Report from Captain Fern Heinig:
It was an icy night but the Carol Starr MESH Cafe was able to open their doors. It was a concern whether staff and volunteers could make it to Shomrei because of the icy roads but everyone made the gallant effort so our guests would have a dry space and nutritious food to eat.
This year the Latke Crew baked 720 (gluten free) latkes for the Hanukkah party! Thanks and “yasher koach” to the entire hardworking Latke Crew: Charlie and Alan Breslin, Adrienne Shulman and Michael Sag. A number of people asked me for my recipe, so here it is:
From Captain Fern Heinig:
The Tuesday before Thanksgiving we had a full Cafe. 23 guests joined us for dinner at our tables while 2 guests had take away.
We were also blessed with an army of volunteers. Key Club student Emily volunteered for the first time while regular Amalia and Lewis, with three friends came in time for service. Captain Fern had four adult friends, Holly, Brian, Tracie, and Mary come with 8 teenagers. MESH staff regulars, Adrienne, Bonny, and Joe rounded out the crew.
Report from Captain Lynne Kurzweil:
This past Tuesday night we welcomed a full complement of 24 seated guests to the Carol Starr MESH Cafe at Shomrei. We also prepared takeout meals for 7 guests, including a family with 3 children who arrived late. Chef Fern Heinig was in her prime, preparing a hearty and delicious meal. First course was fresh made egg salad and seared tuna (repurposed from the weekend). Main course was honey baked chicken, mashed potatoes, carrots, a tasty challah roll and a green salad with string beans, cucumber and green pepper. Continue reading
This is my final President’s Column. At the Annual Membership meeting on June 14 you will be voting in a new president; my term is complete. People always ask me what is hardest part of the job? What is the greatest?
The hardest part of the job of being President is being present. If you are not in the building, available to members, staff, parents, and board members, it is difficult to have meaningful discussions when someone wants to talk about synagogue business. If you do not attend ritual services or events, it is hard to encourage others. If you are not present, you do not meet people. But being present also meant deprioritizing other aspects of my life: friends, family, exercise, and sometimes my business. There are only so many hours in a day and I can not do it all. I do have to say, I am looking forward to getting my life back. Continue reading
From Captain Fern Heinig:
The MESH Cafe had a light night given the major thunder storms last night. We had only 13 guests.
A huge thank you to Alana, Margalit, Amalia – our Shomrei teen volunteers and Susan Rosenblatt for being soux chefs and servers. MESH staff Adrienne rounded out the MESH crew. Continue reading
Passover is the Jewish holiday, almost every person who relates to being Jewish, celebrates. How a person or family celebrates, is truly individualized and personal.
My family has two seder nights. We have almost the same menu since the time my Bubbe hosted Passover. I actually spent years trying to recreate her recipes since she did not write English (though spoke and read 7 languages) and they died with her. When my nieces and nephews were young, they wanted to know if this was a Jewish food holiday. If so, they knew they were getting to eat some foods that were only cooked once a year, or maybe twice, Rosh Hashana we have some repeats. Continue reading
As of today, the painting has been completed of the entire first floor. Tomorrow the new flooring is suppose to be delivered. The flooring has been the delay over the last two weeks. The manufacturer is in Georgia and due to the snow storms, the truck had problems coming up the East Coast. Installation is to begin on Tuesday and it will take approximately two business weeks.
After the floor is installed, we need to unpack the pods to move the furniture and supplies back. This will need as many volunteers as we can get. I hope many of you will be able to join. No date yet, but definitely will let everyone know. Continue reading
Operation Anthropoid Memorial, Prague
My new commute is to Prague. Some people commute to Manhattan; my commute is overseas. My business trips are usually two weeks, although there are times I am living in a city for a month. The great thing for me, living in an international city, is that I have the opportunity to develop friendships with local colleagues and learn about the culture and the history from their perspective. Continue reading
A core value of Shomrei Emunah is Tzedakah and Tikkun Olam. We describe this on our website as: We believe we have a responsibility to “repair the world” and commit ourselves to caring for the homeless, the hungry and those in need of loving kindness in our own congregation and beyond.