Dear friends:
We hope that you and your loved ones enjoyed meaningful High Holy Days and wish you all the best for the New Year.
In this season we all remember that at one point or another, we look to the Synagogue to meet our needs and the needs of our families. Whether these matters are spiritual, cultural, educational or social, we expect Ohav Shalom to be always available for us. It is through you, our congregants, that we can strengthen Ohav’s ability to meet these needs.
Our shul is a physical space where we can come together in prayer, in celebration and in sadness. Over the past year and a half, we have expanded our ability to make connections with our community through online and livestream platforms. We have worked to blend health concerns and social responsibilities with spiritual needs. We have continued to find ways to make alternations that have allowed our community to be strong and together. We are continuing to explore ways to meet your needs.
We look to Ohav to help give our children the tools, as Jews, to meet the challenges of our society. Ohav provides a rich complement of activities and programs, including subsidizing the costs of our B’Yachad (Hebrew School) and Mifgash (our community high school program), and providing scholarships for Jewish camps and Israel experiences. These endeavors are vital but costly.
At this time we need your support so that we may continue to be here for you, your family and our community. Dues by themselves cover only about 55% of our budget. Our High Holy Day Appeal is just one of the ways to assure our continued vitality. If you have never offered a Yom Kippur pledge, this is a great time to begin. If you have given in the past, we are grateful and hope you will consider continuing your support. Take a moment to complete the form below to make your contribution. When we all help together, we can reach our goals!
We very much want to enhance your involvement with Ohav, if you have thoughts on how we can better meet your needs, please reach out to me or to the Ohav administration. Together we can make Ohav a community that continues to grow and flourish, expanding the beauty of our Jewish values. Together, we will be stronger than ever. Thank you for being a part of Ohav’s family.
B’Shalom,
Gregg Fox, President
Ohav Shalom’s Project Nehemiah is named for the leader who, together with the religious leader Ezra, rebuilt the moral, spiritual and physical infrastructure of the Jewish community in the 5th century B.C.E.in the land of Israel. Our congregation’s Project Nehemiah program is for members who want to assist in building and sustaining the moral, spiritual and physical infrastructure of Ohav Shalom. Project Nehemiah is a voluntary program of giving beyond standard dues. In our budget, dues account for less than 50% of the funds necessary to run the congregation and provide the kind of programming and services that we value and are so proud of. Without this type of voluntary giving our synagogue could not pay its bills.
If you believe that Ohav Shalom is:
• A place you want to help build and sustain for the future
• A place worth investing in, so that you can be proud to bring family and friends here for worship and programming
• A place where you can take pride of ownership, knowing that you personally participated in keeping all of our services at the highest level then we hope you will consider joining the other families who generously participated in Project Nehemiah last year.
Three levels of giving are available (and of course, we encourage you to give beyond these levels as well!):
• Supporting Member: Contribution of $500 above dues (less than $1.50 per day)
• Sustaining Member: Contribution of $750 above dues (less than $2.00 per day)
• Guardian Member: Contribution of $1000 above dues (less than $3 per day)
