Welcome to Areyvut

	E-Newsletters April 2004
		Message from the Chairman It's hard to believe that in such a short amount of time, Areyvut has accomplished so much. Hundreds of teenage and pre-teen students are benefiting from Areyvut programs and seminars. Educators and parents throughout the country are seeing firsthand the powerful impact of Areyvut's work - helping Jewish students get back to the basic Jewish values of Chesed, Tzedakah and Tikkun Olam. In addition to the exciting work done in the classroom, Areyvut's website, www.areyvut.org, has served as a tremendous resource for educators, students, parents and the broader Jewish community. Officially launched in April 2003, the site offers information about Areyvut and its programs. More importantly, though, the site provides visitors with a wide array of resources to help them incorporate chesed, tzedakah and tikkun olam into their daily lives. To date the site has been a hit, generating over 2500 visitors a month and at least 1200 hits a day. Most frequently accessed are the sections of the website that offer students proactive ways to help Israel or meaningful ways to celebrate their Bnai Mitzvah. In an effort to encourage people to perform acts of chesed, tzedakah and tikkun olam on a regular basis, we recently added a feature to the site that offers a monthly theme (for example, April's theme is Israel) with detailed explanations of the topic, practical suggestions as to what one can do to help, as well as a Jewish quote relating to the theme. In addition, we provide links to organizations that address the topic, encourage individuals to actively explore the issue and provide individuals with opportunities to volunteer their services. After you read through the newsletter, take a few minutes to browse through the website, pick a theme and get involved. Have a happy and healthy Passover. Ezra Tuchman serves as Chairman of Areyvut's Board of Trustees and is a Vice President at Eurohypo, a boutique Real Estate Investment Bank. Annual Lecture, Rabbi Joseph Telushkin Areyvut's second Annual Lecture will be held at the UJA-Federation of New York on Tuesday, May 4, 2004 at 7:30 PM and will feature acclaimed author and scholar Rabbi Joseph Telushkin. The topic will be "The 21st Century: A Jewish Vision, One Day at a Time". Rabbi Telushkin, a member of Areyvut's Advisory Committee, is the author of several books on ethics including Words That Hurt, Words That Heal, The Book of Jewish Values and most recently, The Ten Commandments of Character. We are extremely pleased that Rabbi Telushkin has agreed to present at this year's lecture and request that you save the date. For additional information or to make a reservation please e-mail lecture@areyvut.org or call us at 212-813-2950. Additional details and information about Rabbi Telushkin's presentation will be forthcoming. Areyvut in Action Riverdale Jewish Educators Network On February 29th, students from the Conservative Synagogue Adath Israel of Riverdale (CSAIR), Hebrew Institute of Riverdale, Riverdale Temple, Tehillah and Riverdale YM-YWHA met with Areyvut for a culminating gathering in a community-wide program on hunger and poverty. Their efforts demonstrate the communal response needed to deal with hunger and poverty in America. When students arrived at the Riverdale YM-YWHA on the morning of February 29th, they had the opportunity to expand their understanding of the issues related to hunger and poverty through text study, discussion sessions, and a video presentation provided by the Metropolitan Council on Jewish Poverty. Participants experienced direct service firsthand by making mishloach manot packages in conjunction with the Bronx Jewish Community Council to deliver to local elderly who were in need of companionship during the Purim holiday. Students also met face-to-face with adults who devote their lives to social justice programs, including John Hoffmann from Part of the Solution (POTS) and Barbara Deinhardt from the Jewish Fund for Justice. Participants left feeling empowered by a farewell message from Rabbi Bradley Hirschfield from CLAL-The National Jewish Center for Learning & Leadership and a member of the Areyvut Advisory Committee, who encouraged them to become actively engaged in social justice. The program began several months prior to this session, when Areyvut visited each of the synagogues to introduce students to the challenges faced by those living in poverty. Areyvut provided synagogue educators with resources and curriculum to stimulate additional discussion on the issues in anticipation of the community-wide culminating session, and students came to the final meeting with information to share with their peers. Hebrew Institute of Riverdale On March 11th, Areyvut met with students of the Pardais Program for high school students at the Hebrew Institute of Riverdale, NY to discuss ways that they can make a difference in their community. Students studied traditional Jewish texts that helped deepen their understanding of the importance of chesed, tzedakah and tikkun olam. With the help of Areyvut staff, program participants devised a list of service projects that they were interested in joining and realized that one is never too young to have a positive impact on the world. Students left the program feeling motivated to become actively engaged in programs that reach out to others. Kushner Yeshiva High School On March 18, Areyvut spoke with the Chesed Chug at the Kushner Yeshiva High School in Livingston, NJ. The beginning of the session gave students an opportunity to explore different examples, definitions and sources relating to chesed, tzedakah and tikkun olam. Students were challenged to think about how they could utilize their hobbies and interests to actively address issues within Judaism and life that they want to impact. The students brainstormed ways of utilizing music and basketball as a means to help Israeli victims of terror, deal with apathy as well as address other issues of import. Areyvut provided a variety of resources and ideas to help students make a difference with the issues and offered to facilitate any ideas or projects that develop from the session. Networking Group Since December 2002, Areyvut has been convening a regular meeting of youth workers and educators in the New York area who do significant work on chesed, tzedakah and tikkun olam. Co-led by Daniel Rothner, Areyvut's Founder & Director, and Rabbi Jonathan Spira-Savett, a consultant and trainer promoting teen philanthropy and economic justice projects, the "networking group" has been meeting every four to six weeks, with meeting space provided by The Jewish Community Center in Manhattan. Daniel and Jon conceived of the group as a way to help professionals share ideas and resources, and to overcome the isolation that programmers working on service and chesed often feel in their own settings. Beyond simply networking and exchanging news, the group aims to raise the professional level of its members' work--by promoting reflection, exploring important educational and developmental principles, and grounding our work in Jewish concepts and texts. Participants in the group work both "on the line" and in agencies that support service and chesed education. Among the organizations that have been represented: Abraham Joshua Heschel School, Jewish Fund for Justice, the Board of Jewish Education of Greater New York, spark: Partnership for Service, Ramaz, the Jewish Coalition for Service. The group is open to anyone seriously engaged in chesed work with youth from teens through college. Chai Lifeline During the winter Chai Lifeline had a drive to recruit blood and platelets for children due to cancer-related treatments. Chai Lifeline's endeavor was to recruit as many donors as possible in order to furnish over 40 units of blood and platelets weekly, an unprecedented need. Donors had the opportunity to designate their blood and/or platelets to specific patients in hospitals based in Brooklyn & Manhattan. Areyvut worked with Chai Lifeline to highlight this effort by contacting schools, synagogues and asking them to include it in their bulletins and announcements and by highlighting the drive on our website. Anyone interested in helping these efforts, donating blood, platelets or for more information please contact Malky at 212-699-6635 or via e-mail at DonateBlood@Chailifeline.org. Gift of Life The Gift of Life Bone Marrow Registry facilitates bone marrow transplants for patients around the world suffering from life-threatening illnesses by increasing the representation of the Jewish people in the bone marrow donor pool. Over the last few months they have run several drives to recruit donors and look for matches in the New York area, for patients in need worldwide. Areyvut worked with the Gift of Life to inform the community and request their assistance with the drives and highlighted the drives on our website. Anyone interested in being tested, organizing a drive or for more information please contact Barby A. Sloven at 561-988-0100, ext. 16 or via e-mail at bsloven@giftoflife.org, www.giftoflife.org. Participate Can we Count on You? Areyvut is participating in CountOnMe, a fundraising program that allows us to earn money when our supporters shop online. Participating in this program is free. For additional information about the program and to sign up please visit www.Areyvut.org/Support/count.asp. Your support will enable us to maintain our programs and provide us with the ability to service additional schools, synagogues and communities. We hope that you include Areyvut in your philanthropic giving. Tell a Friend You are finishing our second quarterly e-newsletter and we encourage you to invite your colleagues, friends and family to sign up to receive future e-newsletters. All they need to do is visit www.Areyvut.org/email.asp and provide their information. Pesach (Passover) We invite you to visit www.areyvut.org/resource/chagpes.asp for ways to make your preparation and celebration more meaningful. Areyvut wishes you and your family a Chag Kasher V'Sameach, an enjoyable Passover. The Bottom Line I don't know what the future may hold, but I know who holds the future. Ralph Abernathy Areyvut 1001 Avenue of the Americas, Suite 1208 New York, NY 10018 212-813-2950 www.Areyvut.org return to E-Newsletter home page