Help us create a new song! As we transition into the “Rhythm of Shabbat,” we will begin our service with a “Drum Circle” – we supply the instruments, you bring the rhythm! Percussion instruments will be available for all who wish to participate. Then we’ll share Shabbat dinner, followed by Open Lounge in the Youth Center with games and fun. Come celebrate Shabbat with ruach (spirit) and your congregational family! Dinner $25 per family (two adults & up to 4 children) and/or adults (13+) $10 per person. RSVP needed by Aug. 15.
There’s no place like home… there’s no place like CAI! This “Wizard of Oz”-themed event will allow current synagogue members to see old friends after the summer break and make new ones, as well as let those interested in learning more about CAI get acquainted. Clergy, school directors, staff and affiliate group representatives will be on hand to answer questions about the synagogue, its services, schools, programs and gift shop. Learn about our award-winning Preschool/Kindergarten, Religious School & USY programs and ask about our FREE membership program that includes High Holy Days tickets.
Lunch is included and there will be fun activities for all ages (Witch’s jumping castle, Glinda the Good Witch “bubble” balls (requested $1 donation to benefit USY), Twister (get it?), and more. Watch “The Wizard of Oz,” get silly with props in our rainbow backdrop (bring your camera!), and play our CAI/OZ Trivia Contest… you could win a great prize!
IT’S ALL FREE, but we ask that attendees participate in our Mitzvah Project to benefit HOPE Animal Shelter (friends of Toto!). EACH PERSON: PLEASE BRING AS YOUR ADMISSION TO THE EVENT
- Authority, Trader Joe’s, Fancy Feast or Kirkland brands dry or canned dog/cat food, or;
- Dog/cat toys, or;
- Laundry detergent, bleach or dish soap
RSVP by August 12 and be entered in a raffle; winner will be drawn at the party.
This interactive and upbeat Shabbat celebration for families incorporates fun-spirited melodies and family-themed activities. We’ll share Shabbat dinner, followed by Open Lounge in the Youth Center with games and fun. Come celebrate Shabbat with ruach (spirit) and your congregational family! Dinner $25 per family (two adults & up to 4 children) and/or adults (13+) $10 per person. RSVP needed by Sept. 12.
The evening includes a wine, cheese and dessert reception; Havdallah program “Areshet S’fateinu … May the Words of our Lips … Translating Prayer into Song”; the changing of the Torah covers and a moment to honor our Minyan; followed by the opening service to the High Holy Days, Selihot, at 10:00pm. No charge; however, reservations are requested by Sept. 19.
Spark your Jewish journey, create meaningful Jewish experiences and illuminate your understanding of the basics of Judaism.
Join us for a new free EVJCC workshop for adults that explores ways to enhance your Jewish cultural connection through music, food and hands-on activities that boost your understanding of each month’s topic.
Drop in for one or come to all! All workshops are held at 7 p.m. the East Valley JCC. Free to attend, with an $18 suggested donation. To register, email [email protected].
For a full schedule of upcoming topics, visit bit.ly/JewishSparks.
Join us for a new free EVJCC workshop for adults that explores ways to enhance your Jewish cultural connection through music, food and hands-on activities that boost your understanding of each month’s topic. Taught by Andre Ivory, EVJCC program director.
The Oct. 3 topic is “Shabbat: The Difference Between Holiness and Everything Else.”
The Nov. 6 topic is “Israel: Home Away From Home.”
The Center for Holocaust Education and Human Dignity of the East Valley Jewish Community Center will host a daylong program commemorating the victims of the Holocaust in observance of Yom Hashoah, Holocaust Remembrance Day.
Registration is required for all programs. To register, click here. All programs are free except for the Open Beit Midrash guided tour, which includes a kosher lunch. To make a payment, click here.
- Self-guided tours (Noon-3 p.m.): “Through the Eyes of Youth: Life and Death in the Bedzin Ghetto” is an exhibit created by the Martin-Springer Institute at Northern Arizona University that tells the story of young people in the Jewish ghetto of Bedzin, Poland, before, during and after the Holocaust. Reservations are required.
- Guided tour and lunch (11 a.m.): Bjorn Krondorfer, director of the Martin-Springer Institute at Northern Arizona University, will lead a tour of the above exhibit as part of Open Beit Midrash. The cost is $14, which includes a kosher lunch following the tour. Reservations are required by April 29.To register, click here. To make a payment, click here.
- Screening of “Shalom Italia” (1 p.m.): This documentary by Tamar Tal Anati tells the story of three Italian Jewish brothers set off on a journey through Tuscany, in search of a cave where they hid as children to escape the Nazis. Their quest, full of humor, food and Tuscan landscapes, straddles the boundary between history and myth, both of which really, truly happened. Reservations are required.
- Teacher’s workshop (4-5:30 p.m.): In this free workshop, Bjorn Krondorfer, director of the Martin-Springer Institute at Northern Arizona University, will lead a tour of the exhibit and discuss how to approach stories from the Holocaust with students. The program is geared toward teachers who teach high school or college students. Reservations are required.
- Yom Hashoah ceremony (6 p.m.): Procession of survivors and their descendants and a candle-lighting ceremony; presentation by Holocaust survivor Marion Weinzweig, author of “Lonely Chameleon”; presentation by Bjorn Krondorfer, who will share his story about finding out as an adult that his father was a German soldier at a slave labor camp in Poland; and reading of names, Mourner’s Kaddish, El Maleh Rachamim led by Rabbi Michael Beyo. Reservations are required.
Partners of this East Valley JCC program include The Martin-Springer Institute of Northern Arizona University, Temple Emanuel of Tempe, Temple Beth Sholom of the East Valley and the Sun Lakes Jewish Congregation.
Piazzolla- the Genius of Tango
Elmira Darvarova, Grammy Award Nominated Concert Violinist, Howard Wall, French Horn, New York Philharmonic and Thomas Weaver, Concert Pianist.
Tickets: General Admission: $36, Child, (under 14) admission: $14.
The East Valley JCC and the City of Chandler will host the annual Klezmer Fest from noon to 5 p.m. on Sunday, March 15, at the East Valley JCC, 908 N. Alma School Road, Chandler.
Lively and upbeat, klezmer is the traditional Jewish folk music of Eastern European Jewish communities. Over time, the style of music has grown to include instrumental music, Yiddish vocal music and modern fusion music that combines klezmer with world music such as Afro-pop, rock or hip hop.
This music festival will also include a Yiddish Experience that includes workshops and lectures focusing on topics such as genealogy and the Yiddish language. In addition, there will be children’s activities, such as inflatables, face-painting and a petting zoo, as well as kosher pizza and salads available for sale by Brad’s Mobile Pizza Oven.
Local bands include Jerusafunk, a nine-piece ensemble from Phoenix that blends traditional klezmer music with American Funk and other world music genres, such as jazz, salsa and samba; the Rural Street Klezmer Band of Temple Emanuel of Tempe that plays traditional Jewish soul music inspired by Eastern Europe, the Middle East, Yiddish theater and American jazz; Zaftic, whose rich and succulent sound is a mixture of Turkish, Arabic, Baroque, Irish and jazz; and Klezmerkaba, an 11-piece band from Tucson whose repertoire consists of klezmer pieces steeped in Eastern European tradition, as well as familiar Jewish, Yiddish and Israeli pieces from different eras and ethnicities. The festival will conclude with a massive jam session featuring all the musicians.
Tickets are $15 adults, $5 children up to age 12.
Visit evjcc.org/klezmerfest.