Things are changing!

We are so excited to welcome our 7th and 8th graders back to Sunday mornings at Am Shalom.

7th and 8th grades will meet at the same time as our 9th and 10th gardes, from 11:30am until 1:00pm.

Each week we'll serve bagels and have a great opportunity to come together to learn together. Make sure you stay tuned for special trips and events. I know this year will be a great one!!!!

How many is 6 million?

There are a lot of different ways to try and illustrate how many 6 million is.

Putting the whole thing into perspective is very difficult. Even I, as an adult, can't truly fathom how many people died in the Shoah, the Holocaust. How, then, do I teach young people to comprehend it?

One teacher tried with paperclips.

Others have used pop-top lids, math tools, pennies, written words, and others.

In Glencoe, we use yellow flags. A field full of them, about 5000 in all, to honor the memory of the victims of the Shoah. Yellow flags that draw the eye, set in the middle of town, in Kalk Park.

Tonight, our 7th and 8th graders planted the field of flags.

(my husband, planting flags with his students)

And they heard the story of a woman, Kate Lipner, who saved many Jews in France during the war. Her story...so incredible. And yet, she said "I am not a hero. I just did what I had to do." Our young people are rarely quiet. You could have heard a pin drop in the room as she spoke.

If you are in the area, drive through Glencoe before Friday afternoon. The flags are near the train station. Their beauty is stunning. So were all the lives lost.

Zecher tzadik livracha...may the memory of the righteous be for a blessing.
May we always remember. May we learn not to forget.

No School Today 2/6/08

Just in case....

There's no school tonight, the weather is bad. See you next week!

Helping Fire Victims

We talked about this in class yesterday. Here are some ways you can help the victims of fires in southern California:

The Union for Reform Judaism has set up a relief fund for those who have been injured or lost their homes in the Southern California fires. Click here to make a donation.

In addition, they are collecting gift cards for those who are trying to rebuild. A gift card gives a strong measure of dignity to the recipient, allowing him or her to choose what to buy while still receiving a donation. In addition, it's simpler than shipping large quantities of goods across the country. Click on this link to see the list of companies that are in the Southern California area and from which they are collecting gift cards.

In addition, the address to send your cards to is listed on this site. In addition, the Chicago Jewish United Fund has established a relief fund. Click here to make a donation through that organization.

We all stand together.

Anyone Reading?

Leave a comment if you are!

Last night we had a little mixup with dinner, sorry. It's tough being out of our building!

Class was great, however. We had a lot of fun playing "Do you love your neighbor?" and talking about being created in the image of God.

No class next week!

Leave a comment to tell me you're out there, and see you in 2 weeks!

-- Rabbi PAS

Tomorrow, Class #2

For dinner...subs from Subway.

We look forward to seeing you all there!

Great First Day!

Thanks to all who attended our first day of Tichon...I thought it was awesome tonight!

What did you think? Leave a comment....

First Day of School this week!

We can't wait to see you on Wednesday...

A few reminders:

- Class begins at 5:45pm and ends at 7:30pm
- Pickup must be prompt!
- All pickup and dropoff must be westbound in a single file line on Park Avenue
- Dinner will be served each week.

This week's dinner is...pizza!

What is your favorite dinner that we serve? Leave a comment to let us know.