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Jewish Community Center of Eastern Fairifield County

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To have your organization's event added to this Calendar, please email the item (in the format you see below) to joyce@jccs.org.

 

 

SEPTEMBER 2010

 

5-6:   The Sisterhood of Congregation B'nai Torah, 5700 Main St., Trumbull is holding a Giant Labor Day Weekend Tag sale from 9 am to 3 pm.  The sale will be held in an indoor, air conditioned facility and includes clothing, small appliances, electronices, furniture, art, toys, sporting goods, books and household items.  A special area will be devoted to formal attire, prom dresses, bar & bat mitzvah clothing, mother of bride clothing & tuxedos.  Funds raise from this sale will benefit educational programs.  Cash only.  Donation of clean, good condition items appreciated.  For details, call (203)268-6940.

 

12:   Congregation Beth El of Fairfield cordially invites anyone interested to attend its upcoming Prospective Member Open House on Sunday, September 12 at 9:30 AM. This event will offer prospective members a chance to learn about Beth El in a relaxed, informal atmosphere as well as the opportunity to meet current members and make new friends. Our clergy and staff will be on hand to give tours of our facility as well as a brief overview of the programs we offer. It will also be an opportunity to see our Religious School in session. Breakfast will be served.  Beth El is a terrific place to raise a family – rich in both people and resources. A vibrant Conservative congregation, Beth El was founded in 1953. Our rabbi, Daniel Satlow, works to create a warm and intellectually challenging spiritual and educational environment. Our activities are entirely egalitarian, providing all rights and privileges to men and women equally.  Each week, Beth El holds Friday evening and Shabbat morning services as well as a daily morning minyan. During the summer months, Friday evening services are held at Jennings Beach where more than 100 adults and children attend.  We are proud of our excellent Religious School and K’tanim Preschool as well as our Family Programming, which provides for Tot Shabbat and family services, family dinners and special events, and a broad range of High Holiday youth programming. The synagogue also boasts strong Sisterhood, Men’s Club, Tikun Olam (social action), and Adult Education classes and special events through the Arts, Culture and Enrichment Committee. Congregation Beth El is conveniently located at 1200 Fairfield Woods Road, off Black Rock Turnpike in Fairfield, easily accessible from the Merritt Parkway or the Connecticut Turnpike (I-95). Our members join us from all surrounding towns, including Fairfield, Easton, Trumbull, Bridgeport, Westport, Weston, Wilton, Monroe, and beyond. For further information about our synagogue, go to http://www.congbethel.net/ or call Susan Mittag, Executive Director, at 203-374-5544.

 

19:   JCC Open House will be held on Sunday, September 19, 2010, 10:00 am – 3:00pm. at the JCC, 4200 Park Avenue, Bridgeport, CT 06604.  Admission is free. Everyone is welcome. Bring the family.  Tours, membership discounts, health professionals, entertainment for the kids, and food and beverages. Meet our staff, check out our fitness center, heated indoor pool, basketball and racquetball courts. Learn about our full-day and part-day preschool, children’s programs, and so much more. We have everything for everybody.  For more information contact Catherine Sette at (203)372-656 x181 or catherinesette@jccs.org.

 

19:   4:00 PM. Men's Club Scotch & Steak/  Jets vs. Pats.  Join the Men's Club of Congregation Beth El for an afternoon of scotch & steak & football on Sunday, September 19, and watch the New York Jets take on the New England Patriots for bragging rights in the AFC East. TV coverage starts at 4:15 PM on the big screen projector. Dinner around 6:00 PM. Women and kids welcome (kids <14 may pay $10/pp for burger or hot dog dinner in lieu of steak, please specify when reserving).  $25pp with advance reservation; $36 at the door. To reserve your spot, send an email to mensclub@congbethel.net before September 19th.

 

20:   1-3 p.m.  Jewish Film Class-  September 20, 27 and October 4  1 p.m.- 3 p.m.  A fascinating way to examine Jewish life, history and culture is through film.  Please join Edythe Rosenfield at the JCC this Fall to view, learn and discuss a series of three films. September 20 Class 1 of 3- "Left Luggage." Set in Antwerp, Belgium in the 1970's, this film focuses on a young daughter of Holocaust survivors, the Hassidic family for which she works, and her father's search for 2 suitcases he buried thirty years ago when fleeing the Nazis. Basedon the novel: The Shovel and The Loom.  This class is free of charge. For more information or to sign up for the class, please contact Vivian Rockmacher at 372-6567, ext. 127 or vivian127@jccs.org.

 

20:   7:30pm Women's Auxiliary of The Jewish Home for the Elderly, Annual Membership Meeting & Installation at The Jewish Home.  Dessert Reception co-chaired by Ilene Young Charrette and Lynn Schwimer.  For more information contact please contact Dayna Hayden, Coordinator, Auxiliaries & Events, 203-365-6409 or dhayden@jhe.org.

 

27:   1-3 p.m. Jewish Film Class 2 of 3. The ORIGINAL "Ten Commandments" Filmed by Cecil B. DeMille in 1923 "The Ten Commandments" is a silent film in black and white. Live the Exodus and see 600 charioteers chase the Jews (actually hundreds of Jewish immigrants) into the Red Sea... and its dramatic parting. The Exodus serves as a prologue for a "modern" morality tale set in jazz-age  San Francisco. This class is free of charge. For more information or to sign up for the class,please contact Vivian Rockmacher at 372-6567, ext. 127 or vivian127@jccs.org.

 

28:  11:15 AM - 2:00 PM.  36th Annual Sisterhood Interfaith Sukkot Luncheon at Congregation Beth El, Fairfield.  Keynote Speaker: Lester Colodny, author of "A Funny Thing Happened".  Congregation Beth El is located at 1200 Fairfield Woods Road in Fairfield.  For reservations, call 203-374-5544.

 

 

OCTOBER 2010

 

3:   4:00 pm. Dr. Stephen M.Berk at Congregation Beth El, Fairfield.Stephen M. Berk is Professor of History at Union College in Schenectady, New York, former Chair of the Department of History, Director of the Program in Russian and Eastern European Studies and Faculty Advisor to the Jewish Student Organization. He is the author of Year of Crisis, Year of Hope: Russian Jewry and the Pogroms of 1881-1882. Details and topic to be announced. Call 203-374-5544 or email congbethel@aol.comfor more information.

 

5:   7:30 pm - The Bennett Center for Judaic Studies Scholar-in-Residence Lecture by Dr. David Kraemer, Prof. Talmud and Rabbinics, Jewish Theological Seminary, New York City, “Jewish Eating and Identity Through The Ages.” Location: Charles F. Dolan School of Business. Admission: free. Seating is limited. Reservations are requested. Call the Carl and Dorothy Bennett Center for Judaic Studies, Fairfield University after September 1, 2010. (203) 254-4000, ext. 2066. This event is made possible by a gift from David and Edith Chaifetz.)

 

7:   6:30pm Men’s Club of The Jewish Home for the Elderly, Wine Tasting and Annual Meeting at Grasmere By the Sea, One Post Road, Fairfield, CT.  For more information contact please contact Dayna Hayden, Coordinator, Auxiliaries & Events, 203-365-6409 or dhayden@jhe.org.

 

9:   8:00 PM  A Night Out at Congregation B'nai Torah featuring stand-up comedian and writer, Joel Chasnoff.  Chasnoff is the author of The 188th Crybaby Brigade: A Skinny Jewish Kid from Chicago Fights Hezbollah, a humorous account of the year that he served in the Israel Defense Forcs.  Reception and book-signing to follow.  Tickets $25.00/per person.   For reservations and information, contact Congregation B'nai Torah, 5700 Main Street, Trumbull, CT, 203-268-6940 or email office@bnaitorahct.org.

 

12:   8 p.m. - In celebration of the 9th Annual Daniel Pearl World Music Days, the Carl and Dorothy Bennett Center for Judaic Studies at Fairfield University will present a musical performance/lecture entitled, “From Ethiopia to America: The Music and Message of Alula.” Alula Tzadik is a Jewish Ethiopian songwriter and performer who sings in ten different languages and whose music is an expression of the many strands of his life and immigration from Ethiopia to Sudan, to Egypt, and, finally, to the United States. His songs contain Hebrew, Amharic, Latin, and German musical influences overlaid by American hip-hop and reggae. This lecture and musical performance will take place in the Wien Experimental Theater, Regina A. Quick Center at Fairfield University. Admission is free, and seating is limited. For reservations and more information, call the Carl and Dorothy Bennett Center for Judaic Studies, Fairfield University, at (203) 254-4000, Ext. 2066.

 

17:   SAVE THE DATE! Join with usas we envision what a Thriving Jewish Community can look like in our area. For more information, please contact Bob Hillman at Bobhillman@jccs.org.

 

28:   6:30pm Women’s Auxiliary of The Jewish Home for the Elderly, Fall Gala at The Water's Edge in Darien, CT.  Co-Chaired by Betty Feldman and Bonnie Covey.  For more information contact please contact Dayna Hayden, Coordinator, Auxiliaries & Events, 203-365-6409 or dhayden@jhe.org

 

 31:   9:30 a.m. Congregation Rodeph Sholom Men's Club Political Forum Breakfast. For additional information, call 203-334-0159

 

 

NOVEMBER 2010

 

7:   3:00 PM. Teen Fashion Show and Dress Sale at Congregation Beth El of Fairfield. Proceeds to benefit area women's shelters. Details to follow.  For info, call 203-374-5544

 

8:   8:30 pm - Jacoby-Lunin Humanitarian Lecture featuring Mr. Jared Cohen, author of Children of Jihad and member of the US State Dept. Policy Planning Staff. “Children of Abraham: Muslim and Jewish Youth in Constructive Dialogue.” Location: Regina A. Quick Center, Fairfield University. Tickets required. Contact the box office (203) 254-4010. Co-sponsored by the Carl & Dorothy Bennett Center for Judaic Studies and Open Visions Forum, through the generosity of the Frank Jacoby Foundation.

 

17:  7:30 p.m. The Frank Jacoby Foundation Jewish Lecture Series presents Jonathan Schneer author of "The Balfour Declaration: The Origins of the Arab-Israeli Conflict."  A revelatory history of the Balfour Declaration that laid the foundation stone of the state of Israel, the reverberations of which continue to be felt today. Jonathan Schneer has written a sweeping, deeply researched, and provocative history of this crucial document and the politics, double-dealing, backstabbing, and geopolitical crises that led to it. Jonathan Schneer is a professor at Georgia Tech's School of History, Technology, and Society.  The author of five other books and a former fellow of the American Council of Learned Societies, he has also held fellowships at Oxford and Cambridge Universities and New York University.  Q&A and book signing immediately after lecture. $5 in advance/ $10 at the door. For more information or to reserve seats, contact Vivian Rockmacher at 372-6567, ext. 127 or vivian127@jccs.org.

 

18:   7:30 pm - The Carl and Dorothy Bennett Center for Judaic Studies at Fairfield University will present The Adolf and Ruth Schnurmacher Lecture in Judaic Studies given by Dr. Richard Freund, Prof. of Jewish History and Director of the Maurice Greenberg Center for Judaic Studies, University of Hartford, Hartford, CT. “Archeology and Re-Discovery of the Sobibor Death Camp.” This event is made possible by a gift from the Adolph and Ruth Schnurmacher Foundation. Admission: free. Seating is limited. Reservations are requested. Call the Carl and Dorothy Bennett Center for Judaic Studies, Fairfield University after September 1, 2010. (203) 254-4000, ext. 2066.

  

 

DECEMBER 2010

 

5:  CONCERT: "A CHANUKAH IN SONG" with Cantor Jason Green and Friends  Sunday, December 5, 2010 at 3:00 P.M. at Congregation Rodeph Sholom.  2385 Park Avenue, Bridgeport, CT 06604  Tickets: $50 reserved / $25 general / $10 child 4-11.   Call 203.334.0159 or purchase securely online at www.rodephsholom.com.   Join Cantor Jason Green of Congregation Rodeph Sholom, Cantor Alisa Pomerantz-Boro (Congregation Beth El, NJ), Maestro and accompanist Stephen Glass (Montreal), the Rodeph Sholom Choirs, and Cantor Green's Journey Singers for an unforgettable 4th-day-of-Chanukah concert, including fun and moving Jewish music, Chanukah Menora lighting, a new surprise "Adon Olam", and chocolate Chanukah gelt and dreidels for all! A latke and dessert reception for all guests will follow the concert. A portion of the proceeds from the concert will fund scholarships to Jewish study programs and Jewish summer camps for the community's children and teens. To donate towards the cause by purchasing an ad in the concert program book, please contact cantorgreen@gmail.com.

 

 

JANUARY 2011

 

9:   “Growing Alliance: Pro-Israel Support in the Christian and African American Communities”   Join us for a Community Wide Event at the JCC - 4200 Park Ave., Bridgeport, CT on Sunday, January 9, 2011 at 10:30 AM featuring Reverend Dr. Dee Dee Coleman, Pastor at The Russell Street Missionary Baptist Church in Detroit, Michigan and Jeff Mendelsohn, AIPAC National Outreach Director, as we explore support for a strong U.S.-Israel alliance outside of the Jewish community.  Mr. Mendelsohn heads AIPAC’s effort to promote pro-Israel activism among key members of the Hispanic, African-American, and religiously motivated Christian communities.  With Mr. Mendelsohn, Pastor Coleman traveled to Israel in 2008 on an educational trip sponsored by AIPAC’s affiliated charitable foundation.  Since returning from what she has called a "life-changing" experience, Reverend Coleman has been amongst Israel’s most ardent and outspoken supporters, addressing audiences across the country, including 7,000 activists at the concluding plenary of the 2010 AIPAC Policy Conference.  This event is free of charge and open to the community.  A light, dairy, kosher breakfast will be served.  Seating will be limited.  To reserve your seat, please contact Joyce at 203-372-6567, ext. 129.


13:   7:30 p.m. The Frank Jacoby Foundation Jewish Lecture Series presents Erica Brown author of "Confronting Scandal: How Jews Can Respond When Jews Do Bad Things." Madoff, Spitzer, Abramoff. This is the first time in Jewish history that a former prime minister and a president of Israel have been convicted of crime. Why are so many high-profile Jews in the medial for all the wrong reasons? Why do we feel so uncomfortable about wrongdoings we never committed? Brown looks back in Jewish history and forward in time to think about how we manage shame by association, how we air dirty laundry and how we return to a higher purpose using Jewish texts, contemporary psychology and philosophy and old-fashioned common sense. Dr. Erica Brown is a Jewish educator and writer, winner of the Avi Chai Award and the 2009 Covenant Award for her innovative work in Jewish education. Q&A and book signing immediately after lecture. $5 in advance/ $10 at the door. For more information or to reserve seats, contact Vivian Rockmacher at 372-6567, ext. 127 or vivian127@jccs.org.

 

29:   7:00 PM.  Comedy Night and Auction at Congregation Beth El, Fairfield.  Deatails to follow.  Call 203-374-5544 for more information. 

 

 

FEBRUARY 2011

 

 9:   8:00 pm - The Carl and Dorothy Bennett Center for Judaic Studies at Fairfield University will present the Samuel and Bettie Roberts Memorial Lecture in Jewish Art by Artist Norman Gorbaty. Lecture title: “To Honor My People: Reflections of a Jewish Artist ” Lecture location: Charles F. Dolan School of Business. Admission: free. For reservations and further details, contact the Bennett Center at (203) 254-4000, ext. 2066. **Note: Norman Gorbaty's paintings, sculptures, and works on paper and wood, which are based on Jewish themes will be featured in a unique display in the University's Walsh Gallery in the Regina A. Quick Center for the Arts from January 27-March 28, 2011, in conjunction with a display of his works of a secular nature, which will be shown in the University's new Bellarmine Hall Gallery, scheduled to open mid to late January. For details regarding gallery hours, call the Quick Center at (203) 254-4010.

 

 

MARCH 2011

 

4:   6:00-9:00 p.m. Congregation Rodeph Sholom Shabbat Across America Services and Dinner. For additional information, call 203-334-0159.

 

9:   7:30 p.m. The Frank Jacoby Foundation Jewish Lecture Series presents Marilyn Berger author of "This Is A Soul: The Mission of Rick Hodes." Rick Hodes went to Ethiopia twenty years ago to help in the evacuation of Jews to Israel. He is still there under the auspices of the AMerican Jewish Joint Distribution Committee, ministering to the sickest of the sick of all the religions in one of the poorest countries on earth. The book considers the phenomenon of altruism and how it contributes to the joy of life. As a modern Orthodox Jew, Rick Hodes truly believes that "whoever saves a life is considered as if he saved an entire world", and he practices that belief every day, creating miracles along the way. Marilyn Berger has been a journalist for more than forty years covering the Middle East, arms control, foreign trade, the White House and events in countries from Czechoslovakia to China. She is the widow of Don Hewitt, the creator of "60 Minutes." Q&A and book signing immediately after lecture. $5 in advance/ $10 at the door. For more information or to reserve seats, contact Vivian Rockmacher at 372-6567, ext. 127 or vivian127@jccs.org.

 

10:   7:30 pm -The 2011 Carl and Dorothy Bennett Lecture in Judaic Studies will feature Ms. Ruth Messinger, CEO of American Jewish World Service, an international organization motivated by Judaism's imperative to pursue justice, and dedicated to alleviating poverty, hunger and disease among people of the developing world regardless of race, religion, or nationality. Lecture title: “Jews as Global Citizens: Our Responsibility I the World”Location: Charles F. Dolan School of Business. Admission: free. Limited seating. Reservations strongly suggested. Call the Carl and Dorothy Bennett Center for Judaic Studies at Fairfield University (203) 254-4000, ext. 2066.

 

20:  Purim Carnival at Congregation Rodeph Sholom. For additional information, call 203-334-0159.

 

23:  A Taste of Merkaz. Join the community for an evening of adult learning. 6 – 9 P.M on Wednesday, March 23, 2011.  Contact Margery Verlezza for more information. (203) 372-6567 Ext. 139  or  margery@jccs.org   Be A Part Of It!

 

29:   7:30 pm - Researcher, author and curator Samuel Gruber, Ph.D., will speak. He is the founder and managing director of Gruber Heritage Global (GHG), a cultural resources consulting firm.  GHG includes the Jewish Heritage Research Center (JHRC), which Gruber has directed since 1995, and also serves the not-for-profit International Survey of Jewish Monuments (ISJM). Dolan School of Business Dining Room, 7:30 p.m. Lecture title will be announced at a later date. For further information, contact Dr. Gavriel Rosenfeld, associate professor of history at Fairfield, at (203) 254-4000, ext. 3198. 

 

 

 APRIL 2010

 

5:   7:30 pm - The Carl and Dorothy Bennett Center for Judaic Studies at Fairfield University, in conjunction with the University's Catholic Studies Program, will present the 5th Annual Lecture in Jewish-Christian Engagement, featuring Dr. Mary C. Boys, Skinner and McAlpin Professor of Practical Theology, Union Theological Seminary, New York City. Lecture title: TBA. Location: Charles Dolan School of Business Dining Room. Admission: free. Seating will be limited. Reservations are strongly suggested. Contact the Bennett Center at (203) 254-4000, ext. 2066.

 

10:   4:00 pm - Carl and Dorothy Bennett Center for Judaic Studies Annual Donor Reception. Details to be announced at a later date. Information can be obtained by calling the Bennett Center at (203) 254-4000, ext. 2066.

 

27:   7:30 pm - The Carl and Dorothy Bennett Center for Judaic Studies at Fairfield University, in conjunction with Campus Ministry and KADIMA (the University's undergraduate students Jewish cultural club) will present a special Holocaust Commemoration Program and multi-media lecture by Pierre Sauvage, Child Holocaust Survivor, Emmy Award-winning documentary filmmaker, and President of the Chambon Foundation. Lecture title: “A Time for Rescue: America and the Holocaust” Location: Barone Campus Center, Oak Room. Admission: free. Note: Seating for this event is limited and reservations are necessary. Call the Carl and Dorothy Bennett Center for Judaic Studies at (203) 254-4000, extension 2066.

 

 

 MAY 2010

 

2:   10:00 am - 3:30 pm Women's Auxiliary of The Jewish Home for the Elderly, Annual Spring Luncheon and Boutique, location TBD.  Co-Chaired by Peri Cook and Susan Freed. $100-$250 per person.   For more information contact please contact Dayna Hayden, Coordinator, Auxiliaries & Events, 203-365-6409 or dhayden@jhe.org.

 

4:   7:30 p.m. The Frank Jacoby Foundation Jewish Lecture Series presents Eric Metaxas author of "Boenhoeffer: Pastor, Martyr, Porphet, Spy" A Righteous Gentile vs. The Third Reich." As Adolf Hitler and the Nazis seduced a nation, bullied a continent, and attempted to exterminate the Jews of Europe, a small number of dissidents and saboteurs worked to dismantle the Third Reich from the inside. One of these was Dietrich Bonhoeffer- a young pastor in his twenties. He, his brother, Jewish brother-in-law and his Jewish best friend were executed in 1945 in concentration camps for their part in the plot to assassinate Adolf Hitler.  Eric Metaxas is The New York Timesbestselling author of Amazing Grace: William Wilberforce and teh Heroic Campaign to End Slavery, which was the companion book to the major motion picture "Amazing Grace." His writing has appeared in The New York Times, Washington Post, and Atlantic Monthlyand he has appeared as a cultural commentator on CNN and FoxNews. Q&A and book signing immediately after lecture. $5 in advance/ $10 at the door. For more information or to reserve seats, contact Vivian Rockmacher at 372-6567, ext. 127 or vivian127@jccs.org.

 

21:   7:30 PM. Congregation Beth El of Fairfield, Annual Gala. Honorees TBA. For more information, call 203-374-5544

 

 

JUNE 2011

 

 

JULY 2011