November 2019

Dear Friends,

Many thanks to everyone who made our High Holy Day season so successful. Norma Kramer, Dianne Wolpert, and the HHD and Ritual Committees were such wonderful leaders and you should extend a very sincere thank-you next time you see them. I was also honored to share the bima with Rav-Hazzan Sokol for Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur, and with Jessica Woolf for Sukkot and Simchat Torah. It is lovely to have people with such beautiful voices leading us in song.

Now that the holidays are behind us, I’d like to wish you a very happy Chesvhan! Cheshvan is the Jewish month we’re in now, and it’s traditionally known as MarCheshvan, the bitter month of Cheshvan, because there are no holidays. While I will certainly miss the opportunity to celebrate special occasions with you, I think we have plenty going on and I am excited to get to work on so many of our events and programs. I’m excited to finally stop saying “after the holidays!” Through the Summer and Fall, I have been gathering ideas, information, and resources for some awesome programming. We are excited to continue our strong Adult Education with Wednesday morning classes and special speakers throughout the fall and winter. We are thrilled to continue everyone’s favorite Shabbat morning tradition of SholomPlex with great new sessions and teachers. We are also very eager to build momentum for programming for young professionals and young families, with our Torah on Tap, Tot Shabbats, Prospective Members Shabbat, and Parenting Through a Jewish Lens. I hope you will join us for these programs, and more. Please also spread the word on social media and via word of mouth to all your friends and neighbors who you think might be interested, we are delighted to welcome new people to this community.

I am also still getting to know so many of you. I’ve had the chance to host several of you for meals and meet up for coffee, and I am eager to continue. Please do not be shy about arranging meetings with me. Come by my office hours on Thursdays from 3-5, or make an appointment to see me at some other time.

Looking forward to a very successful Fall with all of you,

Rabbi Poirier