This Week: Pre-Chanukah Shabbat Festival: Chanukah South of the Border and the First Night of Chanukah!
12/14/2022 04:02:01 PM
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December 14, 2022 * eKoleinu * 20 Kislev 5783
Mazal Tov to all who worked so hard for marriage equality. Yesterday President Biden signed into law the historic Respect for Marriage Act which enshrines in Legislation federally Marriage Equality and Interracial Marriage as well. The Respect for Marriage Act officially repealed DOMA and requires the federal government to recognize same-sex and interracial marriages, codifying parts of both Obergefell and the 1967 ruling in Loving v. Virginia.
An Historic moment that our synagogue and our Reform Jewish Movement have been at the forefront of working towards and many of you!
Pre-Chanukah Shabbat Festival: Chanukah South of the Border Friday, December 16 at 6:30 PM Join Rabbi Denise L. Eger, Rabbi Ross Z. Levy, Student Rabbi Frankie Salzman, and Piano Accompanist Lisa Edwards and the Be the Light Band for our services in-person at Kol Ami or online on our Facebook page, YouTube channel, or on thetemple website. To access a free online flipbook of our prayer book Mishkan Tefillah book, click here.
#BeTheLight for our nine chanukah values this year! Your gift helps us shine the light of our values both during this Chanukah, our festival of lights, and in the year to come.
Gifts of $100 (or more) towards a given candle will be listed as sponsors of that candle. With a gift of $1000 or more you can dedicate a candle for one of the nights. With a gift of $2000, you can dedicate the Shamash, the Candle of Peace!
Give a sponsorship or dedication of a candle as a gift to a loved one during this Chanukah season! Any sponsorships or dedications given as gifts will include a card sent to the honoree from Kol Ami.
Chanukah at the LGBT Center Tuesday, December 20 | 6:00 - 7:30 PM Los Angeles LGBT Center
Volunteers are needed to perform in a Chanukah play and help Kol Ami celebrate with the residents of the LGBT Center in West Hollywood. Dinner and latkes will be provided. Please email Student Rabbi Frankie Salzman here to sign up.
Pre-Chanukah Shabbat Festival: Chanukah South of the Border
Friday, December 16, 2022 6:30 PM - 8:30 PM
Join our clergy for Kol Ami's signature #BeTheLight Shabbat Chanukah. Bring your chanukiah for our traditional community candle lighting outdoors! Then come inside for a musical Chanukah service. Following services, we will return outside to enjoy latkes and churros (provided by Kol Ami). A festive Mexican food truck, El Cabo Pepe's, will be offering meals for purchase. This event will be a combination of indoors and outdoors, so please make sure you bring a jacket! There will only be street parking for this event. We will not have any onsite parking available.
A Monthly Morning Torah Study. Join our monthly Torah study group exploring the weekly portions alongside the traditional Haftarah readings, the prophetic passages that pair with our annual cycle of sacred study. Join us to learn, connect, and engage with the words of our Hebrew prophets alongside Torah itself! No experience required.
Our ongoing HIV+ Support Group known as the Kol Amigos. Facilitated by Rabbi Eger, this confidential group is open only to those with HIV/AIDS. REGISTER HERE
Join Kol Ami for a family fun afternoon celebrating chanukah. There will be snacks and music. familys are encouraged to stay for the tzedek council sandwich making to follow.
Tzedek Council Lunch Bag Assembly for Hollywood Food Coalition
Saturday, December 17, 2022 3:00 PM - 5:00 PM
Join the Tzedek Council of Kol Ami as we continue our support of the Hollywood Food Coalition by assembling lunch bags for their Sunday lunch distribution program.
We made just over 500 lunch bags to be distributed across LA during our last event in October and we're hoping to keep up those numbers! We'll provide the materials all we ask is that you show up ready to help support this important cause!
Light Your Chanukah Candles Online with Kol Ami at 5:00 PM on Zoom
Join Rabbi Denise L. Eger, Rabbi Ross Z. Levy, and Student Rabbi Frankie Salzman for virtual candle lighting during Chanukah. You can join via Zoom on any of the five nights indicated by clicking on this or any one of the "Light Your Chanukah Candles Online with Kol Ami" links below.
Chanukah 2022 will begin on the evening of Sunday, December 18, and ends on the evening of Sunday, December 25.
Event Chair Dan Blatt invites you to The Men of Kol Ami (MOKA) Chanukah Party
Sunday, December 18, 2022 5:30 PM - 8:30 PM
At the Koreatown home of Dan Blatt (address to be provided before the event). Street parking only. Parking is challenging. Please do not park in the driveway.
$10 - includes a donation to the MOKA Fund (used for tzedakah) Bring a wrapped gift valued around $15-$20 for our white elephant gift exchange.
Enjoy lunch, latkes, and schmoozing both indoors and in the outdoor garden, so bring a coat!
Self-identifying males, transgender, and non-binary Kol Ami members, past and present, individuals of ALL ages, and new guests are all welcome. BRING A FRIEND TO INTRODUCE TO KOL AMI! Register to attend by 12:00 NOON Friday, December 9, 2022 For any questions or rsvp after December 9, 2022 email Dan Blatt at frodoblatt@aol.com REGISTER HERE
Queer Hanukah with Rabbi Denise Eger A CLGS Jewish Queeries Series / Lunch n Learn Event
Thursday, December 22, 2022 1:00 PM - 2:15 PM
Hanukah is so much more than a pale attempt at Jewish Christmas! This Jewish festival commemorates the success of a guerilla war for minority religious freedom by Judean partisans against the might of the occupying Greco-Syrian Empire over two thousand years ago. It is interesting, but coincidental, that Jews celebrate a holiday marking the importance of religious diversity and freedom for minorities at a time of year devoted to the holy season of the majority religion, Christianity. Click here to join this CLGS Jewish Queeries Series event via Zoom!
Click here to join this CLGS Jewish Queeries Series event via Zoom!
Friday, December 23, 2022 6:30 PM - 8:30 PM We are dedicating the Shabbat service on Friday, December 23, during the week of Chanukah, to express our appreciation to Marca.
Join our clergy for Kol Ami's signature #BeTheLight Shabbat Chanukah as we express our appreciation and gratitude to Marca for all that she has done for this synagogue and for our congregation. We are delighted for her as she moves into the next chapter of her life in a city to which she is drawn, and we are saddened that she will be leaving us.
Bring your menorah for our traditional community candle lighting outdoors! Then come inside for a Musical Chanukah service. Services will be followed by Latkes and Sufganiot!
Our members and guests can enjoy jelly-filled donuts (chocolate, raspberry, & lemon) and latkes with vegan sour cream and applesauce. This event will be a combination of indoors and outdoors, so please make sure you bring a jacket!
Join us for our traditional Xmas eve Chinese Food Dinner with Friends. Chaired by Evan Cohn and Don Margolin.
King Buffet 1375 N Western Ave. Los Angeles, CA 90027 $26.99 Plus tax and tip. 10 percent off for those 65 and over. No alcohol served. Bring a friend.
SAVE THE DATE Focus Group Meeting Thursday, January 12, 2023 at 7:00 PM
Thank you to everyone who attended our Semi-Annual Congregational Meeting on November 30, 2022. As your Board of Trustees, we are profoundly grateful to have your support, including proxies, in approving the recommended budget for the last 6-months of our fiscal year ending June 30, 2023.
We are facing challenges at every turn: our Founding Senior Rabbi is retiring, our Executive Director is moving, the impact of inflation on the economy, continuing uncertainty over COVID, and an operating budget with a significant deficit.
We are tasked with fiduciary responsibility and stewardship of our beloved community. We want nothing more than Kadima, to move forward, as we celebrate Kol Ami’s 30th Anniversary. We listened and heard your concerns about transparency, financial obligations, and three options presented for support to explore how they might transform our congregation during this difficult time.
Whatever your view is of the opportunities and risks ahead for Kol Ami, our Jewish values remain at the forefront of our communal decision-making as a Kehilla Kadosha, a sacred community. We look forward to providing additional information and details during a Focus Group Meeting on Thursday, January 12, 2023, at 7:00 PM. This will be a hybrid meeting, both in-person and via Zoom, and will be open to all members in good standing. You can register to participate in-person here and via Zoom here.
Congregation Kol Ami 30th Anniversary Trip to Israel May 30, 2023 - June 7, 2023 Give someone the gift of Israel for the Holidays! The first 13 people have already signed up! We need 3 more to meet our minimum. Reserve your spot for this once in a lifetime opportunity.
The Deadline to put your deposit for the Israel trip is January 10! Join Rabbi Denise L. Eger on Kol Ami’s 30th anniversary trip to Israel! Explore the homeland of the Jewish people, its ancient history, and Israel’s vibrant modern sights and sounds.
Kol Ami’s friends and family will travel to Israel for an 8-day trip to Eretz Yisrael, the Land of Israel. Our trip begins in Jerusalem on May 30, 2023, winds our way north to the Galilee, and finally ending in the bustling city of Tel Aviv on June 7, 2023. CLICK HERE FOR MORE INFORMATION
Congregation Kol Ami has adopted a Code of Ethics as a holy, respectful, mindful and safe way of interacting with one another. We join with other Reform Jewish communities dedicated to creating safe and sacred spaces. The Code of Ethics was created by a working Task force of our Board of Trustees, adopted by our Board and subsequently adopted by the congregation at our Annual meeting in June, 2022. You can view the Code of Ethics on our website at here.
Refuah Shleimah: A Speedy Recovery We keep the following members in our healing prayers: John Altschul, Tim Jordan, Heidi Kebbas, Larry Levi, Peter Mackler, Stan Papel, Keith Rand, Ivan Rosenberg, Richard Ross, Lowell Selvin, Miles Senn, Karen Shanbrom, Travis Terry
Kol Ami requires proof of vaccination including at least one booster for all events for all those eligible for the Covid-19 vaccine. If you are not yet eligible for a booster, you must provide proof a negative test within 24 hrs of the event. While masks are optional at indoor events the Los Angeles County Health Department strongly recommends that you wear a mask indoors. At Kol Ami we are mindful that there are many people who are immune compromised and as an act of loving kindness (Chesed) and compassion (Rachamim) we recommend you wear a mask except when eating or drinking indoors.
To learn more about Kol Ami's COVID-safety policy please click here.
