The new accessible bimah is taking shape. With the new, flexible seating, our Sanctuary will be a comfortable space for a variety of worship and life cycle events. New light fixtures will be added to the ceiling, improving the experience for worshippers in the Sanctuary and those who connect virtually. The temple’s clergy and administrative Continue Reading »
The clergy team is excited for the new larger and more accessible bimah! These photos show the bimah extension being built. This extension is designed to be lower to the ground and includes ramps on either side to make it easier for all members of our community to worship from the bimah. Improving the temple’s Continue Reading »
The storage space behind stage left of the stage in our Social Hall has been removed and is being prepared for the construction of two new accessible bathrooms. Brackets and support for the new Social Hall storage closets have been erected on either side of the Social Hall. The tracks for our new recessed Sanctuary Continue Reading »
Now a little over two weeks into the sanctuary renovation, the demolition and preparations for the new design continues. Base-boarding and flooring in the sanctuary and social hall have been removed, as has the retractable wall separating the social hall from the foyer. The removal of some pieces of the bimah concrete has begun to Continue Reading »
With the weather warming and vaccination rates climbing, we feel a great sense of optimism heading into the summer. Yesterday, we got a big new boost of excitement because we (finally!!!!) broke ground on Phase 1 of the renovation and expansion plan that you have helped to make possible. By Monday afternoon all of the Continue Reading »
On Monday, May 10, work will begin on the Sanctuary Phase 1 Project. We are excited for congregants to return in the fall (health conditions permitting) to a refreshed sanctuary and social hall with comfortable, flexible seating; a more accessible bimah; new restrooms; vastly improved lighting; and state-of-the-art audio-visual systems. Construction will take place weekdays Continue Reading »
For the past two years, I’ve been working to develop Connections, a program for preschool-aged kids on the autism spectrum. I started Connections because of my older brother, Matthew, who is on the autism spectrum. When he was young, there were very few social opportunities available, especially during the summer when most kids were at Continue Reading »
September marks the start of school and, shortly after, Temple Sinai Religious School. The end of Summer’s “lazy” months brings a hectic period of chauffeuring our children to and from secular activities like travel hockey, baseball, and school clubs, along with religious school, Chug Ivrit and now bar mitzvah preparation. I won’t deny that we Continue Reading »
Like me, many in our congregation “belong” to two temples: our beloved Temple Sinai in northwest DC, and the temple of our youth—where we attended services with our families, went to religious school, became a Bar or Bat Mitzvah, and perhaps learned a few Jewish songs. We may or may not still visit that temple, Continue Reading »
I’ve always been an idealistic but organized activist. I began in my college years in the 1960s as a civil rights supporter and opponent of the Vietnam War, especially while serving as Editor-in-Chief of the University of Pennsylvania’s Daily Pennsylvanian (“DP”) newspaper. In our first DP editorial, we adopted an old Kansas newspaper editor’s motto Continue Reading »