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On The Bridge February 28, 2013
Gesher Jewish Day School 18 Adar, 5773
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Shabbat Shalom
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שבת שלום
Candlelighting: 5:43 pm
Ki Tisa
כי תשא
Torah Portion: Exodus 30:11 - 34:35
maf: Numbers 19:1-22
Haftarah- Shabbat Parah / Ezekiel 36:16 - 36:38
Yasher Koach to today's Torah Readers: Daniel D. and Josh R.
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Upcoming Events
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See our full calendar of events!
March 8- Middle School Information Session,
March 9- Kitah Bet Havdallah Siyum
March 10- Good Deeds Day, 1:00-4:00 pm
March 11- Board Meeting
March 12- Rosh Chodesh, Kitah Hay Hallel Siyum
March 15- Noon Dismissal, faculty meeting
March 21- Timely Re-enrollment Deadline
March 22- 3:30 Friday dismissal resumes
March 25-April 3- Pesach Break
March 25- (First) Seder, Erev Pesach
March 26-27 & April 1-2 - Passover yom tov, school
office closed
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Greetings!
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Our PTO Used Book Sale has been going great this week. It's brought to the surface a tremendous outpouring of volunteerism, charitable giving, and above all a love of books and reading. From young to old it's remarkable to see the special sparkle in a book-lover's eyes when a desired title is pulled out of the display. The variety of books gathered together is amazing! Happy hunting for that one sought-after book. Above all, happy reading!
In two weeks time, on March 10, Gesher will be the main Northern Virginia site for this year's Jewish Community Good Deeds Day. There will be activities on hand for everyone - all to help others! Together with the Jewish Federation of Greater Washington, the Jewish Community Center of Northern Virginia, and synagogues including Beth El Hebrew Congregation, Temple Rodef Shalom, and Adat Reyim, Gesher will be dedicating itself that day to community service.
Good Deeds Day incorporates the following three mitzvah components: Chesed (lovingkindness), Tzedakah (giving our resources), and Tikun Olam (repairing the world). These are shared with Gesher's ongoing year-long Head Heart and Hand Initiative. Taken together, these three stands form a symbolic threefold braided cord of significant strength. As is taught in Proverbs 4:12: והחוט המשולש לא במהרה יינתק
- A threefold cord is not quickly broken! The power of combining forces and working together towards a common goal is unbeatable.
Shabbat Shalom!
Zvi Schoenburg
Head of School
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School News
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Purple Gesher Key ChainsPurple Gesher Key Chains have been passed out to each family earlier this week. When you come to the interior door, show the key chain to our guard so he/she knows that you are connected to the school and he can let you in. If you forget your Gesher key chain, no worries, simply pick up the phone in the entryway and identify yourself!
Purim Carnival Guestimation Winners: - Crayons- Alyssa N (6th grade) - Cars- Gabe M (4th grade) - Cotton balls- Talia B (8th grade) Thank you to...
- Dr Schoenburg, for leading the gan- kitah alef parade and organizing the Megillah reading
- Cantor Rabinowitz - preparing the MS students for the Megillah reading
- P'nina Mc Cabe - leading the makhelah
- Rabbi Tonti - leading the Middle School ensamble
- Cantor Adina Ackerman for adding ruach to the Megillah reading
- Michelle Nash for organizing the mishloch manot
- Cynthia Rutzick, Jane Shichman, Michelle Nash, Eva Sloan, Elyssa Brecher, Beth Frame, Michael Frame, Deanna Silverman, Karen Kapen.Ms. Rosenberg, and the entire 8th grade class for assisting in the packing and delivery of the goodies
- Talia B, Natalie K,Jake N, Josh R, Mollie S, Jack S and Zev S for leading K, kitah alef and kitah bet Megillah reading
- All middle schoolers for helping to run the carnival booths
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Eva Sloan, Jennifer Gorowitz, Andrea Dorlester, Elizabeth Whisnant,Ruth Holtzman, Deanna Silverman, Bennet Helfgott, Seth Feldman, Vicki Fishman, Shimon Richmond, Chris Matricciani, Cynthia Rutzick, Jos Goldner for assisting with the carnival.
- The secret judge for choosing the best costume at school
- All the students, teachers and parents for making the Purim celebrations so much fun!
Gesher Host Site for Good Deeds Day, Sunday, March 10th!
Last March, 1,500 Greater Washington volunteers joined hundreds of thousands of volunteers from around the world in a community day of service and 300 of them were right here at Gesher Jewish Day School!
This year, we are THE host site for Good Deeds Day in Northern Virginia! Along with our co-host, the Jewish Community Center of Northern Virginia and steering committee representatives from Beth El, Temple Rodef Shalom and Adat Reyim, we are ready to double our efforts and show the true impact we have when we come together for a good cause. 
Here at Gesher, there will be numerous fun and meaningful projects for every age and every interest! Sandwich making and cookie baking for area shelters, sewing pillow cases for pediatric cancer patients, making cards and pictures for the elderly. Even the gym will be bustling with basketball fun for Sandy Relief and much, much more! Representatives from the Katherine Hanley Shelter, ConKerr Cancer and others will be present to help educate our community about their organizations.
What can you do?
- Register to bring your family to Gesher at this website address www.GoodDeedsDayGW.org and come on March 10, starting at 1pm to do good deeds!
- Spread the word with your friends and neighbors and bring them along!
- As you prepare for Passover, set aside non-perishable food donations and bring them on March 10th! Food for Others will be here to collect your donation. All food donations are welcome; see posters at Gesher for some specific items that have been requested.
- This event needs lots of volunteer help! We need greeters, set up help, clean up, project supervision, popcorn poppers, etc. Please consider helping out. Call or email Debra Mendelson to get involved! 703-962-9216 or dmendelson@gesher-jds.org.
More info to come!
Back to the Eighteenth Century
If you spent any time at school this week you could not be blamed to have thought that you had traveled back in history to the 1700s! More wigs and three-cornered hats than you could shake a stick at! On Monday, you might have stumbled across the Fourth Grade's movie set where they were filming their Revolutionary War movie. Today, you might have entered Colonial Day and learned how to churn your own butter or sign your name with a quill pen.
Soup Orders
Want a night off from cooking? Order healthy, kosher vegan soups and salads from SouperGirl. Place orders by Thursday evening and pick up the soup at Gesher the following Wednesday. Two flavorful soups and one salad are offered each week. More info here!
Gesher United Basketball
Gesher United Basketball 2013 season has begun; we are very proud of both teams! Today is the last day of regular season play. The Gesher United Girls are 4-1 and the boys are 5-2. Both teams are on the fast track to the ABC League Playoff March Madness! Come out to support our players and coaches Russo and England in the playoffs!
Pictures:
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Kitah Gimel reads Megillah.
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 | | Kitah Vav student Abby S. reads from the Megillah. |
 | | Gan students dress up as princesses for Purim. |
 | | Kitah Chet students dress up for Purim. |
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Head, Heart, and Hand
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Kitah Dalet
As part of the Head Heart and Hand studies, the fourth grade children celebrated Tu Bishvat with their eyes closed. This is just one of the many ways that they have incorporated their HHH theme into their everyday lessons and Jewish holidays. They touched, smelled, and tasted various fruits and tried to guess what the fruit is. Rome said "it was a very interesting experience" Abby and Jacquie said "I learned to love fruit that I never tried before"
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PTO
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Get Caught Wearing Purple!
"Get Caught Wearing Purple" is a PTO sponsored activity to raise school spirit! We ask students to wear Gesher colors of purple and/or white every Friday to show school spirit. In return for showing school spirit, the students get rewarded. This year we have made adaptations to "Get Caught Wearing Purple". So wear your purple and white on Fridays for another fun year of "Get Caught Wearing Purple"!!!!
Thank You!
We would like to send out a special thank you to all of our parent volunteers who made the Purim Carnival a great success! Eva Sloan Jennifer Gorowitz Andrea Dorlester Elizabeth Whisnant Ruth Holtzman Deanna Silverman Bennet Helfgott Seth Feldman Vicki Fishman Shimon Richmond Chris Matricciani Cynthia Rutzick Jos Goldner We want to thank all of the parent volunteers and student body who helped make Mischloach Manot a huge success! We want to acknowlege those who assisted in the packing and delivery of the goodies. Thank you for your time and dedication!
The entire 8th grade class
Ms. Rosenberg
Cynthia Rutzick
Jane Shichman
Michelle Nash
Eva Sloan
Elyssa Brecher
Beth Frame
Michael Frame
Deanna Silverman
Karen Kapen
The Great Gesher Used Book Sale February 25 - March 3 Thousands of gently read books of many genres for all ages. DVDs, CDs, video tapes, and audio books too. Most items fabulously priced at $.50-$2. Sale Hours Monday, February 25, 8:30-4 (special preview day for students) Tuesday, February 26, 8:30-4 (Gesher families only) Wednesday, February 27, 7:30-6 Thursday, February 28, 7:30-6 Friday, March 1, 7:30-4 Sunday, March 3, 9-4 (bag day 1-4pm)  Gesher Jewish Day School 4800 Mattie Moore Court, Fairfax, VA 22030 703-978-9789 www.gesher-jds.org
Congratulations to the two grades that won an ice cream party: Kitah Dalet (Grade 4) for donating the most items absolute, and Kitahs Vav/Zayin (Grades 6/7) for donating the most items per capita. Thank you to all who donated books and other items. We collected about 10,000 items.
A huge thank you to to our volunteers who assisted with book collection, sorting and set-up!
Most children's books are $.50-$1. Please come by to browse, purchase great books at fabulous prices, and support our school. Proceeds from the book sale will go towards expanding our school library and other school programs.
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Development and Fundraising
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Admissions
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NEW Student Applications Being Accepted
Applications are now being accepted for the 2013-14 school year. If you know families who may be interested, please have them contact Debra Mendelson, Director of Admissions, to arrange a tour as soon as possible. Positive word-of-mouth and sharing your excitement and pleasure with your school and what your kids are learning at Gesher is THE single most important referral tool to keeping our enrollment healthy! Please take every opportunity to share with your friends what an exceptional value-added educational experience Gesher is first-hand! Thank you for your support.
Facebook!
Have you liked our Facebook page yet? Friend Gesher JDS at,
https://www.facebook.com/pages/Gesher-Jewish-Day-School/35325291931?ref=hl
Twitter!
We also Tweet from time to time. Become a Gesher JDS Twitter follower at,
https://twitter.com/gesherjds
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| Mitzvah Coupon Donations | |
Mitzvah Coupon donations can be made on-line through our secure website,
www.gesher-jds.org. Simply log in and click on the Donate link at the top of our homepage.
In memory of Louise Fradkin
Jodi and Daniel Pick
In appreciation to Sharyn and Richard Stahl
Liz and Peter Maer
In appreciation to Susan and Ken Cohn
Liz and Peter Maer
In appreciation to Rhona Nachman
Liz and Peter Maer
In appreciation to Tanya and Steve Bodzin
Liz and Peter Maer
For continued good health to Ron Katz
Liz and Peter Maer
In memory of Max Waxman
Liz and Peter Maer
Donations to the Mickey Ephrath Scholarship Fund
Robin Meier
Marnie Kremer
Liz and Peter Maer
Dr. Arye and Peggy Ephrath****
****Dr. Arye and Peggy Ephrath have made a significant contribution in their son's memory and have renamed their fund the Mickey Ephrath Scholarship Fund. We thank all the friends and families who have donated so generously in memory of Gesher's former student. May Mickey Eprhath's memory be for a blessing.
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| Caring Community |
Yasher Koach
Yasher Koach to Daniel D. on his upcoming Bar Mitzvah.
Alumni News
Yasher Koach to Madelaine S., who ran the Rock 'n Roll Marathon in New Orleans on Sunday, Feb 25.
Mitzvah Project
Seventh grader Daniel D. will be collecting emergency preparedness items for the organization FACETS as his Bar Mitzvah project. He explains that this will help people who can't afford to buy these things to stay prepared in case of an emergency such as a storm or earthquake. Daniel is inspired to do this because a tree fell on his house during a storm last September and his family was displaced for a few months while their house was being repaired. "Because of what happened to my family, I have realized that other people are in the same or even a worse situation and I wanted to help them," Daniel says. He is collecting the following: - Battery-powered radios
- Batteries
- First aid kits
- Fire blankets
- Manual can openers
- Pop-top canned foods
- Bottled water
- Flashlights
If you would like to make a donation, a labeled box is set up in the Gesher lobby until March 2. Thank you! Visit Jconnect.org! Jconnect.org is the one place where you can go to find information on everything Jewish in the Greater Washington community. This new community site features a robust community calendar that's easy to navigate for both posters and users. Please check the website often as the site is ever-changing!
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| Community Announcements | |
Please click on the links below to view each flyer.
The Washington Jewish Week is now available for purchase from the newsstand in the office for $1.
Camp Rodef Shalom is currently accepting applications for children preK through 6th grade for this summer!
Rocknoceros and Silent Auction at Olam Tikvah
The Jewish Federation Wants to Help! 
If you are in need of financial assistance at t his time, or if you know anyone in the community who is in need, please do not hesitate to contact the Jewish Federation's Warm Line at 1-866-950-4AID.
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We welcome your inquiries. To schedule a tour, or for more information about admissions or making a donation to Gesher Jewish Day School, please contact us at (703)978-9789.
Sincerely,
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Gesher Jewish Day School
4800 Mattie Moore Court
Fairfax, VA 22030
phone: (703) 978-9789
fax: (703)978-2668
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Address or Email Changes
If you have changes to your email or mailing address, please send them to mparnes@gesher-jds.org so we can update your information. If you wish to be removed from the "On the Bridge" e-letter distribution list, please do not use the "SafeUnsubscribe" link below unless you wish to be removed from all email correspondence from Gesher Jewish Day School.
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