Sons of Zion News. From Our Rabbi. Inside this issue: March Dates to Remember:

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1 Congregation Sons of Zion 378 Maple Street Holyoke, MA Phone: (413) Sons of Zion News March Dates to Remember: 3/7: Board of Directors meeting 3/16: Challah Chavurah 9am 3/17: SOZ 114th Anniversary Kiddush 3/24: Special Kiddush for Bonnie G., Maggie W-G., Ken V. & Brielle B. 3/30: 1st Seder 3/31: 2nd Seder Inside this issue: Thank You! 4 Calendar 10 Yahrzeits and Minyan Chairs 11 Save the Date 18 Ads from our Sponsors 19 From the Office 20 Volume 3, Issue 7 From Our Rabbi I am still basking in the glow of this afternoon s Purim Shpiel. It was truly wonderful: a fun, upbeat, feel-good event that put many smiles on our faces and brought joy to our hearts. It s hard to convey just how extraordinary and uplifting it was. March 2018 Adar/Nisan 5778 What made it so successful? Everyone, inspired by Rich Freyman our visionary The Jewish people bring tithes for director and muse, brought their individual talents to create a beautiful group ef- Photo credit: Steve Levine the Tabernacle Ahuva Klein fort. All the elements singing, dancing, script-writing, guitar playing, audio -visual effects, costuming, publicity (the Sons of Zion Purim Shpiel was highlighted as the lead article on page 1 and 2 of Section C in the Springfield Republican, complete with photo!), and large, enthusiastic audience came together to create something truly special. In its own way, today s Purim Spiel reflects the spirit of the Torah reading of Terumah from thousands of years ago that we read during one of the weeks we were practicing the play. In Terumah (Exodus 25 and following), Moses calls on the people to bring all kinds of offerings for building the holy sanctuary in the desert: yarns, animal skins, precious metals, wood, spices, and oil. This was not a tax, but a gift, from every person whose heart so moves, him or her (Exodus 25:3). And Moses gathered, every skilled person whom the Lord had endowed with skill, everyone who excelled in ability, to undertake the task and carry it out (Exodus 36:2). What was the result? The response was so overwhelming that Moses, made this proclamation throughout the camp: Let no man or woman make further effort toward gifts for the sanctuary Their efforts had been more than enough for all the tasks to be done.

2 Page 2 Sons of Zion News When everyone contributes a skill, an idea, an object, an enthusiasm from the heart, we are all lifted up and the efforts are more than enough for all the tasks to be done. What is the purpose of having a sanctuary in the desert or our shul in Holyoke? God says to Moses, Let them make Me a sanctuary that I may dwell among them. (Exodus 25:8) We might expect this sentence to read, Let them make Me a sanctuary that I may dwell in it. But that s not what it says. The text makes clear that the sanctuary is not an end in itself or something to house or please God. The reason for building the sanctuary is to bring God into the midst of the community, so that, I [God] may dwell among them. When we work together for a common holy purpose, we bring God into our midst. We may not be used to speaking or thinking this way, but together this afternoon of the Purim Shpiel we built a sanctuary, a community of caring and joy where God s presence was among us. Every one of us at Sons of Zion has a talent or a skill that we can offer to bring God into our community: we can bake challah for the shul and for our members who do not have ready access to a challah; we can attend a minyan so someone can say kaddish; we can serve a meal at Kate s Kitchen or provide weekend food for hungry schoolchildren in Holyoke through our Tikkun Olam Committee; we can lead part of services or read Torah as more of our members are learning to do; we can use our organizational skills to serve on the Board; we can host someone for a Passover seder or we can offer to be a guest at a Passover seder through our Seder Together program; we can give someone a ride to shul; we can lift up our services by learning new songs with our chorus; we can write or perform in a Purim Shpiel or Hanukkah play; we can help bring interesting and enriching programs to the shul. We already have a sanctuary. We already have moments when we can experience God s presence in our midst in many beautiful and joyous ways. As you read this, please think about a skill or talent or passion that you would like to share. In so doing, you will enable yourself and all of us at Sons of Zion to continue to experience God in our community and in our hearts as we did today. Rabbi Saul Perlmutter February 25, 2018 Need a Seder? Seder Together! If you are looking for a Seder to attend, please contact our synagogue! Passover starts on the evening of Friday, March 30, There are Seders on that night, and the following night, March 31. If you want to celebrate Passover and don't have a Seder to attend, we can pair you with someone who would like to host. Don t be shy! Call or the Sons of Zion office today!

3 Volume 3, Issue 7 Page 3 From Our President Pesach or Passover, whichever term you like to use it is one of our most meaningful and important holidays, celebrating our coming together as a Jewish nation. So many customs and rituals. The Haggadot we pull out and dust off; the seder plate, Kiddush cup, matzah plate and matzah cover we lovingly unpack as the memories rush in. We search for recipes old and new and wonder how we will get it all done. We do it! Pesach or Passover, a time to gather with family and friends and celebrate ancient and new traditions together, building memories for the younger generation. A time to possibly welcome people you do not know well to your home. For several years now, Congregation Sons of Zion has celebrated Pesach (Passover) with Seder Together. Happily, it is becoming a tradition. A simple idea that brings people together who have room at their seder table to welcome those who are seeking a seder to attend. Friday, March 30th is the first seder and Saturday, March 31st is the second seder. Please call or the office ( office@sonsofzionholyoke.org) and don t be shy about leaving a message if you would like to be a seder guest or if you would like to be a host. The mitzvah of celebrating Passover together is one of the nicest gifts our Sons of Zion family can offer to each other. Speaking of togetherness, I hope that many of us will attend Shabbat Across America this year. It is an event that brings the Holyoke Jewish community together for a joyous occasion. Friday, March 9 is the date, 5:30pm is the time (if you must come later, don t worry), Rodphey Sholom, 1800 Northampton St., Holyoke, is the place. The entire country will celebrate Shabbat on this date and we are proud to be part of the celebration. You ll find more information in the flyer in this Newsletter. Make your reservation now! As I write this message, I am still smiling, actually laughing, remembering our Purim Schpiel. We re not sure how many were in the audience but 60 to 70 is a good guess. One thing I am sure about is that the cast and crew had the most fun! A huge thank you to Rich Freyman, Deb Levine and Cindy Vieu who guided us through this joyful production and brought so much happiness to the Purim season. Wishing our remarkable Sons of Zion family a most wonderful Pesach, Joan

4 Page 4 Sons of Zion News To Our Donors: Thank You! Gellya Shulman, in memory of her husband Arkady Margie and Buddy Resnic, for their generous support Bonnie Gruszecki, in memory of her father Harry Anita & Edward Finkel and Dorothy Finkel in memory of Newton Weiss Max & Suzanne Chorowski in support of the Purim Schpiel Barbara Goldberg and her daughters Louise, Debra & Janet, in memory of Ellen Freyman s father Newton Weiss Sidney Paul, in memory of Elizabeth Paul From Rich and Ellen Freyman, in memory of Ellen s father Newt Weiss; in appreciation of Deb Levine s incredible contributions to our Purim play; in appreciation to Joan Rosner for the care and feeding our cast and crew during the rehearsal; in appreciation to the entire Theater Company for their dedication to the play rehearsals and performance; Happy 38th Anniversary from Ellen and Rich to each other. Steve and Joan Levine, in honor of the Purim Schpiel Joan & Michael Rosner, in memory of Newton Weiss, Ellen Freyman s father; in honor of Joan s mother Blanche Gerard s yahrzeit; Thank you to the Sons of Zion Theater Company for Purim: The Musical; Happy Anniversay to Ellen & Rich Freyman. Cemetery Fund SarahRuth Rossow, in honor of her father David Kornetsky s yahrzeit James Eisenstock, in honor of his mother Hannah s yahrzeit Joe Cohen, in honor of his grandmother Fannie Margolis s yahrzeit

5 Volume 3, Issue 7 Page 5 Pioneer Valley Jewish Film Festival 2018 The 13th Annual Pioneer Valley Film Festival, presented by the Springfield Jewish Community Center, runs March 15-27, 2018, with 25 film screenings at 18 community venues across Hampden, Hampshire and Franklin Counties. Join us for two week of entertaining, engaging, and thought-provoking films that explore the best of independent cinema through a Jewish lens. Visit pvjff.org/ or click on the image to visit their web site. SOZ Member Simon Sibelman will be introducing one of the films, Monsieur Mayonnaise, and following the film with a Q & A. The film will be shown at the Springfield Museums in the D'Amour Museum auditorium on Friday, March 16 at 1:30pm.

6 Page 6 Sons of Zion News A Special Thank You to Our Sustaining Members Andrew Barowsky Steve and Linnea Constant Richard and Ellen Freyman Herb (z"l) and Barbara Goldberg Steve and Lois Levin Steve and Joan Levine Sidney Paul Buddy and Margie Resnic Michael and Joan Rosner Bill and Joanne Saltman Please consider joining our generous Sustaining Members at any time!

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8 Sons of Zion News Page 8 Happy Purim!

9 Volume 3, Issue 7 Page 9 Purim Schpiel 5778 The Purim Play was a tremendous success! Congrats to Rich and the entire cast & crew. Thanks to Shoshanna Zonderman and Lee Hutt for the wonderful photographs!

10 Page 10 Sons of Zion News MARCH 2018 Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat See Page 18 for Additional Save The Date Events! 1 14 Adar 2 15 Adar 3 9am Minyan Purim Day Minyan 9am Hebrew Reading 10: Adar 6 19 Adar 7 20 Adar 8 21 Adar 9 22 Adar Adar Adar Adar Adar Adar Adar Nisan 21 5 Nisan 22 6 Nisan 23 7 Nisan Nisan Nisan Nisan Nisan Nisan Nisan Adar Ki Tissa 17 Adar 23 Adar 8am Minyan 8am Minyan VaYkhel Pekudei Shabbat Parah Daylight Time Begins 8am Minyan 8am Minyan Rosh Chodesh 1 Shabbat Begins at 6:39pm Rosh Chodesh 2 1 Nisan VaYikra Shabbat Ha Chodesh Rosh Chodesh 2 Nisan 3 Nisan 8 Nisan 8am Minyan 8am Minyan Tzav Shabbat HaGadol 8am Minyan First Day of Spring SOZ Board Meeting 7:30pm 8am Minyan Shushan Purim Shabbat Begins at 5:23pm Shabbat Begins at 5:31pm SOZ Challah Chavura 9am Shabbat Begins at 6:47pm Erev Pesach SOZ 114th Anniversary Kiddush Bonnie G. et al Special Kiddush 15 Nisan Pesach Search for Chametz 1st Seder Light Candles 6:55pm 2nd Seder Count Omer 1 after sunset! Please keep in mind: The office is closed on weekends and Jewish holidays. If you need to make funeral arrangements during these times, please contact Joanne at

11 Volume 3, Issue 7 Yahrzeits and Minyan Chairs Feb. 25 Mar. 3: Ken Vieu Feb. 27 Sadye Saltman Feb. 28 *Dorothy Barowsky Mar. 2 *Abraham Saltman March 4 10: David Carmen March 4 Ruth Laskin March 5 *Minnie Goldenberg March 6 *Raymond Mekler Sol May March 7 *Henry Levin March 8 Bertha Berman Harry Bloom *Harry Gold Abraham Reiner Louis Rubin *Edith Harmetz Morris Lipnick March 11 17: Larry Carmen March 11 Joseph Levin-Epstein March 12 *Sandra Lipson March 12 *Anna Rachel Marks March 12 *Florence A. Kostin ( The Purple Lady ) March 12 *Abraham Seaver March 13 Betty Sparkes March 14 *Fannie Eisenstock March 14 Bertha Herman March 14 Martha Messias March 14 Harold Kaiser March 14 Russell Kenefick March 15 *Maurice (Murray) Lipson March 15 *Ethelle Charlotte Wilson March 17 *Mordecai Drydack *Irving Kotok Abraham Nathanson March 18 24: Joe Cohen March 18 Molly Goldblatt *Miriam "Minnie" Welson Goodman *George Laby *Jacob M Jackler March 19 *Joseph Magaziner March 20 *Bertha Levinson *Teresa Wilson March 21 Basha Mehr Cramer *Jean Orlen Lieban March 23 Mrs. Udes Alexander Beatrice Geiges *Samuel Liberman Rose Mekler *Harry Stein *Harry Wernick March 24 Matias Gruszecki *Max Koss *Max Smith *Alex Suher *Samuel Weinstein March 25 31: Andrea Fox March 26 Sarah Tanzer March 27 *Ellen Saltman March 28 Edythe Hollup Radner March 30 *Eva R. Magidson March 31 *Alan Firestone Page 11 Winter Weather Note Remember that when Holyoke Public School are closed or delayed due to weather, there will be no morning minyan. Thank you. If you're wondering whether Shabbat Services will be held when the weather is bad, please call SOZ at and listen to the message after 8:00am on Shabbat morning. The usual welcome message means services will be held. OR There will be a message announcing cancelled services.

12 Sons of Zion News Page 12 Challah Chavurah We Knead You! When: Friday, March 16, 2018 Time: 9:00am Where: SOZ, 378 Maple St., Holyoke, Ma We meet once a month Learn to braid and shape Challah dough from scratch Learn the secrets to great tasting Challah Create two Challahs: one for your own Shabbat and one to share as a Shabbat gift RSVP is necessary to ensure we have enough ingredients: Cindy Vieu THANK YOU HAMANTASHEN BAKERS! Thank you, thank you to our hamatashen bakers. We baked Hundreds of Hamantashen!! Lillie Akiva Alison Branitsky Brielle Burkett Ellen, Rich, Neal & Stephen Freyman Rachel Henderson Alfred & Lee Hutt Joan & Michael Rosner Cindy & Ken Vieu They were delicious!!

13 Volume 3, Issue 7 Page 13 TIKKUN OLAM NEWS A huge TODAH RABAH to everyone who contributed to the Purim Food Drive for homeless children in Holyoke. All of the bags full of food will be collected by Rachel's Table for distribution to school children who face hunger on a regular basis. Once again Congregation Sons of Zion has demonstrated their caring and willingness to act for those who are in need. Thank you from the Tikkun Olam Committee

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16 Page 16 The Sons of Zion Activities Committee Presents: Sons of Zion News Meet the Authors: Meet Me at the Well: The Girls and Women of the Bible Jane Yolen and Barbara Diamond Goldin Sunday, April 29th at Noon Congregation Sons of Zion, 378 Maple St., Holyoke Torah stories center around men. Leaders, prophets, kings, and priests are all male. But hidden in the background are strong-willed, daring females. Jane Yolen and Barbara Diamond Goldin's masterful retellings pair eloquent profiles with stunning art, answering one question: What makes these women heroes? From first woman, Eve, to Deborah the judge, to Queen Esther, savior of her people, females in the Hebrew bible are resourceful and courageous. (Ages 10 and up) ~Amazon.com Ample parking behind building; please use Cabot St. accessible entrance. RSVP much appreciated: Follow us on Facebook and visit our website. We will be giving away copies of this book before the event!

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18 Page 18 Sons of Zion News Upcoming Events and Activities: Save the Date! March 9: Shabbat Across America hosted by Cong. Rodphey Sholom March 11: Holyoke UJA Super Sunday Collecting in memory of Herb Goldberg, long-time UJA President April 29: Authors of Meet Me at the Well visit SOZ Special Kiddushim: March 17: SOZ 114th Anniversary March 24: Bonnie Gruszecki s 58th birthday and the 45th anniversary of her bat mitzvah ; Celebration of Maggie s, Ken s and Brielle s conversions How to Watch Shabbat Services on YouTube Turn on your computer and speakers. 1. Run an internet browser (Internet Explorer, or Chrome, for example) 2. Type youtube.com in the navigation bar and press enter. 3. In YouTube, type Congregation Sons of Zion (not just Sons of Zion ) in the box that says Search and then click on the magnifying glass or press enter. 4. Click on the video that has a red Live button in the bottom right corner. It may take up to 45 seconds for the video to load. Services start at 10am. Shabbat Shalom!

19 Volume 3, Issue 7 Ads from Our Sponsors Page 19 Please Patronize our Sponsors. They Make our Newsletter Possible! BUSINESS CARD ADS: $180 / YEAR PLEASE CONTACT THE SYNAGOGUE OFFICE (413) OR office@sonsofzionholyoke.org

20 The April Newsletter will be delayed due to Seder falling on March 30th! Congregation Sons of Zion 378 Maple Street Holyoke, MA Phone: (413) Submission deadline for next issue: April 2! Discover the wide range of Jewish arts and culture around western Massachusetts. Enjoy the rich fabric of Jewish community in the Pioneer Valley, Berkshires, Southern VT, and beyond at Jewish Culture Connect! From the Office Wasn t Purim at Sons of Zion amazing this year?? The play was wonderful, funny and touching, and really showcased the depth of talent and spirit we have at our shul. The Megillah reading and potluck on Purim Night was equally enjoyable, with plenty of audience participation and jolly antics. And the Hamantashen were out of this world! But now that I ve had my Purim fun, it s time to start seriously preparing for Passover, my favorite chag of the Jewish year, but also the most demanding one. It s time to vacuum out crumbs in the couch, get the flour from a year s worth of baking out of the table leaves, and take on the biology experiments in my refrigerator. But more than that, it s time to prepare my soul to leave behind the stuffy, bloated habits of the everyday, and travel from the narrow place of routine into a more mindful and deliberate way of thinking about every aspect of daily life. Does she eat kitnoyot? Can the kids reach this cabinet? Will everyone be comfortable with this ritual?. If only for a week, Pesach forces me to think about how tiny actions will affect not just myself, but those around me. Wishing everyone a blessed and kosher Pesach filled with loved ones and warmth. ~Laura