July 3, 2025

Shalom Chaverim (Dear Friends),

This holiday week has been a busy one! Lori is back from Arizona, where she has been helping our son Noah and his family settle into their new home. We wish them many happy years there! It’s wonderful that for what feels like the first time in a long time, there are no urgent updates or new wars to report, and I hope that we all can enjoy a restful and peaceful holiday weekend. Of course, we continue to pray for the return of the 50 hostages still held in Gaza and for the safety of our brave chayalim (soldiers) who are defending Israel.

Tomorrow, we celebrate the Fourth of July, the day in 1776 when we officially declared independence from Great Britian. The spirit of celebration is felt across our campus, especially at our Marleen Forkas Summer Camps, where this afternoon, campers participated in Red, White and Blue Dress Up Day, and our annual Carnival Day celebration. Sporting patriotic gear, our happy campers were treated to carnival games, including a chance to dunk me in the dunk tank, snacks, water slides, and more! Today is also the last day of session one of our Shirley & Allan Solomon Family Theater Camp. We were delighted by yesterday’s two performances of Freaky Friday One-Act Edition where our talented theater kids lit up the stage delivering an unforgettable show full of heart and humor. Session two begins on Monday when the theater camp team and campers will dive into their next production, Cinderella Youth Edition.

Our Phyllis & Harvey Sandler Center’s Summer of Culture continues to sizzle! On Monday, June 30, our Marlene and Herb Levin Adult University’s Virtual Literary Lecture Series welcomed Ronald Balson to discuss A Place to Hide, his gripping novel of heroism and resistance during World War II. On Wednesday, July 2, our Judy Levis Krug Boca Raton Jewish Film Festival’s Movie Club: Documentaries Directed by Women screened Citizenfour, the Oscar-winning documentary following Laura Poitras and Glenn Greenwald’s meetings with government whistleblower Edward Snowden. This morning, our Gail Shapiro-Scott Summer Book Club gathered to discuss Orbital, Samantha Harvey’s award-winning novel following six fictional astronauts over 24 hours in space. Later, we welcomed Richard Knox for his lively Zoom presentation, “Rock and Roll Goes Hollywood.”

This week's Torah portion is Chukat (Statute) in the book of Numbers, the fourth in the Five Books of Moses. In it, G-d instructs Moses to speak to a rock and command it to give water. Frustrated with the Israelites, Moses strikes the stone instead. Though water issues forth, G-d forbids Moses and Aaron from entering the Promised Land. The lesson couldn’t be clearer: how we lead matters, especially in moments of frustration. Whether in business, our communities, or at home, we must always remember to pause and act with intention.

Light Shabbat candles Friday evening at 7:59 pm.
Shabbat ends Saturday evening at 8:56 pm.

Shabbat Shalom
Am Yisrael Chai!

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Marty