Sound of Music Shabbat at Ahavath Sholom
“Halleluyah! Praise God in His Sanctuary…praise Him with lyre and harp; praise Him with drum and dance; praise Him with organ and flute; praise Him with clanging cymbals; praise Him with resonant trumpets. Let all souls praise God. Halleluyah!” (Excerpt from Psalm 150)
If you’ve been feeling that the spirit is missing from your Shabbat celebration, plan on being at Congregation Ahavath Sholom on Friday, June 26 for the “Sound of Music” Shabbat. Concert musicians Eduardo Rojas and Edgar Valenzuela will join Chazzan Javier Smolarz and Rabbi Baruch Zeilicovich to bring music and joy to your Kabbalat Shabbat service. If music and song were the choice of King David and the Jews of Jerusalem, why not the Jewish community of Fort Worth? Come find what you’ve been missing!
Adult education at Colleyille’s Cong Beth Israel
Congregation Beth Israel (CBI) has embarked on an adult education program for the summer on Sundays. Starting June 14, at 11 a.m., there will be discussions on how to better assist interfaith families. June 21 at 11., the Jewish meditation class, will discuss the history of Jewish meditation and how it can impact one’s personal and spiritual life. This class will also be held on June 28 at 11a.m. Also on June 28th at 10 a.m., the agenda will include a class on “Making Sense of Jewish Prayer” The discussion will center around the nuts and bolts of what each prayer is about and how you can actually pray to God when you’re praying in a language you do not understand.
For additional information or to sign up to attend any of these classes, please contact Rabbi Charlie Cytron-Walker at 817-581-5500.
A recap of the Person of the Year dinner
Being at the B’nai B’rith Person of the Year Dinner at Ridglea Country Club last Sunday night was like old home week or a family reunion for this scribe. It was so good to see and greet so many friends and loved ones, We had the opportunity to at least say “Hi to Irv Robinson, Debby Rice, Shirley and Earl Givant, Rita and Ted Hoffman, Kal Silverberg and his two loving children, Stephen and Sarah, Harry Kahn, Greta Beckerman, Ann Bogart, Gerry Brown, Miriam Labovitz, Fannette Sonkin, Adele Hartman, Horty Deifik, Marcia and Stan Kurtz, Drs. Nancy and Al Faigin, Sherwin Rubin, Marvin Beleck, Robert Chicotky and his son, Brandon, who is associated with the Southwest office of AIPAC; Rebecca Isgur, Rabbi Baruch and Graciella Zelicovich and Rabbi Ralph Mecklenburger. And there were many I didn’t have the chance to greet, but I remember seeing a large group of honoree Laurie Werner’s family her husband, Lon and his dad, Mort Werner; parents, Madlyn and Lou Barnett, sister and brother-in-law, Rhoda and Howard Bernstein and aunt and uncle Ruthie and Milton Hamill, and there were many more. My congratulations to Laurie on this well-deserved honor and recognition. Laurie joins the distinguished roster of past B’nai B’rith honorees which also included her husband, Lon; parents, Madlyn and Lou Barnett and uncle, Leon Brachman, a two-time honoree. Charlie Friedman who has served as the dedicated Scholarship Chairman for many years made the exciting announcement of the scholarship winners, Sara Lavi, daughter of Linda and Eby Lavi and Stephen Silverberg, son of Karen and Kal Silverberg. Both are outstanding teens, soon off to college. As always, Jeff Kaitcer did a great job of keeping the program on track. After doing a great job leading the Lodge,
Foster Owen turned the gavel over to Alex Nason. And the most welcome talk “on Israel” given by James Gurland, who has auspicious credentials, was most heartening and gave us all hope for Israel’s future.
Dr. Carole Rogers enjoys some family time
It was a special family weekend for Carole Rogers…..in addition to her entire family meeting in Austin for a family bar mitzvah, her mother, Anita Dellal of Verona, N.J.; grandmother, Lil Lieberman of Tamarack, Fla., who is 93 years young and brother-in-law, James Gurland of West Caldwell, N.J., came to Fort Worth. This was Carole’s grandmother’s first time here and she couldn’t have had a better experience. On Thursday night she met the Monday night Mahj Jongg group Mary Frances Antweil, Pat Davis, Ruthie Hamill and Roz Rosenthal as well as Sara Betty Gilbert and Gail Granek for dinner at Piolas. After the bar mitzvah in Austin, Lil came back to Fort Worth on Sunday and spent the evening at the B’nai B’rith Person of the Year Award Dinner. She heard Carole introduce James Gurland, Carole’s brother-in-law, who is the Director of the New Jersey Region of the Weitzman Institute. James gave an interesting speech about the extensive technology going on in Israel saying “what used to be a land of milk and honey is now the land of labs and money.”
Carole’s grandmother could not have had a better time. From Bruce Weiner pulling out her chair for her, to Foster Owen saying he could have listened to James talk even longer, she was just kvelling. Lil went on and on about the warmth and caring of the Fort Worth Jewish community. Even though she misses her granddaughter after one visit here, she now knows why Carole wouldn’t live anywhere else.
Rabbi Ned Soltz set to retire
Stuart Snow, president of Cong. Beth Shalom tells the TJP after nine years as spiritual leader of Cong Beth Shalom and 36 years as an ordained rabbi, Rabbi Ned Soltz will retire on June 30 as Rabbi Emeritus of Beth Shalom.
To commemorate this occasion a tribute dinner will be held in his honor on Sunday, June 21. Expected is a large attendance of well- wishers and friends. A special commemorative program for the dinner as well as his last Friday evening and Saturday morning service on June 26 and 27 will be published and distributed to all those attending. The program will be bound, signed by the board of directors and presented to Rabbi and Mary Soltz as a token of their gratitude and appreciation for his service to Beth Shalom and their community.
The dinner menu sounds delectable: hors d’oeuvres, salad, salmon in puff pastry served on a tomato coulis, roasted asparagus, rolls and butter, wine, dessert and coffee.
Reservations are $25 per person and should be made by June 15th, either by check sent to Cong. Beth Shalom, 1212 Thannisch Drive, Arlington, TX, or by calling 817-860-5448.
Rabbi Soltz, and his Mary, will be missed.
