An Exciting Update About Our Solomike Early Childhood Center
04/03/2024 10:14:50 AM
Greetings TBT Family,
I’m reaching out to share an exciting update on our Solomike Early Childhood Center (SECC).
As you know, in February we successfully reached our $1,500,000 fundraising goal, enabling us to move forward with this once-in-a-generation opportunity.
At the Board of Directors meeting on March 27th, project leaders Elliot Paull and Brent Carson presented a construction budget consistent with...Read more...
An Update From Our TBT Sisterhood Board
03/27/2024 08:46:30 AM
When you think of Sisterhood do you think of the people who bake cookies for the Onegs? And do you think of the women who run the temple Judaica Shop? Do you also think of leaders of TBT? And of those who advocate for a more just and compassionate world for all people – issues such as diversity education, reproductive justice, climate justice, pay equity, and more?
Those are just some of the things that...Read more...
Bearing Witness to All That Was & All That Could Be
03/13/2024 09:53:48 AM
If I’m being honest, there are parts of the Torah that seem to drag on FOR-EV-ER. This week is one of those moments for me. We’ve reached the final portion in the book of Exodus, Parshat P’kudei, and we’re talking about….building the Tabernacle! I usually groan and think “Still?! What more is there to say?”
For more than a third of Exodus, we’ve been reading detailed instructions about what...Read more...
Engaging Youth, Engaging Parents, Engaging Families
02/21/2024 10:58:39 AM
We help support religious school events, but we don't stop at TBT youth...
We plan activities for parents during religious school, but we don't stop at TBT parents...
We host fun events for families...we do it all!
We are the Youth Engagement Committee and we work to engage youth, parents, and families. Each month we look for ways to get these three important demographics interested in coming to...Read more...
Food Insecurity
02/09/2024 11:16:30 AM
My husband, Greg, and I got more involved with food insecurity issues early in the COVID pandemic. When everyone was staying home and perfecting their sourdough recipes, an article ran in The Seattle Times about a group of home bakers in the Seattle area who saw an increased need in the local food banks. During the pandemic, collections were down but demand was up. They wanted to use their skills to bake nutritious bread and donate...Read more...
Reflecting on Our Journey & What Lies Ahead
02/07/2024 10:07:17 AM
Do you know what’s so unusual about my job?
When I do it well, I work myself into unemployment!
What’s my job? Of course, it’s being a rabbi. But that term, “interim,” means something additional.
My job is to promote healing, to encourage dreaming, and to facilitate building. If successful, then I am no longer needed, and a congregation continues on its own Jewish journey without me. The most interesting...Read more...
TBT Annual Spring Fundraiser 2024
01/19/2024 10:20:54 AM
Each year at TBT, we hold two main fundraisers: our Annual Fall Campaign, and our Annual Spring Fundraiser. As you may already know, TBT’s annual membership dues account for about 40% of our income. These two fundraisers are our way to make the rest of our budget.
For those who aren’t familiar, our Spring Fundraiser is a long-time TBT tradition of raising funds while having fun! Your ticket cost primarily...Read more...
Shevat: Planting Seeds for Our Future
01/10/2024 11:04:46 AM
This might be hard to believe given the current weather, but today is the first day of the Hebrew month of Shevat. Shevat is supposed to be a month of abundance and rebirth. We will celebrate Tu B’Shevat, our holiday honoring trees and their hypothetical reemergence from dormancy, at the full moon. On Tu B’Shevat, we enjoy all the delicious fruits and nuts that come from trees, and we often plant parsley seeds to get ready for...Read more...
Shared Vision: An Update
12/14/2023 03:45:16 PM
Shared Vision is about understanding who we are, what are our strengths, and how we can aspire to be even better. It happens only when each of us contributes our own vision, our unique perspective.
Our process to acquire this information takes three approaches: individual conversations, small group conversations, and congregational-wide input. We have met with congregants and learned about their Jewish journeys. We are in...Read more...
Finding the Light This Chanukah
12/05/2023 02:18:36 PM
Normally, Chanukah is a fun time of the year. Between the food and the parties and the gifts and the lights, these eight days truly light up our lives.
But this year is anything but normal.
In fact, in my almost 70 years, I am not sure I’ve ever experienced a Chanukah like this.
Israel – the place where the story of Chanukah occurs – is at war. As of writing this note, there are still 140 hostages being held...Read more...Refugee & Immigrant Justice: An Interview with Dick & Carrie Stein
11/27/2023 04:04:44 PM
No one in the Temple B’nai Torah community has been as immersed in immigrant and refugee justice issues as Dick and Carrie Stein. As TBT’s liaisons to the Jewish Coalition for Immigrant Justice (JCIJ), they have been part of the team working tirelessly to support and advocate for immigrants and refugees in Washington, and for the Riverton asylum seekers in particular. We asked the Steins to explain in more detail what this work means to...Read more...
An Update From Our Worship Committee
11/21/2023 10:01:56 AM
Shalom, TBT family!
I'm Keith Ketover, your fellow congregant, and the chair of the Worship Committee here at TBT. As part of the Board of Directors, I have the privilege of leading a fantastic group dedicated to making our sacred services meaningful and uplifting.
Our committee has its hands full with various responsibilities, from maintaining ritual policies to caring for our sacred objects. Yet,...Read more...
May Their Memories Be Blessings
11/08/2023 02:20:31 PM
We write again about the tragedy unfolding in Israel and Gaza. While the instinct might be to skip this message–because it has been so hard to listen to and watch the pain so many are experiencing–please read on.
It has been a month since October 7. We have reached the end of “sheloshim,” the 30 days of mourning traditionally spent remembering loved ones who die. Our tradition teaches that these 30 days are to be used to sit...Read more...
Making Sense of it All
10/19/2023 10:19:38 AM
Just before writing these words, I read a news report that said that the hospital that was destroyed in Gaza, killing 500 people, was most likely the result of a misfired rocket released by Hamas.
The ferocity with which Israel was condemned, when it was first thought to have been the perpetrator of this horrid tragedy, was breathtaking in its scope and intensity. Now that it has been (preliminarily) determined to have originated from...Read more...
Finding Our Way Together
10/10/2023 06:18:01 PM
As I write these words, the death toll of those murdered by terrorists in Israel has reached over 1,000. In addition, thousands more have been physically or emotionally traumatized. Added to this, we recognize that there are thousands, if not tens of thousands, of Palestinians, who are equally suffering due to no actions on their part and are equal victims of the heinous acts committed in their name.
While I continue to believe...Read more...
