Social Action Update – March 2015

 March 2015

Tikkun Olam

Social  Action Update

The purpose of this Bulletin is to make our TBS family aware of what has gone on, is going on, and will be going on for Social Action and Social Justice within our TBS community as well as the general Orange County community. Tikkun Olam is one of the basic tenets of the Jewish people.

Why is our Social Action a big part of us at TBS? We have a great history in Social Action that we must preserve and… thanks to some remarkable people who give so much of their time, we will.

This year we celebrate the fifth anniversary of Mitzvah Meals. A very big ‘Thank You” to the countless number of volunteers from our TBS family, and from the community, that keep our Mitzvah Meals going strong. Unfortunately we continue to suffer from shortages in food and paper goods. We’re not getting the amount of food that we need to keep our commitment to Isaiah House, Wise Place, Southwest Community Center and First Presbyterian Church and Western Service Workers. Please consider bringing a canned item, pasta and/or pasta sauce, paper goods and condiments when you drop your child(ren) at religious or Sunday school, Friday night services and Torah Study. There are receptacles at various places at the temple campus to drop off your donations. We need your help to keep our pantries full. I will bring it to “Parties by Panache” for Mitzvah Meals. With your help, the program will keep feeding the hungry for many more years to come!

Mrs. Finkle’s first grade class has done another outstanding job of supporting Mitzvah Meals with their Purim Bake Sale. Yacher Koach!

Our continuous monthly program for Adopt a Social Worker has been a challenge. I thank those who have contributed for the Mitzvah of the Month, and hope to see more of us get involved. Watch your on-line TBS news for the Mitzvah of the Month item(s). Our current campaign is to bring Easter goodies for the Adopt a Social Worker program.

The LDS community has truly been a blessing to our TBS family. Now, we’d like to show our appreciation by joining hands and forces for one of their social action projects. The LDS community has asked us to join them for a social action activity with Second Harvest Food Bank in Irvine to take place April 25, 2015. Please contact me, Mark Borovay, to let me know if you are interested in participating in this very worthwhile activity. It would make a great service project for school children and would most likely satisfy high school service project requirements. The project will take place in two separate shifts (morning and afternoon) wherein half the volunteers will be invited to participate in the morning shift and the other half in the afternoon shift. The project is suitable for all ages (as long as children are accompanied by a parent). It takes place in a large warehouse at the Second Harvest facility in Irvine. The shifts are approximately three hours in duration but people are certainly encouraged to come and go as they are able. The project consists of assembling food boxes that are then distributed by Second Harvest to the underserved in Orange County.

The LDS community says, “We would consider it a great blessing and opportunity to serve shoulder to shoulder with our Jewish friends in order that we might become better acquainted as we serve God’s children”.

The Action Committee of the American Jewish World Service is inviting our congregation to get involved in helping pass the International Violence Against Women Act. This is a crucial piece of bipartisan legislation which, if passed, would enact into law a strategy to prevent and reduce violence against women around the globe. It currently has the support of many Democratic and some Republican legislators. AJWS is committed to helping pass this Act by educating and calling upon Jews in congregations in Southern California, and have already gained support from individuals as well as Congressional representatives through our speaker’s programs.
They would like to offer our synagogue any of the following programs, scheduled at our convenience:
1. Organizing letter-writing campaigns to local Congressional representatives, urging them to pass this Act, and thanking them for their stand on human rights.
2. Coordinating a Shavuot program in May, with materials developed by rabbis and rabbinic scholars as part of AJWS’ effort to support Jewish values around human rights issues.
For further information about AJWS and IVAWA, please read the following websites: www.AWJW.org and  www.AJWS.ORG/webelieve

Have you ever built a house from scratch? Are you a ‘closet’ electrician, painter, contractor or just wanted to help a family get a new start? Our chavurah participated in a build a few years ago and we learned new skills and aspects about ourselves that gave us such great satisfaction! I painted, hammered and climbed on the roof to help install shingles and electrical wiring. My wife, Sylvia, stayed on ‘terra firma’ and helped with the heating and duct work. We felt that we were truly part of something very special! Here’s your opportunity to learn a new skill, mentor others or just help out! Habitat for Humanity of Orange County (Habitat OC) is in need of volunteers! This faith based non-profit organization provides an opportunity for people to put their faith and God’s love into action. Habitat OC brings diverse groups of people together to make affordable housing and better communities a reality for everyone! To volunteer and make a difference in your community, call (714) 434-6200 ext. 234 or email  Volunteer@HabitatOC.org (Website: HabitatOC.org). Let me know if you want to participate as an individual, chavurah, special interest group, etc.

In our last issue, we asked our congregants what we are involved with outside the Temple. Gary Holloway responded with his personal social action project. One of the things he tries to do every year is participate in the Orange County AIDS Walk. This year’s walk is Saturday, May 9. How would you like to help us put together a TBS team? The team would do two things: walk and get pledges for walking. Gary’s email address is: gfholloway@me.com. You can also contact me at mhborovay@hotmail.com

Mark your calendars for the 2015 Holocaust Remembrance program at Chapman University on April 14 Each year, the Rodgers Center for Holocaust Education hosts an outstanding program that is spiritually and emotionally uplifting. Please join your fellow temple congregants at this outstanding program. Our TBS Brotherhood supplies the Yom Ha’Shoah candles that are used in the program. Details of this event are available in the JLife magazine.

Do you have a story to tell? We’d like to know what you do in your community (for social action/ social justice). Do you lead voter-recruitment drives? Do you volunteer at an animal shelter/rescue organization? Involved in literacy activities with people young & old? Volunteer in a senior home or youth services organization? Does your committee/organization need volunteers? How can we help you do a mitzvah?

Do you have ideas for Social Action/Social Justice? Share your ideas. Our goal for this year is to plan for the future. If interested, either call me at (714) 544-7889 or email me at mhborovay@hotmail.com.

“You get the best efforts from others not by lighting a fire beneath them, but by building a fire within.”-Bob Nelson