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E-Newsletters
January 2005
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Message from the Chairman
Areyvut believes that helping others must be the lifelong ambition of each individual. While we begin training for this task at a young age, our lessons must be reinforced on an ongoing basis so we can continue to reach out to others. Areyvut is proud of the work it is doing to encourage people to look beyond themselves, both with students who are just beginning to understand that they can impact the world and with adults who simply need reminders to incorporate tikkun olam into their busy lives.
Our Bnai Mitzvah programs go beyond helping celebrants develop mitzvah projects. By creating these projects based on students' interests and talents, we ignite a lifelong passion for chesed. Even after the celebrations are over, our students search for ways to share their excitement with those around them. In doing so, they continue to leave their impact on the world.
The "A Kindness A Day: 365 Ways to Make A Difference" desk calendar offers practical ways to channel one's enthusiasm for helping others. Every day, families share its entries at the dinner table, synagogues read its sources after services and teachers incorporate its lessons into their classrooms. This calendar is much more than a calendar. It has the ability to literally transform the world and inspire its users daily to make a difference. It takes the passion we inspire in our Bnai Mitzvah students and shares it with the world.
I encourage you to take a moment to read about our programs and how our resources are impacting communities on a daily basis.
Daniel Rothner is the Founder and Director of Areyvut.
Spotlight On…
On January 1st, 2005 over 6500 educators, students, synagogues, community leaders, parents and children began the year with a new perspective on helping others by opening Areyvut's "A Kindness A Day: 365 Ways to Make A Difference" Desk Calendar for the first time. The calendar succeeds in making the concepts of tzedakah, chesed and tikkun olam accessible to people of all ages and affiliation through its suggested daily actions and Jewish sources. This full color, spiral bound calendar has been met with resounding praise (www.areyvut.org/Calendar/endorse.asp) from all across the Jewish spectrum.
Though many of the calendar's activities are geared toward adults and college-age students, Areyvut has compiled a number of ways to adapt its lessons for students of all ages. You will find these ideas at www.areyvut.org/Calendar/ideas.asp. In addition, the resources listed in the back of the calendar are a great source for possible extensions of the calendar's daily suggestions. Please let us know how you are using Areyvut's "A Kindness A Day" Desk Calendar in your classroom and community!
In a number of areas across the country, including Chicago, IL, Palo Alto, CA and Rockland County, NY, community organizations and educators benefited from the generosity of local philanthropists who acknowledged the value of Areyvut's "A Kindness A Day" Desk Calendar. Areyvut thanks these philanthropists for infusing the Jewish community with the lessons of the calendar. The incredible success of this endeavor is sure to have a positive impact on our communities.
A limited number of calendars are still available for purchase from Areyvut. If you would like to purchase a calendar or have any additional questions regarding Areyvut's "A Kindness A Day" Calendar, please do not hesitate to contact the Areyvut office at (212) 813-2950 or via e-mail at orders@areyvut.org.
For more information, sample pages, and updates on the progress of the 2005 Areyvut Jewish Values Desk Calendar, please see: www.areyvut.org/Programs/calendar.asp or www.areyvut.org/Programs/calfaq.asp
Bnai Mitzvah Resource Center
Since initiating the Areyvut Bnai Mitzvah Resource Center this past September, we have reached out to students, parents and educators to help incorporate social action into bar/bat mitzvah celebrations. From acting as an informal advisor for school administrators and staff members to meeting with small groups of parents and celebrants, Areyvut is making a name for itself as an important information source for Bnai Mitzvah social action programs.
One highlight of Areyvut's recent Bnai Mitzvah programs was an evening in November spent with a group of Bnai Mitzvah students and parents on Manhattan's Upper East Side. At the invitation of a parent who was interested in designing a social action project for her Bar Mitzvah age son and his friends, Areyvut founder and director Daniel Rothner and special projects coordinator Shira Hammerman facilitated an informational discussion about different ways that tikkun olam can be incorporated into a Bar Mitzvah celebration. This was followed by a brainstorming session in which the group used the students' interests as a springboard for project ideas. The Bnai Mitzvah celebrants walked away with a number of ideas of how they can participate in sports and literacy programs while helping their local communities. Areyvut is continuing to work with them to personalize their tzedakah projects.
Similar evenings are being planned across the country in the upcoming months. If you are interested in arranging an information meeting and discussion in your area, please contact us at (212) 813-2950.
Additionally, Areyvut continues to hold one-on-one consultations with Bnai Mitzvah students who wish to design tikkun olam projects for their upcoming celebrations based on their individual interests. If you are interested in arranging an individual Bnai Mitzvah consultation, please complete the "In-Take Form" and e-mail it to projects@areyvut.org, fax it to (212) 813-2951 or send it to: Areyvut, 1001 Avenue of the Americas, Suite 1208, New York, NY 10018.
For your convenience, the "In-Take Form" has been created in two formats.
For more information on how the Areyvut Bnai Mitzvah Resource Center can help your students add meaning to their bar/bat mitzvah celebrations please see: www.areyvut.org/rcenter.asp
Areyvut Bnai Mitzvah Essay Contest
Areyvut is proud to announce the winners of its inaugural Bnai Mitzvah Essay Contest. Entries were received from across the country, including New York, New Jersey, California, Illinois, Michigan, Massachusetts and Florida. While all of the entrants described creative and meaningful tzedakah projects that can serve as models for future Bnai Mitzvah celebrants, four winners were selected. Areyvut congratulates the following students on their winning essays:
First Prize:
Dennis Fries of Chandler, AZ, who created a program to cheer up young hospital patients. | 
Second Prize (Tie):
Natalie Stern of Farmington Hills, MI., who made blankets for cancer patients. | 
Second Prize (Tie):
Charlie Raitt of Jacksonville, FL who took part in a baseball league for disabled children. | 
Third Prize:
Sarah Berman of Chicago, IL, who described her experiences helping the homeless, the environment, and disabled youth. |
We would like to thank: Lenny Solomon and Shlock Rock, Jewish Publication Society, Tzedakah, Inc., Karen Klieger and the expert panel of judges for their help with the contest.
Areyvut invites all Bnai Mitzvah students to begin planning their entries for our Second Annual Bnai Mitzvah Essay Contest. Visit our website over the upcoming months for further details.
To read the winning essays, please see: www.areyvut.org/Action/winner.asp
Areyvut in Action
Tsunami Disaster Relief Efforts
It is challenging for all of us to comprehend the devastation that hit Southeast Asia on December 26th, 2004, but it is even more difficult to explain it to our students and children. Areyvut has compiled a brief list of ways that you can use Jewish texts and values to broach the topic of the recent tsunami with students, as well as a list of organizations that are accepting donations to benefit those who have been affected by the catastrophe.
For more information, please see www.areyvut.org/Resource/mitzvah4.asp and www.areyvut.org/Resource/mitzvah4b.asp.
Jewish Foundation School (NY)
What is the connection between toothpaste, a baseball bat, a bunny rabbit and a Bnai Mitzvah celebration? That was the topic of conversation when Areyvut met with the 6th grade class at the Jewish Foundation School in Staten Island, NY on January 5th. Areyvut demonstrated to students that even the most basic object can spark a successful and meaningful Bnai Mitzvah tzedakah project, and students were encouraged to think about their own interests and talents as a source of inspiration when planning social justice projects for upcoming bar and bat mitzvah celebrations. When one student noted that dance is among her favorite activities, the class brainstormed a number of ways that this interest could be channeled into a tzedakah project. Among the ideas mentioned were holding a simcha dancing class for children, hosting a dance-a-thon fundraiser and creating a performance for a local nursing home. Students left the program feeling empowered to begin planning their own unique projects following this model.
Board of Jewish Education (NY)
On November 11th, Areyvut met with educators at the Board of Jewish Education of Greater New York's Israel Berman In-Service Day, which took place at HAFTR Elementary School in Cedarhurst, NY. Areyvut gave a presentation entitled "Bar/Bat Mitzvah Projects to Enhance the Experience" that offered 5th-7th grade educators and administrators innovative and meaningful ideas of how to incorporate tikkun olam and social service into their middle school curriculum.
Hebrew Institute of Riverdale (NY)
Over the past several months, Areyvut has acted as a consultant for the 7th Grade Teen Philanthropy Program at the Hebrew Institute of Riverdale, NY. Under the leadership of Rabbi Uri Topolosky, this program teaches its participants about Jewish communal life while offering students an opportunity to feel ownership over a real-life tzedakah experience. After several consultations with Areyvut, Rabbi Topolosky has initiated a program that is motivating, informative and hands-on. On November 7th, Rabbi Topolosky invited Areyvut to meet with his students for a text-study and brainstorming session to jumpstart the program. Together, they devised a list of potential service projects that the students were passionate about and learned about fundraising, grant writing and other practicalities of executing a service project. Areyvut is proud to play a role in developing this exciting program.
Jewish Educational Services (NJ)
Jewish holidays are an ideal opportunity for engaging students in tikkun olam and social action. This was the message that Areyvut presented to New Jersey educators at the Jewish Educational Services' September Professional Development Day on September 7th. More than 25 educators from congregational schools joined Areyvut for its session, entitled "Celebrate Good Times: Making the World a Better Place Through Jewish Holidays," to learn how to develop and implement service learning curricula that infuse traditional holiday lesson plans with interactive tzedakah projects. Using an informative power point presentation and the participants' personal experiences as a guide, Areyvut founder and director Daniel Rothner presented a "Chagim Service Learning Plan" and modeled how to use the plan to create a service learning curriculum for Chanukah. Participants were able to take this plan back to their classrooms to use as an example for further curriculum planning.
Participate
Count On Me
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.
Philanthropic Giving
Over 50% of our budget comes from individual donors. Your support will enable us to maintain our programs and provide us with the ability to service additional schools, synagogues and communities. For information on how to make a contribution, please see: www.areyvut.org/Support/contr.asp
Tell a Friend
As you finish our e-newsletter 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.
The Bottom Line
"The time is always right to do what is right."
Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
Areyvut
1001 Avenue of the Americas, Suite 1208
New York, NY 10018
(212) 813-2950
www.Areyvut.org
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The theme for September is:
Tikkun Olam / Volunteerism | | | to learn more click here |
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