Schmooze and News at AA
Special Message
New Member Spotlight
Over the course of the next few weeks, we will be highlighting new AA members in the form of a Q&A. We hope you will learn about and get to know the new members of the AA family!
Introducing Sarah Cohen
What part of Atlanta do you live in and what's your favorite part to visit?
I live in Dunwoody, close to family. My favorite part to visit is Virginia Highlands.
What's your 9–5 and 5–9 life?
9–5: I have a biomedical engineering background in medical device products and work for a company that develops novel treatments for advanced wound care. I've worked with medical devices of all sorts, especially cardiovascular devices. 5–9: I just got married in January to Michael Litzky. We have two dogs that keep us busy. I play viola in a community orchestra. I enjoy walks in the neighborhood and hiking and going for a swim and hanging out with friends and family (especially my nephews).
Is what you're doing now what you always wanted to do growing up?
Yes and no. When I was little I wanted to be a teacher. But once I was in high school and college I really wanted to be doing something in this field (biomedical engineering).
What's one fact about you that people would be surprised to find out?
I play viola in a community orchestra. I lived in Boston for 15 years, but I moved back for family and sort of always felt that Atlanta was home.
Why did you choose AA as your synagogue?
I grew up here, and members of my family belonged here for many generations. I was excited about the direction of bringing more music and singing into the synagogue and service, and I was excited about what was happening with that initiative.
Do you have a favorite charity that you wish people knew more about?
I have always been a supporter of the food banks wherever I am like the Atlanta Community Food Bank. They really are a basic need, and they support people in a time when it's needed the most.
Shabbat Corner
For a full schedule of Shavuot services and programming, please visit our Tikkun Leil Shavuot webpage or website calendar.
- Candle Lighting: 8:21 p.m.
- Shabbat Morning Service 🔀: 9:30 a.m.—Zoom
- Mincha/Ma'ariv/Havdallah Service ▶️: 8:15 p.m.—Zoom
- Conclusion of Shabbat: 9:05 p.m.
- Torah Parsha (Shavuot I and II):
- Shavuot I
- Torah Reading: Exodus 19:1–20:23
- Maftir: Numbers 28:26–31
- Haftara: Ezekiel 1:1–28, 3:12
- Shavuot II
- Torah Reading: Deuteronomy 14:22–16:17
- Maftir: Numbers 28:26–31
- Haftara: Habakkuk 3:1–19
- Shavuot I
Feel-Good News
Mazal Tov to Gail Heyman >>
Kiddush Sponors
Sheila and David Adelman in honor of their anniversary on 6/1
Events
Other Things Happening at AA
Registration for Kesher religious school (3 Yrs–6th Grade) and Neisah teen program (7th–9th Grade) is now open! Take advantage of our early-bird rates by applying before 
We are looking for nominations for The Marvin C. Goldstein and Rita Goldstein Wolfson Volunteer of the Year Award (presented to a volunteer who has shown outstanding efforts to strengthen our congregation and community) and the Cantor Isaac Goodfriend award for Exemplary Leadership to be presented at the Annual Meeting in June. To submit recommendations, please contact Jackie Nix (jnix@aasynagogue.org; 404.603.5743). Along with names, please include the rationale behind your recommendations. Each recommendation received will be vetted and researched by our clergy, professional staff, and officers for final award determinations.
Overnight summer camp plans? Is your child is heading to an overnight camp this summer? If so, we'd love to hear your plans so we can try to arrange a visit (with local Jewish camps) and/or send a small gift (all camps). Please fill out this brief survey letting us know where your child will be and when.
This year, we would like to include grandchildren in our college and graduate school outreach. In addition to letters and treats around the Jewish holidays, our rabbis will be making visits to schools with more than three Ahavath Achim connected students. Let us know where your grandchildren are studying, and we will make sure they receive something meaningful from you and your spiritual family! If you have a grandchild enrolled in college, please contact Jill Rosner (404.603.5741; jrosner@aasynagogue.org) with the student's name, email, and school housing address.
We feel blessed to have a vibrant community that believes in the power of prayer as a source of comfort, strength and healing. At every service, we take a moment to recite the names of individuals we are holding in our hearts for health and healing. Beginning January 1, 2023, all are welcome to add names to our Misheberach (Healing) Prayer List for 30 days. These names will be recited each morning during prayer regardless of their support's presence at services. At the end of 30 days, we request that names be renewed with our office receptionist, Fern Schorr (fschorr@aasynagogue.org; 404.355.5222). Without renewal, names will be removed from the list with our hope that our prayers were successful in sending strength and wholeness.
Do you know an AA congregant who is in the hospital or infirm? We are concerned about loved ones and friends who are in the hospital or infirm. Although our synagogue office remains closed, we are still working and would like to connect with you, especially in regards to pastoral care. If you have information about friends or family in the hospital or other care facilities, please contact Rabbi Rosenthal (lrosenthal@aasynagogue.org) directly. We always appreciate the opportunity to speak with anyone in need and offer support in any way we can.
Through our membership with the ADL's (Anti-Defamation League) Kulanu Initiaitve, our AA family is creating an antisemitism task force to partner with other communities across the country to collectively fight hate and antisemitism. Membership on the task force will require a year's commitment and involve participation in ADL virtual meetings and community of practice working sessions. Our congregation will also offer special programs, initiatives, and action steps to raise awareness, call out local and national antisemitic incidents, and build relationships with communities susceptible to antisemitic infiltration. To learn more about or to join the task force, please contact Rabbi Rosenthal (lrosenthal@aasynagogue.org).
Help feed the women at Rebecca's Tent, a shelter for homeless women at Congregation Shearith Israel! There are 21 dates to fill during the months of December, January, and March. Volunteering to provide dinner this season is easier than ever; safety concerns limit the number of women served, and the shelter can now accept restaurant meals or your home-cooked specialties. If you're ready to choose your date(s) to volunteer, please fill out the online form (link below). After signing up, we will email you with confirmation of your submission. For more details or questions about volunteering, please contact Ann and Herb Alperin (alperin@mindspring.com; 404.231.2310).
We have so many wonderful activities at Ahavath Achim Synagogue, from communal to spiritual to social action. The Membership Committee is requesting your help in asking others to come WITH you to any/all synagogue events! Share how many wonderful things are going on at AA with your friends and family! If you know of anyone who should be on our prospective member list or should be contacted by leadership in any way, please reach out to Miriam Habif Gelfond, Director of Outreach and Engagement (mhabif@aasynagogue.org). Thank you for your good word and promoting what Ahavath Achim – the synagogue of brotherly love – has to offer!
Ahavath Achim's Sisterhood is a dynamic organization of women of all ages with diverse experiences, talents, and interests within our synagogue, community, and the Jewish world. Every woman counts for Sisterhood to grow and thrive. Basic membership dues are $45, but we encourage you to join at a Chai-er level. Your generous dues and donations are vital for Sisterhood to continue to offer programs and projects that strengthen and sustain our Jewish values.
We need your involvement in AA's social action programs! Motivate your family and friends "into action" towards the betterment of our community, and envision our current programs continued for the future. Reach out to your nieces, nephews, friends, and new neighbors for new contacts and ideas to help us increase our pool of volunteers for our wonderful existing and future programs. We need you! Find out how you want to be involved by reviewing the list of social action programs in which our synagogue has been involved for many years. If you'd like to become involved, please email our Social Action Chair: Alan Wexler (alanwexler@databankinfo.com; 404.872.8880).
Are you a warm, friendly, dedicated volunteer who wants to make a difference in a fellow congregant's life through acts of loving kindness? Are you willing to make a personal call or visit to comfort and support a congregant who has lost a loved one or been ill? These caring touches – acts of loving kindness – make all the difference in the world to those receiving them. If you want to be a part of strengthening our community, then AA's new Chesed Initiative is for you! This committee will work with our clergy, staff, and lay leaders to connect members who need help with members who want to do good deeds! Additionally, if you know of a congregant who is facing personal difficulties related to health, loss, or grief, please contact Fern Schorr (fschorr@aasynagogue.org; 404.355.5222) to let us know. Help us reach out to members in need. We welcome your help and time with this important project.
In 1977 a very special Torah came to reside at AA. Czech Torah #1339 was originally written in the 1800s for the community of Plzeň, Czech Republic. The Torah survived the Holocaust, a coup, and 20 years in a basement with 1500 other scrolls before making it's way to London as part of the Memorial Scrolls Trust and eventually Atlanta. Today we are working to restore this piece of history to a usable state and welcome it into our sanctuary ark at our dedication in August. To do that, we need your help. Please consider making a donation to help restore this special Torah so it can be used for generations to come. The Czech Torah is championed by six generations of the Goldstein Family in memory of Betty and Leon Goldstein z"l and their love of Torah and learning.
Donate to the Ukraine Emergency Fund of Jewish Federation of Greater Atlanta
Tribute donations offer the ability to memorialize or honor friends and family through donations to a variety of designated funds. Tribute donations can be made in honor of B'nai Mitzvah, the birth of a baby, a graduation, a wedding, or other special occasion. Donations in memory of loved ones are a thoughtful and meaningful way to remember those who have passed away. Your donation will be acknowledged with a card to the recipient of this tribute. Please note that Tribute Donations require a minimum contribution of $18.
The Rabbi Neil Sandler Education Scholarship is funded by the Sisterhood to further promote Jewish education in the older adult population. To be considered for a scholarship, the program must benefit the Ahavath Achim community and be targeted toward older adult Jewish education. Please fill out the application form for your program to be considered for funding.
We are proud and grateful to formally launch the Marilyn Ginsberg Eckstein Cultural Arts Program Fund. Formerly the Cultural Arts Program, established in 1977, this fund was established by congregant Marilyn Ginsberg Eckstein to perpetuate AA's broad cultural arts program offerings. AA's cultural arts programming currently consists of: the Fran Eizenstat and Eizenstat Family Memorial Lecture Series, the Chamber Concert Series, the Liturgical Music Artist-in-Residency Program, weekly Shabbat and annual High Holiday musical offerings, and jazz, pop, vocal and instrumental concert offerings. The Cultural Arts Program has long been recognized for its breadth of offerings and its excellence. We hope that you will consider making contributions to this fund as the Marilyn Ginsberg Eckstein Cultural Arts Program offerings continue to present world-renowned speakers, dignitaries, artists, and virtuoso musicians.We are grateful and privileged to announce the launch of the Sonia Fishkin Memorial Fund. This fund was established by Dr. Andy Zangwill in Sonia's memory. The Sonia Fishkin Memorial Fund will honor Sonia's passion for the connection between song and Jewish spirituality. Contributions to the fund will sponsor individuals to create and bring new and singable Jewish music to Ahavath Achim and to the wider Jewish community for use during sacred events and services. Activities may include artists-in-residence, teaching workshops, concerts, and recordings.
We are proud and grateful to formally launch the Shirley Reisman Media Outreach Fund. This fund was established by the Reisman family in honor of Shirley z"l. Shirley was always passionate about the AA and together with her family had always been involved in various efforts and regularly attended services at the Shul I have had the personal privilege of knowing Shirley and always treasured my interactions with her, Don, and especially Bruce. This fund has been established to help us to upgrade and maintain the necessary audio/visual equipment to ensure that we give our clergy, staff, and leadership the necessary tools as we embrace the new digital platforms which will only become more important, even after the pandemic has ended. We hope that you will consider making contributions to this fund as we move forward so that we can remain current with the latest technology and trends.
AA and Ahava Early Learning Center are proud to participate in the ALEF Fund Scholarship, a program that allows families to make the dream of a Jewish school experience for their child a reality! Parents with children enrolled at Ahava are eligible and encouraged to apply for an ALEF Fund scholarship, which can provide up to approximately $9,000 of support per child per year! The ALEF Fund, Inc. is a registered Georgia 501(c)3 Student Scholarship Nonprofit organization that supports Jewish education in Georgia by helping taxpayers receive a dollar-for-dollar state tax credit for providing scholarships to students at the Jewish preschools or schools of their choice. This past year, thanks to the many who contributed a portion of their Georgia State Income Taxes to the ALEF Fund, Ahava received more than $100,000 in scholarship funds designated for students in our Pre-K class. Todah Rabah! Please visit the ALEF Fund website for more information about how you can allocate a portion of your taxes to help support Ahava or how your child can receive a financial scholarship for Pre-K. It's simple to qualify! Questions? Contact the Ahava ELC Director: Beth Arnold Helmey (beth@ahavalearning.org; 404.900.9411).
