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President’s Message: High Holidays 2020/5781
Each year we greet each other with warm wishes for a Shana Tova but still experience unexpected sorrows and successes. This year has been like no other, however, our congregation has been fortunate: we are healthy, we are together and we managed our budget while supporting our staff and leaders. Let’s recognize that next year is also likely to be a balance of the good and the challenging and resolve to make it through together.
Shana Tova. Meredith Ludwig, Congregation President
Friends,
This upcoming new year of 5781 is full of new opportunities with new programming, a new shlicha and a new way of observing the High Holidays.
Zoom services enable congregants to have honors and to enjoy the sense of community that we cherish by seeing people we know. While it is different than how we’ve done High Holiday services in the past, it is the healthiest way to usher in our new year. Please complete the following registration form completely so we can assist you in having a fulfilling and meaningful High Holiday season. For items you do not wish to obtain, please select ”No, thanks.” I look forward to a time when we can gather again within our walls. May you have a fulfilling High Holiday season in a way that keeps you healthy and connected. Should you have any questions regarding the High Holidays, please call me through the synagogue office, (703) 998-6460, and leave a message in my voicemail.
L’Shanah Tovah Tikateivu, Barry Nove, Executive Director P.S. Before filling out the below form, please login to your account, especially if you wish to pay by check later. If you need assistance or a temporary password, email Barry, at bnove@agudasachim-va.org. We still want to connect with you for the High Holidays. Even though the August 28 registration has passed, you may sign up here to obtain the zoom link for services. Because of popular demand, the special items for purchase have sold out so please select "No/No thank you." You are still able to borrow a mahzor/prayer book and contribute to the Kol Nidre appeal. Shanah Tova!
Rosh Hashanah Eve | Friday, September 18
Mincha/Ma’ariv - 6:30 PM
Rosh Hashanah Day 1 | Saturday, September 19
Shacharit - 8:30 AM Mincha/Ma’ariv - 6:30 PM
Rosh Hashanah Day 2 | Sunday, September 20
Shacharit - 8:30 AM Mincha/Ma’ariv - 6:45 PM Tashlich - see details below.
Memorial Services | Sunday, September 27
King David Cemetery - TBD Agudas Achim Cemetery - 1:00 PM Social distancing observed
Yom Kippur Eve | Sunday, September 27
Mincha - 6:15 PM Kol Nidre - 6:30 PM
Yom Kippur Day | Monday, September 28
Shacharit - 9:00 AM Yizkor - 2:00 PM Mincha/Neilah - 5:00 PM
Tashlich Reinvisioned: T’fillah B’Yahad – Preparing Our Souls Together
This year Rabbi Steven Rein and Hazzan Elisheva Dienstfrey will lead “T’fillah B’Yahad – Preparing Our Souls Together: A High Holiday Journey” which will include congregational melodies from the High Holidays, tashlich and the sound of the shofar. These socially distanced, small gatherings will invite congregants to reflect and observe High Holiday customs in a new way. Click on this link https://www.signupgenius.com/go/409094CAFAE2CA5FF2-tfillah to sign up to attend one of the many T’fillah B’Yahad opportunities.
In lieu of seat rentals and guest tickets, please consider one of the following packages to obtain your holiday supplies and support our congregation. Packages will be available to pick up from the synagogue parking lot prior to Rosh Hashanah, on Wednesday, September 16 and Thursday, September 17.
* Wording for the greeting will be selected below. *Additional mahzorim are available to purchase, borrow or obtain in PDF form.
I understand that mahzor/im must be returned to AAC by Thursday, October 1, 2020, or my account will be charged $54 for the purchase of each borrowed mahzor.
Even though this year we will not be sitting in our usual places, permanent seat dedication is still possible and will be ready for you when we return to the building. Each individual member in good standing, including associate members, may dedicate seats for $2,100 per seat, payable over three years.
If your family has been blessed with the arrival of a child this year (5780), our congregation would like to welcome them and the clergy would like to offer blessings on Shabbat Bereshit, October 17. Please let us know so we can include her or him at that time.
Under current circumstances requiring us to celebrate the High Holidays via zoom, the shofar orchestra will not be taking place; however, all who are interested in blowing shofar may do so at the new “Tefillah B’Yachad – Preparing Our Souls Together: A High Holiday Journey” which will include tashlich, holiday prayers and shofar blowing. Details can be found on our website.
We have a limited number of honors to distribute this year. If you would like to have an honor, please contact Erica Jacobs, ejacobs@agudasachim-va.org, by August 28. We will do our best to honor requests to the extent possible. Additional instructions will be sent to participants closer to the holidays.
Agudas Achim is a community built on covenantal relationships which include a financial commitment to sustain our community and help it thrive so we can elevate and nourish our minds and souls while building a sacred community. We care about each other, we care about social justice, we care about Israel, and we care about YOU. Please demonstrate your part in this covenantal relationship and show your support of our sacred community and the good works that we do.
Your annual commitment level is based on the number of adults and the age of the older adult in your household effective at any time during the fiscal year (July 1, 2020-June 30, 2021).
Special Membership Categories
For our congregation to continue operating as we are accustom, please make sure you are current in your financial obligations to the synagogue, which include previous fiscal year commitments (annual commitment, tuition, pledges) being paid in full and at least one-third of the commitments of the current fiscal year paid, unless alternative financial arrangements have been agreed upon with the Financial Vice President or Executive Director.
Congregants with monthly recurring payment plans arranged through the office are considered current in their financial obligations.
If you anticipate financial hardship in meeting any of the foregoing requirements, please contact Executive Director Barry Nove, bnove@agudasachim-va.org, 703-998-6460 (leave a message via the directory specifically for the Executive Director), as soon as possible to confidentially discuss arrangements.
We are in the midst of an annual campaign which will bring us to our goal of balancing our budget and keeping our annual commitment and tuition affordable—and not a barrier for anyone desiring to be part of our kehillah kedosha (sacred congregation).
Each year we will have an annual campaign that contributes approximately 15% of operating budget through additional donations. This year that target is $350,000. Whether you contribute $18 or $10,000 or something between, you express your desire for Agudas Achim to continue providing religious, social, emotional, educational and spiritual value.
There will be virtual youth, teen and family programming on both days of Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur. Detailed information about these programs will be available on our website.
Questions may be directed to rsinfo@agudasachim-va.org.
Please send your original writing of a maximum 300 words by Friday, August 28, 2020, to HHDReflections@gmail.com. Please submit all files in MS Word or a compatible program. Submissions may be edited for length or content; remember that this is a family journal. This year, the Reflections Booklet will be published online for members only (and will be made available in print only for the few congregants without internet access).
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A Yahrzeit Memorial Plaque, permanently displayed in our Memorial Alcove, can be a source of comfort to those who have dear departed family members. Each year, on the anniversary of passing, the light adjacent to the plaque will be lit. New Memorial Plaques will be dedicated at Yizkor services on Yom Kippur and will be listed in our Memorial Booklet.
Shalom Women of Agudas Achim and Welcome!
We are excited to begin a new year of Sisterhood with a variety of enjoyable and fulfilling activities and hope that you will be joining us on the next chapter in our journey.
Sisterhood presents a wide variety of programs to enrich hearts and our minds and build friendships. Your membership helps sustain our programs and support our larger community through events such as Sisterhood Shabbat, Purim Carnival, brunches, social events, support for local seniors, hikes, theater trips, Carpenter’s Shelter Christmas Dinner and more. We actively support the synagogue’s Religious School and B’nai Mitzvah students as well as engage in Jewish learning ourselves. We also provide support to the Agudas Achim community with our Judaica Shop and provide a meal of consolation for families in mourning. We are affiliated with the Women’s League for Conservative Judaism and support the Jewish Theological Seminary through Torah Fund.
Dues are $36 payable by ShulCloud or check to Agudas Achim Sisterhood (please specify “Sisterhood Dues” on the memo line); dues are waived for the first year for those who are new members to the synagogue. Please complete the following information and submit it along with your payment. We look forward to seeing you!
Do you value the training that our clergy and educators received?
Do you value your child’s Jewish education? Do you value the extra efforts that our clergy and educators have gone through to provide us with religious and educational enrichment during the pandemic? This did not happen in a vacuum, but through programs funded by Torah Fund which was established 79 years ago to provide educational opportunities to train rabbis, cantors, educators and other Jewish leaders.
Torah Fund supports five seminaries which are located in New York City, Los Angeles, Jerusalem, Buenos Aires and Potsdam, where our Conservative Judaism clergy, educators and leaders are trained. The students’ tuition fees do not cover all of the costs involved in their education. Our contributions supplement the tuition fees.
Please consider making a commitment to the future of Conservative Judaism by contributing to Torah Fund in 5781. Torah Fund has been the official, ongoing, tzedakah project of Women’s League. Thousands annually support Torah Fund – including 65 Agudas congregants during the 2019-20 program year. The Torah Fund theme for 2020-21 is B’Yachad (Together).
Giving is easy. The campaign lasts a year; you can donate from now until the end of May 2021. Checks should be made out to Torah Fund and mailed to the synagogue. Online contributions can be made via: http://www.jtsa.edu/torah-fund (please be sure to fill in the name of Agudas Achim Sisterhood on the appropriate space). All contributions, small (there is no minimum) and large, are welcome. Payment plans/installments are an option for giving. Those who donate $180 or more will receive a Torah Fund pin to be worn throughout the 2020-21 program year.
Questions? Please contact Nancy Siegal, 703-671-0957 or nsiegal@comcast.net. Thank you in advance for your generous support. Shanah Tovah!
Congregants,
Agudas Achim Men’s Club fosters engagement and friendships through participation in learning, service, leadership, health and ritual activities. We provide opportunities for personal growth and service to our Congregation and the larger community. Although traditionally a male-oriented organization, Agudas Achim Men’s Club is open to all adults in our community. We are part of the Seaboard Region of the Federation of Jewish Men’s Clubs, an arm of the Conservative movement.
As the Congregation addresses the COVID-19 challenges, Men’s Club will balance planning for a return to in-person activities with the likely continuing need for virtual engagement. We will build upon the success of our initial virtual brunch program this past June. Our planned in-person programs for 2020-21 include Sunday morning bagel and lox brunches with stimulating and entertaining speakers, social events such as last year’s Super Bowl party, ritual events such as Men’s Club Shabbat and Worldwide Wrap, and the meaningful Yellow Candle program honoring the memories of those who perished in the Holocaust and serving as a reminder as we confront modern anti-Semitism. We will continue to support the Congregation by providing B’nai Mitzvah with Chumashim, and, to the extent that conditions permit, awarding teen scholarships for trips to Israel.
The vast majority of our events are free, thanks to your memberships and generous donations. Please show your continued support for our Men’s Club by sending in your membership dues for 2020-21. Our nominal dues for the year are $36, but please consider donating higher amounts. To join, please fill out the Men’s Club dues form and make payment by check (payable to Agudas Achim Men’s Club), ACH transfer or credit card (a 3% fee will apply to credit card payments).
We welcome your ideas for future events as well as your help with activities. Please contact me at hms5516@gmail.com or 571-332-3359 with your particular interests. I will always welcome hearing from you.
Shana Tova, Harold Salters President, Agudas Achim Men’s Club
It is time to order a Lulav and Etrog for the upcoming festival of Sukkot, which begins the evening of Friday, October 2. The cost for the set of four species is $50. Please submit this form no later than Friday, August 28, 2020. Orders received after this date are not guaranteed and must include a surcharge for separate shipping.
The office will contact you to arrange pick up as soon as sets are available. *If you chose the 'Tekiah Gedolah' package at the top of this form, a Lulav and Etrog set is already included in your package. You do NOT need to select one here.
