Israel of Sharon Brotherhood - Sharon, MA (738)
Brotherhood Shabbat & Scholar in Residence Weekend
Club Representative
Person completing form
Dr. Jeff Shore
Michael
Getz
Club President at time of convention if known at this time
Gary
Keimach
Club President Now
Michael
Getz
Mens' Club Shabbat

Page 1

Our Brotherhood Weekend, officially known as the Temple Israel Brotherhood Shabbat and Annual Robert Zeitsiff Scholar in Residence Weekend, is named in memory of our club’s original founder, Robert Zeitsiff, and is typically held in early January. It is comprised of the following components: Brotherhood-led Shabbat services, a d’var Torah by our invited Scholar in Residence, a “Gala Shabbat Kiddush”, a Saturday evening social program, typically for members and their spouses, and a Sunday breakfast talk with our Scholar in Residence.
We were very proud of our club’s creativity these past two years in planning our Brotherhood Shabbat Weekend, officially known as the Temple Israel Brotherhood Shabbat and Annual Robert Zeitsiff Scholar in Residence Weekend. In January 2022, we welcomed as our Scholar in Residence Dr. Ephraim Isaac, Ethiopian Scholar of Ancient Semitic Languages for a Shabbat d’var Torah and as our Sunday morning speaker, and provided COVID-friendly “Gala Kiddush To-Go Boxed Lunches” and boxed Sunday brunches. We also held a “TV Sitcom Trivia Game Night” that Saturday evening. This year, in February 2023, we welcomed back as our Scholar in Residence Rabbi Menachem Creditor, the Pearl and Ira Meyer Scholar in Residence of the UJA Federation of New York, who served a Assistant Rabbi at our temple in the early 2000’s. At the last minute we had to scramble to reschedule the weekend from January when Rabbi Creditor came down with COVID. In addition, his wife, Neshama Carlebach, the award-winning singer/songwriter, performed a concert with her band that evening that was open to the greater community and brought in over 300 people.

Our Brotherhood Weekend, officially known as the Temple Israel Brotherhood Shabbat and Annual Robert Zeitsiff Scholar in Residence Weekend, is named in memory of our club’s original founder, Robert Zeitsiff, z”l. We typically hold Brotherhood Weekend in early January, and it is comprised of the following components:

1) Brotherhood-led Shabbat services – with Brotherhood members leading all aspects of the services;
2) A d’var Torah by our invited Scholar in Residence;
3) A President’s Message, by our club president;
4) A “Gala Shabbat Kiddush” that features our famous glazed Kosher salami;
5) A Saturday evening social program, typically for members and their spouses, though in 2023, as we held a concert, we opened it to the greater community. In past years we’ve had parties in members’ homes, dances at the temple, game nights, etc.
6) Sunday breakfast talk with our Scholar in Residence.

We host the Kiddush for the entire community, and invite sponsor and supporter donations for the weekend – with multiple sponsorship tiers, as can be seen in the program. We also charge a small fee for the Sunday morning breakfast.

Over the past few years, our temple Sisterhood’s members have helped with set up and serving food at our Brotherhood Kiddush, and we have reciprocated at Sisterhood’s annual Shabbat and Kiddush. The smooth functioning of our Brotherhood Weekend involves many of our members and their spouses.

We prepare flyers, advertisements and the program guide in Microsoft PowerPoint (attached) and PDF and use Google Forms and Google Sheets for volunteer sign-up sheets (Excel table attached). Our temple administrative office sets up a registration form with eCommerce on the temple’s ShulCloud-based web site.

Given the importance of this year’s concert, we advertised throughout the temple and local Jewish community, in social media, and placed advertisements in Boston-area Jewish publications. We also reached out to other local clubs and synagogues and sent copies of the flyer.
Attachments
Self Assessment
Our Brotherhood Shabbat Weekends in 2022 and 2023 were both very successful and well received, involving the participation of a large number of club members, and also bringing in a large number of synagogue and community members for the engaging Scholar in Residence, “Gala” Kiddush. This year, our synagogue President, Neil Aronson, thanked us with the following words:

“Thank you all for an amazing weekend at Temple Israel. Your hard work resulted in an incredibly successful, meaningful and enjoyable weekend. From a wonderful Mishpacha Minyan and Kabbalat Shabbat to a great turnout (on a holiday weekend!) for Shabbat services and a scrumptious kiddush luncheon to a wonderful Sunday brunch and fascinating discussion with Rabbi Creditor, everyone is still kvelling.

“All your efforts making this so successful was truly remarkable. And when one considers that Covid doubled the amount of work, our words cannot say enough for your redoubling (tripling?) of your efforts to make this weekend so successful.

“It’s an honor to be President of a shul with such a vibrant, committed and caring Brotherhood. Please send along to the Brotherhood members the Executive Committee’s congratulations and utmost appreciation for all you do.”
Our annual Brotherhood Weekend has become an example to the entire synagogue community of ways that men can be engaged and participate in all aspects of Jewish life – with aspects of Brotherhood Weekend tying into ritual, leadership, education, and community.

Page 2

Original Program
Previous Submission
Yes
Silver