Sisterhood Connection March 12, 2015

Happy Passover!

Join Us!

2015

Make your reservations now for Sisterhood’s 19th Annual Women’s Seder! This is a fabulous celebration of Jewish women through history, with lots of singing, laughter, and camaraderie. And don’t forget the delicious meal! Vegetarian options will be available.

Rodef Shalom Congregation in Freehof Hall

Don’t delay! Seder is less than a month away!

Rodef Shalom Sisterhood’s 19th Annual

Women’s Seder Tuesday, April 7 6:00 - 8:30 p.m.

$30 non-Sisterhood $25 Sisterhood/WRJ members and Guests $15 students

Make check payable to "Rodef Shalom Sisterhood" and mail to: Rodef Shalom Sisterhood 4905 Fifth Avenue Pittsburgh, PA. 15213 Attention: Women's Seder

RSVP by April 1 Your check is your reservation.

Your Name ________________________ Guests’ names ________________________ ________________________ ________________________ Total Number _______ Total Cost

Rodef Shalom Congregation Sisterhood 4905 Fifth Avenue Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania 15213

_______

Please contact Janet Ocel with any questions: 412-780-5898 or [email protected].

Our Mission: The object of the Sisterhood shall be to further the religious, educational, social and philanthropic purposes of the Rodef Shalom Congregation, to promote social interaction among the members of the Sisterhood, and to develop the Jewish spirit in both the public and domestic lives of its members.

Gift Corner News Passover is less than a month away! We have many exciting items to enhance your Seder, as well as gifts for all occasions! We are now selling Rada Cutlery! This large selection of quality knives and kitchen utensils are made in the USA and are available at low prices because they come direct from the manufacturer. You can get them individually or as gift sets, for yourself or someone else. They also carry a variety of cookbooks and mixes for things such as soups, dips, and sauces. Come in and browse the catalog so you can place your order - because there is such a large selection, we are doing this as pre-pay and pre-order only. The Gift Corner now has Evening Hours by Appointment! If you can’t make it in during our regularly scheduled hours, please call ahead and make an appointment for someone to meet you. We can’t promise to be available all the time, but we’ll do our best! Call the Gift Corner at 412-6216566 or email [email protected]. Regular hours for the Gift Corner are Mon. 10-4, Tue.-Fri. 11-3, and Sun. 9:30-12 (when religious school is in session). All proceeds from Gift Corner sales benefit the Sisterhood and Sisterhood philanthropy.

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March 12, 2015

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Volunteer Opportunities Flower Delivery Volunteers Beautiful, fresh flowers are delivered to those who are sick, in nursing homes, and have special birthdays or anniversaries. Please contact Marilyn Asimow at masimow@ ymail.com or 412-362-9130 to help bring joy to others. Gift Corner Volunteers Our Gift Corner is a wonderful service Sisterhood provides to Rodef Shalom and the surrounding community. But in order for it to thrive, we need more volunteers! We will provide training, and there is a reference manual for after training is finished. Please contact Elaine Rybski at the Gift Corner (412-621-6566). Silver polishers Help keep the lovely and historic pieces in Wechsler Gallery looking lovely! We polish three times a year, and with enough helpers, it only takes a couple of hours. Join us for some great conversation while we keep Wechsler Gallery looking its best! Please contact Nancy Rosenthal at 412-828-4844. Ushers Needed Sisterhood arranges the ushers for the odd-numbered months, and we need more volunteers! Ushers greet worshippers as they enter the temple and give directions to where the service is held; hand out prayerbooks at the entrance to the Sanctuary or Levy Hall; and collect the prayerbooks after the service is over. If you go to services on a regular or semi-regular basis, this would be a great way to meet others and give back to our Rodef Shalom community. Please contact Nancy Rosenthal at 412-8284844 if you are interested.

Sisterhood Annual Meeting June 7 this year is the Sisterhood Annual Meeting - the time we celebrate all of our accomplishments for the past year! The 2015 Annual Meeting will include a brunch, free for all paid members of Sisterhood who reserve a space by May 26. Guests are $20/person made payable to Rodef Shalom Sisterhood. At the Annual Meeting, we will also recognize our volunteer of the year. You can nominate as many Sisterhood members as you wish for this award. Each nomination counts as one “vote” for that deserving individual. Call, email, or write Gail Lefkowitz with your nominations at 412-901-1440 or [email protected].

Mazel Tov! Congratulations to: Rachel Adland on her engagement to Evan Silverstein

HaMakom Yenachem Our Condolences go out to: Nanette Gordon on the death of her husband

Are you on Facebook? Give us a look! Please like Sisterhood’s Facebook page! You’ll get to see lots of pictures of our events, notices for upcoming functions, and alerts for when the Sisterhood Connection is published, among other things.

Don’t delay - Like us today! “Like” us on Facebook!

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Upcoming Events 2015 Sew Any Way Sunday, Mar. 22 9:30-11:30 am Sisterhood Room

Come sew or craft with us! Bring along your current project or something you would like to learn how to do. We will also have mentors ready to help whoever wants to learn! Last date of the year is Apr. 26.

Rosh Chodesh Tuesday, Mar. 24, 6 - 8 pm Sisterhood Room

Please join us for a brown bag dinner and discussion! We will meet Apr. 21 and May 19.

Sisterhood Meeting Sunday, Mar. 29, 10 - 11:30 am Sisterhood Room

All are welcome to discuss and plan upcoming events and help determine the future direction of Sisterhood! Lat meeting of the year is our Annual Meeting and Brunch on June 7!

Sisterhood Movie Night Sunday, Mar. 29, 7:30 - 9 pm Levy Hall

We will be showing “Lemon Tree,” which got a 92% on Rotten Tomatoes. A Palestinian widow and the Israeli Minister of Defense clash about the potential security risk of her ancestral lemon trees. This is the last movie night for the year.

Talmud Class with Rabbi Paul Tuchman Monday, Apr. 13, 6:30-8:30 pm Krause

Please join us for a lively discussion (in English) on the Babylonian Talmud. Both the Mishnah and the Gemara will be discussed. The class will meet every month on the second Monday. Last date for the year is May 11.

Women’s Seder Tuesday, Apr. 7, 6 - 10 pm Freehof Hall

Join us for this celebration of women throughout Judaism’s history!

Upcoming Events, continued on page 5 4

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Upcoming Events, continued from page 4

Upcoming Events - continued Sisterhood Annual Meeting & Brunch Sunday, June 7, 10:30 am - 12:30 pm Aaron Court

Join us for a wonderful brunch and recap of what we have been doing this year, plus our plans for next year. Help us celebrate as we install incoming officers and directors, and thank the out-going officers and directors for their service and commitment to Sisterhood! Free for all paid members of Sisterhood! Guests are $20/person.

Happy Birthday to our members with March birthdays! Jane Arkus Carol Berger Shirley Bilder Marian Block Harriet Cooper Gene Dickman Phyllis Feinert Lillian Goldsmith Juliette Grauer Muriel Guttman Celia Hepner Janet Hirshberg Karen Hochberg Carole Horowitz

Jessica Kaushansky Corinne Krause Kathy Krause Carol Tobin Lewis Caroline Liston Zola Munter Elva Perrin Jacqueline Rosenberg Irma Silverblatt Lois Solomon Debra Sufrin Cindy Urbach Patricia Weisberger Colleen Wolfson

2014-2015 Officers and Directors Elaine Rybski Karen Brean Amy Leaman Karen Brean Debbie Rokasky Marilyn Asimow Janice Nathan and Mary Ellen Elias Gail Lefkowitz Ruth Wintner Donna Cabin Gladys Maharam Marjorie Goldfarb Fran Lefkowitz Marion Damick

President Executive Vice President Vice President Vice President Vice President Vice President Recording Secretaries Asst. Recording Secretary Corresponding Secretary Assistant Corr. Secretary Treasurer Assistant Treasurer Financial Advisor Parliamentarian

Directors 2012-2015 Cindi Dorfzaun Jan Shaw Harriett Green Meredith Strassburger Barbie Mendlowitz Rachel Adland Janet Ocel

Directors 2013-2016 Nancy Rosenthal Shelly Sufrin

Fix Your Books Happy Anniversary to our members with March anniversaries! Barbara Ackerman Louise Baruth Michelle Bisno Debra Demchak “Like” us on Facebook!

Susan Hershenson Carol Nathenson Marilyn Weizenbaum

Do you have old or sentimental books that are well-loved and could use some repair? Sisterhood does book-binding and will repair them for you! Just bring the books into temple and leave them at the front desk with a note for Sisterhood Book Binding. Book repair is done done on a donation basis.

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Repair the World Kick the water bottle habit!

DID YOU KNOW... One bottle of water is sold for 1,900 times the cost of the equivalent amount of tap water. Bottled water most often comes from public water sources, sometimes at great expense to local resources and ecosystems. 80 million disposable water bottles are used in the U.S. each day and 80% do not get recycled. Tap water is tested numerous times a day by municipal treatment authorities. Bottled water like other privately owned commodities - is tested sporadically by employees of the private bottler. The chemicals in many plastic water bottles contain toxins known to leach. These chemicals are an environmental health threat both to consumers and to people living near the sites where these chemicals are manufactured. The energy required to produce, bottle and transport one disposable water bottle to the consumer is the equivalent of a half-bottle full of oil.

Tikkun Olam

Be part of the Solution If the consumer isn’t buying, bottlers will stop producing

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Sources and more information: Corporate Accountability, www.ThinkOutsidetheBottle.org; Pacific Institute, www.pacinst.org; Tapped, www.tappedthemovie.com; Bag It, www.bagitmovie.com March 12, 2015 “Like” us on Facebook!

PULPIT FLOWER FUND Fresh flowers are part of every Shabbat and holiday service at Rodef Shalom. Our Sanctuary and Levy Hall are exquisite. Adding flowers enhances their beauty. The generosity of our Congregation has sustained the Sisterhood Pulpit Flower Fund, which provides these flowers. A donation to the Flower Fund is a special way to remember the Yahrzeit of your loved ones, to honor the Bar or Bat Mitzvah of a child or grandchild, or to mark a joyous occasion. The minimum contribution is $40. Donors are listed in Hakesher (the Temple bulletin). PULPIT FLOWER ENDOWMENT FUND Sisterhood has also established a Pulpit Flower Endowment Fund. With a one-time minimum contribution of $500, flowers will be placed on the pulpit on a designated Shabbat or holiday each year. In this way, the recognition of a birthday, anniversary, or Yahrzeit will continue in perpetuity. Hakesher (the Temple bulletin) will list this information on the appropriate date. For questions about either fund, please contact Chana Brody at [email protected] or 412-7825806. Chana Brody Chair, Pulpit Flower Fund

Elaine Rybski Sisterhood President

Please complete this form and send it with a check (made payable to Rodef Shalom Sisterhood) to Rodef Shalom Sisterhood, 4905 Fifth Avenue, Pittsburgh, PA 15213.

 Pulpit Flower Fund (min. $40)

 Pulpit Flower Endowment Fund (min. $500)

Enclosed is a check for $

for pulpit flowers on (DATE):

In honor / memory of Donor Address

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Remembrance Fund Would you like to honor someone special or a special occasion? Sisterhood’s Remembrance Fund is a great way to do just that! For every contribution, a card is sent to the honoree notifying them of the sender (but not the amount!). Library Fund–$5* Glick Children’s Library–$15** Lippman Library–$25** Restoration Fund–$10* *minimum **single volume with bookplate Mail with check, payable to Rodef Shalom Sisterhood, to the Temple.

To:____________________________________ Address:_______________________________ ______________________________________ In Memory of:____________________________ In Honor of:_____________________________ Donor:_________________________________ Address: _______________________________ ______________________________________