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CONGREGATION AM HAYAM

4839 Market Street, Unit C, Ventura, Ca. 93003 Phone (805) 644-2899 Fax (805) 644-2887

Website: www.AmHayam.com

From The Rabbi’s Study—January 2017

Say Yes to Life Everyday of 2017

I remember when stories of two disabled men made stories the same week. One was Kenneth B. Wright, a high-school football star and, later, an avid wrestler, boxer, hunter, and skin diver. A broken neck sustained in a wrestling match in 1979 left him paralyzed from the chest down. He underwent therapy, and his doctors were hopeful that one day he would be able to walk with the help of braces and crutches.

But, apparently, the former athlete could not reconcile himself to his physical disability. He prevailed upon two of his best friends to take him in his wheelchair to a wooded area, where they left him alone with a twelve-gauge shotgun. After they left, he held the shotgun to his abdomen and pulled the trigger. Kenneth Wright, twenty-four years of age, committed suicide.

The second disabled man in the news was Jim McGowan. Thirty-years earlier, at the age of nine-teen, Jim was stabbed and left paralyzed from the middle of his chest down. He is now confined to a wheelchair. But he came to attention years later when he made a successful parachute jump, landing on target in the middle of Lake Wallenpaupack in the Pocono Mountains of Pennsylvania.

Jim lives alone, cooks his own meals, washes his own clothes, and cleans his own house. He drives himself wherever he goes in his specially equipped automobile. He has written three books (including Walking on Air: Memoirs of a Paraplegic Sky Diver), and he took the photographs for the first book published on the history of wheelchair sports.

When asked how he managed to do so much with seemingly so little, Jim answered, “It wasn’t easy. I had my years of darkness, and it took a long time to get there. Then I came to the conclu-sion that I am ultimately responsible for my life. Since I am responsible for my life, I’m going to make it as beautiful as I can.”

Surely no one has the right to sit in judgment of Kenneth Wright for giving up. Who knows what any of us would have done in his terrible situation? Long ago, a Jewish sage warned us, “Do not judge your fellow until you are in their place.”

continued

HAMIGDALOR

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Nonetheless, Jim McBowan’s heroic response to the same disability is surely a much-needed reminder of

the resilience of the human spirit, of our G!d-given ability to cope with—and to triumph over—difficult or even

impossible-seeming circumstances. One of the heavy burdens of being human is the need to make choic-

es—choices that are often as desperately difficult as they are decisive. Edwin Markham, the twentieth-

century American poet, wrote of these agonizing dilemmas:

I will leave man to make the fateful guess

Will leave him torn between No and Yes

Leave him in the tragic loneliness to choose

With all in life to win or lose.

The most fateful choices are made in tragic loneliness. In the valley of decision, we stand alone, accompa-

nied only by our haunting fears or our stubborn hopes, by dread despair or gritty faith.

Yet, though we appear to stand solitary, in truth we are accompanied by the tall and brave spirits who have

stood where we stand and who, when torn between “No” and “yes” have stated that the wisdom to focus not

on what they had lost but on what they had left; by those who understood that fate is what life gives to us and

that destiny is what we do with what’s given; and by those who, therefore, grasped the liberating truth that

while we have no control over our fate, we do have an astonishing amount of control over our destiny.

When a blind man was asked by a sympathetic woman, “Doesn’t being blind rather color your life?” he an-

swered: “Yes, but, thank G!d, I can choose the color.”

The plane that carried paraplegic Jim McGowan to his historic skydive should also have carried aloft the spir-

its of the discouraged and the despondent, the defeated and the despairing. If he could soar so high, then

who has the right to feel low? To all who find themselves in a time of darkness, Jim’s words shine with a lu-

minous radiance: “Since I am responsible for my life, I’m going to make is as beautiful as I can.”

His words ring as a charge to all of us for this new calendar year that is upon us. So I wish you the courage

and the joy to make 2017 as beautiful as you can. Amen.

Rabbi J.B. Sacks

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Message from Brenda Rich

Greetings:

Coming directly from Cathedral City, California. Hope you all had a wonderful and joyous

Hanukkah. I want to wish you all a very healthy 2017 for you and your families and your

friends.

For those who sent donations in memory of a loved one and/or donations in honor of

someone special to you, they will be published in next month’s Migdalor.

On December 4th, Arnie and I were honored by the Jewish Federation of Ventura County.

We are both very humbled by this recognition and thank those who sent donations to

CAH in our honor. Rabbi Sacks was in attendance and was very generous in his speech

praising us. We thank him for his kindness.

Andrea Massion, Ways and Means Vice President has put together a wonderful program

consisting of 3 lectures as a means to raise funds for CAH. The empowering, provocative,

thoughtful three compelling speakers will start with Gabriel Cordell on Thursday, February

16, followed by Rebecca Costa on Wednesday, March 22 and concluding with Ronni

Sanlo on Sunday, April 30. The 3 lecture series will cost $36.00 and can be purchased

through Eventbrite or checks can be sent to CAH. You will find more information and

flyers elsewhere in the Migdalor. Please support this major fund raiser for CAH. We

want to have a sell out for each performance.

Also in the Migdalor, you will find an article regarding our Mishloach Manot fund raiser

for Purim. The order form will be in next month’s Migdalor.

Let 2017 be the year you put CAH in your minds and hearts. Support all our programs.

Attend Friday night and Saturday morning services. Remember this is your Synagogue.

Shalom,

Brenda Rich

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CONGREGATION AM HAYAM

Remember!!!!!!

SCRIP = GIFT CARDS

Purchasing “scrip” means

buying gift cards!!

CAH can meet all your needs:

Markets; Restaurants; Dept. Stores;

Entertainment; Gas Cards; Brent’s Deli;

Ventura Kosher Market and more

Contact Brenda Rich

at brenda.bashful16@gmail.com

or 805-469-1818

Need a special order???? Just ask!!!!!

We are here for YOU!!!!!

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See you there!

בברכה,

Andrea Massion, Chairperson

Ways and Means Committee

Ways and Means Committee Presents Lecture Series in the Spring

Dear Am HaYam members and friends,

The Ways and Means Committee of Congregation Am HaYam of Ventura County is pleased to announce three events in the spring of 2017 that we call

EMPOWERING, PROVOCATIVE, THOUGHTFUL.

Our goals are two-fold: to raise funds for CAH and to provide some thought-provoking events that both challenge and feed our love for knowledge. We know you will not be disappointed with the speakers we present on three different dates and times. The details are here in the newsletter. Suffice it to say, our guests, Gabriel Cordell, Rebecca D. Costa and Ronni Sanlo, are each dynamic and inspiring.

Tickets will go on sale beginning January 1

st and we are letting our membership know about it here

so that you can purchase tickets before they sell out!!! We encourage you to buy the “All 3 events” ticket at $36.00 on Eventbrite.com beginning January 1, 2017. Tickets to individual events will be available as well.

(Those who wish to write a check to CAH can do so and mail it in or hand it to Brenda, our president or any CAH Board member.

Warm thanks to our Ways and Means committee members and board members who are working together to bring you these three special events:

Brenda Rich

Ruth Resnick

Fran Lande

Neal Abramson

Marc Goldman

Rabbi Sacks

Miriam Mack

Bev Rosen

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Thursday, February 16, 2017

7:00 pm Born of Palestinian parents and living in New York, Gabriel Cordell was victim to a near-death accident that

left him a paraplegic. After overcoming drug addiction, he set out to become the first person to travel across

the United States using a manual wheelchair. “Roll with Me” documents Gabriel’s 99-day journey across

America, a compelling story and a demonstration that the power of the human will is limitless. Gabriel has

since followed up with his “Peace Ride,” a 4-day excursion from Haifa to Tel Aviv.

“I roll to inspire people to live up to their potential, to show them they can do anything they set their mind to

and this roll in Israel is also about inspiring peace, compassion and tolerance”

Watch his documentary film, “Roll with Me” followed by a Q & A with Gabriel. (Film has Mature Con-

tent)

Congregation Am HaYam

4839 Market St., Unit C, Ventura, CA 93003

Tickets at www.Eventbrite.com: $15.00 ● Tickets at the door: $18.00

Parking is at the REAR of the building. For further information on our

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Call for Volunteers!

The Ways and Means Committee is excited

about our first of three lectures in our series:

Will you help? Say yes. We need at least 12 good folks to be

Ushers,

Ticket Checkers,

Parking Supervisors,

and “Box Office.”

And of course, help clean up after.

The only requirement is: you must purchase tickets to

the events that you are volunteering for.

(all three for $36.00 at Eventbrite.com

beginning January 1st, or a check to CAH)

Here’s another opportunity to greet potential new members, and to welcome the

public-at-large to our congregation. Your volunteering will also ensure the success

of these evenings so please let us know before January 30, 2017.

It’s going to be wonderful.

To volunteer for one night

or for all three,

please email Andrea Massion @ almassion@mac.com,

or call her at 818 802-2973. We thank you!

Here Are Those Dates Again:

Gabriel Cordell—Thursday, February 16, 2017 at 7pm. (Arrive at 6pm.)

Rebecca D. Costa—Wednesday, March 22, 2017 at 7:30 pm. (Arrive at 6:30 pm)

Ronni Sanlo—Sunday, April 30, 2017 at 2:30 pm (Arrive at 1:15 pm for this one)

Reception to follow.

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From the Adult Education Committee

MISHLOACH MANOT ARE COMING!

This year CAH is once again participating in the custom of mishloach manot. Also

known as mishloach manos or shortened to shalach manos, these are goodies

(all kosher) given out at Purim. These bags or baskets are given to relatives, friends,

teachers, neighbors, business associates and any other acquaintances you may have.

The mitzvah of giving mishloach manot derives from the Book of Esther. It is meant to

insure that everyone has enough food for the Purim feast and to increase love and

friendship among Jews as a counter to Haman’s assertion that the Jewish people are

characterized by strife and disunity.

Mishloach manot is made up of sweets, drinks and other food items and can vary from

temple to temple and year to year. . It is always fun to open them and discover what

has been given. The one item you can count on is of course hammentashen.

This is not only fun but it brings in money for the congregation. Last year it was a

big success bringing in more than $3000, helping the synagogue in many ways. You

can purchase as many mishloach manot as you wish and there will be a discount for

different quantities purchased. Let us say 10 people want to send Rabbi Sacks a

mishloach manot. He gets one bag with a card showing the ten names of those who

gave it to him.

Please see order form in the next Migdalor for all the important details. We hope

to have everyone participate.

For additional information or questions contact

Ruth Resnick

984-3560

Fran Lande

francat@aol.com

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ADULT EDUCATION PRESENTS SIGNIFICANT BOOK CLUB

The next Book Club will be Sunday, February 19. 2017 at Brenda & Arnie’s

The Kidnapping of Edgardo Mortara by David Kertze

The extraordinary story of how the vatican's imprisonment of a six-year-old Jewish boy in 1858 helped to bring about the collapse of the popes' worldly power in Italy.

Bologna: nightfall, June 1858. A knock sounds at the door of the Jewish merchant Momolo Mortara. Two officers of the Inquisition bust inside and seize Mortara's six-year-old son, Edgardo. As the boy is wrenched from his father's arms, his mother collapses. The reason for his abduction: the boy had been secretly "baptized" by a family servant. According to papal law, the child is therefore a Catholic who can be taken from his family and delivered to a special monastery where his conversion will be completed.

With this terrifying scene, prize-winning historian David I. Kertzer begins the true story of how one boy's kidnapping became a pivotal event in the collapse of the Vatican as a secular pow-er. The book evokes the anguish of a modest merchant's family, the rhythms of daily life in a Jewish ghetto, and also explores, through the revolutionary campaigns of Mazzini and Garibaldi and such personages as Napoleon III, the emergence of Italy as a modern national state. Moving and informative, the Kidnapping of Edgardo Mortara reads as both a historical thriller and an an authoritative analysis of how a single human tragedy changed the course of history.

Six Days of War by Michael Oren

Though it lasted for only six tense days in June, the 1967 Arab-Israeli war never really ended. Every crisis that has ripped through this region in the ensuing decades, from the Yom Kippur War of 1973 to the ongoing intifada, is a direct consequence of those six days of fighting. Michael B. Oren’s magnificent Six Days of War, an internationally acclaimed bestseller, is the first comprehen-sive account of this epoch-making event.

Writing with a novelist’s command of narrative and a historian’s grasp of fact and motive, Oren reconstructs both the lightning-fast action on the battlefields and the political shocks that electrified the world. Extraordinary personalities—Moshe Dayan and Gamal Abdul Nasser, Lyndon Johnson and Alexei Kosygin—rose and toppled from power as a result of this war; borders were redrawn; daring strategies brilliantly succeeded or disastrously failed in a matter of hours. And the balance of power changed—in the Middle East and in the world. A towering work of history and an enthralling human narrative, Six Days of War is the most important book on the Middle East conflict to appear in a generation.

In My Brother's Image by Eugene Pogany is the extraordinary story of Eugene Pogany's father and uncle-identical twin brothers born in Hungary of Jewish parents but raised as devout Catholic converts until the Second World War unraveled their family. In eloquent prose, Pogany portrays how the Holocaust destroyed the brothers' close childhood bond: his father, a survivor of a Nazi internment camp, denounced Christianity and returned to the Judaism of his birth, while his uncle, who found shelter in an Italian monastic community during the war, became a Catholic priest. Even after emigrating to America the brothers remained estranged, each believing the other a traitor to their family's faith. This tragic memoir is a rich, moving family portrait as well as an objective historical account of the rupture between Jews and Catholics.

The books can be bought at Amazon.com using Amazon smile to support CAH or at Barnes and Noble or other book sellers.

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CHAVURAH INTEREST

The Membership Committee is sending you this form to discover if you have an interest in joining a

Chavurah. A Chavurah is a small group of families, couples or individuals who share common inter-

ests and desires. These groups meet together, usually monthly, to study, socialize, cook, camp, or

participate in any other activities. Each group sets their own schedule and plans their own activities.

A Chavurah is a wonderful way to build and nurture strong friendships within our Congregation Am

HaYam family extending beyond the schedule of community services and events

After receiving back this questionnaire, an organizational meeting will be set to get everyone together

to make further plans.

Name(s)________________________________________________________________________

Address_________________________________________________________________________

Phone #______________________________________ Email______________________________

Name and age of other members in your household______________________________________

Please circle age group you prefer: 30 -39 40-59 Over 60

Please circle the situation that best applies to you and your family:

Single Adult Adults Only Family (events with children) Other___________________

What type of events do you expect from a Chavurah (e.g. Judaic Studies; Social Activities; Sporting

events; Discussion groups; Jewish cooking; Book groups; Theater groups, other Interests?)

Please fill out this form and return it to: Brenda Rich; 4030 Nice Court; Oxnard, CA 93035

FORM AVAILABLE DIGITALLY AT www.amhayam.com

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Mondays with Mort

During the month of January there will be sessions of Mondays With Mort at CAH at 10:30 AM on every Monday except Monday, January 2nd. Everyone is welcome to attend as we conclude the book of Genesis (Beraishit) and begin the book of Exodus(Shemot).

Question of the Month:

What is Joseph called in the Bible?

The answers can be found at http://www.mondayswithmort.com/doyouknow.htm, Also be sure to check out the entire Mondays with Mort web site at http://www.mondayswithmort.com and the CAH web site at www.amhayam.com .

Mort

Mondays with Mort

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January Birthday’s

If your birthday or anniversary is not acknowledged please email me at

bfrosen@gmail.com

January Anniversaries

NO ANNIVERSARIES

Arnie Rich 16

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Food Share Collection

Food Share – The Good News and the BETTER News

The good news is Food Share came and emptied an entire barrel of

non-perishable food donated by members of CAH. The BETTER news

is that the barrel is again empty, sitting in the lobby, and waiting for

more of your donations! Please take a paper bag and return it full

of non-perishable foodstuffs to help the one in six people of Ventura

County who are food insecure. Let this be your first Mitzvah of the New

Year!

A Community of Caring

We are a family, and sometimes our members need to know there are

people who are concerned about them. If you or someone you know in

the CAH family is ill, bereaved or in need of consolation, condolence or

acknowledgement of a happy event, please contact Brenda Rich so she

can alert our volunteers who will reach out to offer a caring voice or

helping hand.

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Get Well

Bob Packer

Sheila Myles

Fran Lande

Gail Packer

Miriam Rubinstein

Irv Jacobs

Dawn Kennedy

Elaine Hanig

Jerry Davis

Maurice Kozak

Arnie Rich

Lois Lebman

Nancy Stein

Donna Gustafson

ATTENTION ALL JEWISH WAR VETERANS MEMBERS

JWV Post 602

meets in the Veterans Administration Clinic,

Recreation Building 22, 16111 Plummer Street, North Hills, CA.

They meet the 1st Sunday of each month, at 10:00 am and all Jewish Veterans are wel-

come to attend.

Please join us there.

Ann Jacobs

Norma Van Riper

Rachel Kozak

Mort Resnick

Dianne Ruthman

Fred Rosen

Ann Sperber

Herb Stein

Kenny Halpern

Roz Resnick

Lee Rothschild

Barbara Miner

Beth Morales

Betty Abramson

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*Inscribed on Memorial Wall

January 6

Regina Spunt Hacker, Mother of Fil Barton

Feiga Sobol, Grandmother of Cookie Dimant

*Sol Kozak, Father of Maurice Kozak

Sylvia Fogel, Grandmother of Myra Matlin

Albert Zeller, Father of Sheila Myles

Ruth Hochberg, Mother of Mildred Rubenstein

January 20

Louis Bardfield, Husband of Deanne Bardfield

Benjamin Dennis, Father of Renee Becker

Leah Dennis, Mother of Renee Becker

*Irving Prilook, Father of Elaine Hanig

Rose Matlin, Grandmother of Myra Matlin

Roselyn Matlin, Mother of Myra Matlin

Maurice Ruthman, Father-in-Law of Dianne Ruthman

Fred Sperber, Brother-in-Law of Ann Sperber

Jerome Wolfson, Brother of Ilana Wolfson

YAHRZEIT

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January 2017—Tevet/Sh’vat 5777

Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat

1 2 3 4 5 6 7

NO Mondays with Mort

Candle Lighting

4:44 pm

Services 8pm

Services 10:00 AM

Shabbat Ends 5:44 pm

8 9 10 11 12 13 14

Ritual Meeting

10 am.

Board Meeting

11am

At home of Arnie

and Brenda Rich

Mondays with Mort @

10:30AM

Membership

meeting 4:30 pm

at CAH

Ways and Means

meeting 6:30 pm Candle Lighting

4:51 pm

Shabbat Ends 5:50 pm

15 16 17 18 19 20 21

Happy Birthday

Arnie Rich

Mondays with Mort @

10:30AM

Candle Lighting

4:57 pm

Services 8pm

Services 10:00 AM

Shabbat Ends 5:56 pm

22 23 24 25 26 27 28

Mondays with Mort @

10:30AM

Candle Lighting

5:04 pm

Shabbat Ends 6:02 pm

29 30 31 Mondays with

Mort @ 10:30AM

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Rabbi J. B. Sacks

rabbijb@aol.com———phone#323-387-0096

BOARD OF DIRECTORS

PRESIDENT Brenda Rich

brenda.bashful16@gmail.com

phone#-805-469-0268

VICE-PRESIDENT—

TREASURER - Lois Lebman

SECRETARY - Donna Gustafson

CORRESPONDING SECRETARY-Ruth Resnick

WAYS & MEANS VP - Andrea Massion

MEMBERSHIP VP - Miriam Mack

RITUAL VP - Roz Resnick

RITUAL VP Emeritus—Milt Rothschild

HOUSING VP - Neal Abramson

IMMEDIATE PAST PRES - Brenda Rich

ADULT EDUCATION VP - Fran Lande

DIRECTORS—Marc Goldman, , Elaine Hanig,

Janice Aharon-Ezer, Rick Newberger

PAST PRESIDENTS

Mort Resnick

Arnie Fingerhut

Jerry Ruthman z'l

Peter Shack z'l Brenda Rich

OUR VOLUNTEERS

Kiddushim - Brenda Rich

Oneg Shabbat -Fil Barton

Librarian Donna Gustafson

Programming

Tributes Ann Jacobs

Telephone

Purchasing Ruth Resnick

Yahrzeits Bev Rosen

Migdalor Bev Rosen

Sunshine

Webmaster Jef Bratspis

Publicity