President's Column

President's Column - Summer 2021

It is a summer of changes for all, and most especially TBT.  While our towns slowly open up as many are vaccinated and the summer allows us to go outdoors and see one another again, TBT is also going through its own metamorphosis in so many ways.

The first, and most obvious, is the physical structure.  We are in the middle of the renovation project, and you can drive by and see the framing of the new areas.  Things are coming together, and we hope to have our new building ready by the end of 2021, and a sanctuary before then.  We look forward to the day, very soon, where we can be together in our new space.

The Capital Campaign is also changing, as we are getting closer to our goal.  Many have given to make this building a reality and we are grateful for all of the support we have received from our wonderful congregants.  Most recently we had a matching gift of up to $750,000 and to date we have raised over $150,000 towards that match.  Things are going so well that the matching gift has been extended through the summer and up until the first day of Rosh Hashanah!  If you are able to give during this time, we appreciate it, as your gift will be matched dollar for dollar.

Finally, the biggest change is that our beloved Rabbi Offner is now our beloved Rabbi Emerita, and she and we are thrilled to welcome Rabbi Danny Moss this summer.  Rabbi Moss was a unanimous choice of our committee and of all who met him during the interview process.  He is a natural fit for TBT, and we are so happy to welcome him and his wife, Rabbi Susan Landau Moss, into the congregation.  He brings with him fresh ideas but also a deep respect for what we have built here.  I am sure you are as excited to meet him as I am to introduce him to our whole community, so please look through this shofar and sign up for one of the many meet and greets with him, or stop by at the next service.  We cannot wait to see what Rabbi Moss will add to our community! 

The one thing that hasn’t changed this summer is that the TBT community, while separated over the past year, has continued to maintain our ties and our connection.  I can’t wait to be together again soon, which will surely be the best change of all!

- Sarah Mervine

President's Column - June 2021

For those of you who were able to attend the Annual Meeting, you heard how TBT has been charging ahead in these difficult times and is doing quite well. We are on stable footing financially, our membership is growing as others move into this area, we have a thriving Preschool thanks to our amazing director and teachers, and have managed to hold Religious School, programs, and services throughout the year. Our Capital Campaign has raised just over 5 million dollars and has received a matching gift of $750,000 to see what can be raised by June 30, 2021. Many of you have answered that match and we have raised $100,000 ($200,000 with the match) towards that goal!

In short, I am proud of our progress and our ability to come together this year. However, if you were at the meeting you may have also heard the not entirely surprising news that our building renovation, while progressing nicely, will be slightly delayed.

What does this delay mean for us? Luckily for the Preschool, Religious School and Administrative wing, it should not affect anything. These areas will be complete by August 2021, so there will be plenty of time for inspections and licensing before the new school year begins. There will be small areas, such as the new entrance, that are not quite done, but everything will be up and running for a new year, where, we hope, we can come into the building and see one another.

Our sanctuary should be ready for a “sneak peek” and also services by October 15, 2021, the date of Rabbi Moss’s installation. It won’t be perfect, but we should be able to be together on that Friday night and every Friday night after that.

While the building won’t be complete for High Holiday services, our Religious Activities Committee and clergy are already beginning to plan so that, come what may, we will figure out a good way to all celebrate and observe together. Look for those plans to come out in the near future.

As the world slowly starts to open up again, TBT is going to do the same. I look forward to seeing you all in the upcoming year – it has been a long time of being physically away from one another. In the meantime, if you still have questions, I welcome you to reach out and ask Bruce Topolosky, the Facilities Chair, or me. We’ve been waiting a long time for this future and I am so excited that it is almost here!

Sarah Mervine

President's Column - May 2021

Spring is in the air and so, at TBT, that means the Annual Meeting is just around the corner. Whether you are someone who has NEVER missed an Annual Meeting or you are someone asking “what is that?” here are the top 10 reasons you will want to join us for this one on May 19, 2021 at 7:00 PM:

1. Rabbi Offner will give her State of TBT address, so you can catch up in about 15 minutes on anything you missed this year.

2. You can hear the new Board of Directors slate, meet everyone who is running and, if there are any open positions, you could even sign up at the last minute! Or just start planning for the position you will take on in the future.

3. You will learn everything that is going on with the building renovation and even see pictures. Yes, even though we aren’t there to see it, the building renovation is progressing nicely and should be complete about the time we are ready to begin in-person activities. You will learn how we are on our way to completing a renovation that will make TBT full of light and sound, accessible to all and with space for the community, our preschool and our Religious School for many years to come.

4. You will hear about our Capital Campaign and find out how far along we are to date.

5. You may get a sneak peek at our soon-to-be new rabbi, Rabbi Moss!

6. You can hear which talented student won this year’s Freisner Scholarship.

7. You can hear which congregant won the Kavod Award (and it could be YOU, so you better be there to be congratulated!).

8. You can ask any questions you have about this past year, the year coming up or share any thoughts you have about TBT.

9. You can see lots of friendly faces that you have missed this year.

10. The best part – come learn it all from the comfort of your home as we will do it again on Zoom!

Hope to see you all there!
- Sarah

President's Column - April 2021

Like all of us, I have been thinking a lot these days about what it means to be at home for a year and looking back at how much we have learned about forming community while we are isolated. At TBT alone we now know how to hold virtual meetings, services, seders, movie nights, installations, book clubs and more. We “chat” with each other easily, go into breakout rooms, and we share our screens as if we were peering at the computer screen together. After a full year, look how far we have come! And while I mostly feel great about all we done, I have to admit that I also feel regret.

After all, well before the pandemic plenty of people we know and love had been stuck at home already, living lives away from us. Growing up in synagogue, or maybe just looking around you at TBT, you probably all know people who were pillars of the community, regulars at Torah Study or services or committees until, one day, they couldn’t be. Either through illness, frailty, old age, transportation or other issues, they became people who used to come to everything but now simply couldn’t.

And that, pretty much, was that. Once in a while a friend or relative might bring the person to something, but mostly that was the end of their connection to the community, save for a few visits to them. And we accepted that. And so did they.

Until we were ALL isolated and ALL became that person who was stuck at home. Then we immediately looked for and found ways to be included – Zoom services, Google Meet, Facetime. Yes, technology helped us, but some of that technology was available before the pandemic. We just weren’t always thinking about how to bring events to others because they were, well, others. Not us.

There were glimmers. We tried a live stream of High Holidays a year ago that was very well received. Now, however, there are more than glimmers. We know how to reach out to everyone and we are committed to doing so.

And so, if you are lucky enough to be able to return to TBT one day soon, for Religious School, services or (maybe!) a going away party for a beloved Rabbi, we are so happy to have you back! However, if you aren’t that lucky, do not worry. We hope to live stream, upload to YouTube or have “hybrid” events so all will be there. Zoom doesn’t have to be a thing of the past for those who need it; our new building should support all of these connections.

The biggest thing I have learned from this pandemic is if we are thoughtful and work a little harder, we can reach out to a number of people who can’t physically make it into our new building, beautiful though it may be. We will figure out how to include those members of the community who are ill or frail or maybe just live somewhere warm for half of the year! So, while I look forward to one day soon seeing many of you in person, I also look forward to including all of you, and others out there waiting to join, who will not be left out again.

Sarah Mervine

President's Column - March 2021

A friend recently told me that we all need a healthy dose of optimism right now, and I quipped back “what is that new drug and where do I find it?” It really has felt like optimism has been in short supply during this long winter. However, this evening I attended a meeting with the upcoming B’nei Mitzvah students, their families, Cantor Boyle and our soon to be new rabbi, Rabbi Moss. Looking around at all of those young faces excited and eager to become full-fledged “adults” in the eyes of TBT did fill me with optimism for our future and made me start to think about what other “healthy doses” there are right here at TBT.

For one, even as we remain away, our building is steadily being renovated. The old roof is coming down and the new roof is going up, city water is being hooked up, the new additions are being dug for our community room, expanded bathrooms, new kitchen and an elevator which will allow anyone to visit the first floor! Our sanctuary is being redone so all can fit and the new ark doors are under design. Less glamorous, but no less important, structural, and utility upgrades are also planned. It is happening as I write and, whenever we can return and be together, we will have a new, beautiful, accessible space to visit.

We are also steadily raising the money for this dream. We have reached almost $5.2 million of the $8 million goal. We need everyone’s help to make our new building a reality but, so far, the participation rate has been great. Our community is coming together to build it.

Along with the building, TBT members are being treated to some excellent programming – including a new class on Jewish Biblical History taught by Josh Lecar. If you missed the first one, do not worry, it is a series so there is time to join the next one - just contact Bonnie Mahon in the office. Or join the Power of Love presentation by Yad Vashem Sunday, March 7 at noon.

Speaking of Purim, by the time you get this we will have celebrated together and even managed to do a virtual Purim carnival for the kids! I hope the celebration helped cheer you along with the “Mishloach Manot” that were passed out to sweeten your celebration.

As we head into the spring after a long winter together, I am feeling very optimistic about what the future holds for all of us at TBT. I hope you are able to take advantage of some of TBT’s offerings and thereby find something that makes you take heart and feel that healthy dose of optimism we all really need right now.

Sarah Mervine

President's Column - February 2021

In Rabbi Offner’s article, she talks about a Rabbi who dared to give his congregation a report card. If we had to do that today for TBT, it would not be difficult. TBT congregants have managed to do so much during this extraordinary and difficult time. Some have joined the Capital Campaign where we have raised a little over $5.1 million towards our $8 million goal for renovating our building. Others have joined various committees to give input and direction to the building renovation that is well underway. They have assured that our new building will bring light, warmth, and accessibility to TBT while allowing room for a thriving Preschool and Religious School (and no need to turn our backs to our beautiful new ark during High Holidays). Others worked to have the installation of our wonderful new Cantor, Cantor Jenn Boyle, who hit the ground running and hardly feels “new” anymore! And, finally, some congregants worked on the search committee to find and hire our new Rabbi, Rabbi Danny Moss, who has so many great ideas for continuing Rabbi Offner’s legacy and leading us and our new building into the future. Even better, many of you came out to greet the new rabbi and show him what a warm community we are.

While it really isn’t anyone’s job to grade the synagogue, we can all feel good about the progress we have made. However, I assure you there is still more work to do and, with that, many opportunities to participate over the next few months! Here are just a few:

1.Consider joining just one committee at TBT that piques your interest. Education, Social Justice, Religious Activities, Communication, Technology, and Programming could all use your help.

2.Consider what kind of gift you might be able to make to the Capital Campaign as we have a goal of 100% participation from all members. We are trying hard to meet with each member by June and would love to meet with you. We welcome the gift you can make towards our financial stability and our new home.

3.Consider joining the Board, maybe for the first time ever, maybe for the third time! We are in the process of creating a nominating committee to fill open Board spots, so now is the time for you to consider lending your talents to TBT.

4.Come to one of our amazing programs over the next few months. As you will see in this Shofar, we have diverse programming available – from an Adult Education course on Jewish Biblical History to a medical program to discuss the link between Jewish Ancestry and certain health risk factors. Or show up at Book Club or Torah Study for the first time. Our groups are growing every day and are completely remote so you don’t need to go anywhere to be part of our community!

My experience at TBT is that the more you dig in, the more you get out of it. We welcome your time, your thoughts and your participation. Not sure how to start? Email me at sarahmervine@gmail.com or call the TBT office and I will get you started in the right direction. Thank you in advance for all you will do this year! - - Sarah

President's Column - November 2020

November is the time that we reflect on what we are grateful for and, this year, I am finding that pretty easy. This year, I am truly grateful for you, our wonderful TBT member.

I know that it is often said that this role I have now is a thankless one, but it really is not true. Not only do many of you thank me and our other volunteers for so many different things, but I also get to see all of the great things temple members are doing every day behind the scenes to make TBT run smoothly, even in these turbulent times.

One of the biggest things you all have been doing is paying your TBT membership pledges. We need those pledges this year more than ever and I want you to know we don’t take this support for granted. Each and every time you pay a pledge we are grateful that we can continue to do the good work we have started together. This year we are doubly grateful that people are not only supporting the current work of TBT but are also helping build for our future by supporting the Building Community Campaign.

It is an uncertain thing to build for the future while making sure we are set for today and yet I know it is the right thing for our community. Thank you for your support during this time and for recognizing the value of TBT in your own lives. The Board, Staff and Clergy of TBT all appreciate it.

Warmly,
- Sarah Mervine

President's Column - October 2020

The Jewish New Year is here and I thought maybe it was time to try something new. That is, I thought it was time to ask you to try something new.

In the secular new year we make all kinds of resolutions of what we are going to do in the upcoming year to make a change for the better. Often times we find we have a hard time following through on our goals. In this Jewish new year, why not make one resolution you can keep – make a resolution to try one new thing out at TBT.

What to try? There are all kinds of programs going on now, and for most of them, you only need to click on the Zoom link to be there. Want to participate in some insightful discussions? Come to Torah study, which you can find every Saturday at 9:00 AM or join the TBT Book Club for the October book of Button Man by Andrew Gross. Need some time to relax and focus? Try Jewish Mindfulness and Meditation every first and third Saturday of the month at 8:00 AM. Want to work on racial justice and getting out the vote? Come and see what the Social Justice Committee is doing at their meeting on October 1 at 7:30 PM on Zoom.

There is such a variety of programs, committees, services and activities going on, even during this time of being at home during COVID and the building renovation. I think for many of us, we feel that certain programs at TBT aren’t for us, simply because we’ve never tried them.

I can promise you that if you force yourself to try just one new committee/program/group in the month of October, the people you join are going to be thrilled to see you. I also promise you that no experience is necessary. If you are unsure how to join, e-mail me directly at sarahmervine@gmail.com and I will get you on your way (I might even be convinced to go with you). It is just that easy. Let this new year be one where we come together as often as we can to enjoy one another’s company and continue the good work at TBT.

Hope to see you soon!
Sarah