Last month the Religious Practices committee subsidized a Shabbat dinner, which was held after an early family service. I was thrilled at how many people showed-up. You would have thought there was a Bar-mitzvah scheduled. Both the attendance and the meal were wonderful. I wish to recognize and thank Ann Meitzen for her leadership on the Religious Practices committee and coordinating the evening. Due to the success, we will schedule another dinner this year. Keep an eye out for the date. I also want to say how great a time I had at the sisterhood Shabbat. The brilliant women of Temple Emanu-El led an inspiring well-attended service full of ruach.

As for business, Temple Emanu-el’s fiscal year begins in July, so we are more than six months in. We seem to be getting by, but the real fiscal support that gets our congregation to the finish line is the fundraising income from the Temple Raffle and the Goods and Services Auction. We need these to be a success. One way to ensure success is to involve the greater community. For example, for all the families that made you buy Girl Scout cookies even though your New Year’s resolution was to not eat cookies, drop off a raffle ticket flyer with them. There are six prizes now instead of three, but still only 600 tickets. There are more details in this issue of the bulletin. Another way you can help out is to volunteer for the Auction committee. Please contact either Armi Rowe or John Murphy for more information.

Please take note of the call for nominations for the Ilson Award, in honor of Howard Ilson, which is given annually to a member who has contributed to Temple Emanu-El in an important way. There is a nomination form in this issue. This is a wonderful way to recognize our fellow congregants who have positively contributed to our Temple.

And finally, I am excited about and look forward to the Bar Mitzvah of Jonathan Powell on February 18th. Jonathan is the third child of Steven and Herma Powell, so they should be Bar-Mitzvah parent pros by now. I’ve seen Jonathan grow over the years and I’m sure he’ll be great. If you see any of them, please wish them a mazel tov.