Below are my prepared remarks for the Congregational High Holy Day Appeal. To see and hear what I actually said, go to https://bnaitikvah.org/watch-our-services/ on the internet.

My prepared remarks:

G’mar Hatima Tova (May you be sealed in the Book of Life)

Rabbi Wolkoff’s sermon on the first day of RH discussed community. This was something I had been thinking about, too. Our community “US” is made up of many people with different interests, yet we have more in common than we have differences. Among numerous common things are wanting health, happiness and a sweet new year for our families and friends; wanting Israel to continue to be a strong, democratic nation; and wanting CBT to continue to be a vibrant, thriving beacon for us (more about how you can help with the last item a bit later).

As I intimated in my September HaKol article, I did not wake up one day as President of Congregation B’nai Tikvah. In fact, I did not seek it out. I had been happy to serve as the Chair of the Budget & Finance Committee for more than 20 years. While I had served on our Board and as the VP of Administration, the Budget Chair role suited me, as a Certified Public Accountant and its (mostly) seasonal nature.

Around a year ago, Ruth Anne Koenick, Nominating Committee Co-Chair and a Past President (also a long-time member of the Budget & Finance Committee) contacted me indicating that she wanted to discuss something with me face-to-face, over coffee or lunch. Keep in mind that I was born more than 66 years ago (then) and not yesterday. Even so, I decided to hear her out and knew that she would hear me out. I was humbled and honored to be asked.

A standing joke for many is “how could you be crazy enough to be synagogue President?” On the contrary and for your consideration, I have found that every volunteer situation I’ve undertaken (be it at CBT, the South Brunswick Board of Education, the Education Foundation of South Brunswick Township and being a teenage member of the Tenants Association of the Linden Houses in Brooklyn) has given me more than I’ve put in.

My theme for this year is WELLNESS. Wellness is the quality or state of being healthy in body and mind, especially as the result of deliberate effort. I’d like to focus on one its synonyms: wellbeing. In my mind, part of that wellbeing is having a place that serves more than our religious needs. I love this place.

By “place,” I don’t particularly mean the building; I mean the people who make up our community: all of you. All the things CBT offers; there is almost “something for everyone” – and I don’t mean “A Comedy Tonight” (apologies to Burt Shevelove, Larry Gelbart and Stephen Sondheim, who wrote the book and music for “A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum”) – although we will have Murder Marinara on October 26. Dessert. Drinks. Death. (although that could mean you’ll die laughing).

Of course, our religious and spiritual needs are the sphere of Rabbi Wolkoff, Cantor Rockman and the Ritual Committee. CBT has that and much more. There are programs, events and activities that meet our educational, cultural, emotional, social, physical and entertainment needs.

In September, a busload of members visited the Museum of Jewish Heritage – A Living Memorial to the Holocaust at a very reduced price, thanks to the generosity of Rabbi Wolkoff and Barbra London, a relatively new member, championing of the trip. They received a guided tour of the very special “Auschwitz – Not Long Ago. Not Far Away.” exhibit. Afterwards, they returned here for lunch and a discussion led by Rabbi Wolkoff.

Just over two weeks ago, we experienced our first Camp B’nai Tikvah. Truly, there was something for everyone from backgammon to kickball. Our members were placed into two teams: Blue and White, naturally. I’d like everyone who participated in Camp B’nai Tikvah to stand, please.

I’d like all the winning Blue team members to remain standing. Thank you!

CBT has become the “go-to” place for Israel-related programming in Central NJ. This year, we’re increasing that commitment through our new Tikvah for Israel Wine Club. Every other month you can choose to participate by ordering two wines from Israel. Our next offering will be in November; see Adrienne Ross, our immediate Past-President, to order.

This past year, our long-running and award-winning Family Shabbat program, championed for more than two decades by Marc and Bobbi Binder, grew into Shabbat Together for all ages. Our next Shabbat Together combines with Sukkot to become Hunan in the Hut on October 18. Please RSVP to the Office.

Back to more traditional Wellness: we will take a CBT Walk in the Park on Sunday, November 3. We’ll walk in a local park and learn a bit as we go. More details will follow. Later in the day on November 3, please join us for L’Dor Vador, our annual music celebration.

We have active USY, Kadima, Sisterhood (whose year 5780 theme is wellness, too) and Men’s Club at CBT. Look for the Men’s Club Breakfast on various Sunday Mornings. Sisterhood paid-up membership is November 24. New this year, Sisterhood will be sponsoring Shabbat lunch about once a month. And on December 15th, we will be hosting the Federation of Men’s Clubs regional dinner, where we will honor our own Charlie Valan and Corey Sookerman.

Among our most important programs is the Passport to Israel. We began this program more than 20 years ago to ease the financial burden on members who were sending their children to Israel for a learning program. Recently, under the leadership of Assistant Treasurer, Marc Rosen, and our Co-VPs of School and Youth, Melissa Kessler and Andrew Goldberger, we have revamped the program.

You have heard (or will hear) from four of our children who had amazing learning and emotional experiences, this past summer, Maya Blackin, Yosef Wolkoff, Shea Krane and Eitan Wolkoff. They gained something immeasurable. In part, these experiences were financially supported by our own Passport to Israel program. As you celebrate a simcha or commemorate another event, consider Passport to Israel as the place for your donation.

Thanks to the hard work of our Security Committee Chair, Marty Zweig, our Executive Director, Lynne Weiss-Marshall, and our Co-VPs of Administration, Kevin Krane and (newlywed) Charlie Valan, we have completed the first phase of our security upgrades and received our reimbursement from the U.S. Department of Homeland Security grant we were awarded. Look for more security upgrades to be rolled out over the next 18 months.

If you don’t see something that interests you, please contact any member of the Board with your idea, after YK, including me. There are no bad ideas. I’d like all members of the Board and Board representatives to stand, so that you have some idea of who they are.

CBT fulfills our need for family, too. With families separated by distance, we support each other as families do. Holidays are spent with our extended families. Both in their homes and at CBT, e.g., Hunan in the Hut on October 18, we have developed a family here. We have made some lifelong friends along the way.

Please bear with me for two more items: for the past few Christmas Days, many of us have gathered in our social hall in the morning for Chesed for Chanukah. There we put together thank you packages to deliver to first responders and others who must work to keep us safe and healthy on their holiday. This great program has been championed by Cantor and Stacy Rockman.

None of those things come to fruition without you: your financial, emotional and volunteer support. Today, I’m asking for your financial support to continue our great activities, events and programs.

Lastly, I want to come back to wellness. For me, it meant that I stopped eating fast food for lunch every day and started to do some type of exercise more than 15 years ago. When I first mentioned Wellness as my theme to Rabbi Wolkoff, he had a reaction I didn’t expect.

He immediately made the connection to Yom Kippur and how we ask for forgiveness for our sins. In all the sins that we ask forgiveness for, we do not mention the sins we commit against ourselves…a light bulb went off in my head.

The wellness of our community begins with the wellness of each of us: spiritual, educational, emotional, physical and social. Surely, our collective wellness is greater than the sum of our individual wellness. That wellness will help CBT continue to offer something for everyone, (perhaps) including “A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to CBT.”

Please consider all the programs that we’re offering and want to offer when you take your pledge card out, we can’t do it without you, we’re not a community without your participation, no matter how active or how passive. The back of your pledge card identifies what you pledged last year. Please consider increasing that amount to support all our great programming and events for 5780 and pledging 10% or $10 to our Endowment Fund.

(May you be sealed in the Book of Life) G’mar Hatima Tova

P.S., you still can make a pledge, if you haven’t already; please contact Lynne Weiss Marshall, our Executive Director, at (732) 297-0696 or .