Social Action
Committee
Social
Action
A Cornerstone of our Congregation
A synagogue plays many roles in the life of its
members and the surrounding community. One of the
most compelling
of these commitments is that of Tikkun Olam – the
repairing of the world. It is a fundamental value
of Judaism and one, which Temple Shaaray Tefila
views as an essential part of its structure.
Some of the ongoing activities that the Social Action
Committee of Temple Shaaray Tefila has launched include:
The Social Action Committee has also sponsored the
following special events:
- Guest
Speakers and Film Series
-
Interfaith Activities
-
Community Outreach Programs
In addition to those efforts initiated by our congregation,
it is possible for individual members to
keep informed about issues of social concern by
subscribing, online
(www.rac.org),
to the newsletter of the Religious Action
Committee (RAC) of the Union of American
Hebrew
Congregations.
Shaaray
Tefila is proud of what has already been accomplished,
it looks forward to undertaking initiatives what will
pave the way to understanding and – it is our
greatest hope – healing our fractured world.
For more information about how to participate in the
Social Action Committee or in any of our specific projects,
please contact the temple office at 535-8008.
Mitzvah
Day
A full day opportunity to come together with other
members of our temple community. Role up your sleeves
and get involved in many activities selected and arranged
to help others in our community.
Activities are varied to meet the needs of all
ages.
In house projects include:
- Cooking
and baking
- Packaging
for various agencies
- Special
nursery school projects for very young children
Off site projects:
- Visiting
seniors in their homes and at other senior residence
- Clean
up of local parks
- Visits to various hospitals
Sandwich
Saturday
The Social Action Committee invites you to participate
in an ongoing effort to feed the homeless.
We gather at TST on the third Saturday of every month at 3:00 pm to prepare
hundreds of bag lunches that are picked up by City Harvest and are distributed
to homeless people in our area. We provide weekend meals when soup kitchens
rest. If you can join us, we ask that you bring
- Two
loaves of sandwich bread
- 10-15
pieces of fruit
Children under 13 years of age decorate and fill the
bags.
High Holy Food Drive
There are warnings everywhere of growing hunger in
New York. There are shortages at food pantries.
We must help.
Shopping bags will be distributed to every TST family
as they leave synagogue on Yom Kippur morning, Monday
October 6th. Barrels will be placed in the lobby for
congregants to return the shopping bags with can goods
and non- perishable food items. This food collection
runs from Yom Kippur, October 6th, through Sukkot,
October 10th. Temple doors are open 7:00 am to 9:00
pm.
Biannual Blood Drive
Twice yearly – Christmas
Day and again in early spring (date will be announced)
we host our TST Blood
Drives.
Our city always needs blood and it is a gesture of Tikun Olam to donate blood
if you are eligible.
Remember to bring:
- Picture
ID
- Know
your social security number
- Be
between the ages of 17 and 75 years
Babysitting
is available.
We replenish your energy with an elaborate brunch.
University
of the Streets-
A three part project
1. Speakers Bureau-
Give one hour of your time to share information with
homeless people. Talk about what you know best and
would enjoy sharing with others. We speak at two local
facilities operated by the Neighborhood Coalition for
Shelter.
2. TST Soup Kitchen Lending Library-
Many homeless people enjoy reading but do not have
access to libraries because they cannot obtain a library
card.
We’ve
set up a book cart at our Wednesday Soup Kitchen
making books available to our lunch guests.
Bring in your used books:
- Fiction
- Fantasy
- Novels
- Biographies
A blue bin is in our temple entrance for drop
off.
3. TST Tutors-
We are trying to help the Neighborhood Coalition for
Shelter by providing literacy tutors for a few highly
motivated, pre-screened adults. Volunteers will receive
training as well as appropriate instructional materials
in basic reading and math.
