Wednesday, February 22, 2012
 

Social Action Efforts

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Our congregation's commitment to social action focuses on a variety of projects in the spirit of tikkun olam to help the community and world.

The annual High Holy Days food drive assists local food banks, including Community Harvest, Wellspring and Associated Churches. Take a grocery bag home on Rosh Hashanah and bring it back on Yom Kippur filled with non-perishable items. 
 
Mitzvah Day brings together the congregation for a day of community service, whether working in the greater community, participating in a walk to raise money for the homeless, making fleece blankets to distribute to children, donating new and gently used clothes to children and families, sprucing up our own building, or helping needy children.
 
Our new ongoing Thoughtful Thursdays program in partnership with the Fort Wayne Jewish Federation and Congregation B'nai Jacob helps 85 low-income children and their families who attend Head Start in the Temple building. We also collected canned goods at Hanukkah to build a giant hanukkiya to raise awareness and support Thoughtful Thursdays.
 
The Temple Youth Group selects tikkun olam projects annually to assist a variety of organizations. Recent projects included participating in Nothing But Nets, volunteering at Hope House and Conflict Minerals.
 
Our members support MAZON: A Jewish Response to Hunger, including encouraging our b'nei mitzvah students to donate a portion of their gifts to feed the hungry. (www.mazon.org)
 
Achduth Vesholom also is a supporting congregation of Wellspring Interfaith Social Services.
 
To find out more about how you can help, contact the Temple office at 744-4245.
  

What is Thoughtful Thursdays?

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We are actively working to make a difference in the lives of 85 children who are enrolled in the Head Start program in our building through a new Thoughtful Thursdays program which provides monthly or twice-monthly bags with groceries and educational items. The bags are sent home with the students on a Thursday to be returned the following Monday to be refilled.

In partnership with the Fort Wayne Jewish Federation and Congregation B'nai Jacob, we as a Jewish community are committed to assisting these children and their families, all of whom have incomes below the federal poverty level. To bring attention to the program, which began in October 2010, our Jewish community collected canned goods throughout November and December to build a giant hanukkiya. Donated items are being distributed through Thoughtful Thursdays and local food banks.

We appreciate monetary or food donations toward this program. See the Thoughtful Thursdays schedule to join us in assembling the bags.

We especially are looking for donations of canned peaches and pineapple in their own juice, toothbrushes for adults and children, and paper towels.

  

Congregational Food Drive

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The need is greater than ever to feed the hungry in our community, so we ask for your support for our ongoing food drive by donating non-perishable food items and paper products, such as toilet paper, paper towels, tissues, and napkins. Questions? Contact Jamie Berger, Thoughtful Thursdays co-chair.

  

Ways You Can Support Tikkun Olam

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We hope you’ll participate in our tikkun olam effort with your time and/or financial resources. Contact the Temple office at 744-4245, Social Action Committee Chair Leonard Goldstein or Thoughtful Thursdays Co-Chairs Jamie Berger, Marina Epstein or Yoko Rudolph to find out our current needs.

Check our Thoughtful Thursdays update to find out how you can assist with that program.
 
If you’d like to contribute financially, please make your check payable to “the Temple,” earmarked for Project Assist Social Action Fund, and send to 5200 Old Mill Road, Fort Wayne, IN 46807. Thank you!
  

 

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Help Us Prepare Bags for Thoughtful Thursdays

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We would love to have your help preparing bags for Thoughtful Thursdays, which are distributed to the 85 students at Head Start in our building. Ways to help:

  • Donate non-perishable food items or toiletries.
  • Assist with educational items (check with Social Action Committee Co-Chair Jamie Berger to find out what is needed)
  • Donate financially
  • Help us assemble bags
All are welcome to join us in assembling Thoughtful Thursdays bags on the following dates in 2011-2012 at 10 a.m. in Room 106 at the Temple:
·       Wednesday, September 21 
·       Wednesday, October 5  
·       Wednesday, October 19
     Wednesday, November 2
·       Wednesday, November 16 CANCELLED
·       Wednesday, December 7 
·       Wednesday, December 14 CANCELLED
·        Wednesday, January 18
·        Wednesday, February 1
·        Wednesday, February 15
·        Wednesday, March 7  CANCELLED
·        Wednesday, March 21
·        Wednesday, April 18
·        Wednesday, May 2
·        Wednesday, May 16
  

Religious Action Center News

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Copyright 2011 Congregation Achduth Vesholom