MESH Report April 25, 2023

Even though Meny from Marcel is catering meals for MESH this Tuesday, Shomrei provided supplemental food for MESH guests on Monday. Tasty leftovers from last week’s kiddish were packed up and transported by yours truly and warmly welcomed by Patricia Diaz, MESH staffer who was thrilled to have extra food to distribute. There was tuna fish salad, macaroni & cheese, whitefish salad, penne with broccoli, fruit salad, yummy looking brownies and crumb cake. Many thanks to the families who sponsored the kiddish with the added blessing of being able to care for members of our community. Continue reading

My Extraordinary Cousin, Benjamin Ferencz

My father’s first cousin, Benjamin Ferencz, died on April 7th at the age of 103. He was famous for being the youngest prosecutor at the Nuremberg trials. At 27 years old, his first trial, he convicted 22 high ranking SS German officers of killing over 1 million Jews.  The Associated Press called the trial, “the biggest murder trial in history”. The horrors of WWII never faded, and he dedicated his life to helping victims of persecution. Continue reading

NJ Together, Tikkun Olam and the Beloved Community

“Our goal is to create a beloved community and this will require a qualitative change in our souls as well as a quantitative change in our lives.”  Dr. Martin Luther King.

When I walk into Shomrei, enter the lobby and climb the stairs for services, I have a “life is good” kind of feeling, That powerful sense of connection is strengthened when I volunteer and one of my favorite forms of volunteering is ushering. I get to say hello to people I know, people I haven’t seen in a while, and introduce myself to people I don’t know. The experience of being connected is joyous. Continue reading

New Social Group at Shomrei

A new social group called Boomers has been formed at Shomrei Emunah whose purpose is to encourage social, supportive and informational opportunities for Shomrei Community Boomer members and their friends. Activities will be aimed at the Baby Boomer generation, and, while membership is intended for fellow Baby Boomers, participation in activities will be fluid and open to all. Subgroups and activities might consist of groups for hiking, lectures, meet-and-greets, theater, and widows/widowers, as well as opportunities to connect/reconnect with people and events at Shomrei. Activities will be determined by the group. Continue reading

MESH Report April 18, 2023

A semi homemade meal was on the menu this past Tuesday. Chef Lynne, along with co-chefs Aileen Grossberg and Alex Kent, prepared Fish Fillets with Cheesy Mashed potatoes and Aileen’s made from scratch Apple Coleslaw. A colorful and healthy Fresh Fruit Salad, hearty long roll, 6 Oreo cookies, a breakfast bar and water bottle. Regular teen helper, Jaden, was on hand to help portion and pack. In spite of a few kitchen snafus, the 30 meals were ready for transport by Lynne to The Office at 4:50pm.

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Jewish Relativity: A Seder Story

We had what I consider to be small seders this year ― 6 people the first night at my sister’s and only 10 (plus our 2 toddler grandchildren) here for the second night.

I am from a family of six (I have 2 brothers and a sister). My mother had two sisters – each with a spouse, one with three children and the other with five. Adding in my grandparents meant that we had 20 people at each seder. So 20 is what I always considered to be a normal-sized seder. Continue reading