Our summer has been very busy trying to catch and conquer the groundhog that was eating our garden cucumbers, pepper and other vegetables in our victory garden.  We did succeed and we have had a great success with our tomatoes, eggplant and basil. The Matawan United Methodist Church has been delighted with our harvest. We still have string beans and more vegetables to harvest.  Our gardeners have been very diligent in their efforts.  If you have an abundance of vegetables in your garden, we would love it you would donate to the Matawan United Methodist Church food bank on Church Street and Atlantic Avenue.   In September 2010, we had our annual High Holy Day Food Drive to help the Matawan and Old Bridge food banks.    In October 2010, we had a political debate with Congressmen, Frank Pallone and Republican contender Anna Little, (6th district) and Rush Holt, and Republican contender Scott Sipprelle, (12th district).  The debate format was with a moderator from the League of Women Voters This took place in our Social Hall. In November 2011, we sponsored a Meet Your Freeholders Forum.  The main topic of discussion are the planned wind turbines that are to be build in Keansburg and also in Hazlet, next year.  There have been several town hall meetings with the community of Keansburg objecting to it being built so close to their homes.  The Freeholders are siding with the community.   We also had a food drive for Emmanuel Cancer Care.    We support the Improving Nutrition for Americas Children Act HR5504, which  improves the quality and nutritional value of meals served at school and child care facilities and provide food coverage when schools are not in session.  These meals are the only healthful meals for millions of American Children.   Temple Shalom is helping our congregants and the community by reaching out to those less fortunate. Perform a Mitzvah. It will be greatly appreciated. If you have an interest in Social Action issues, we invite you to join our Temple’s Social Action Committee.  Contact Lenore Robinson for more information.

READING BUDDIES A Program of Family & Children’s Service   Reading Buddies is an innovative early-childhood program that advances literacy skills and creates enthusiastic, confident young readers.  The program is comprised solely of volunteers who: read to small groups of students on a weekly basis in their classrooms choose from many schools in Monmouth County commit to one hour of reading each week receive training and volunteer recognition, and are eligible for travel reimbursement If you are interested in volunteering for this program contact Lou Schoen, Social Action Committee @ 732-534-4682 or plad13@aol.com   Volunteer to read and make a difference! Become a “Reading Buddy”

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COMMUNITY VICTORY GARDEN Gan Tikvah: "Garden of Hope" Click here to view the RAC Web write-up   The Social Action Committee is  coordinating with Temple Beth Ahm and the Matawan United Methodist Church to build a raised community victory garden outside of our social hall.  The produce from the garden will go to the church's food bank, which is part of the Matawan food bank. We need Temple families, adolescents, adults and seniors to help out. You can offer your time, no matter how limited or your truck, or you can make a donation to defray the cost of seedlings or other garden necessities.    Contact Lenore Robinson for more information. Hi Everybody! For those of you who know, I've been working on a documentary about this garden for the past few weeks.  I just completed this film today and it is available for you to view on YouTube by following this link: click here Thank you so much to everyone who helped me with this film.  Hopefully, this documentary will be winning awards in upcoming film festivals! - Mike Smith THIS IS TRULY A COMMUNITY EFFORT TO BENEFIT OUR COMMUNITY

MITZVAH OF THE MONTH Our current tzedekah project: THE FOOD BANK AT MATAWAN UNITED METHODIST CHURCH Donations will be used to purchase non-perishable food and other necessities.       Please be generous        Choose Your Mitzvah Matchmaker, Matchmaker The Caring Committee would like to embark on an ongoing project to ensure that no one is alone for a holiday. If you have room for an extra guest or two at your table, or if you find you will have no one to celebrate with, contact our Temple Office, 7325662621 and we will try to make a shidduch (match).    Send Care Packages to our College Students Several times per year, at the key Jewish holidays, Temple Shalom sends out a “care” package to the college students of our temple members, to show we care enough to stay in touch, to offer a bit of Jewish education and to help them feel that they remain a vital part ofour temple family. The packages include a few reminders of the specific holidays.   For example, the Purim package is a shalach manot Purim box filled with a gragger, mask, hamantashen baked by our Sisterhood, and a personal letter from the Rabbi. These packages are assembled by volunteers and last year our list grew to 50 students!   To keep this program going donations are needed in two vital areas:   MONETARY GIFTS These help us to pay for sending out the care packages and to buy items to fill them. Make checks payable to Temple Shalom (please write “college fund” in the check memo) and send to the temple office.   DONATE ITEMS You can donate some items to be included in the mailings.   Contact Debbie Ross to review what’s needed. E-mail your child’s college address to Debbie Ross as well and write “College Address” in the subject line.   Aid sought for needy children in Africa The Social Action Committee is collecting donations for the Ramal Child Care Center and their neighboring school in the slums of Nairobi, Kenya. They are without water, electricity, teaching supplies, and money for lunches as that is the only meal they have for the day. Please contribute what you would give as a present for one day of Chanukah. Ongoing Mitzvah Deeds Throughout the Year: Nursery & Religious School students collect Tzedakah for many causes including:   American Dental Association Foundation   Jewish Guild for the Blind   Kosher Meals on Wheels   Mazon, the Jewish Response to Hunger   Nursery School Hopathon in April supports MDA - Magen David Adom   Phone cards & Chanukah cards for Jewish military personnel   Say thanks to a soldier! Send a card, designed by children, with your message. Sisterhood Sponsors:     Delivery of plants to patients at Bayshore Hospital     Hummies and cards sent to soldiers overseas  Renaissance Actvity:     Pull Tab Collection for Ronald McDonald House     Deposit tabs in lobby   ToSTY Activities:     Annual visit to Assisted Living - Spend day with seniors to play games & other fun stuff     Benefit Concert will raise funds for causes including Darfur & HIV/AIDS

IMPORTANT NEWS!!!! What if Temple Shalom earned a penny every time you searched the Internet? Or how about if a percentage of every purchase you made online went to support our cause? Well, now it can!   GoodSearch.com is a new Yahoo-powered search engine that donates half its advertising revenue, about a penny per search, to the charities its users designate. Use it just as you would any search engine, get quality search results from Yahoo, and watch the donations add up!   GoodShop.com is a new online shopping mall which donates up to 37 percent of each purchase to your favorite cause! Hundreds of great stores including Amazon, Target, Gap, Best Buy, Ebay, Macy's and Barnes & Noble have teamed up with Good Shop and every time you place an order, you’ll be supporting your favorite cause. Just go to www.goodsearch.com and be sure to enter Temple Shalom of Aberdeen as the charity you want to support.   And, be sure to spread the word!

GREENFAITH MISSION STATEMENT As reform Jews, we know that God has charged us to guard and to preserve the Earth, and we have an obligation to be God’s partners in tikkun olam, repair of the world. We will therefore dedicate our people, our resources and our passion to protect and to serve the Earth.  We will institute energy savings, increase recycling, and focus on educational efforts for all ages to show our children that we care about their future and the Earth we share. We will inspire our congregants and reach out to our greater community to give wings to our hopes that together we really can change the world. GREENFAITH DIRECTORY    Apple Picking at Battleview Orchard    ARZA and GreenFaith    Beach Sweep in conjunction with Clean Ocean Action    Bike It!    Bird Feeding    Certification Program    Creating Compost    Eating Local Foods    EPA Toxic Air Proposal    Food Conservation    Garden and Beach Sweep News Articles    Gifts for any Holy Day    Having A Party?    Health and Beauty    Hydrofracking    International Food Day and Sukkot Movie - FRESH    Just Do One Thing    Laundry Energy Usage    Lawn Care Responsibility    Pets, Fleas, Ticks    Plastic Water Bottles - Kick the Habit    Purchase GreenFaith Water Bottles    Reduce Reuse Recycle    Sowing Peace    Sustainable Seafood    Water Conservation    Winter Energy Saving Tips    Working Together to Make a Difference

Help the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency reduce mercury and other toxic air pollution from coal-fired power plants

A new EPA proposal: Require many power plants to install widely available, proven pollution control technologies to cut harmful emissions of mercury and other toxins. The new rule will help: · Prevent 17,000 premature deaths and 11,000 heart attacks a year. · Prevent 120,000 cases of childhood asthma symptoms and about 11,000 fewer cases of acute bronchitis among children each year. · Avert more than 12,000 emergency room visits and hospital admissions, and 850,000 fewer days of work missed due to illness. But industry groups are attacking the proposal, hoping to weaken the rule. EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson met with GreenFaith to help rally support from people of faith. People like you. Please, show your support for this life-saving rule, and help reduce mercury pollution from power plants. Your voice will be heard when GreenFaith present a Statement of Support, including your name, to Administrator Jackson. To find out more or join your voice to sign a petition, go directly to http://greenfaith.org/programs/environmental-justice/reduce-mercury-pollution-from-power-plants Or check out the GreenFaith homepage at www.greenfaith.org

 

Not only is laundry a chore, it has a huge impact on our world! An average household does about 400 loads of laundry each year, consuming about 13,500 gallons of water according to Energy Star. Your dryer is the second biggest energy-hog! 1. When you replace your machine go Energy Star – it can save half the water 2. Wear it more than once- for some clothes such as jeans and other durables 3. Use green laundry detergent – avoid phosphates, use veggie based ingredients 4. Choose concentrated detergents – less fuel to package and ship 5. Wash in cold water, today’s detergents can handle it, to save $100 or more in fuel 6. HANG IT OUT TO DRY! The solar energy is free, and UV rays kill bacteria and fungi. Clothes last longer and smell fresher. 7. Reduce ironing by hanging immediately after wash cycle, fold where you want creases. Besides: ironing is a dull chore, and deteriorates fabric! 8. Avoid dry cleaning, it is definitely un-green, and unhealthy; especially PERC