Hi, SJLL parents -

Opening day of school is just one month away! I hope my enthusiasm is contagious.

I’m ready to have another great year. I hope you and your kids are, too!

My fun has continued throughout the summer.  The SJLL teachers and I have been meeting regularly.  Yes, we "talk shop," but we also just enjoy one another's company.  Here's a group photo from our last gathering, which was at my house this past weekend.

Many of us had had the opportunity not only to hang out, but to hang out in costume, at Temple Sinai’s July 28 open house.  It was a great, "the wizard of oz" themed, event, which saw many potential (and actual!) new congregants cross our threshold.  Here are a few photos I snapped.

(green-lensed 3rd-grade teacher Barbara Schwartz offers helpful information and a fun PJ Library-provided craft at the SJLL table; new RATSY (grades 8-12) adviser Allyrose Caruso and returning RATSY board member Rowan Bissonette offer Glinda-esque glow wands and yellow brick road chocolate bars to teenaged passers-by)

(Glinda the good witch, the Wizard of Oz, and an only-partially green Elphaba pose for a pic, we three looking entirely too friendly with one another!; the extended Simmons-Sarnov/Sarnov/Zusmanowitz family demonstrate their creativity as characters found on the yellow brick road)

(we also "unveiled" the newly reorganized family play space, replete with an exciting new PJ Library reading nook - SJLL teachers Kathy Adams and Pauline Rosenberg led story time and a craft, which, sadly, we did not photograph)

See what fun we've had this summer?  It is a harbinger of the fun we're planning for the school year!  so, let's make sure we're all set for that....

1) enrollment - if you are receiving this email, it is because one or more of your children are enrolled in school - if that is not intentional, please let me know ASAP - and to those who do intend for their students to be enrolled in school this year, I thank you for your support and participation!

2) tuition - tuition charges have been levied on the accounts of all families with children enrolled in school - payment is not automatic - you need to go into your ShulCloud account and either pay outright or set up a payment schedule - there is a lot of flexibility and, as ever, please be in touch if circumstances warrant it - thank you to those families who have already scheduled or made payments

3) parent survey - the accessibility & inclusion (A&I) committee and SJLL have partnered on a survey for you to please help us provide your children with the most accessible school experience possible - it is not a long survey - please complete it so we have as much helpful data as possible - here is the link

4) school calendar - SJLL dates for 2024-25 are set and can be accessed via the public Temple Sinai calendar - i will be working soon to craft a color-coded one-page document that will be shared via email and posted to the youth education page of the TS website - in the meantime, the most important date for you to be aware of is Sunday, September 8, which is the start of school!

5) skirboll lecture - federation has asked the synagogues to share information about the upcoming mort skirboll lecture on antisemitism with dr. Rachel Fish (a special guest whom I had the good fortune of studying with when I was in the Wexner heritage program a few years back) - the lecture is Thursday, September 5, 7 pm, at an as yet undisclosed location - it is free to attend - I know that antisemitism is front of mind for a lot of people these days - if you are one of them, I invite you to attend - click here for more information and to register

That's what I’ve got for you at the moment.  not too terrible a list considering how long it has been since I last wrote.  (my summer has been about practicing restraint!)

Just FYI, I leave this Saturday for a week (august 11-18) on faculty at URJ Camp George, a couple hours north of Toronto.  my son Simon has been there since July 25 and, since I’ve seen pictures but heard no news, is, I presume, having a fabulous time.  I haven't been to sleep-away camp myself in probably 35 years, so I hope I adjust well.  I don't have to share a cabin with anyone this time around, so that's an improvement right there!  I am especially looking forward to celebrating Shabbat there, as Shabbat at camp has always felt extra special.

I’m in the office through the end of the week, then again beginning Monday, August 19.

Be well, all!