Weekly Message from the Board President

It’s a quandary.  We have two very good candidates for Rabbi of Mt. Sinai Synagogue.  Our Congregation is split on who to choose.  That means the Rabbi Search Committee did a good job of finding candidates, because our members found something to like about both men.

Both Rabbi Emanuel Ben-David and Rabbi Tom Samuels spent time living in Israel and both served in the Israeli Defense Force.  Both are fluent in Hebrew and can read the Torah with skill. 

Both are relatively new Rabbis.  Rabbi Ben-David was ordained in 2018 and Rabbi Samuels has been serving as a Rabbi since 2015.

But there are also differences between the two men.  Rabbi Ben-David can be considered more traditional and Rabbi Samuels likes to try new things.  Rabbi Ben-David has been hesitant about moving to Cheyenne and told some members of our congregation he was hoping for a one-year contract to “see how things work out.”  Rabbi Samuels has no issue with moving to Cheyenne or a three-year contract.

The two Rabbis led services and conducted classes over the past few weeks.  A third candidate, Rabbi Paul Schreiber, withdrew from consideration because of family health concerns.

Last week, the Rabbi Search Committee met with members of our congregation over Zoom to talk about the Rabbis and give the committee their impressions and thoughts.  It was a great discussion with a lot of good points made supporting each candidate.  The Committee also presented the option of choosing neither one, and starting the search over again from scratch.

The Rabbi Search Committee will face a difficult decision when it meets Wednesday night.  It will have to make a recommendation to the Board of Directors.  Both the Rabbi Search Committee and the Board of Directors have the best interests of our Synagogue at heart, and will try to make the best possible decision.  We wish them all the luck, and hope you will support them whichever way they decide to go.

One of the people who came to Rabbi Moldo’s Shiva service last year, and then led a Shabbat service for our Congregation, was Rabbi Audrey Kaufman of Am Shalom Congregation in Barrie, Ontario, Canada.  She has invited us to attend another service, on Friday, March 12.  Here’s a note from her about it:

On behalf of Am Shalom Congregation in Barrie Ontario, Canada, it is my privilege to invite you to an exciting Zoom Erev Shabbat service we’re planning for Friday, March 12th from 7:00 p.m. – 8:30 p.m.(Eastern time – 5:00 PM to 6:30 Cheyenne time)

We are honoured to have Cantor Beny Maissner, Cantor Emeritus of Holy Blossom Temple join us as our “Scholar in Residence”. Cantor Maissner will be participating in the service and will also be speaking on a most interesting topic: “When Cantors Ruled The Earth”.

Join Zoom Meeting at https://zoom.us/j/93678775614?pwd=UXRRT0RydnovZjQ0cUhERVJzbm1DQT09
Meeting ID: 936 7877 5614 Passcode: 85473378

Every month, we like to honor someone who has been important to our congregation by raising money to sponsor a chair in their name in our large sanctuary.  The money goes into the Endowment Fund and is never touched.  Only a portion of the interest is returned to the Synagogue to help with our expenses.

For the month of March, we would like to sponsor a chair in honor of Bea Montross.  Bea started our Israeli and Folk Dancing group, and was involved in many Synagogue activities, including the Yiddish Food Festival. Bea taught Jewish dancing all over the world, and frequently regaled us with stories from her travels and experiences.  She was a delightful lady and we miss her terribly.  Bea passed away not long ago, and our dancing group is named after her.

A sponsored chair is $500, but an anonymous donor has offered to cover half that cost, so we are hoping to raise $250 in the month of March for Bea Montross.  Please use our website or contact the Synagogue office to make a donation, and indicate it is for Bea.  Thanks!

We had a fun Purim service last week.  Before we say goodbye to the holiday for another year, here’s a video about Purim from Yonina.

Here’s our Yiddish Phrase of the Week:

Gold sheint fun bloteh.
Gold glitters even in the mud

Shalom,

Dave Lerner
President
Mt. Sinai Board of Directors

Community Partner with Family Promise of Cheyenne

March Birthdays

2 Sharon Pucillo
3 Marshall Brown
7 Stanley Sandick
9 David Silver
   Daniel Hillshafer
21 Sihaya Reid
28 Jason Bloomberg
28 Rich Menkin
28 Morris Gardner
31 Dr Charles Kuckel