From the Rabbi’s Desk...

 THOUGHTS

  As winter sets in, I am still enveloped by the warm and gracious tributes which were expressed at the program tendered in our honor by Camp Ramah in the Berkshires. Needless to say, I also truly appreciated the recognition and presentation by the National Ramah Commission. The presence of family, long time friends and friends of more recent years added to our joy. To be honored along with our daughter and son-in-law was a moment to be cherished. I want to thank all the members of our congregation who subscribed to the journal, all who attended the Dinner Dance, and all who contributed to the various Temple funds. Shirley and I deeply appreciate your support, your friendship and your love. Once again, I want to thank our President, Shelly Handel, for serving as Honorary Host Chairman of the event and his untiring effort to solicit support while making it possible for so many of our congregants to attend. Again, I also want to thank Susan Smith, our past President, for her effort to successfully galvanize and organize support for the journal. The word thanks is hardly adequate. The evening was an opportunity for me to reflect upon my careers as a camp director  and a congregational rabbi…both for many years and both rewarding beyond description.

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   Occasionally, a colleague will ask how I continue to do what I am doing after doing it for more than fifty years. I am asked how it is that I do not tire or suffer from burnout. My response is that I find my work to be a continuing challenge and an ongoing source of excitement and gratification. As a small and isolated pocket of Jewish life in Flushing, it is particularly challenging to maintain high levels of congregational Services and programs. Yet, we continue to thrive because our people support and attend programs, be they Shabbat Services, films, lectures, Learn & Lunch sessions, a concert or Ethnic Shabbatot. We just sponsored a most enjoyable twenty-fourth Ethnic Shabbat. All of the elements which make for a successful program came together. The speaker was good and the Ethiopian food was delicious. These programs are difficult to mount since we cannot always find a speaker who has both authentic ethnicity and the ability to engage an audience. It is also difficult to offer an authentic ethnic dinner. Gail, Lorraine, Gloria, Susan, Miri and Jeff have been invaluable in making this series the success that it has enjoyed. While dressing in costume is quite “unrabbinic,” I know that it adds to the overall effect of the evening. Jewish camping involves informal and experiential education. The costumes represent the “camp director” in me. While fun for me personally, the costumes are a tangible way of representing either the ethnicity or symbol of a country.

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   In a few weeks, we will be leaving for Israel. Leading a congregational group to Israel is a source of great pleasure and excitement for me as well as for the participants. I love to take people around Israel and to have them be touched by its magic. We learn its history, deal with its current issues, take pride in its accomplishments and are inspired by its vitality. These congregational trips have been possible due to the legacy left for us by Abe & Bea Rosen, of blessed memory. They established this trust fund which may be used exclusively to support our young people’s programs in Israel. They believed that an organized trip to Israel with educational components would help them to understand our history, nurture Jewish identities and strengthen their loyalty to our people. In a way, the Abe and Bea Rosen Memorial Trust Fund has enabled us to establish our Temple’s own Birthright Program so that our children and grandchildren may experience Israel, grow to appreciate it and love it. This year, we are a group of forty-two including eighteen teens and children. Five of the kids are being accompanied by grandparents for this trip of a young lifetime. Our congregation and its families have been blessed with this unique legacy. Among congregations in the United States, in this respect, we are absolutely unique. Would that the Rosens could know how much they have achieved, how much good they have wrought and how enduring is their gift.  

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From our home to yours, the warmest of post Ḥanukkah greetings.

            

  Rabbi Albert Thaler