Dear Chevre,

Many of you have expressed your support for our congregation's social justice campaign to achieve fair, full funding for Pennsylvania's public schools. We do this work with the interfaith organization POWER, lifting up the moral value of decent education for all. Recently I was able to offer testimony at the public hearing held by the state's bipartisan Basic Education Funding Commission. Many people from POWER also spoke, addressing different aspects of the funding crisis. Thank you to all of you who have participated in our voter engagement efforts, rallies, phone calls to elected leaders, hands-on work at the Spring Garden Elementary School and in other areas of this mitzvah work. Here's what I shared at the hearing (we had a strict limit of two minutes each):

Call and Response: Our children are worth more.
                             We can't wait any longer.

Commission Members, Thank you for listening to the primary stakeholders in Philadelphia's education system. My name is Julie Greenberg. I am the mother of five children and have been a parent in the Philadelphia public school system for 17 years. I am also a rabbi with a congregation in center city so I have witnessed hundreds of families struggling to make decent education decisions for their children. I am not going to recount problems because you already know about them.
  
I am here to say something else. The voters of Pennsylvania elected you because you said you are ready to lead. We want you to lead the way towards solutions for the problems of Pennsylvania's public schools. As part of that mission it is important that you address FULL as well as fair funding and that your report be ready in time for this coming year's budget cycle. We can't lose another year.
     
But in conjunction with this mandate, we have a promise for you. We are here to say there is an enormous people's movement backing you up as you forge creative solutions. We are city, suburban, rural. We are white, black and brown. We are Christians, Jews and Muslims. We range in age from 5  - 85. POWER is building a statewide movement of faith communities standing up for our values. When you do the right thing, we will help get your key numbers, 102, 26 and 1. We promise we'll be right there with you
   
We need to think bigger than the scarcity model that says there is not enough, we can't afford this. Once someone said to Rose Kennedy, mother of nine children, including John F. and Bobby and Ted Kennedy, "You have too many children." Rose turned to the person and asked, "which child should I not have had?" Here in Pennsylvania, I don't want to be asking the question, "which child should we not educate?" Rose Kennedy knew that these are matters of values and priorities, not just numbers.
   
At the Orientation for my daughter's public ninth grade this year, her new school leaders were ecstatic that they had one guidance counselor for the 700 students in their school. Our kids deserve a bigger vision. They're worth it. And we won't wait.
    
Thank you.

Blessings to All,
Rabbi Julie

Guest Leader Joey Weisenberg will join Jessi Roemer for a Pre-Hannukah Niggunim Workshop. This Master teacher and composer will take us on a musical, mystical journey with some of the niggunim (wordless melodies) that abound in our tradition!
 
DATE:     SUNDAY, DECEMBER 14
TIME:      10:45am - NOON
PLACE:    PENN CENTER HOUSE,
               1900 JFK Boulevard, 2nd Floor Leisure Lounge
COST:     $15
BRING:   A beverage (water, coffee, tea, etc.)
 
CONTACT:  FRANN SHORE
                 267-614-4012 or frann_365@hotmail.com
 
For more about Joey Weisenberg, click here.

On December 19 we will celebrate the lights of Chanukah in the darkness of December during our Kabbalat Shabbat Service. Bring your Chanukiah (Menorahs) and if you can make latkes to bring that would be de-light-ful too! We will meet upstairs at the Ethical Society where an oven is available to heat latkes. If you like, bring applesauce or sour cream, other snacks or Chanukah gelt, chocolates, some beverage, or any goodies to light-en up our gathering. For planning sake, please let me know what is being brought by sending at email to robyjacobs@msn.com. Looking forward to a good time again!

Roby Jacobs

sermons right on our website?  Just look at the right column of this page, www.leyvhair.org/our-spiritual-leaders, and click on the one you'd like to read. Sermons from past years are there as well.

Yes, I know we are all good people. What we actually need at this time are people willing to take on these responsibilities being transitioned from Beverly Hayden:

Newsletter Editor - collect articles for each month's edition, coordinate with Bobbi Cohen, suggest changes to format of newsletter.

Parking - Coordinate with the city Streets Department for our on-street parking permits for Friday night and High Holiday services. Most of this work happens once a year. Send parking tickets issued incorrectly to city contact.

Publicity - list all LHI services and other programs on various online calendars. Coordinate other publicity if requested.

If you are interested in any of these, please contact Bobbi Cohen at bobbiscohen@gmail.com or 215.514.7329, or Roby Jacobs at robyjacobs@msn.com or 215.546.8965.

Many thanks to Larry Finkelstein for taking over our contractual relationship with the Ethical Society!

Thank you,
Bobbi Cohen

 

Bertha Blai

 

Susan Singer