Temple Beth El Blog

As a beit tzedek (house of justice), we work toward a better world, putting our values into meaningful action through social justice opportunities.

April 2023 marked the return of Mitzvah Day, with more than 160 congregants of all ages participating in service projects across Madison. We also held a program on reproductive rights together with UW Hillel, inaugurated the Joel Pedersen Lectureship in Tikkun Olam and the Environment, sent over 1,000 postcards to voters in low-turnout areas, and so much more.

Check out the other sections of our Year in Review 2022–23 to read about our worship, community events, and educational programming.

Mitzvah Day

In April, Mitzvah Day returned to Temple Beth El, led by our co-chairs, Lynn Renner, Staci Rieder, and Linda Reivitz, with staff support from Aleeza Hoffert and the help of many project leaders. The building was abuzz with activity, as young families brought their children and longtime members worked side by side with old friends.

Over 160 people of all ages volunteered for Mitzvah Day. We cooked hundreds of meals, tied blankets and knit hats, built shelves and cleaned kitchens, sent letters of appreciation to first responders, and hosted a Social Justice Fair in the Weinstein Community Court.

How TBE members supported our community:

• We had 160 registered volunteers, plus more showing up to help that day.
• Members donated bags full of diapers, toiletries, food, school supplies, and yarn, along with $832 to help purchase supplies.
• We swabbed the cheeks of nine potential bone marrow donors and shared information with many others.
• We turned out 45 volunteers of all ages to work outside on a cold blustery day. We cleaned up and spread mulch at Beit Olamim cemetery, readied garden beds at Goodman Community Center, picked up at garbage at Wingra Park, and helped at the Arboretum.
• We prepared 340 meals for future dinners at the Catholic Multicultural Center and did a spring cleaning of their building.
• Our knitters made 14 items, including hats, dishcloths, and small creatures for children’s library reading programs. We also formed a new TBE knitting group!
• We made 26 gift baskets for distribution at a Mother’s Day program for FOSTER, a case management program for parents.
• To help hospitalized children, we made 30 meals at Ronald McDonald House and tied 27 fleece blankets for Project Linus.
• Children and parents made cards for first responders through Operation Gratitude and wrote pen pal letters to children in Israel.
• We supported 6 nonprofit community organizations at our Social Justice Fair. 
• We also gave manicures and hand massages to residents at Capitol Lakes, sorted and bundled diapers for delivery to the Village Diaper Bank, and built bookshelves and assembled yard signs for the GSAFE LGBTQ+ youth program.
• Adamah and the Great Dane donated a delicious lunch for 101 students and their families, and Roger Brown donated Rocky Rococo pizza for 40 people at dinner.

Additional photos from Mitzvah Day:

Racial Justice Action Team

For the second summer, our Racial Justice Action Team worked with the Boys & Girls Club of Dane County to offer internships for 11 high school and college students with employers from TBE and the broader Jewish community. The program will continue in summer 2023 thanks to an additional grant from the Jewish Federation of Madison. 

Our Environmental and Climate Change Action Team worked with the Facilities Committee and TBE staff to improve our building’s energy efficiency. Thanks to a generous grant from the Goodman Foundation, TBE will be installing solar panels this year, honoring our commitment to the planet and saving money at the same time.

Our Immigrant and Refugee Rights Action Team worked throughout the year to furnish apartments and buy groceries for newly arriving refugee families from around the world, working with Jewish Social Services and Open Doors for Refugees. We also helped coordinate collection of coats, winter gear, and school supplies for refugee families.

Our Social Action Shabbat focused on threats to our democracy and ways to strengthen our political institutions in Wisconsin. This fall and spring, our Civic Engagement Action Team sent over 1,000 postcards to voters from low-turnout areas, canvassed households in south Madison, and offered voter registration at UW–Madison and the Wisconsin DMV.

Our Environment and Climate Change Action Team and our Torah Study group began an annual lecture series in honor of the late Joel Pedersen, exploring the connection between climate science and Jewish values. Professor Jamie Schauer was the first invited speaker, talking about air pollution and its impacts around the world. 

Together with UW Hillel, we hosted a panel discussion on “Reclaiming Reproductive Rights: An Intergenerational Effort.” The panel highlighted Jewish teachings on abortion, current legal challenges, efforts to help women access abortion care, and student perspectives, followed by a spirited discussion continued over dinner.

Social Action by the Numbers

How TBE members supported our community:
 

• High Holy Day Food Drive: Thanks to the generosity of our members, we were able to distribute $13,000 to Second Harvest Foodbank and $3,000 to six smaller food programs. We also bought food for the Mitzvah Day cooking projects.
• Goodman Community Center Thanksgiving Basket Collection: Religious School students and families donated 336 items for Thanksgiving dinners.
• Catholic Multicultural Center: 21 TBE volunteers served meals and cleaned up after a community dinner every month, serving nearly 400 people over the year. 
• Healing House: 27 volunteers planned, bought, and cooked four weeks of dinners for people without permanent housing recovering from illness or surgery, a total of 224 meals. 
• Thoreau School Food Program: 10 volunteers packed and delivered bags of food for 35 children for 7 weeks.
• Mount Zion Baptist Church: TBE volunteers packed 300 sack lunches for participants in a 6-week parenting program.
• Allied Wellness Center Essentials Pantry: In recognition of Juneteenth and Martin Luther King Jr. Day, TBE members donated $3,500 for hygiene items and gift cards. 
• Jewish Social Services refugee resettlement program: Our volunteers have helped set up about 16 apartments with furniture and food, welcoming refugees from Afghanistan, Iran, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Ukraine, and Syria.
• JSS Alijirani “friendship/mentor” program: Our volunteers have been helping refugees learn about American culture and systems.

Social justice education and advocacy in support of Jewish values:

• We hosted a discussion of historical and continuing barriers to home ownership for Black households, in connection with a local production of the play “Raisin in the Sun.”
• Together with TBE Sisterhood, we toured the exhibition “Sifting and Reckoning” at the Chazen Museum, about the history of racial prejudice and protest at UW Madison. 
• We offered a regular “Racial Justice Action of the Month” in the Weekly Happenings emails, with opportunities to educate, participate, advocate, and donate.
• Walkers and bikers met at Temple for a talk by a Madison city engineer on the impact of runoff on the Lake Wingra watershed, followed by a ride around the lake. 
• We wrote articles for the Social Justice Spotlight on transportation sustainability and efforts to improve the energy efficiency of the Temple building.
• We sponsored a program on “Climate Change as a Driver of Human Migration,” followed by a lively discussion among the participants. 
• We hosted a presentation on using humanitarian parole to reunite families needing to leave Afghanistan.

As a beit midrash (house of study), TBE offers lifelong education for children and adults, from Religious and Hebrew School to lectures, courses, and events.
 
In 2022–23, we celebrated the b’nai mitzvah of 19 students, learned from Madison’s women rabbis at our Swarsensky Memorial Weekend, welcomed an average of 18 participants per session to our weekly Torah Study, raised over $2,000 for youth programs and scholarships at a disco-themed pasta dinner and dessert auction, and so much more! Read on for some notable numbers. 

Check out the other sections of our Year in Review 2022–23 to read about our worship, community events, and social action activities.

Our Religious School community celebrated Hanukkah with an all-school shira, a song session led by Cantor Jacob Niemi and the music team.

The annual pasta dinner and dessert auction run by our teen youth group was disco themed this year. The teens raised over $2,000 for youth programs and scholarships by auctioning donated desserts.

Congregational Education

The Swarsensky Memorial Weekend in November 2022 focused on the history of women in the rabbinate and featured Madison’s women rabbis, who shared their perspectives on the challenges we face in the American Jewish community. 

The featured speaker at the Blockstein Memorial Lecture in February was Francesca Hong, Wisconsin’s first Asian American state legislator.

The chair of our Kesher Israel Committee shares with us these articles of interest on Israeli news, history, and society: 

"Germany sets up panel to review 1972 Munich Olympic attack" (AP News, April 21, 2023) 

"Israel’s Declaration of Independence — May 14, 1948" (Times of Israel) 

“Tens of thousands join protests against Israeli judicial overhaul” (CNBC, May 7, 2023) 

“Israel and the UAE join forces to accelerate AI innovation in Abu Dhabi” (Jerusalem Post, May 9, 2023) 

We celebrate LGBTQ+lives and fight for LGBTQ+ rights all year. In June, during LGBTQ+ Pride Month, we celebrate the freedom to be ourselves even more!

Please join us for a colorful weekend June 9 and 10 featuring the work of LGBTQ+ artists in our worship and opportunities to eat, pray, craft, and learn together.

Before we begin our celebration, take a moment to learn about current legislation that can harm the freedom of many, and take action now.

Temple Beth El firmly believes in the Jewish value of b’tzelem Elohim, that we are all created in God’s image. We aim to create a community based on inclusion, collaboration, kindness, and equity, both in our congregation and in the wider community. Please see our Inclusivity and Accessibility page and our in-person information for details.

Pride Party
Friday, June 9, 6:30–7:30 pm • TBE

Dress up to show your pride and join us for a rainbow-themed celebration before our 7:30 pm Pride Shabbat worship. Enjoy a colorful array of sights, sounds, and tastes representing LGBTQ+ pride. This family-friendly event will include rainbow-colored foods, craft projects, a photo wall, and more.

To help our planning, RSVPs for the Pride Party are appreciated.

Learn more and register now

Pride Shabbat
Friday, June 9, 7:30–9:00 pm • TBE & YouTube

Our Shabbat service will feature melodies by LGBTQ+ writers and composers as well as songs with relevant themes. Our worship and community spaces will be decorated with lots of color! 

Everyone is welcome!

Learn more and join us in person or online

Queering the Text: Finding Meaning in LGBTQ+ Perspectives on Torah
Saturday, June 10, 9:00–10:00 am • TBE & Zoom

Cantor Jacob Niemi will share examples of queer interpretations of text that add new facets to our understanding of Torah and its relevance in our lives. While this approach may be particularly meaningful to those who are LGBTQ+, the conversation will explore how reading through a “bent lens” (a term borrowed from David Shneer’s introduction to “Torah Queeries: Weekly Commentaries on the Hebrew Bible”) can deepen the experience of all who find meaning in the study of Torah.

Learn more and register now

Get in the Pride Spirit through Song

Watch the recordings of B’ou NashirPride playlistfrom 2021 and 2022 where Cantor Niemi shared songs with Pride themes and elevated the voices of the current generation of LGBTQ+ singers and songwriters to fill our souls.

Pride Resources

The 2020 Pride team put together a wonderful list of resources available on the Temple blog. 

Want to join our PRIDE planning team? Have questions? Contact Aleeza A. Hoffert.

Our endowment campaign continues to go strong, and we are grateful to all of our donors. As of March 23, over 120 households have donated more than $4.8 million to the Endowment for Spiritual Leadership. Every contribution represents a lasting and meaningful step toward transforming our future.
 
To ensure that we attain our goal of 100% community participation by June, TBE board members will be reaching out with phone calls to congregants we haven’t heard from. These phone calls will be a chance for you to have a conversation with board members about the details of the endowment and get answers to any questions you may have.
 
You can make your pledge by completing the form on the Endowment for Spiritual Leadership web page, emailing Stefanie Kushner (exec@tbemadison.org), or returning the donation card you received in the mail. Donations can be given over multiple years.

If you have any questions, please reach out to Stefanie Kushner at exec@tbemadison.org.

Held on the fifth day of Iyar in the Hebrew calendar (April 26, 2023), Yom Ha’atzmaut commemorates Israel’s independence in 1948. According to Jewish Virtual Library, “Israeli Independence Day is always immediately preceded by Yom Hazikaron—Memorial Day for the Fallen Israeli Soldiers. The message of linking these two days is clear: Israelis owe their independence—the very existence of the state—to the soldiers who sacrificed their lives for it.” 

As Prime Minister David Ben-Gurion said, quoting Israel’s Declaration of Independence, "This is the natural right of the Jewish people to be masters of their own fate, like all other nations, in their own sovereign State."

As described at timeanddate.com:

Independence Day is a holiday in Israel, and like many Jewish observances, this "day" starts the evening beforehand. On this evening, the speaker of the Israeli Parliament, or Knesset, gives a speech and there is a dramatic televised presentation. Groups of soldiers carry Israeli flags and form shapes that represent symbols of Judaism, including a … menorah and a … Star of David. In addition, 12 beacons are lit by people who made a special contribution to Israeli society in a particular field. Each of the beacons represents one of the 12 tribes of Israel.

Many people hold parties or sing and dance in the streets to celebrate and fireworks are set off. ... It is also common to display the Israeli flag prominently on homes and cars. Many religious people may read the Torah or say the Hallel, which are six Psalms, or blow the shofar. … 

Yom Ha'atzmaut is also celebrated by [Jews living in the Diaspora]. ...

[Yom Ha’atzmaut] is not celebrated by everyone. … Many Arabs feel that the day, which they call al-Nakba, the disaster, represents a loss of national identity.

This is a letter written to President Biden by the chair of our Kesher Israel Committee, who presents it in the hope that others will write to President Biden and their representatives asking for support of democracy in Israel.

Dear President Biden,

Israel has just elected Netanyahu as its new Prime Minister. It was a tight election with half the population voting for a liberal government. 

P.M. Netanyahu has brought with him an ultra-Orthodox cabinet prepared to eradicate all the equal rights declared by Israel's Declaration of Independence, many of which had been reintroduced by the outgoing government. For many reasons, including the elimination of the "right of return law," these ultra-Orthodox changes will affect those of us in the U.S. and the wider Western hemisphere as well as in Israel.
 
The U.S. is committed to Israel politically, economically, and morally.

I'm writing to plead with you to stand by Israel and its people in this most precarious moment. Please exert any possible influence on P.M. Netanyahu. Please ask him to use his common sense when moving forward with this newly chosen cabinet.

Thank you.
Joanna S. Berke

The Kesher Israel Committee hopes that this letter might inspire others to learn more.  Please write to your representatives encouraging them to support Israel in this most difficult of times.

The 25th Knesset, elected November 1, 2022, consists of 120 representatives representing 12 political parties that all received at least 3.25% of the votes in the most recent election. In order to form a government, one political party must receive enough votes to give them one more than 50% of the Knesset (MKs). If that threshold is not met, party leaders can attempt to form coalitions representing a number of parties, if the parties and the MKs agree. (Such coalition agreements may be built on mutually beneficial ideological or practical lines; there is no norm and no legal requirement for any one party to pair with another.)

Because Likud, the party of Benjamin Netanyahu, received a large number of votes in the last election and was able to convince Israel’s president that he could amass a coalition of at least 61 members, the president gave Netanyahu a “mandate” (permission with a three-week shelf life) to form a coalition government. And, indeed, he subsequently formed the current governing coalition consisting of 64 MKs representing right-wing, conservative, ultra-Orthodox, and settler-driven parties, each with their unique political and philosophical direction, each willing to provide mutual support to the other coalition partners.

Many observers report that the current government is the most politically conservative ever elected in Israel. Yet despite that government’s majority, their coalition is fragile, and they cannot afford to have even one Knesset member defect from the coalition. So, everyone must be appeased in some way.

There are at least five problematic areas where this coalition has raised the ire of liberal Israel:

• Prioritizing Orthodox denominations by foreclosing the possibility of any egalitarian prayer space at the Western Wall; forbidding non-Orthodox conversions; and amending the Law of Return to prohibit those with only one Jewish grandparent to qualify to enter Israel under the Law.
• Eliminating outside speakers in public schools who, in the eyes of the new authority, would bring “inappropriate” materials, such as information about gender diversity and other LGBTQ matters; and eliminating the use of non-Orthodox resources for teaching about society, which is currently done by Reform and other liberal streams of Judaism.
• Allowing the young Haredi (ultra-Orthodox) men—not to mention young women—to return to studies and elect not to serve in the army or offer national service.
• Imposing Orthodox and ultra-Orthodox curriculum materials in public schools.
• Altering the status quo and loosening Jewish prayer restrictions on the Temple Mount, an area where exclusively Muslim worship is now permitted.

For these reasons and others, Israeli Jews have been motivated to protest in the streets since the beginning of this government.
 

This year’s speaker for the Liesl M. Blockstein Memorial Lecture on February 12 was State Representative Francesca Hong, who represents an Assembly district in central and northeast Madison. Representative Hong works to build community and support the working class through issues such as housing access, climate justice, labor rights, and educational and racial equity. 

Rep. Hong introduced her family and spoke about her upbringing, the difficulties they faced as immigrants, and the religious and cultural values that inform her work as a legislator. She noted that discussions in the Wisconsin legislature too often come from a mindset of scarcity where people are pitted against each other to divide resources, a mindset that favors the already rich and powerful. Rep. Hong believes there are enough resources in this country for everyone to be housed and educated, and she rejects the mindset that some must be diminished for others to succeed. She hopes to push our politics toward a mindset of abundance, where we work together to fashion lives of goodness and dignity for all people. 

When asked what can be done to support these goals, she urged people to push back through voting and asking others to vote. She also suggested that we talk with our friends and neighbors about our hopes for a more just society and ways public policy can offer concrete solutions. 

Here are her remarks:

Hello everyone, 

Thank you so much for being here and for giving me the opportunity to speak to you today. The Liesl M. Blockstein Memorial Lecture is truly an honor; its legacy of activism and public service a guiding light for our community. I would like to thank Kai Mishlove-Gardner and Rabbi Biatch for inviting me today, and thank my family for friends for being here with me.

My name is Francesca Hong. I’m the daughter of Korean immigrants, a small business owner, a proud mother, and state representative for the 76th assembly district here in Madison. 

My story is not unlike many of yours here today; my parents, deeply devoted, hardworking individuals, instilled in me the importance of resilience and determination at a young age. I grew up watching my father navigate the unrelenting, often impassive world of higher education as an immigrant while my mother made a new home and career in a city and country far away from the familiarity of her homeland. Their struggles and their accomplishments became guidelines by which I swore I’d live my life—their sacrifices an inspiration and their adversity my driving force. 

As many children do, I looked up to them. Begrudgingly at first, of course we all have moments when we think we know better than the people raising us, but eventually it transforms into an immeasurable respect and awe. 

I was intrigued that at the heart of their values was a deep, unrelenting faith that defined their lives and I would come to hope, would define mine. 

As many of you know, faith is a complexity. For my parents, it of course meant church. Devotion to a higher entity at its simplest form is in what you believe and how you believe it. 

But for them, faith also meant comfort, courage and community. I saw that inherent to my parents’ commitment to religion, was a commitment to the collective. My mother is a music teacher, my father is a sociologist and so naturally enough that commitment reached far beyond Sunday services and into their careers. 

They are two people committed to community through faith, a theme that is shared by many in this room and is a defining tenet of the wonderful organizations hosting us today, Jewish Social Services, Temple Beth El, and of course the legacy of Liesl M. Blockstein.

My parents are Catholic, my sister is Jewish, and many in this room hold a similar or different religious background. But no matter what we believe, the sense of responsibility to our community is a common denominator that unites us. 

So today, I hope to talk about that common denominator. What community is and how community can ultimately set us free. 

What makes a community? 

On the near west side of this city near UW–Madison, there’s a little neighborhood called Eagle Heights. There, I spent my formative years in a sort of utopia. University graduate students and their families from all over the world made Eagle Heights home; our playgrounds were diverse and our community safe from the often harsh realities of an America that did not welcome immigrants as openly as this little neighborhood did. 

But as I grew up and moved away further west, the bubble burst. I was no longer sheltered and protected by the diversity of university housing. I made my way into white spaces where I was forced to re-evaluate my value, identity and purpose almost constantly. I had suddenly and unexpectedly discovered segregated Madison, where the color of my skin mattered, but not in any way that was fair. Or maybe in a sense, segregated Madison had discovered me. 

I struggled from grade school through high school with the concepts of identity and belonging brought on by my transition into a mostly white school (where my conflicts too often occurred with other students of color, and I didn't realize until later how deeply white supremacy is engrained to pit those with vulnerable senses of belonging and identity to not be supportive but competitive).

I was missing those playgrounds where every language was spoken and where different fragrant lunches were normal and intriguing. I was missing a place where it seemed there was always someone to listen, empathize, and help. A place where the collective looked out for the individual. 

I was suddenly different and made to reckon with assimilation, privilege, white supremacy and the isolation those bring. And at an early age I understood the absence of community, and the harm its absence does. Community at a foundational level is a place where equity, justice, and inclusivity take priority. 

But it wasn’t until my service in government, did I realize that community is most importantly, a place where abundance replaces the scarcity mindset. 

——

If you tune into politics, or any sort of debate where policy makers are discussing a specific budget proposal, there are usually two sides. A side that argues for a policy on the basis of its value to a constituency, and a side that argues against that policy on the basis of its cost. For many of the issues that come before us legislators like healthcare, childcare, public education, immigration, and the like, we have to make the case, and sometimes beg, that an investment is worth the expenditure it takes. 

In some cases, it’s a way of keeping good governance, a way of making sure that we are responsible stewards of taxpayer money. But in a lot of cases, especially those that regard progressive policy initiatives like racial equity, it’s a way for the powerful and wealthy to maintain their control through a cynical brand of politics that prioritizes austerity over care. 

The contrast in how government works and how our communities responded to the Covid crisis really exemplified for me the detriment of scarcity mindsets. 

As an independent restaurant owner, I saw my fellow industry folks jump into action to help each other in a time of great uncertainty. I saw advocacy organizations pool resources to help people trying to keep a roof over their heads or food on the table. I saw a community look after itself when the economic and political safety nets that were supposed to catch us tore because of the pandemic. All of this while the government debated how much help we deserved. 

These individuals didn’t weigh the cost of helping before they extended a hand, they understood the importance of mutual aid and rejected the scarcity mindset. They lived up to what it means to be a community. 

It’s important to always keep in mind that scarcity mindsets have been imposed on us by the white supremacist systems that want us to feel like we can’t have it all. That we can’t have the beauty of Eagle Heights in every corner of our state. That our society must segregate and minimize others in order for a few to rise to the top. 

Mia Birdsong, a Black activist and storyteller in Oakland, describes it like this:
 
“The American Dream’s focus on getting ahead is a race to win so you don’t lose. It plays into our well-developed fear instincts, creating a real and imagined scarcity of resources, time, and money. This fear-based sense of scarcity pits us against one another. It also leaves us with a poorly developed sense of ‘enough,’ both of the material and of love and care.”

So what makes a community? Abundance. The belief that there is always more to give and more to have. The faith and perspective to understand that good can never come with an expense if it is done in the effort to help others. 

I reject the notion that we need to choose between our individual success and doing good. Actually, I think it’s not only possible, but necessary to create another option together.
 
We must pave a path that acknowledges that we are all inextricably bound together—that our success is tied to the well being of one another and our planet—that we are all better off when we work together.

We must strive to recreate Eagle Heights and the community present in this room here, everywhere we are. 

So how can community set us free? 

Birdsong reminds me that when we actually look at the resources in the U.S., there is plenty here for all of us to eat, to be housed, to have a comfortable life, a good education, and quality health care. Any politician who claims otherwise does so from a place of cynicism or self-interest. 

Abundance for everyone is possible, if we as a society—and as leaders—make different choices about what we prioritize, about how we care for each other.

Therefore, in order for us to fight the evils that face our society today we need to truly internalize, politicians especially, that our success and our hurt intertwine. And we can only do that when we commit, unrelentingly to the collective and to care.

There is an African proverb that says, “If you want to go quickly, go alone. If you want to go far, go together.” 

And to this effect, throughout history, there have been many examples of how communities united achieved the impossible and went far in the fight for justice and freedom. 

Here in Wisconsin for example, Senator Gaylord Nelson rallied an estimated 20 million people and thousands of events 53 years ago in the first major environmental protest that lives on to this day as the annual celebration of Earth Day. 

The Stonewall riots, where LGBTQ+ people rebelled against discriminatory policing strategies and violence, lasted five days and later inspired protests across the country and marked the beginning of the modern LGBTQ+ rights movement.

The Battle of Blair Mountain, where 10,000 West Virginia coal miners marched in protest of perilous work conditions, squalid housing and low wages, and other grievances, was the largest labor uprising in American history and its legacy defines the worker rights movement today. 

From these stories and many others, it’s clear that our communities are often the first line of defense to many crises that require institutional, systemic change.

Walter Brueggemann once said (by way of Harvard’s Marshall Ganz) “...prophetic imagination or transformational vision occurs at the intersection of two elements: criticality, a clear vision of the world’s hurt, of its needs, of its pain, coupled with hope, a sense of the world’s promise and possibility.”

Only at the core of our communities do we discover what we need and only with unity and an abundance mindset do we reconcile our shortcomings and build a better, more equitable future. 

Our communities set us free by allowing us that transformational vision. That prophetic imagination, as Brueggemann put it, is hard to come by alone. 

——

I want to round out today’s lecture with an ask of all of you. An ask of those of you, like my parents, who have committed to serving your community through devotion and faith. 

My ask is that you understand your care, your potential, your power. That you recommit to deeply understanding that a group of people, linked together in kindness, in generosity, and in hope can massively impact the world.

Faith communities have always had a unique role to play in changing our American political climate for the better. From the Jewish Tzedakah to the Muslim Zakat, the Christian Stewardship to the Buddhist Dana, the values of good doing and charity are tremendous tools to counteract the scarcity mindset our politics push. 

And now, when it comes to the fight for reproductive health freedom for example, or the fight to protect and affirm our LGBTQ youth, faith communities are uniquely situated to push back on Christofacists or other religious hardliners who are much more interested in dividing us than anything else. There is room enough in this country for us to be who we are, love who we want, and live our lives with agency over our bodies and destinies. To dream and hope how we want.

As we stand in our current political climate, it is true that the road ahead is uncertain, but it is not unfamiliar. There’s suffering and anguish in our communities but as I’ve learned from all of you, they are but a lighthouse to firmly guide us to a better future.

To transform our society, we need your voices to resonate in every corner of this state. We need the inherent goodness and dignity that is foundational to the faith community to guide us forward. And we need it not just as democrats or republicans, but as Americans, as people deeply committed to democracy, progress, and representation. 

Thank you for the belonging you’ve given me today—the kindness and love you’ve extended by inviting me to speak. I am honored to be in community with you and look forward to all that we achieve together. 

TBE will be installing and activating solar panels this summer, thanks to a generous grant from the Goodman Foundation and the tireless efforts of various committees, volunteers and staff. Not only is this effort consistent with our commitment to tikkun olam; it is also expected to result in an initial savings of $12,000 per year. This will allow us to continue our responsible stewardship of congregation resources. According to Dan Esser, “we feel strongly that we want to be good stewards of the earth and that there is no reason to waste money on things.”

This story starts with formation of the Capital Needs Assessment (CNA) Task Force in 2018 to determine priority improvements for our building and the resources required. This team determined that our sound system and sanctuary needed revamping, and that solar panels would be a worthy investment. The first two areas of work were completed during the pandemic years, when it became clear that our sanctuary layout was not conducive to safe distancing and that an updated sound system was required to offer high-quality hybrid services. Solar panels were put on hold, since there wasn’t enough money for everything. At the same time, our heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) system needed urgent maintenance—wear and tear were taking a toll and it had become inefficient, requiring substantial investment. 

Still, the CNA Task Force, the House Committee, the Environment and Climate Change Action Team, our executive director, and our building staff continued to pursue how we could install solar panels. In June 2022, Stefanie Kushner submitted a grant proposal to the Goodman Foundation for solar panel purchase and installation, using the cost information obtained by the CNA team. TBE was awarded a grant of up to $300,000 in October of that year. The grant stipulates that we apply for all other relevant rebates and incentives. So with assistance from Full Spectrum Solar, our solar panel provider, we will be requesting support from AB RENEW WI Solar, MadiSUN Backyard, and Focus on Energy Commercial. 

Installing something heavy on our roof turns out to not be a walk in the park; it requires coordination with a number of contractors. The TBE team, led by Dan Esser as project manager, includes Stefanie Kushner and Facilities Coordinator Steven Gregorius, in collaboration with the House Committee, the Environment and Climate Change Action Team, and the CNA Task Force. This team is (literally) laying the foundation for a successful project through a number of related upgrades. This means replacing parts of our aging roof, some of which is 27 years old, at a cost of approximately $100,000 starting this spring. Some HVAC rooftop units and duct work will have to be lifted and new rubber installed underneath. Space in the building will also be needed to house inverters that convert energy generated to usable energy (DC to AC). Thanks to the generous help of TBE Sisterhood, this space has already been secured. 

The end goal is for 189 solar panels to be online by fall 2023, after a net investment by TBE/Goodman Foundation of approximately $150,000 for solar panel installation and connection to the MG&E grid. Recoupment of this investment through energy savings is projected to take about 12 years. 

Our commitment to tikkun olam also includes an evaluation by Richard Peidelstein, congregation member and expert in building energy efficiency, to identify ways to optimize our HVAC system. From his home, Richard has been able to remotely diagnose our energy efficiency performance and identify actions we can take to improve. 

This is all good news—knowing the problem is a great start for addressing it. And our strong community of staff and volunteers is up to the challenge. As Dan says, “spending up to $300,000 is a big deal.” We have no doubt that with his commitment and strong support from the TBE staff and community every penny will be invested wisely, with big returns. 

Often, we refer to a mitzvah as a “good deed,” but mitzvot (plural) literally translated means “commandments,” the deeds that Jewish people are required to do. The idea of mitzvot puts the emphasis on action: not just positive thoughts or wishes, but conscious acts of empathy and kindness. 

A duty to action, g’milut chasadim (acts of lovingkindness), and tikkun olam (repairing the world) as we strive to be menches (good or righteous people)—that is what Mitzvah Day is all about. We’ll spend the day getting to know each other better across generations as we work together for the greater good of the Madison community and the world. Acts of g’milut chasadim are central to Judaism. We should do g’milut chasadim without anticipation of receiving something in return. 

Picture yourself knitting at Café Panim or painting the walls at Just Bakery. Imagine writing letters to veterans or soldiers or to children in Israel. Maybe you can see yourself cooking at the Ronald McDonald House, cleaning up the shore of Lake Wingra, or providing manicures and visiting with seniors at Capitol Lakes. These are a few examples of projects you can register for. Registration is first come, first served, so please register early and let Aleeza know if your plans change.

One of the most basic mitzvot is tzedakah (charity), or giving to those in need. In the Torah, God tells the children of Israel that giving to the needy is akin to giving directly to God. In the weeks leading up to Mitzvah Day, you will have a chance to participate in a collection drive for diapers, toiletries, food, school supplies, and yarn. Some of these items will be used in projects, such as the school supplies in refugee kids’ welcome bags, or they will be donated directly to partner organizations such as the Mt. Zion Food Pantry or Village Diaper Bank. We’re also doing a friendly competition among our Religious School grades to help collect some of these items. Learn more on what we’re collecting and join us in doing this mitzvah together.

Several Mitzvah Day projects will help repair our physical world, while others will emphasize social relationships and inclusion. We will participate in outdoor cleanups and gardening, make blankets for kids in hospitals, cook meals to be distributed by the Catholic Multicultural Center, help organize the GSAFE offices, and more. These are all fantastic projects that rejuvenate our physical environment or make connections with people who may feel isolated or in need of human contact.

The biggest mitzvah of all is to save a human life. To save one life is as if you’ve saved the world. Be The Match will be available on Mitzvah Day to help those ages 18–35 swab their cheeks and be added to a registry that is searched when an individual needs a life-saving stem cell transplant. Get swabbed in the morning during Religious School/Café Panim or in the late afternoon at our Social Justice Fair. Even if you are not 18–40, there are two ways you can help with this. First, sign up as one of the volunteers to help register people during Mitzvah Day (training provided). Second, share this important opportunity with others and have come to Temple anytime from 3:00 to 5:30 pm, when this opportunity is open to the public. Please help spread the word. 

Our Social Justice Fair from 3:00 to 5:30 pm is open to the public, so please invite your friends to come and support the nonprofit organizations selling their products in the Weinstein Community Court, including ArtWorking (artworking.org), Just Bakery (justdane.org), and Porchlight Products (porchlight.org). For details please visit our Social Justice Fair page. As you finish your afternoon projects please come stop by the Social Justice Fair, then join us for dinner.

Thanks to our Youth Education Committee for coordinating lunch for our Religious School families, with pasta and sandwiches donated by Adamah and Great Dane. Students are encouraged to write a letter to students at our sister congregations in Israel during lunch as well.

We’ll end our day of service together in community in the Swarsensky Social Hall for dinner. We’ll reflect on the day, share meaningful moments, and schmooze with friends over pizza donated by Rocky Rococo. Thanks to TBE Sisterhood for helping with dinner. 

Please see the TBE calendar for full project details and registration. Questions? Contact Aleeza A. Hoffert, program coordinator, at engage@tbemadison.org or 608-238-3123, or one of our Mitzvah Day chairs: Lynn Renner, Linda Reivitz, and Staci Rieder.

TBE leaders have been exploring ways to increase revenue and decrease costs. One innovative approach that we are excited to pursue is to leverage our impactful communication channels to connect our community with organizations and vendors that share Temple Beth El’s principles and vision. After carefully researching other organizations that do this, and learning that many businesses look for these opportunities, we developed an annual sponsorship program.

A business or organization can choose between two levels of sponsorship, offering different ways to share their website, contact information, and logo with our community, through TBE’s print and online communications. See our sponsorship form to learn more about the levels and benefits of this program.

We are excited to launch this program to partner with businesses and organizations and share their information with our community. If you know of an organization or business that may be interested, please contact Stefanie Kushner (exec@tbemadison.org).
 

As membership renewals have come in for 2023, we are grateful for all the Temple Beth El members who continued their memberships, and we welcome the new members who have joined us in the last month!
 
We received many renewals before the December 31 deadline for choosing a contribution amount. This year’s renewal process included applying a 10% increase for the automatic renewals that were completed at the beginning of 2023. This increase goes a long way toward helping us meet rising costs. I appreciate everyone’s understanding of this new approach, and I’m gratified by the positive response. This truly helps support TBE’s vision. 

The number of households actively renewing by December 31 increased from last year, and those renewals included an increase in contributions! Over 60% of our community actively renewed their membership (up from 40% from last year). The households that renewed by December 31 and increased their contributions had an average increase of 14%. Thank you!

In January we automatically renewed the rest of the congregation, and January statements included a reminder of the 10% increase. Thank you for taking the time to read our communications throughout the fall that outlined these changes. We always appreciate your questions, and we hope that our transparency helped you prepare and make the best decisions for your household. We are pleased that so many congregants were supportive of the changes.

Membership contributions can be paid throughout the year. We ask that at least 50% be paid by August in order to receive your High Holy Day materials. You can set up automatic payments through your account on the TBE website or through your bank, or you can let Melissa Osborne know when you will be making payment(s).

As we communicated in our email about the staff transitions, starting in February we will be sending electronic statements only, unless you state that you prefer to receive a paper statement. If you would like to continue to receive a paper statement, please go to https://www.tbemadison.org/form/paperstatement or contact Melissa Osborne (melissa@tbemadison.org).

Thank you for your continuing support of Temple Beth El. 
 

If you have questions about the upcoming rabbinic transition that will take place in July 2024, check out the FAQ document on the Members Only page of our website. You must be logged in to your account to view this page. 

Since 2019, volunteers for the Dane Sanctuary Coalition have provided rides for many immigrants to the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) offices in Milwaukee, Waukegan, IL, and Chicago, as well as the United States Immigration Court in Chicago. While there are 54 individuals currently on the email distribution list, some of them have never volunteered because they don’t want to drive in Chicago (well, no one does), some can’t be away from home/Dane County for a full day, some are snowbirds, etc. There have been a couple of times in which no one has volunteered to take an individual or a family to their scheduled appointment. So, we are always seeking additional volunteer drivers.

The scheduled appointments typically are for:

• Collection of biometrics, which includes a photograph, fingerprinting, and completion of a form providing identifying information (e.g., color of eyes).
• Security checks, which are generally done annually. For recently arrived immigrants, they may have an appointment to remove an ankle monitor once the immigrants have a permanent address.
• Asylum interviews.
• Court hearings to determine if the immigrant/family will be given a deportation order.

Between January 1, 2022, and September 30, 2022, we received 61 requests for rides from referring agencies and attorneys. Over half the requests have been during the last three months, following a pandemic lull. 

When an immigrant or family has a scheduled appointment with USCIS or Immigration Court, we email the distribution list seeking a volunteer driver for the specific ride. Volunteer drivers only commit to a specific ride based on their availability. The rides to Milwaukee or Waukegan and back generally are completed within four to six hours. The rides to Chicago and back are full-day events. Dane Sanctuary Coalition is able to provide a $25 reimbursement for rides to Milwaukee or Waukegan and a $65 plus parking reimbursement for rides to Chicago.

We recently expanded the mission of the volunteer program to include local rides. The Dane County Immigration Affairs Office is working with Christ Presbyterian Church (at the corner of E. Gorham Street, Brearly Street, and Sherman Avenue) to set up a free legal clinic for immigrants on the second and fourth Friday of each month. Some of the immigrants live in Dane County in areas without a viable public transportation option, such as Middleton, Sun Prairie, and Waunakee, so we have agreed to provide volunteer drivers to help meet this monthly need.

For persons interested in volunteering, we have a virtual training session to provide further explanation about the role and responsibilities of a volunteer driver, USCIS processes, and other information. If you are interested in being a volunteer driver and would like to attend the training, please email me at zimmerman_dan@hotmail.com or call me at 608-241-1158.