Catching up on my e-mail messages I came across an article by Rabbi Michael Gold of Temple Beth Torah Sha’aray Tzedek in Tamarac, Florida. Rabbi Gold was the scholar-in-residence at Beth Ami about nine years ago. In his message, Rabbi Gold states that on the previous Friday, he saw the miracle of Chanukah first hand when he and his family visited Havana, Cuba. His wife’s mother and aunt grew up in Cuba. Rabbi Gold recounts visiting the Conservative synagogue and meeting its President. He continues. . . . .

We met with Adela Dworin, president of Beth Shalom, also known as El Patronato. Her English was perfect as she shared wonderful stories about her synagogue. My favorite was how she approached Fidel Castro and asked why he had never visited their synagogue. He answered that he had never been invited. So, she invited him to come on Chanukah. He asked, “What is Chanukah?” Knowing that he was a revolutionary, she answered, “It was a Jewish revolution.” “Then I’ll come.” He came and spoke (for a long time as he usually did.) There is a picture of him on the wall.

We stayed for services and a Shabbat dinner. The entire service was led by teenagers, almost the same as ours except accompanied by a piano. There were over 200 worshipers there. . . . The synagogue was alive and filled with enthusiasm.

Adela shared with us that there were periods of time in the past, under strict Communist rule, that they struggled. Religion was discouraged by the government and she said that it was often difficult to get a minyan. On the other hand, the government allowed Jews to use their ration cards to buy kosher meat since they would not use it to buy pork like other Cubans. Today it is still not easy to be a practicing Jew in Cuba. But Jewish life is coming back.

That is the true miracle of Chanukah. When the day is at its darkest, we light candles, increasing the number each day. We move from darkness to light. In Cuba, our family watched a community moving towards the light. Listening to those teenagers sing those prayers with joy and enthusiasm, we knew that Judaism will continue to grow and thrive.

Here at Beth Ami, on the eighth night we held our annual Chanukah celebration. To an extent, it too was a miracle. It was attended by 250 adults and children. I have received many positive comments about the evening. The evening’s success was due to the efforts of many individuals–volunteers and staff. A huge thank-you to Bobbie Rosenthal who coordinated the celebration. The names of volunteers and staff listed below make it apparent that “It takes a village” to create a successful event. Thank-you to everyone.

Latke Makers
Richard Kahn, Amanda Oquist
Mel Decker, Bobbie Rosenthal
Laurie Felciano, Leanne Schy
Russ Gurvetich, Ahuva Simon Sa’ar
Natalie Hoytt, Beibei Sun
Myrna Morse

Decorations
Bonnie Boren
Lyla Nathan

Nursery School Staff
Priscilla Lowell Lauren Kalmanson
Lara Brown Francis Valente
Amanda Burwasser Sarah Welton
Jessica Joerger

Catering and Clean-up
Marg Ballo, Barb McGee
Dave Ballo, Carolyn Metz
Patty Bernstein, Ken Plattner
Betty Boyd, Mark Rosen
Bernice Fox, Mark Stoelting
Judi Hyman, Myra Thomas
Judy Kupfer

Caterers
Michael Markowitz
Aaron Markowitz
Arie Markowitz

DJ, Music
Benjamin Salgado, Lisa Iskin

Staff Support
Judy Gunnar
Andrea Nett

Photographer
Jerry Newman

Publicity
Jessica Joerger
Leanne Schy

I apologize if anyone’s name has been omitted.

Shabbat Shalom,

Henry S. Cohn
President

Yesterday, we celebrated the eighth night of Chanukah with our annual celebration attended by more than 200 adults and children. There were fun activities for the children, singing, and latkes, latkes and more latkes. Thank you to everyone who helped make the celebration a success. A special thanks to Bobbie Rosenthal for coordinating the party.

As we begin to slide into the secular New Year, I am thrilled to share with you another joyous event for the entire Jewish community on Saturday, January 26^th at 8 :00 PM. A number of the Sonoma County synagogues, including Beth Ami, and several Jewish organizations welcome Jerusalem-based Nava Tehila to the Glaser Center. Nava Tehila is an innovative prayer community rooted in Middle Eastern, Hasidic, Israeli and other musical traditions.

Thanks to the underwriting of the event by the synagogues and Jewish organizations, ticket prices are only $15.00 ($25.00 for VIP tickets) and may be purchased at https://shalomevents.ticketleap.com/rejoice/.

The Jewish Community nationwide and especially the Sonoma County Jewish community have experienced a challenging year. Coupled with lack of civil discourse in the current political environment it is difficult, at times, to find optimism. I am reminded of Moses, in the waning days of his life, addressing the Jewish people. Moses who saw both the worst and best of the Jewish people final instruction is Uvkharta vakhayim (“Choose Life”). Regardless of life’s circumstances, we must “Choose Life” and find ways to express our gratitude.

So, let us express our Gratitude and Rejoice on January 26^th. I look forward to sharing the evening with you.

Henry S. Cohn

President

More details about the event are in the Nava Tehila flyer, designed by Leanne Schy.

Chanukah is upon us–the first candle will be lit on Sunday,
December 2nd. Chanukah is one of the best known Jewish holiday, but it is often considered a less important holiday because it was instituted by our sages, rather than an ordained Biblical holiday.

Most of us are familiar with the Chanukah story. The Maccabees defeated the Greeks who destroyed the temple and defiled all the oils. Upon re-entering the Temple, the Maccabees found only one cruse of oil which lay with the seal of the Kohen Gadol. There was enough oil to light the great Menorah for one day. A miracle happened and it sufficed for eight days–enough time to process the olives needed for the purest oil.

We kindle the Chanukah lights to celebrate the miracle and publicize it. Yet, even if one questions whether the miracle occurred, Chanukah is infused with Jewish and human values that are admired. Chanukah is about Tikkun Olam–perfecting the world, bravery, and commitment to these values.

There are endless opportunities to perform acts of Tikkun Olam–feeding the hungry, protecting the environment, and as fires rage at both ends of California sending assistance to the afflicted communities despite that Sonoma County is still recovering from last year’s fires. In today’s charged political environment it takes bravery to stand and speak up against anti-Semitism, racism, gender bias against the LGBTQ community and all forms of intolerance.

Perhaps, the miracle we hope for in our time is the end to all forms of hatred.

This year, Beth Ami’s Chanukah Party will occur on December 9th–the eighth night of Chanukah. Bring your Chanukiot and nine candles. The party is sponsored by the Board of Directors and will be a joint celebration with the Nursery and Religious Schools. Afterall, there is no greater miracle than our children.

Highlights of the Celebration

4:00 PM Children and Family Activities
Photo Booth
Chanukah Slime
Candle Rolling
Cookie Decorating
Dreidel Games

5:00 PM Lighting of Candles and Singing with Lisa Iskin
5:30 PM Time to Eat (all food provided)
Latkes, of course, with trimmings
Assorted Salads
Dessert

The event is free to Members and Nursery and Religious School families.
Reservations are required. Because of the expected number of people and space capacity, we may not be able to accept walk-ins at the door.

Please contact the office at 707-360-3000 as early as possible to make your reservations.

May the flames of the Chanukiah candles bring light and happiness into your homes.

Henry S. Cohn
President