donate dvd's to soldiers in iraq

hila sent me the following: http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=70100280691
check it out.

for those too lazy to copy and paste that into their browser, the brief synopsis is that, in short, a student here is collecting dvd's for his friend's unit in iraq that has some down time and could use something to fill their time.

regardless of our views on the politics of the war itself, our soldiers have committed to risking their lives for america, and for us as citizens of the USA. perhaps our generally negative views on the war underscore the importance of showing support for our peers who are serving in this war; the discourse surrounding the war cannot make it easier to do what is already a daunting task. if there is any way in which we can better the lives of our soldiers, that would be a beautiful thing.

so please check out the facebook event and if you have any dvd's that you no longer feel the need to hold on to, follow the instructions on the facebook event page, or you can just give them to me and i'll make sure they get there.

keep up the good work!

--b

le'zecher those who were murdered at yeshivat merkaz harav

Monday night/Tuesday marks one year from the terrorist attack in which eight young men studying at Yeshivat Merkaz HaRav were tragically and brutally murdered in their yeshiva.

I am sure many of you remember the images of the attack--blood on the front page of a gemara, blood spilled between the shelves of sefarim, and a yeshiva in frantic disarray. This attack stood out as particularly tragic because a house of Torah--a place that should always be safe, and, frankly, a place in which people are committed to Torah, which is described as etz hachayim--was the site chosen. The juxtapositions of commitment to pure goodness and of commitment to pure evil, of life and death, and of vibrance and absolute darkness were poignant.

In memory of the victims of this attack, people around the world are being asked to take on a mitzvah on their yahrtzeit. (http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=61128912848&ref=mf)

We will be donating the clothing from the clothing drive on Monday night, and, as such, I wanted to suggest that the zechut of this donation be in memory of the victims of this attack. These young men were cut down with so much goodness left to give. May the warmth and comfort we bring to others bring some goodness in memory of those who were committed to goodness.

CLOTHING DRIVE EXTENDED THROUGH FRIDAY

Due to popular demand, the clothing drive has been extended through Friday.
So far, we have about seven boxes full of clothing to donate. You guys are incredible.
If you haven't gotten a chance to bring clothing over to Hillel yet, but have clothing you want to donate, please make sure to do so by the end of Friday because we will need to sort and fold the clothing so we can bring it up to the ARK.
Again, thank you so much for all your support.
Keep you ears and eyes open for upcoming projects (soon TBA--times for fixing up the Jewish cemetery in Woodlawn, visits to the elderly, and sandwich making--if you are interested in any of these, please email me so I can make sure to have you in mind when scheduling).
Tizku le'mitzvot.
Much love.

big mitzvah--cleaning up a jewish cemetery in woodlawn

so apparently, there's a cemetery near here (in woodlawn) that has a huge jewish section that is in terrible disrepair.
it's really sad because these are jewish graves and we, as jews, really value kavod ha'met, and also bec they are crazy old and are therefore historic.
we want to organize a trip to clean and fix up the cemetery. this is a big kavod to the dead and i think we should do it.
sundays are good. fridays work for me.
if you are remotely interested, please let me know when works for you.
david epstein is putting pictures up on facebook so please have a look.


http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=69158482393

REMINDER--CLOTHING DRIVE IS ENDING SOON!

Dear All,

Just a reminder that the clothing drive will be ending on Tuesday and R' Avi Finegold will be driving the clothing up on Tuesday to the ARK so really we cannot accept clothing after that point so please please please bring any clothing that is in good shape but you no longer want to Hillel or bring it to me.

I know everyone has at least two pieces of clothing they never wear and it would be a shame for it to keep sitting in the back of your closet when it could be making someone who needs it very happy.

So please go dig that shirt or pants or sweater or skirt or whatever crazy piece of clothing you may have out from the bottom of your drawer or the back of the closet and bring it to Hillel. You know you're gonna be there soon anyway.

THANKS GUYS.
Tizku le'mitzvot.

Penpal Opportunity

As many of you know, a few of us are involved with the Committee to Save Ugandan Jewry (to learn more: http://thejewsofuganda.org/ )

As such, we are setting up a penpal system that would allow Ugandan community members to have an American penpal. This is a wonderful way to establish a personal connection with the community we are trying to help support. But, aside from that, it would also provide an opportunity for them to learn more about the way in which we practice Judaism, along with helping them improve their English, which is crucially important to them.

Community members range in age from young children to the elderly and so you can be paired with someone close to your age, or not.

You will have to pay for postage for your letter and for their letter in return (but postage for each of their letters is probably around $1.50, so this is a very low cost for a great opportunity and mitzvah).

Anyway, please please let me (Beruria) know if you would be interested in this.

I encourage you to learn more about this very special community by checking out the Committee's website (which I pasted above, but also appears in the links on the right side of the page).

If you have connections to a Jewish Day School--either one that you went to, one that you worked at, one that you know someone who works there--and you think they might be receptive to matching their students up to Ugandan students, please let me know as well.

I also recommend listening to members of this community singing Adon Olam-- http://www.thejewsofuganda.org/adonolam.wma

Mucho thanks.

Recap of Current Projects

1. Clothing drive is going on from now until Feb. 17. You can drop the clothing off at Hillel or give it to Beruria directly. Please share your thoughts as to where you would like to see your donations going. You can vote on the right side of the blog--there's a poll going on.

2. Any orders you make from Amazon you can make through the Project Health website (link is on the right side of the page) and up to 15% of your order will go to Project Health.

3. 10% of any orders you make from Leeya's online jewelry shop will go to charity if you write Team Chessed in your order. (Link is also on the right side of the page.)

4. Volunteer opportunity to work one-on-one with a young student who is falling behind on reading. See the blog post below this one for details.

5. Sandwich making and distribution starting next Thursday evening. (Or this Friday in NYC.)

6. Visits with elderly people will begin soon. Keep your eyes and ears open.


More to come...


And keep sharing any other ideas you have!