Temple Torat Yisrael

President's Address
Torat Yisrael's Farewell to Cranston April 22, 2012  

Shalom and welcome to everyone!  What a day! This is such an emotional and momentous occasion in the history of TY.  We just celebrated Passover and began to count the Omer towards the holiday of Shavuot.  At the Board meeting this month, we counted the Omer to symbolize our countdown to a special time.  This is the day we have waited for.  This is the day of our transition to our new location in East Greenwich. 

The process to begin this move began years ago, before I became the President and I am grateful for the foresight of the Presidents who preceded me and realized that in order for us to become more vibrant we needed to follow the demographics of the local Jews.  I especially want to thank a few people by name and hope that all those not mentioned individually will accept my thanks too for all you have done.  Rabbi Levin has been our shepherd through this process and led us to East Greenwich.  She joined us at the Town Hall meetings and kept us on track throughout this process.  Andy Sholes, our Building Committee Chairperson has been hardworking and dedicated to this move in an unparalleled manner.  He coordinated the architectural design and supervised the work that has already been done on the property.  The underground conduits have all been put in place, as has the first layer of asphalt and we are well on our way to the new building.  He has also coordinated the move and we look forward to celebrating the new building dedication with him soon.  Barry Golden, our vice president of Finance has kept us aware of all fiduciary matters and allowed us to have the funds at the correct times to pay the suppliers and contractors.  Marc Davis is our capital Campaign Chairperson and it is thanks to him that we are on our way to raising the required money.  As you know, we still need more money to complete the building and I hope you will all support us as best as you can.  I have a personal thank you to my husband David and my daughter Michelle for their patience always and their understanding of my hectic schedule.

We have all worked hard to continue our tradition of being an inclusive and welcoming congregation. 

As it is said in Pirkei Avot, 2:4 “Separate not yourself from the community!”  We are one community that has faced the challenge of functioning out of three facilities.  With the pending construction of our East Greenwich synagogue building, we look forward to coalescing and thriving in one location.  The work is hardly over –we will begin the new building in May and will continue until it is completed.  We look forward to celebrating many occasions and events in the new building.  In the meantime, we will spend Shabbatot together in East Greenwich and will arrange for a location for the high holidays this year close to our new building. 

This path we are on is one that is unique in the immediate history of Rhode Island and one that is not being mimicked in many other locations throughout America.  We have taken the stand that we are a congregation of Jews who will thrive and continue as one.  We have had the foresight to imagine this day and we have worked to make it happen.  This is not happenstance!  This is a deliberate step in the right direction and this could not be done without the individuals who make up the Torat Yisrael family.  Last week the congregation voted unanimously to sell this building and to finance the building of the new synagogue so that we will be able to pray, eat and learn together.  For every innovative and history-making step that we take, we also look back into our congregational history for inspiration:  those who created and maintained this congregation still speak to us of their love of God, the Torah and the people of Israel.  We take with us to East Greenwich all the lessons they have taught us about creating Jewish community in Cranston.

I am honored to stand before you here today as the president of our extraordinary congregation and I thank you for your patience as we move to East Greenwich.

May we go from strength to strength!

Chazak Chazak Venitchazek!

Shalom Fellow Congregants,

Happy Passover! This holiday is always special to me as it is the harbinger of good weather and an opportunity to return to outdoor activities and spend time with friends and family.  Passover is the opportunity to enjoy a peaceful Seder and eat foods that we only enjoy once a year.  Each person seems to have their own favorite charoset recipe and songs that accompany the seder.  I wish everyone a relaxing and happy Passover.  There will be Yizkor services on the last day of Passover, Saturday, April 14 in Cranston. Indeed, this will be our last Yizkor and Shabbat service in Cranston!  The services begin at 9:15 am and will be followed by a Kiddush.

The bank documents have nearly been finalized for the loan to ensure the foundation can be laid very soon for the new building in East Greenwich.  I have learnt that with the building there is always truth to the phrase “hurry up and wait”.  We proceed with the utmost fiduciary care and will keep you informed along the way.

The Cohen Religious School is organizing field trips for many of its classes and next month they will have the graduation ceremonies for the graduates and an opportunity for us to hear a “State of the School” address.  It has been a year using a newly developed curriculum that has allowed our students to thrive.  Sign-up for the new school year will begin soon and I look forward to seeing our students return with new friends. Please join us at the house in East Greenwich on Saturday, April 21 to participate in a one-hour service that will be partially led by our students.

Please contact me at any time with any comments or questions.
B'Shalom,
Susan

February 2012 We have been working diligently on the sale of the Cranston property and there is an update in this newsletter with the latest activity.  The foundation is due to be poured in East Greenwich soon and then we will be starting to put up the new structure.  What a huge and exciting undertaking!  I sincerely hope that you frequent our website for the latest news and that you drive by the site to review how our building is progressing.  It is imperative for all of us, the entire Torat Yisrael community, to realize that this is for us, for our children and for our heritage within the RI community.  This opportunity to provide a spiritual home should not be taken lightly and we are all working towards its fruition.

We need to raise money to finish the project and to be able to decorate the building with style, comfort and practicality.  The Ways and Means committee is organizing a fun-filled event that is a first-time RI art duel! There will be artists creating masterpieces at the event and then we will all have an opportunity to bid on the works of art and purchase them. We will be able to also buy auction items and spend an evening with friends.  I invite everyone to join me that evening at our Cranston location, for food, wine and fun.  Please invite your friends, neighbors, co-workers and family to join you and let’s be together that evening. Invitations will be mailed in a few weeks and additional tickets are available at Torat Yisrael and can be mailed to you –just call for additional invitations!

I have enjoyed following the activities of our Cohen School students and hope you have watched them singing and dancing and studying on their website class pages.